RegaladoGulle

BSBPMG510A
Plan Direct Marketing Activities

ASSESSMENT
(Stephen King Book Launching
Project Management)

For Submission To
Katherine Saheed
On 13/11/2012

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 Table of Contents Page

Introduction 3

Background of the Business 4

Overview of the Marketing Project 5

Project Goals and Objectives 5

SWOT Analysis 7

Risk Factors to the Business 8

Solutions to the Risks 8

Organisational Structure 10

Main Responsibilities of Members 10

Key Internal and External Stakeholders 11

Importance of the Stakeholders 12

Communicating with Stakeholders 12

Action Plan 13

Resources Required 18

Contingency Plans 18

GANTT Chart 19

Project Control Schedule 22

Budget Chart 25

Monitoring Progress 28

Providing Feedback 28

Providing Guidance and Coaching 28

Organisation Systems and Technology 28

References 30

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Introduction:
An unprecedented event will take Melbournes book-loving community by storm come the spring
of next year. For the first time, no less than Stephen King, the worlds most beloved and best-
selling American author, will reach out to the denizens of Melbourne City on a day thats sure to
bring the chills and thrills Friday, 13 September, 2013.

Welcome to Friday the 13th with Stephen King.

Mr. King will be coming to town to promote his newest novel, Mysteries on the Macadam, a
work that harks back to his early successes with horror storytelling. It will also undoubtedly add
to his canon of over 50 international bestsellers, which have spanned tales of terror, fantasy,
and science fiction, sold over 300 million copies all over the world in multiple languages, and
bagged him multiple awards from the writing establishment.

Aussie readers have long embraced Mr. King as one of Americas most iconic imports, and as a
gesture of Mr. Kings gratitude and appreciation toward his constantly loyal and ever-growing
audiences Down Under, he will be making a public appearance in the State Library of Victoria
and in Dymocks on Collins Street bookshop, where he will be giving a public forum and
personally signing books. The high profile and massive scale of Mr. Kings appearance has so
far never been accomplished before in Australian shores, and this historic event is most
appropriately located in Australias Capital of Culture, Melbourne.

Friday the 13th with Stephen King is made possible under the resources and efforts of Simon
and Schuster Australia, Inc., one of the countrys most trusted and enduring publishing houses,
along with the cooperation of its corporate partners and generous sponsors.

This paper will provide a comprehensive description of the Friday the 13th with Stephen King
book forum and book signing event through a compilation of all the processes and stages of
project development and implementation and will subsequently assess and evaluate the
successes and shortcomings of the project. This project is filed under Simon and Schuster
Australias promotional events for [its] stable of products and authors which are periodically
undertaken for the purpose of fulfilling its mission and vision.

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PART ONE
1) Background of the Business

Corporate Information

Simon and Schuster Australia is the official local publication satellite of Simon and Schuster,
Inc., New York, USA. The Australian facilities of Simon and Schuster, Inc. primarily distributes
the product lines of its parent company all across Australia and New Zealand, and hosts the
publication rights for both local and foreign authors under Simon and Schuster. It is the local
official supplier for retail of other well-respected publications such as Pocket Books, Scribner,
Free Press, Atria, Fireside, Touchstone, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, Little Simon and
Simon Spotlight.1 Apart from Australia, Simon and Schuster has also retained international
satellite companies in Canada, India and the United Kingdom.

Parent company Simon & Schuster, Inc., is a division of CBS Corporation. Established 1924 in
New York City by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln ("Max") Schuster, the company has
successfully maintained its standing as one of the four largest English-language publishers and
publishing houses, alongside Random House, Penguin and HarperCollins.2

Simon & Schusters articulated vision is to remain as a global leader in the field of general
interest publishing, while its mission is stated as being a company that provides the best in
fiction and nonfiction for consumers of all ages, across all printed, electronic, and audio
formats. 3

Product Information

One of Simon and Schusters most popular and highly-esteemed American authors in its stable
of fiction writers is Stephen King, whose latest novel in the horror/thriller/suspense/mystery
genre is entitled Mysteries on the Macadam.

The newest King novel is anticipated to generate exceptional sales performance and patronage
from his loyal fan base, owing to content that recalls Mr. Kings earlier successes with the genre
that made him famous. Mysteries on the Macadam tells the story of Jake Hawser, a young
pre-teener living in Castle Rock, Maine, USA, who unlocks his powers of psychic intuition while
picking up random objects which he finds along the main road just outside of his country house.
With every object he holds in his hand, he realizes that he can see people, places, and events
which the object in question experienced including some items which were connected with a
series of gruesome murders in nearby locales. Being only a small child, he has trouble making
sense of these disturbing visions, and his own conflicts are further complicated by the fact that
his own father is Castle Rocks county sheriff tasked to hunt down the killer or killers stalking
innocent citizens under his jurisdiction. The story eventually leads to a situation in which Sheriff
Hawser (Jakes father) must choose between following the physical and circumstantial clues
leading to a particular suspect, or believing his own son Jakes psychic intuitions, which point to
a different suspect.

