Managing Projects

Project management for Vobien

Ltd. and IBEK Ltd.
Individual Assignment Report - I!""#
By Nguyen Hai Khanh My
Student ID: 119163906
International School of Management and
Economics
National Economics University
Hanoi !cto"er #01#
Table of Contents
TASK 1: the case of Vobien Ltd....................................................................................................2
1. The network diagram using activity on the node..................................................................2
2. The timing of activities and total float..................................................................................5
a. The forward pass...............................................................................................................5
b. The backward pass............................................................................................................5
c. The float............................................................................................................................6
3. The project duration and critical path...................................................................................6
. The project earliest completion date.....................................................................................6
5. !hange in activities" duration and its effect on project.........................................................6
6. The limitations of network diagram.....................................................................................#
APPENDICES................................................................................................................................$
%ppendi& 1.1................................................................................................................................$
%ppendi& 1.2................................................................................................................................'
TASK 2: the case of IBEK Ltd....................................................................................................11
(&ecutive )ummary...................................................................................................................11
*ajor +indings...........................................................................................................................11
1. ,roject objectives............................................................................................................11
2. +easibility study..............................................................................................................11
3. The ,roject -ife !ycle .,-!/.........................................................................................12
. ,roject manager skills and competencies.......................................................................1#
!onclusion.................................................................................................................................1$
APPENDICIES............................................................................................................................1'
%ppendi& 2.1..............................................................................................................................1'
%ppendi& 2.2..............................................................................................................................20
%ppendi& 2.3..............................................................................................................................21
%ppendi& 2...............................................................................................................................22
%ppendi& 2.5..............................................................................................................................23
E!EENCE...............................................................................................................................25
1ooks2........................................................................................................................................25
1
3nternet2......................................................................................................................................25
TASK 1
The case of Vobien Ltd.
This part will present one of different tools used in project planning and control 4 the network
diagram and its details of activities timing5 floats5 duration as well as the critical path. There will
also be some e&amples of analy6ing the effect on the whole project duration. 3n the other hand5
limitations of this tool are also given.
1. The net"o#$ dia%#a& 'sin% acti(it) on the node
7Notes:
EST2 (arliest start time
E!T2 (arliest finish time
LST2 -atest start time
L!T2 -atest finish time
8on9critical path
!ritical path
2
L!T !loat LST
Acti(it) Identifie#
ES
D'#ation E!T
Figure: Vobien Ltd. Project Network diagra
3
2. The ti&in% of acti(ities and total float
a. The fo#"a#d *ass
+orward pass must be the first to accomplish. The start time is 6ero. The formula for forward pass
calculations is2
EST = EFT of preceding activity
EFT = EST + activity duration
+or e&ample5 the ()T of activity ! is e:ual to (+T of its preceding activity .1/5 which is #.
%ctivity !"s earliest finish time will be # plus # .its duration/ are 1. ;hen there is more than one
task start at the same time .means that have the same ()T/5 the following activity"s ()T e:ual to
the highest of preceding (+T. 3n the diagram5 < has four preceding activities .=5 >5 35 ?/ and =
has the highest value of (+T5 is 26. Therefore the ()T of < is 26.
b. The bac$"a#d *ass
3t starts the calculations at the last activity in the network and working backward5 subtracting
the succeeding duration of an activity from the calculated ()T of the activity.
LST = LFT activity duration
LFT = LST of next activity
;hen multiple activities converge5 previous activity"s -+T e:uals to the lowest of succeeding
-)T times. (&ample2 %ctivity 8 has two successors .@ and ,/. The -)T of @ is lower than ,
.0A2/5 hence the -+T of 8 is 0.

c. The float
3t is the amount of time that an activity can delay without affecting the whole project.
Float = LFT EST activity duration = LFT EFT
(&ample2 The float of activity , B 5 4 0 4 2 B 5 4 2 B 3 .days/
The project float is presented in a tabular .please see %ppendi& 1.1/.
