Expanding George’s Gyms
The assignment is divided into four (4) components and is to be
completed individually.
On completion of this case study, students will be able to develop a project management
plan (PMP) and a project schedule using Microsoft Project (MS Project), as well as
evaluate their own work and the work of others.
More specifically, you will be able to:
Define the project objective(s) and scope;
Identify the project deliverables, constraints and assumptions;
Identify the project stakeholders;
Create and use Gantt charts and resource allocations using MS Project; analyse and
highlight the key findings
Show understanding and ability to apply the tools of project management as
presented in class to date to the assigned case;
Provide critical feedback to colleagues; and
Critically assess your response to this case study.
Component Due Date Location Value
Component 1: Scope statement
(hard copy)
At the beginning of class 4
27 August 2014
In class 10%
Component 2: Peer feedback
(hard copy)
At the beginning of class 5
3 September 2014
In class 5%
Component 3: Project
Management Plan (PMP)
(both hard and soft copies* )
22
nd
September, 5pm BA level 11, Assignment
submission box
30%
Component 4: Self-assessment
(hard copy)
22
nd
September, 5pm BA level 11, Assignment
submission box
5%
Please upload a draft copy of the report section of your case study through Turnitin, available in
the Blackboard site, to check to any plagiarism, prior to submitting the final copy of your
assignment.
*For component 3, please submit both a hard and a soft copy of your project management plan including
all relevant MS Project outputs etc., on a USB key.
Faculty of Business and Enterprise
Higher Education Division
MKT80007 Marketing Project Management
MKT80007 Case study Semester 2, 2014
Page 2 of 5
Expanding George’s Gyms v2
Marika and George have been in the fitness industry for several years, owning a chain of six gyms called
George’s Gyms. They have successfully provided a variety of services including personal training, group
fitness sessions and weight training. Their clientele are generally loyal although there is a small turnover,
but this is low compared to industry averages. Many of the staff at the gyms have been working for
George’s Gym for several years and have developed good relationships with clients. Morale is generally
high, but Marika and George are looking for some new challenges and opportunities to expand their gym.
Most of George’s Gyms include a small health bar where clients can enjoy a fresh juice or smoothie and
purchase a variety of energy and weight loss supplements, branded ‘4U’. The health bars are run
independently of the gyms by the manufacturer of th e 4U supplements who has recently been considering
retirement. The management of 4U have approached Marika and George to see if they are interested in
purchasing 4U. George is excited by the prospect as he has had some experience in the pharmaceutical
and food industries having completed a science degree. George is confident that the management skills
Marika has developed over the years running the gyms would complement his scientific knowledge and
expertise if they decided to purchase 4U.
At a recent dinner party Marika and George were chatting with some young friends, Joy and Bruce, who
had recently completed sports management courses with a focus on fitness for school aged children. Joy
and Bruce had plenty of experience with children having worked in after-school care and at Camp Australia
as coordinators and instructors, and were now considering branching out and offering fitness classes for
pre-school and school aged children. Another of the dinner guests suggested that Joy and Bruce might
consider using facilities at George’s Gyms for their children’s fitness classes as these classes would really
complement the training and fitness sessions offered at the gym and could provide clients and their families
with a one-stop fitness shop.
Marika and George were acutely aware of the issues relating to childhood obesity. They were also
concerned about the boom in electronic entertainment, which meant that children had less opportunity to
socialise and exercise, so they were supportive of the concept but were concerned about the practicalities.
They were also uncertain as to whether they were ready to expand into two new areas – health
supplements and children’s fitness. However they had recently received an unexpected inheritance which
provided them with cash reserves that they were prepared to invest in their business.
Sumitra, who was also at the dinner party, had been sitting quietly, listening to the dinner conversation and
realised that there was a great opportunity before her. She was a business consultant and she was hatching
a plan to integrate the gym, the health bars and supplement manufacturing, together with the children’s
fitness classes into one. She decided to go home and plan the merger before discussing it further. She
wanted to have everything clear in her mind. Sumitra pictured this as a huge opportunity for all involved but
it was also an enormous undertaking.
On Sunday morning, Sumitra started planning the new venture. Initially she thought of this as a merger and
a rebranding of three businesses but then realised it was easier to think of this as a totally new business
venture. First things first – what was the objective? To create a new business that offered fitness for the
entire family? Did this capture the essence of the new venture? She knew the objective(s) must be SMART
but was having trouble actually articulating the objective(s) at the moment.
A lot of planning was needed to determine the feasibility of the new business. It would be a good idea to
develop a detailed business plan for the future. Sumitra’s mind was busy racing with the various details.