Author Stephen Edwin King is widely recognised as one of the most famous and best-selling
American authors in contemporary literature. Over 350 million copies of his fiction have been
sold worldwide, and his name has become synonymous with top-notch work in whatever genre
of fiction he has chosen to engage. He enjoys the loyalty of his audience, and his prestige has
only grown even further after being conferred with multiple formal recognitions such as the Bram
Stoker Awards, World Fantasy Awards, British Fantasy Society Awards, the O. Henry Award,
the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters from the National Book

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Foundation, the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement, the Canadian Booksellers
Association Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Grand Master Award from the Mystery
Writers of America. 4

In keeping with its stated corporate mission and vision, Simon and Schuster Australia has
determined that a formal public appearance by Mr. King in Australia will create a favourable
impression and impact on the Australian market for its product lines, and will be an excellent
opportunity for bringing to the audiences attention the work of other authors with potential to
gain higher profiles in Australia.

2) An Overview of the Marketing Project

Friday the 13th with Stephen King is the public, structured, and formal appearance of celebrity
author Stephen King in Melbourne, particularly in the State Library of Victoria Village Roadshow
Theatrette, and later in the same day at Dymocks 234 Collins Street, on Friday 13 September of
2013, in order to be the guest of honor in two respective events, namely:

a) A Book Open Forum and preliminary Book Signing for around 200 book-owners in the
State Library Theatrette from 1:30pm 5:00pm and;
b) A Book Signing Marathon for around 800 book-owners in the Dymocks bookshop from
6:30pm 9:00pm (approximately)

This event is an official promotional activity conducted by Simon and Schuster Australia, Inc.,
with the cooperation of Dymocks Booksellers and corporate sponsors.

3) Project goals and objectives:

Friday the 13th with Stephen King has the following goals and objectives which are detailed
according their conformity with the S.M.A.R.T. principle:

Specific The specific project objectives are:

o To encourage customer purchases of the first hardback edition of the novel

Mysteries on the Macadam by Stephen King for up to a total figure of 1,000
units, whether through an on-line, postal mail, or face-to-face pre-purchasing
arrangement, or through direct purchase whether on-line or via personal visits to
Dymocks Collins Street

o To provide the 1,000 buyers the opportunity of having their books personally
signed by Mr. King by way of tickets attached to their book purchases

o To encourage early purchases by offering book buyers the additional privilege of

being eligible to attend the Book Open Forum at the State Library of Victoria
Theatrette through on-line reservation on a first-come-first-served basis, with the
offer limited by the availability of only up to 200 seats in the venue; the customers
are therefore provided the incentive to make an early purchase and make
reservations at the earliest possible instance in order to be included among those
who secure a place within the limited number of seats, and obtain the
subsequent opportunity to have their books signed ahead of the others

o To conduct a safe and well-coordinated event in the State Library of Victoria

Theatrette on 13 September 2013 enabling Mr. King to conduct his Open Book

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 Forum and to subsequently be able to personally sign the books of the 200
customers in attendance

o To conduct a safe and well-coordinated event in the Dymocks Collins Street

bookshop on the same day, enabling Mr. King to personally sign a further 800
copies of his novel as purchased by the customers

Measureable The measureable attributes of the project are:

o The response rate of the prospective book buyers to the offer of pre-purchasing
Mr. Kings newest novel, as well as the duration in which the offer motivates
actual purchases

o The number of book-buyers who reserve their places in the Book Forum, as well
as the duration within which the reservations are lodged

o The actual attendance of the book-buyers in the Book Forum and in the Book
Signing Marathon

Actionable The project has the following actionable attributes:

o Simon and Schuster, Inc. hold the exclusive rights to market and distribute
Stephen Kings books, and the same rights are also transferrable to their
Australian satellite office

o The manpower, skillsets, competencies, expertise, logistics, and technical

requirements to implement the project concept are easily available and
affordable locally

Realistic The realistic prospects for the event are based on the following:

o The concept of the event is based on similar promotional activities previously

conducted for celebrity authors both locally and internationally, so the procedures
involved can be repeated without too much difficulty

o The resources, talents, infrastructure, and systems for carrying out the project to
completion are present locally

o The sheer popularity of Mr. King and his body of work lend the event an
exceptional degree of credibility with regards to achieving its aims and objectives

Timebound The project is bound by a definite timetable according to the following

stages

o The first stage, in which copies of the novel are to be offered for pre-selling, will
run for around 13 weeks, during which preparations for 13 September are also
arranged

o The event itself, with its two separate components, will run for approximately 8
hours.