+. The *#o,ect d'#ation and c#itical *ath
CProject duration is te elapsed ti!e fro! project start date troug to project finis dateD
."ide!an5 2002/. 3n this case5 the project starts from activity % and ends at activity E. The
duration of this project is actually the latest finish time of E5 which is 50 days.
#Te critical pat is defined as te series of activities tat ave $ero float% Te critical pat
al&ays runs troug te project fro! te first activity to te last activity% 'ctivities &it $ero float
are on critical pat( .1urke5 2003/. >ence5 the critical path in this network is A-B-C-!-.-K-L-
/-N-0-1-.
2. The *#o,ect ea#liest co&*letion date
The project needs 50 days to complete5 therefore5 with 5 days work a week .no holidays/5 it will
take 10 weeks in total. 3f the project starts on *onday +ebruary 20135 the earliest date they can
finish it is +riday 12 %pril 2013 .please see %ppendi& 1.2 for =antt chart and the calendar/.
3. Chan%e in acti(ities4 d'#ation and its effect on *#o,ect
a. %ctivity ( is delayed 1 day
5
3t will not affect to the whole project because activity ( has 2 days of float .more than 1 day
delayed/ and it is not on the critical path.
b. %ctivity , is delayed 1 day
, also has 3 days float and not be in the critical path5 hence this delaying will not affect to the
project"s duration.
c. %ctivity F is completed 1 day early
%ctivity F is on the critical path of this project with no float5 then if F completes 1 day earlier5 the
entire project also will finish 1 day earlier.
5. The li&itations of net"o#$ dia%#a&
,eople may attach special important to the critical path5 hence controlling the balance of project"s
time may not fle&ible and effective.
3n fact5 the network diagram only can state the time without covering other resources such as
skills5 human5 finance5 etc. which are important as well to have a good project planning.
3f the project is huge with a lot of comple& tasks5 it will be a big difficulty for the project manager
to plan and control it well. 1esides5 other people also may not fully understand the diagram.
,roject manager may make mistake by calculating wrongly the precedence and durations5 or
prone to underestimate time for activities5 which leads to behind schedule and costs are much
higher.
)"ord count: **+ &ords,
6
APP!N"#$!S
A**endi6 1.1
Total float and project float for each activity are calculated as below2
Acti%it& Tota' f'oat
% 0
1 0
! 0
G 5
( 2
+ 0
= 0
> 6
3 #
? 6
< 0
- 0
* 0
8 0
@ 0
, 3
F 0
E 0
Project f'oat 27
#
A**endi6 1.2
3n 20135 +ebruary has only 2$ days. +ollowing is the timing of the process2
8ee$ /onda) T'esda) 8ednesda) Th'#sda) !#ida)
Fe-ruary ./0+
1 2 .start/ 5 6 # $
2 11 12 13 1 15
3 1$ 1' 20 21 22
25 26 2# 2$
1arc ./0+
5 5 6 # $
6 11 12 16 1 15
# 1$ 1' 20 21 22
$ 25 26 2# 2$ 2'
'pril ./0+
' 1 2 3 5
10 $ ' 10 11 12 .finish/
,roject ()T B 50 days B 10 H 59day9work weeks B !#ida)9 12 A*#il 2:1+
Iobien project"s =antt chart2
$
!ritical path
8on9critical path
'
TASK (
The case of #)!K Ltd.
E6ec'ti(e S'&&a#)
31(< -td. is a company speciali6ing in supplying of specialist auto parts to motor industry. Their
area served includes regional5 national and international. !urrently5 the company trades from a
single main warehouse 4 also includes office accommodation with the area of 255000 mJ. %s a
part of e&pansion strategy5 they make a decision to open a new building with the same structure as
the current one. 3n order to be successful5 the company needs a precise project with good
management. This report will present a detail plan and management for this project5 covers and
applies2
The four phases of the project life cycle.
,rocesses5 leadership5 administration and control problems associated with managing the
lifecycle.
/a,o# !indin%s
1. P#o,ect ob,ecti(es
3n this case5 the company wants to concentrate serve their large global organi6ation with a larger
area of 355000 mJ. The project needs to be ensured to open on time and within budget as well.
