Project Management

Discussion 1
How important are communication skills in project management?

Project management, as the phrase indicates involves managing the progression and completion of a group of tasks by a team of individuals in most cases. This group of tasks when executed with combined and coordinated efforts, result in the desired outcome, and here lies the undeniable significance of “Communication” as the backbone of project management. From communicating a project’s vision to delegating tasks, from tackling obstacles to coordinating tasks, communication is the foundation on which project execution works.

A part of this involves ensuring that all team members are on the same page when instructions on a task are discussed. Effective communication is important for each team member to understand his/her job responsibilities, freedom and boundaries of decision making. Team members equipped with the skill of effective and efficient communication can avoid conflicts, gain clarity on project progression, save time and be involved in meaningful discussions which can take the project to the next level and make it a success. Finally, communication plays a huge role in a project manager inspiring and motivating his/her team members to come together to give their best.

Was Herb the right person to be assigned as the project manager?

From the case study, it is evident that Herb did not have sufficient prior experience as a project manager. As a project manager, it was Herb’s responsibility to ensure that everyone was on the same page regarding all tasks and schedules. In the early stages of the project or before the project initiation, Herb should have laid out the guidelines of communication and stressed what is accepted and what is not. As a project manager, Herb should have emphasized that no message be assumed and that clarity in communication is a priority at all stages and areas. Clearly, Herb failed to do carry out his responsibility which led to chaos, confusion, and dissatisfaction among project members. Therefore, in my opinion, Herb was NOT the right person to be assigned as the project manager.

There were communications issues with Alice, Bob, Betty, and Frank. For each communication issue, where was the breakdown in communications: encoding, feedback, and so on?

The breakdown in communication:

Alice: The breakdown in Alice’s communication occurred due to her poor encoding skills. When she delivered her message to Herb, she did not request for a letter of recommendation in any form.

Bob: The breakdown in Bob’s communication occurred because he hadn’t mentioned to Herb that it was necessary for him to give a memo in writing to the engineering team. This is an issue in encoding. The engineering team forgot to run the tests as directed by Herb making it a decoding defect in the recipient.

Related: [SOLVED] Project Management.

Betty/Frank: The issue with Betty’s issue deals with both encoding and decoding the message. Herb did a poor job encoding the message and instructing her clearly not to do anything else other than just look at the costs of the procurement materials.

Discussion 2
Communication is one of the most important tools of project management. A Project manager should be clear and concise in his/her communication to the team members to be able to do the tasks in right time.

Below points explain the criticality of communication skills in project management –

a) To effectively delegate the tasks and communicate the open questions or queries around them.

b) To clearly communicate the deadlines and track the project progress

c) To communicate important decisions to the team in writing or through emails to maintain as a record for future communications

d) To discuss in team meetings and send minutes of meeting post discussion to list down the action items and decisions

Though Herb had a very strong technical experience as a subject matter expert in R&D and Manufacturing, he worked individually throughout his experience and hardly worked with teams other than the time when he spent with people in project team meetings.

A Project Manager needs to have the following skills and qualities to successfully lead a team towards completion of project. Herb lacks in all these qualities or skills,

a) Understand the importance of clear verbal and written communication

b) Involve the right people responsible for the departments in communicating the important decisions concerning their respective departments.

c) Read through the minds of team members, understand their intentions and react accordingly.

d) If there is a conflict in the decisions of two departments, identify the reason behind the conflict, discuss in length with the teams involved and provide an amicable solution to both considering the project objectives.

Clearly, Herb failed to do carry out his responsibility which led to confusion and dissatisfaction among his project members. Therefore, in my opinion, Herb was definitely NOT the right fit for project manager role.

Communication issues of Herb with team members

Herb and Alice – Herb couldn’t decode the discussion with Alice due to which Herb did not recommend Alice for the promotion. It is about a senior employee’s career and this miss on Herb’s side got him dishonor.

Herb and Bob – Herb didn’t involve Bob in the communication to the engineering technicians which resulted in the workers forgetting what Herb ordered them to do.

1. Describe the organizational structure of Republic Services (RSG-NYSE). What difficulties are there working within this structure? 2. Write a job description for a project manager in a matrix organization. Assume that only the project manager is employed full time by the project. 3. Henry Ford invented mass production. In doing so, he perfected the assembly line concept in which each worker does only one job or a handful of jobs and is given little other responsibility. This worked well for 70 years; however, it became apparent in the 1990s that an increasing number of U.S. companies could not produce a high-quality product by sticking to the assembly line model. What has changed?

