Project Management

Project Management

Project Stakeholders
Document Owner(s): Stakeholders Project/Organizational Title Internal or External
Sam and Gloria Ryder CEO and CFO
Melissa Grant Project Management
Sara Jenkins Electric Engineer
Mike Green Marketing
Jerry Lawson Computer Science IT
Jim Sneed Project Manager
Project Team Member

Stakeholder Description:
Stakeholder Role Name Level (high/mid/low) Subject Matter Expert
Sponsor
Sponsor
Client
Client
Project Manager
Associate
Team member
Team member
Vendor

Describe in a few sentences each stakeholder’s involvement on the project. The purpose of this section is to provide the reviewer with a quick summery of all identified stakeholders and their involvement. Make sure to include everyone indicated from the scenario.
1 PROJECT CHARTER PURPOSE
[Replace this text with your own statement of the Project Charter Purpose.]

2 PROJECT EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
[Replace this text with a high-level view of:
• Project goals
• Objectives
• Scope
• Assumptions
• Risks
• Costs
• Timeline
• Approach
• Organization]
3 PROJECT OVERVIEW
[Replace this text with the rationale and business justification for undertaking this project.]
4 PROJECT SCOPE
4.1 Goals and Objectives
Goals Objectives
[Replace this text with project goals. For example: The project will provide an improved system for managing product returns.] [Replace this text with objectives for each goal. For example:
1. Develop a system by June that tracks an end-to-end process for 100% of product returns.
2. Integrate new system with sales to improve customer satisfaction 40% by year-end.]
4.2 Departmental Statements of Work (SOW)
Departmental SOW Owner/Prime Due Date/Sequence

4.3 Organizational Impacts
Organization Impact to and Participation of Organization

4.4 Project Deliverables
Milestone Deliverable
1. [Milestone Description] • [Deliverable 1—description]
• [Deliverable 2—description]
• [Deliverable n—description]
2. [Milestone Description] • [Deliverable 1—description]
• [Deliverable 2—description]
• [Deliverable n—description]
3. •
4.5 Deliverables Out of Scope
[Replace this text with a description of key logical areas not considered part of the boundaries of this project. Examples of theseout-of-scope deliverables may include data, processes, applications, or business management.]
4.6 Project Estimated Costs and Duration
Project Milestone Date Estimate Deliverable(s) Included Confidence Level
[Milestone 1] [mm/dd/yy] [Deliverable 1]
[Deliverable 2] [High/Medium/Low]
[Milestone 2] [mm/dd/yy] [Deliverable 1]
[Deliverable 2] [High/Medium/Low]

5 PROJECT CONDITIONS
5.1 Project Assumptions
• [Assumption 1]
• [Assumption 2]
• [Assumption 3]
5.2 Project Issues
Priority Criteria

1−High-priority/critical-path issue; requires immediate follow-up and resolution.
2 −Medium-priority issue; requires follow-up before completion of next project milestone.
3 −Low-priority issue; to be resolved prior to project completion.
4−Closed issue.

# Date Priority Owner Description Status and Resolution
1 [mm/dd/yy] [Issue 1 description] [Replace this text with status and proposed or actual resolution.]
2 [mm/dd/yy] [Issue 2 description] [Replace this text with status and proposed or actual resolution.]
5.3 Project Risks
# Risk Area Likelihood RiskOwner Project Impact-Mitigation Plan
1 [Project risk] [High/Medium/Low] [Replace this text with a description of the mitigation plan.]
2 [Project risk] [High/Medium/Low] [Replace this text with a description of the mitigation plan.]

6 Project Structure Approach
[Replace this text with a description of how the project will be structured and what approach will be used to manage the project.
• What are the dependencies of the project?
• How will you plan and manage the project?]
7 Project Team Organization Plans
Project Team Role Project Team Member(s) Responsibilities
[Role Title] [Name(s)] [Replace this text with a description of the role responsibilities.]