2. !easibilit) st'd)
C' feasi-ility study is designed to provide an overvie& of te pri!ary issues related to a -usiness
idea% Te purpose is to identify any #!a2e or -rea2( issues tat &ould prevent your -usiness
fro! -eing successful in te !ar2etplace% 3n oter &ords4 a feasi-ility study deter!ines &eter
10
te -usiness idea !a2es senseD .K;!!5 chapter 5/. %s in the scenario5 the company has been
successful since 200#5 means that they already have the good foundation e&perience and skills.
*oreover5 they already ac:uired the building and had the plan to apply the old structure5 so they
did have the technical e&pertise to accomplish the project. 1ecause the company has a new target
consumer of the global organi6ations5 therefore 3 assume that this new building is place in another
country. They want to be also successful in international environment. Thus5 the project is :uite
realistic and possible to implement.
+. The P#o,ect Life C)cle ;PLC<
*any authors define the ,-! in different ways5 some has five stages and some has four .please
see %ppendi& 2.1/. >owever5 this report will use the four phase from 1urke .2003/ Ca four pase
life cycle tat passes troug four pase eadings: concept and initiation pase4 design pase
and develop!ent pase4 i!ple!entation and co!!ission and andover paseD.
a. Conce*t o# Initiation Phase
!ost 4 benefits analysis
C5ost and -enefits analysis !eans tat identifying4 specifying and evaluating te costs and te
-enefits of te proposal over its projected lifeti!eD 9 +ield and <eller .1''$/. Gepending on the
comple&ity of the project5 it could consider some financial management tools such as ,ayback
,eriod5 8et ,resent Ialue5 3nternal Eate of Eeturn5 etc. .please see %ppendi& 2.2 for e&ample/. 3n
order to organi6e the new building5 the pay cost can includes buyingLhiring e:uipment and
furniture5 salaries5 license to open an office in another country5 etc. 31(< -td. obviously would
gain benefits from the project. They will strengthen their image out of their country border5 closer
approach to their global clients and open the market share.
11
%ppointing project team
The project in order to success needs a good team with high spirit of responsibility and
corporation. ;orking as a team will support each person in technical issues and improve the
ability of solving a problem. ,eople share works and skills would get the task done faster and
more efficient. 3n this case5 the project team of 31(< initially has a clearly understanding of the
project objectives and goals. (ach member also has to have right knowledge5 skill5 technic and
e&perience in organi6ing. +urthermore5 the good communication and negotiation are very
important as well. )pecially5 each person must have trust from other members.
b. Desi%n o# De(elo*&ent Phase
1uilding design
%lthough 31(< has decided to apply their old structure5 the new building is :uite much larger. )o
the company can think of which function they should e&pand5 is that the office5 the warehouse5 or
bothM %ssuming that 31(< choose to increase the area used for storage to increase the supply
volume for their large global organi6ations5 and keep the office area the same. >ence5 the
company may need more warehouse staffs. To have a general idea and manage the whole project
processes5 the team needs to provide a ;ork 1reakdown )tructure .;1)/. 3t is Cte &or2 of a
project is divided and su- divided for !anage!ent and control purposesD .Eodney Turner5 1''3/.
The ;1) for 31(< has five stages which is the structure application5 development5 evaluation
and review5 finali6ing the building and organi6ing people .please see %ppendi& 2.3/
)chedule
12
Se6uencing tas2s2 1ased on the major steps in ;1)5 the project team will determine the
estimated duration and the resources need. %fter that5 the timing of start and end is calculated. The
=antt chart is the clearest way to state the project"s duration .please see %ppendi& 2./.
Ti!e !anage!ent2 To control and monitor the time spent for each task5 the manager has to record
the actual used time of the activities5 from that if there is any changes5 he can clarify and update
all timing of activities5 hence responding :uickly and make right decisions. *oreover5 some
strategies will be given out to avoid the delay as well.