1. Describe the organizational structure of Republic Services (RSG-NYSE). What difficulties are there working within this structure? 2. Write a job description for a project manager in a matrix organization. Assume that only the project manager is employed full time by the project. 3. Henry Ford invented mass production. In doing so, he perfected the assembly line concept in which each worker does only one job or a handful of jobs and is given little other responsibility. This worked well for 70 years; however, it became apparent in the 1990s that an increasing number of U.S. companies could not produce a high-quality product by sticking to the assembly line model. What has changed?

Establish a solid foundation for a happy working environmentDorgan’s book, Generation Next, outlines general descriptions of each of the following generations:- The Silent Generation- Boomers- Generation X- Millennials- Generation ZFrom the readings, four life elements were outlined on Values, Lifestyle and Workstyle, Leisure, and Economic Activity for each generation. As a project manager and a hiring manager, pick one of the generations and discuss specific ways you could address each of the five elements to establish a solid foundation for a happy working environment.

Do some research on the concept and write a word document, IN YOUR OWN WORDS, (about 700 words) that answers the questions:What is the Cone of Uncertainty, what is the core concept?What is the value of the Cone of Uncertainty?You will need an intro heading, a body with headings, a conclusion heading, and references. 

Assignment DetailsFor this assignment, you will present organizational structure recommendations for your employer or for a different organization with which you are familiar. Choose an organization that is not yet global, and then prepare a 15-minute presentation using PowerPoint (about 15 slides) on your organizational structure recommendations (global, mixed, transnational, subsidiary, export, or others) and why you are making these recommendations. Be sure to incorporate concepts, such as communication or global strategy.Slide #     Slide Topic1    Title2    Introduction of Selected Company3    Review of Globalization and Impact on Selected Company4    Review of Global Organizational Structure Type5    Review of Mixed Organizational Structure Type6    Review of Transnational Structure Type7    Review of Subsidiary Structure Type8    Review of Export Structure Type9    Presentation and Justification of Selected Organizational Structure10    Structure for Selected Company of Selected Organizational Structure11    Potential Barriers to Implementation (e.g., Social, Cultural, Economic, Political, and Others)12    Role of Operations Managers in Selected Structure13    Corporate Social Responsibility in Selected Structure14    Methods and Tools in Selected Structure (e.g., Capacity Planning, Quality Tracking, Forecasting15    References

Describe a time when the use of too much data, too technical of data, or inadequate data affected a project you were involved with. What would you do differently as the project manager?

Question 1: What are five common reasons for crashing a project?Question 2: What are the advantages and disadvantages of reducing project scope to accelerate a project? What can be done to reduce the disadvantages?Question 3: Why is scheduling overtime a popular choice for getting projects back on schedule? What are the potential problems for relying on this option?

You are required to write a paper on Ethics and Ethical Behavior as it relates to the Architectural, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry. The paper content should be based on the concepts of ethics and ethical behavior as discussed in class and within the framework of the article entitled “The Fifty-Nine-Story Crisis” about the design flaws in the Citicorp Tower and the ramifications of the actions taken by the different parties.Select only ONE of the following characters and discuss the ethical dilemmas and behavior from their perspective:William J. LeMessurier, Structural EngineerHugh Stubbins Jr., ArchitectJohn S. Reed, Citicorp’s Executive Vice PresidentBase your discussions of your chosen character’s behavior on the six-step process for making an ethical decisions that were discussed in the Ethics in Construction lecture. Your paper should include the following sections at minimum (use section headers):Introducing the character and his role in the events of the Citicorp incident;Identifying and discussing the ethical dilemma(s) that faced your chosen character;Gathering the facts related to the identified ethical dilemma(s);Listing the options the chosen character could take;Discussing the application and results of the action already by the character; andBonus: Describing the expected turn in events if your chosen character took a different course of action that described in the article.The paper must be well-written, concise, with natural flow of ideas. The paper should also be well organized and free from spelling and grammar mistakes. Students are required to use headings and proper formatting to make it easier for the reader to follow the line of thought. The grading of the paper will be based on its: technical content, writing style, and organization.

Case Study: The BP oil spill: British Petroleum’s fatal Deepwater Horizon explosion and resulting oil spill in 2010conduct research, develop an analysis of the issues of the case, determine your argument, provide supporting facts, and identify recommendations with an explanation of your rationalA.    Introduction[B.    Overview  a.      Company History    b.      Leadership    c.      Products and Services Offered    d.      Market share and competition    C.      Oil Spill (Deepwater Horizon)      a.      Cause                                                                                 i.     Negligence                                                  ii.     Accidental                                                  iii.     Faulty Equipment      b.      Effect                                                    i.     Environmental                                                  ii.     Wildlife, marine life        c.      Political                                                    i.     Legislative (congressional)      d.      Economic Impact                                                    i.     Workforce                                                  ii.     Resources                                                  iii.     Tourism        e.      Internal Infrastructure                                                    i.     Employee moral                                                  ii.     Legal ramifications