They needed to make a fresh start – not that there was anything wrong with any of the original businesses
but this had to be seen as a new entity, which left the old businesses behind yet capitalised on their
strengths. They needed a name, something catchy that would create an impression and make a connection
with their existing and potential clients; a brand name that creates an identity for the new organisation,
something that people will trust. This new name would need to be checked to make sure that it had not
previously been registered and then registered as a domain name. They would need to have lots of
communication with staff and clients; it was going to be important to maintain these if the new business was
MKT80007 Case study Semester 2, 2014
Page 3 of 5
going to build on the strengths of the old companies. Would they need new premises? Probably not.
Sumitra thought that George and Marika could probably renovate the gyms to include space and equipment
for the children’s fitness classes. The 4U factory was probably all right for the moment too, as were the
health bars, but if they were going for a new brand that makes an impact, a makeover would be required,
and maybe even a re-think of the menus to cater for children’s tastes and appetites.
Sumitra started developing a project plan (see table 1) for getting the new combined business up and
running. She decided to create a conservative plan, one which was risk averse and carefully considered,
seeking to provide George and Marika with the complete information they would need to make informed
business decisions. This would be costly and time consuming in the planning phase but would hopefully
yield better results and returns for George and Marika. After all, they are currently running a successful
business and were seeking to improve their future returns.
After spending much of the day planning the new business, Sumitra called her hosts to thank them for the
previous evening’s dinner party. This also gave Sumitra an opportunity to find out more about George and
his business. Apparently George was quite a talented but impatient man, while Marika was the more level
headed of the two but was quite risk averse. George was really keen to buy 4U but Marika wanted to do
more research before committing. It sounded as though they could really use the services of a consultant
who would lead them through the fact finding and decision making processes.
Sumitra called George and Marika and told them that she’d been thinking about the discussions of the
previous evening and would be interested in helping them move forward with their business development.
George and Marika were grateful for her offer of assistance and eager to see her plans.
Table 1 Sumitra’s project schedule detail
Task Name Duration Predecesso r Resources
1 New Business Development Plan
2 Phase 1 – Strategic Plan
3 Self-Assessment 3d George, Marika, Sumitra
4 Define the visions and opportunity 2d 3 George, Marika, Sumitra
5 Evaluate Business opportunity 7d 4 George, Marika, Sumitra
6 Brief marketing solution agency 1d 5 George, Marika, Sumitra, Marketing solution agency
7 Marketing research (MR) 20d 6 Marketing solution agency
8 Review MR 2d 7 George, Marika, Sumitra, Marketing solution agency
9 Evaluate Potential Risks and Rewards 3d 5,8 George, Marika, Sumitra
10 Review and modify the strategic plan 2d 9 George, Marika, Sumitra
11 Confirm decision to proceed 0d 10 George, Marika, Sumitra
12 Phase 2 – Plan for Action
13 Develop Detailed 3-Year Business Plan 10d 11 George, Marika, Sumitra
14 Consider suitable financial options 10d 13 George, Marika
15 Phase 3 – Negotiation with 4U
16 Review of 4U’s business 10d 11 George, Marika, Sumitra, 4U Manager
17 Determine value of 4U 2d 16 George, Marika, Sumitra
18 Purchase 4U 15d 14,17 George, Marika, Sumitra, 4U Manager
19 Phase 4 – Consideration of additional children’s fitness classes
20 Discussions with Joy and Bruce 5d 13 George, Marika, Sumitra, Joy, Bruce
21
Develop plans for children’s rooms at
the gyms
10d 14,20 George, Marika, Joy, Bruce, Architect
22 Renovations to children’s fitness rooms 10d 21 George, Marika, Joy, Bruce, Builder
23
Purchase equipment for children’s
classes
10d 21 Joy, Bruce
24 Develop schedule and classes 5d 21 Joy, Bruce
25 Phase 5 – Communication with staff
26 Meeting with all George’s gym staff 1d 18,21 George, Marika, Joy, Bruce
27 Meeting with 4U staff 2d 18 George, Marika
TABLE CONTINUED OVERLEAF
MKT80007 Case study Semester 2, 2014
Page 4 of 5
Table 1 continued ….