1udgets
Total project budget is the aggregation of costs5 e&penditures and overheads allocated to the
project. 1ecause 31(< is a motor industry supplier company5 they have cash in hand5 therefore
the fund to do this project is available in the business. %ccording to ?oseph ,hillips .2010/5 there
are three ways to estimate the project budget2 ballpark estimate5 budget estimate .top9down/ and
definitive estimate .bottom9up/. %t first team should consider the b'd%et esti&ate method5 which
using e&perience from a similar project and then apply to their current case. %fter that5 they can
use the definiti(e esti&ate way5 this method is more accurate because its calculation based on the
;1) of the project.
Eisk management
Eisks always lengthen times5 increase costs5 and reduce the outcome of delivery. The risk
planning is important because it helps us to avoid or reduce those bad affects. %ccording to +ield
and <eller .1''$/5 when Cidentify te ris2 !eans tat &e assess te pro-a-ility of ris2s occurring
and teir i!pact on te project(. The risk can be divided into three groups2 controllable5
uncontrollable and force majeure.
13
The risks that 31(< project could face up with can be2
*isk T&+e of risk *es+onse
!onflict between team
members
!ontrollable
Eeducing by develop and
maintain a good relationship
with team members5 create
motivation
The client company suddenly
changes their objectivesLgoals
Kncontrollable
%ccept the risk5 change the
plan and schedule .if possible/
The key member .sub9
manager/ :uit off the project
because of health problem
!ontrollable @utsource recruitment
(lectrical leakageLfire Kncontrollable
Transferring the risk to other
by taking fire insurance
@ver the budget !ontrollable
Eeducing the scope of project5
ask for more funds
8atural disasters +orce majeure
%ccept the risk and get over
the damages
c. I&*le&entation Phase
@rgani6ing team
This is a large project5 31(< can allocates 1 project manager5 1 assistant manager5 1 human
resource manager5 1 financial manager5 1 office administration5 1 warehouse administration5 2
staffs from the company itself and other contracted labors. The first important is to organi6e the
information. The detail of planning5 schedule5 etc. has to impart to everyone in the team. 3t must
be clear and the project manager must ensure all members understand it. This is to avoid
misunderstanding leads to faults and delaying. +urthermore5 the team can create ownership and
1
responsibility through good working condition and motivation .both monetary and non9
monetary/5 it increase the working perform and efficiency outcome of the project team.
%ssigning works
3n this period the project manager will give out specific tasks and assignments to all members.
The given tasks are based on the ability and position of each person. (veryone has to receive all
related documents like schedules5 procedures5 checklist5 and budgets. The member will be
responsible for the duties and will be supervised by the project manager. 1y that5 during the
process5 if the project manager sees any person tend to follow a wrong direction5 he can :uickly
give advice and get the problem fi&ed.
,lanning changes
%ny project has une&pected problem5 big or less5 hence he team also needs plan to react. 3t could
be changes in time5 people5 resources or even changes in the client"s decision .31(< !ompany/.
;hen there is a sudden change in project5 the project manager has to gather all plan and consider
if it make big influence or not5 and if he needs to change anything in the current plan and
schedule.
d. Co&&issionin% Phases
The project needs evaluation and review to provide feedback to help every member focusing and
achieve the project objectives. To evaluate project the manager will use review method through
organi6e daily meeting in the team. 3n the meeting5 the manager will collect data and report from
team members.
1efore the project can close5 it must be re9checked and accepted by the client 4 31(< !ompany.
%ll the documents is completed and signed offN relieving labors and resourcesN informing and
15
disclosing warehouse to stakeholders ."eiss and "ysoc2i4 0778./ %ccording to Spirer .1'$3/5
project closure should be concern as a small plan which also has problems itself in aspects of
emotion for project staffs5 clients and intellection for internal5 e&ternal organi6ations. This will
help to maintain the outcome of the new building and develop trust for every stakeholder of
business in the future.
2. P#o,ect &ana%e# s$ills and co&*etencies
The project manager involves the project from the beginning steps. %ccording to Field and 9eller
.2005/5 he with the supporting of an assistant firstly starts with the identification of objectives5
planning the flow of activities step9by9step and estimating how much time5 resources5 what skills
needed to complete the project. The project manager must comprehensively understand all duties
along with every phases of the ,-! in his speciali6ation. 3n order to get the project successful5
this manager also must have necessary personality to leads the whole team. The project manager
is2
The one create vision5 transparent objectives5 communicating5 persuading5 influencing5
integrating and leading people5 having trust from other members.