8 Project Milestones
Milestone Deliverable
[Name of document/reference] [Description with available hyperlinks]

Company Biography
TopGear Corporation (TGC) is a large, established company in the manufacturing industry. It is based in northern Chicago, IL and employs over 300 workers locally. Its current Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Chairman of the Board, Sam Ryder, founded the company back in 1994 with his wife, Gloria Ryder. Gloria has served as the company’s chief financial officer (CFO) since it was founded. Both Sam and Gloria graduated from the #1 ranked MBA program in the country and bring a lot of corporate experience to the business. Sam was a vice president and served as a senior engineer at another company for many years before deciding to venture off to start TGC with his wife.
The company is known for manufacturing electronic equipment and safety devices for cargo ships and trains, as well as for the shipyards and train stations that operate and maintain them. Their electronic products include software and specialized global positioning systems (GPS) for cargo- and ticket-scanning devices. TGC also manufactures safety monitoring devices that detect hazardous weather, equipment malfunctions, and specialized fire and smoke alarms. The workforce is comprised mostly of engineers, technologists, programmers, and computer specialists. They also work closely with several large vendors in the United States and outsource their customer service department to India and China.
Problem
The company has a loyal customer base throughout the United States and is known for its personalized service and quality devices. Because of the recession, TGC has had to make some difficult choices. A large percentage of its customers have had to reduce the number of orders and shorten the length of their maintenance and servicing contracts, which involves updating and fixing devices and software. The cities and private companies that operate the shipyards and train stations have experienced significant budget cuts and layoffs. The companies that build these cargo ships and trains are also dealing with similar problems because their largest customers are cities and private companies. In addition, there are new companies entering the marketplace offering cheaper electronic equipment and safety devices.
Opportunity
To survive the recession, the Sam and Gloria have decided to diversify their product line. They are in desperate need of a brand new device that will set them apart from their competition. After conducting mock interviews with some of their customers and completing market research, TGC has decided to focus its attention on developing a new GPS cargo tracking system device that can be used for both ships and trains. The GPS will produce a stronger signal and will be more portable, durable, and cheaper than their competitors. They have asked Jim Young, a rising star at the company, to take on the role of project manager to lead a team of five people from different departments to create a prototype of the new GPS cargo tracking system device.
Jim Young currently serves as a department supervisor for two business units. Prior to this role, he worked as an electrical engineer for the company. He has worked on many of the development projects as a team leader and helped to innovate some of the company’s existing devices. People in his business units speak highly of his leadership and coaching style. Though Jim has worked on project teams and supervised functional departments, he has never acted as the project manager before. He knows there are a lot of moving parts in managing a project. He is worried about his ability to lead a new team of people with whom he has never worked. He is concerned about his lack of experience and knowledge to manage the entire life cycle of a project from start to finish and within budget and scope. In previous projects, he remembers Sam and Gloria having differences in budget, scope, and resource allocation, which caused a lot of confusion among the project team members and vendors. Jim is also concerned that their personal relationship will interfere in this project.
You will be working with Jim Young as a project team member with four other professionals in the company. You have only worked at TGC for 4 years in the electric engineering department. Prior to your tenure at TGC, you worked as an associate project manager for an engineer firm on the West Cost. You have worked on many different projects and are familiar with project management terms, methodologies, tools, and techniques. You earned several certifications relating to project management and have an MBA in logistics. You have never worked with Jim Young or anyone else on the team, but you are very excited about the opportunity to make a difference.
Additional Information:
The discussion on stakeholders went better than expected. Everyone seems to be on the same page. But now, the team is unsure who should be included as stakeholders in the communication management plan. The team realizes that there are a lot more stakeholders on the project than expected. In addition to the team itself, there are other internal and external stakeholders who must be considered.
Although all of your team members work in the electric engineering department, they all bring unique skills and experiences to this project. Many have worked in other departments prior to their new role or have duel responsibilities in the company.
“This is a make-or-break project for us at this point,” says Jim. “We have to get it right the first time. If we miss any stakeholders in our communication, it could be divesting to the success of the project.”
Jim turns to you. “I need you to lead the team in conducting a stakeholder analysis. We need to make sure to include all of the stakeholders, their background, contribution to the project, and level of priority to the project communication. You will be working with your four teammates in performing the stakeholder analysis and transferring this information to the project charter for review.”
“Okay,” you say. “Can everyone give me a little bit of background about work experience and education?”
“Sure,” says Jerry Lawson. “I have an MS in computer science and several IT certifications as well as 6 years with the company.”
“I have a lot of procurement and acquisition experience, but have an engineering background,” says Sara Jenkins. “I earned an MBA and a BS in electrical engineering. I have been with the company 4 years.”
“I have done business analysis, quality assurance, and risk management, but have an engineering background,” says Melissa Grant. “I have an MSM in project management and a BS in electrical engineering as well as 6 years with the company.”
Mike Green, a technician who previously worked in the public relations and marketing department says, “I have done a lot of hands-on electrical work and testing. I earned my MBA in marketing and two undergraduate degrees in electrical engineering and IT management. I have been with the company for 5 years.”
“Great, thanks,” you say.
Jim hands you a document, saying, “Here is a project charter template for you to use as a guideline.” Click here for the project charter template.
After Jim leaves, you and the rest of the team get busy discussing how to conduct a stakeholder analysis and how to justify stakeholders’ inclusion in the project communication.
Back at your desk, you write the stakeholder analysis in an essay-style format using MS Word. Notes from your team discussion help you defend your position on the stakeholders’ inclusion. Your essay outlines who they are to the project; their roles, responsibilities, and positions at the company (internal or external); and their level of influence on the project.