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 4) SWOT analysis of the event

Opportunities

Strengths the event gives a chance for Simon and

the huge popularity of Stephen King and
his body of work imparts a big incentive
for booklovers to patronise a new novel he
produces
the location of the event is easily
accessible to the market segments that
are typically attracted to Mr. Kings works
and his persona
the public appearance of Mr. King within a
highly-publicised event will be the first of
its kind in Australia, which provides a big
incentive for the prospective customers to
make the purchase and attend the event
Schuster to promote its other authors and/or
other products to the customers and
patrons who are primarily interested in Mr.
King
Mr. Kings other books can also be
marketed to the customers
the outcomes of the event can be used as
guides in the formulation of any future
events that may involve Mr. King or any
other Simon and Schuster author
the newer types of media published by
Simon and Schuster can also be promoted
alongside Mr. Kings hardback novel, such
as audio books or e-books for download
into electronic tablets

Weaknesses
modern technological media has made the
acquisition of hardback novels less
appealing to a large percentage of the
general fiction-reading public
Threats
the segregation of the event into two some other event may also be planned in
separate venues may make it difficult for
Melbourne during the same day of Mr.
the technical and logistical crew Kings Book Open Forum and Book Signing
overseeing the events to perform their
which could pose stiff competition for the
functions priorities of the customers

the elevated pricing of the books may uncooperative weather conditions could
alienate the casual reader, restricting the make it difficult for some customers to reach
impact of the event only to the most loyal any of the two venues
of Stephen King fans, which may mean
that there are less chances of acquiring
the interest of readers who are entirely
uninitiated with Mr. Kings work

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 5) Risk factors to the business that the project might present

Like any other public event staged by major companies or businesses which would involve the
appearance of prominent personalities or celebrities to an audience, Friday the 13th with
Stephen King presents a risk to Simon and Schuster if any incidents occur that engenders
negative perceptions among the customers toward the company. Principally, these incidents
could be:

That Mr. King would suddenly be unable to appear at the Book Open Forum and/or at
the subsequent Book Signing Marathon, perhaps owing to sudden illness, or any
personal emergency

That Mr. King would be able to make an appearance but would be hindered or prevented
in some manner from signing all 1000 of the ticketed books on the day of the event (e.g.,
he was able to sign 600 books but could not sign the remaining 400 because of sudden
unanticipated impairments)

The aforementioned risks would not necessarily have any impact on the revenues from the sale
of the books, since it is projected that the pre-selling arrangements would ensure that early
purchases are converted long before the book event is held. However, these risks do pose
significant effects on the perception of the market toward all the operations and branding of the
relevant stakeholders, namely Simon and Schuster and Dymocks.

Crowd control and the security surrounding the accomplishment of the event would also pose
risks to the business if both are affected by unwanted outcomes. Injuries to Mr. King or to any
of the audience attendees would be certain to provoke antagonistic legal action from those
affected. Risks to the physical safety of all individual participants in public gatherings are
ubiquitously present whatever the event may be, and the same risks will be present at Friday
the 13th with Stephen King. These risks are of significant nature, and would most assuredly
threaten both the profitability of the event and the public perception of the company.

6) Provide solutions to any of those risks mentioned above

To pre-empt any possibility that Mr. King might suddenly be unable to appear at the Book Open
Forum and/or at the subsequent Book Signing Marathon, perhaps owing to sudden illness, or
any personal emergency, it would therefore be necessary to encourage Mr. King to travel with a
representative who could appear in his place. Preferably, the representative should be a close
family relation, e.g., Joe Hill (Mr. Kings son who is also a recognised fiction writer), or Tabitha
King (Mr. Kings wife). Should anyone credible stand in Mr. Kings place, there would be a high
possibility that his absence could be explained in a manner that would mitigate the frustration of
the audience.

If Mr. King is able to make an appearance but would be hindered or prevented in some manner
from signing all 1000 of the ticketed books on the day of the event (e.g., he was able to sign 600
books but could not sign the remaining 400 because of sudden unanticipated impairments),
there should be arrangements, therefore, which would make it possible for the book buyers to
deposit their ticketed copies safely with the event organisers so that these copies could be
signed by Mr. King in another instance and then be collected by the owners at another
convenient time.