% person with outstanding energy levels5 enthusiastic and challenging the problems.
The manager also knows how to assess the human resources. >e must choose the team member
with right knowledge5 right skills5 and right attitude. %n intelligent manager will look for the most
suitable members5 not the best one. To get success in this project5 select a good leader with
suitable style is very importance. The manager"s leadership style will have a big impact to the
others. -eadership has some different styles such as autocratic5 bureaucratic5 charismatic5
democratic5 laisse69faire5 and etc. 3n general5 the democratic leadership style is the most suitable
for the current project team. The democratic leader always encourages members to share the
16
ideas5 opinions and involve as a part of the decision marking. >owever in team process has some
situation in which the leader should not use democratic style. +or e&ample5 in the case when the
time is limit and not allow discussing with members5 the manager must use autocratic style
.isolated decision/ to make his own decision. 1esides5 in any situation if he feels threatened by
this type of leadership for the team work5 he can refuse to use democratic style. %part from that5
the project manager usually also has responsible to Creport and liaiseD with different level of
management from general director5 clients5 sponsors to stakeholders and this is when skills of
using reporting9line is applied.
Concl'sion
This report has been written as a detailed planning for the 31(< !ompany"s project in order to
support the project manager and his team. 3t includes the detailed phases in the project life9cycle5
concurrent with contemporary skills and competencies needed for project manager in controlling
project.
)"ord count: .4/7: &ords,
1#
Define
Define
O Ee:uirements
analysis
O +easibility
study
O +unctional
specification
O )cenario
development
O !ost9benefit
analysis
O )et objectives
O !ompare
alternatives
Plan
Plan
O 3dentify tasks
O 3dentify
critical
activities
O (stimate time
and cost
O Getermine
staffing
O Eisk analysis
O Ialue
planning
0#%ani=e
0#%ani=e
O @rgani6e
team
O %ssign work
E6ec'te
E6ec'te
O 3ssue change
orders
O Eeview
project status
O Eeport on
project
O Eeview
schedule and
budget
O Fualifying
Close
Close
O @btain client
acceptance
O !omplete
documentatio
n
O )ign off
O !onduct post
implementatio
n audit
O *aintenance
O Ialue
assessment
APP!N"#$#!S
A**endi6 2.1
%ccording to "eiss and "ysoc2i .1''/5 the basic project life9cycle has five stages2 define5
plan5 organi6e5 e&ecute5 and close. 1ecause of large project5 this 59stage ,-! is
appropriate5 precise and easy to manage activities.
%ccording to ?. ;estlend .2006/5 a standard project typically has the following four major
phases .each with its own agenda of tasks and issues/2 initiation5 planning5 e&ecution5
and closure. Taken together5 these phases represent the path a project takes from the
beginning to its end and are generally referred to as the project life cycle.
1$
(stablish control
tools
3nstall deliverables
Eecruit staff
)e:uence tasks
A**endi6 2.2
(&ample for 3EE5 8,I5 and E@3 calculation2
3nitial 3nvestment .P05000/
,rojected cash flow
Qear 1 P205000
Qear 2 P255000
Qear 3 P155000
Qear P105000
Qear 5 P55000
Total project cashflow P#55000
3EE 33R
8,I .at 5R/ P665$26
,ayback ,eriod .Qears/ 2.33
E@3 .8,I 4 3nvestment/ P265$26
Source: te igeredico%co!