Task Name Duration Predecessor Resources
28 Phase 6 – Branding
29 Identify new brand name and image 5d 8,13,18,20,26,27 Marketing solution agency, Branding agenc y
30 Finalise brand name 1d 29
Marketing solution agency, Branding agency,
George, Marika, Sumitra, Joy, Bruce
31
Legal requirements (trademark and
registration)
20d 30
Marketing solution agency, Branding agency,
Lawyer
32 Re branding of gyms 15d 31
Marketing solution agency, George, Marika, Joy,
Bruce
33 Re branding of 4U 30d 18,31
Production manager, packaging manager,
Marketing solution agency, George, Marika
34 Phase 7 – Launch
35 Internal launch 2d 26,27,32,33 George, Marika, Joy, Bruce
36 External launch 10d 22,23,24,32,33 Marketing solution agency
37 Start up new business 0d 35,36
What you need to do
Component 1: Scope Statement/PMP
Prepare a scope statement/PMP comprised of items 1 to 8 of the project management plan (see
Blackboard).
Word limit: 800 words
Bring this scope statement to class on Wednesday 27 August, 2014, where you will swap your
scope statement with a colleague.
Component 2: Peer Feedback
Using the peer feedback form on Blackboard, please review and provide constructive feedback to
your colleague, which is to be returned in class on Wednesday 3 September, 2014.
Component 3: Comprehensive Project Management Plan
Using the scope statement feedback (from component 1) you have been given, review and update
your PMP (for component 3). If you do not agree with the feedback provided, please explain why.
Continue to complete the expanded project management plan and incorporate your responses
within the PMP to the following tasks.
YOUR TASK:
Your task is to respond to the items below, assuming you are Sumitra. You are expected to
develop the project management plan (PMP), including the schedule and all its supporting
documents.
1. Using the information provided above, prepare a pr oject plan for Sumitra to present to George
and Marika. Sumitra is confident that the cost of the project excluding purchasing 4U can be
kept below $250,000. In the project plan be sure to clearly define the objectives of the project,
scope, deliverables, constraints, assumptions and stakeholders. Follow the PMP provided on
Blackboard.
2. Assume that the project is due to begin on 2 March 2015.
a. Is it feasible that the project is completed in time for the commencement of term 3, that
is 13
th
July 2015?
Construct a MS Project schedule for this project.
MKT80007 Case study Semester 2, 2014
Page 5 of 5
Report the key findings from the schedule, including a detailed discussion of the
resource usage and its implications.
Resolve any over allocations.
b. If the project cannot be completed by 13
th
July 2014, show how the project could be
‘crashed’ so that it can be completed in the timeframe. Fully discuss the resource
implications.
Would you recommend that the project be ‘crashed’. Provide justification for your
decision.
3. The owners of 4U have had an offer to buy the business from a third party. They have
approached Marika and George, as they had earlier expressed interest, and asked them to
decide whether or not they would purchase 4U before by the end of April 2015. What response
do you recommend Marika and George give the owners of 4U?
4. Do you feel the project schedule provided (in tabl e 1) is realistic and achievable? If not, please
suggest any changes that you feel might need to be made before implementation.
Do you think there are any milestones missing from this project? If so, which milestones would
you add and when would you add them? (You do not need to add them into the actual plan).
5. What additional considerations/factors/issues would George and Marika need to consider
before deciding whether they should proceed with the new business opportunities presented
above? (It is expected that this section is about 300 words).
6. Suggest at least five (5) specific measures of success that could be applied to this project.
Explain why you have chosen these measures and how they could be operationalised.
(You will need to do some research on the definitions and measures of project success and
consider how these can be applied to this case, a good place to start is Litsikakis, D. 2009,
‘Analysis of Project Success Criteria and Success Factors: How to maximise success in your
projects using meaningful criteria and factors’,: http://litsikakis.wordpress.com/article/analysis-of-project-success-criteria-3ib8exvrc87n4-4/ . )
Make sure you include relevant MS Project outputs in the appendices that are clearly
labelled. Refer to your appendices throughout your report. Take care to format your MS
Project output thoughtfully.
Word limit: 1500 words
Component 4: Self-Assessment
Once you have completed component 3, please undertake a self-assessment (form
available on Blackboard) and submit this with your case study.
PLEASE NOTE:
YOU MUST SUBMIT ALL FOUR (4) COMPONENTS
(including component 1 that you previously submitted,
together with the feedback you received)
WITH A SIGNED FBE ASSIGNMENT COVERSHEET,
PROFESSIONALLY PRESENTED AND APPROPRIATELY BOUND
ON 22
nd
SEPTMEBER 2014 FOR ASSESSMENT
TO ENSURE YOUR ELIGIBLITY FOR ALL MARKS
PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU SUBMIT ALL FOUR (4) COMPONENTS
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