1'
0*en a ne" office
and "a#eho'se
b'ildin%
0*en a ne" office
and "a#eho'se
b'ildin%
)tructure application
)tructure application
*ake the company
name sign
*ake the company
name sign
Eedesigning building
inferior to suite
company culture
Eedesigning building
inferior to suite
company culture
Gevelopment
Gevelopment
1uyingL>iring
furniture5 device5
e:uipment
1uyingL>iring
furniture5 device5
e:uipment
Gelivering products to
warehouse
Gelivering products to
warehouse
)ecurity and safety
)ecurity and safety
(valuation and review
(valuation and review
+inali6ing the
building
+inali6ing the
building
@rgani6ing the people
@rgani6ing the people
Eecruitment
Eecruitment
Training
Training
A**endi6 2.+
The ;1) for 31(< case2

20
A**endi6 2.2
31(< project scheduling2
Acti%it&
#dentifier
Acti%it& "escri+tion "uration ,da&s-
.uan
resource needs
Predecessor
%
*ake the company
name sign
# 2 9
1
Eedesigning
building inferior to
suite company
culture
20 10 %
!
1uyingL>iring
furniture5 device5
e:uipment
30 10 1
G
Gelivering products
to warehouse
0 15 1
( )ecurity and safety 6 5 !5G
+
+inali6ing the
building
15 10 (
= Eecruitment 20 $ +
> Training 60 10 =
=antt chart2
21
A**endi6 2.3
22
Source: Sa!ser ;aider P1P
Source: proteusadvisors%co!
23
*!F!*!N$!
Boo$s:
1. 1urke5 E. .2003/ Project 1anage!ent4 Planning and 5ontrol Tecni6ues% ?ohn ;iley and
)ons.
2. +ield5 *. and <eller5 -. .1''$/ Project !anage!ent% The @pen Kniversity. Thompson
-earning ,ublishing5 -ondon.
3. +ield5 *.5 <eller5 -. .2005/ *
t
ed%4 Project !anage!ent. @pen university5 Thomson5
-ondon5 pp. 3592$'.
. 1arkley5 1. T. .200/ Project ris2 !anage!ent. Knited )tates of %merica. The *c=raw9
>ill !ompanies.
5. ?. ;estland .2006/ Te Project 1anage!ent Lifecycle5 <ogan ,age -imited.
6. Turner5 E. .1''3/ ;and-oo2 of Project<=ased 1anage!ent. *c=raw >ill.
#. .200/ Edexcel ;N5 > ;N? =usiness: @rgani$ations and -eaviour5 1,, ,rofessional
(ducation5 -ondon.
$. .200/ Edexcel ;N5 > ;N? =usiness decision !a2ing5 1
st
edition5 1,, ,rofessional
(ducation %ldine >ouse5 %ldine ,lace -ondon ;12$%;.
'. *c-aughlin5 >arold ?. .1'$5/ =uilding Aour =usiness Plan. 8ew Qork2 ?ohn ;iley S
)ons.
Inte#net:
1. )hamsher >aider .200$/5 Bis2 Besponse Planning Strategies. %vailable at2
http2LLerppm.blogspot.comL200$L0#Lrisk9response9planning9strategies.html .%ccessed2 23
)ep 2012/.
2.5onducting a Feasi-ility Study4 capter :. Kniversity of ;isconsin !enter for
!ooperatives. %vailable at2 http2LLwww.uwcc.wisc.eduLmanualLchapT5.html .%ccessed2 1$
)ep 2012/.
2
3. Bis2 Besponse 5onsulting. %vailable at2
http2LLwww.proteusadvisors.comL200$T05T01Tarchive.htm .%ccessed2 2' )ep 2012/.
. B@3 5alculator Te!plate for 3T 3nvest!ents Csing NPD4 3BB and Pay-ac2 Period.
%vailable at2 http2LLthehigheredcio.comLproductsLroi9calculator9templateL .%ccessed2 21
)ep 2012/.
5. ?e!ocratic leadersip style% %vailable from2
http2LLwww.essortment.comLallLleadershipstyleTrrn:.htm .%ccessed2 2# )ep 2012/
6. -ee5 Q. 8.5 Eoland5 T.5 )ee5 Q. -.5 )eet5 >. -. .200'/5 Trend and callenge of &areouse
and distri-ution center: Euestions > 'ns&ers% %vailable at2
http2LLwelovedcm.blogspot.comL200'L01L:uestion9answer.html .%ccessed2 15 )ep 2012/.
25
26