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Any concerns over crowd control, physical safety, and security surrounding the accomplishment
of the event should be addressed early on by the Team Safety Officer, who will have to abide by
the relevant OH&S procedures that are required during public gatherings. The Safety Officer
will have the principal responsibility of identifying, assessing, treating, and monitoring all
anticipated safety risks and hazards. However, the Safety Officer should not have sole
responsibility; every member of the Event Team should be present and on the ground during the
day of the event, and each member should have undertaken the sufficient safety induction with
the Team Safety Officer.

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 PART TWO
7) Organisational structure of the Friday the 13th with Stephen King project team:

Senior Marketing Manager

Project Leader

Administrative/Legal Officer Event and Marketing Head Coordinator

Admin
Team Safety Accounting
Assistant/Data
Officer Officer
Entry Staff Marketing and Audio-Video Technical/Logistics
Communications Officer Officer Officer

Audio/Video
Technical/Logistics Staff
Staff

8) Reasons for the presence of team members and the main responsibilities of each for the
project:

The Senior Marketing Manager is the overall official in charge of the project, and will hold the
power of final approval before any and all procedures and operations are carried out. He/She
will also be principally accountable for the outcomes of the project.

The Project Leader is responsible for coordinating the efforts of every Project Team-member,
all the way from the conceptual stage, to the scheduling stage, to the accomplishment stage,
and the post-activity assessment stages. He/She is also responsible for ensuring that all tasks
are performed according to schedule, budget, standards, and time allotted.

The Administrative/Legal Officer would be in charge of finalising any administrative duties

required for the project, as well as for ensuring that all work undertaken is in conformity with any
legal prescriptions or obligations. He/She would be accountable to the Project Leader, and
would have a staff of three subordinates, namely:

The Team Safety Officer who is responsible for ensuring that all OH&S measures are
in place to eliminate or minimise any risk, hazard, or threat that could affect any persons
or work measures involved with or affected by the project. He/She is also tasked with
conducting a proper Safety Induction for all Project Team-members.

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 Accounting Officer who is responsible for managing all financial transactions and
processes involved in the project. He/She will ensure that all expenditures or revenues
are comprehensively recorded and verified.

Admin Assistant/Data Entry Staff who is responsible for all documentation and
paperwork, whether in digital format or hard copy.

The Event and Marketing Head Coordinator is directly accountable to the Project Leader, and
is the individual responsible for ensuring that every task required to accomplish the project
according to plan is performed on the time assigned. He/She is also the principal person on
the ground who directly interacts face-to-face with various Team-Members and stakeholders
involved or affected by the main book event. He/She would have three subordinate co-workers,
namely:

The Marketing and Communications Officer who is responsible for transmitting all
media requirements to announce and promote the event and all the preparations leading
towards it, including the pre-selling offer of the book to the customers. He/She will also
be in charge of planning and buying the media needed for each stage of project
implementation.

The Audio/Video Officer who is responsible for the preparation, installation,

operation, and pack-down of all audio-video equipment to be utilised for the project.
He/She will be assisted by an Audio/Video Staff member.

The Technical/Logistics Officer who is responsible for ensuring that all logistical and
technical requirements are implemented during the whole duration of the project.
Included in his/her task would be to safely secure the transport and placement of all
book copies needed in the relevant quarters (i.e. Dymocks stock shelves for later pick-up
by customers), as well as obtaining tables, pens, billboards, and whatever other
implements must be used for the event. He/She will be assisted by a
Technical/Logistics Staff member.

9) Identify the key internal and external stakeholders

The key internal stakeholders of the project are:

a) Simon and Schuster Australia, Inc.

b) Simon and Schuster Australia Marketing Team
c) Stephen King
d) Dymocks Booksellers
e) The staff who will perform their roles in the event itself
f) The corporate sponsors: Qantas, Starbucks Coffee, Monsignor Chardonnay

The key external stakeholders are:

a) The common book-buyer

b) The State Library of Victoria
c) The Australian Booksellers Association
d) The Melbourne City Council

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 10) Why are the above stakeholders important to the book event?

The internal stakeholders would gain the benefits of accruing their portions of the revenues and
proceeds from the project. At the same time, the event would also raise their professional and
public profiles and garner their specialties or products the necessary exposure to the relevant
audiences.

More specifically, Simon and Schuster Australia, Inc., the Simon and Schuster Australia
Marketing Team, and Stephen King himself would enhance their presence in the local book
market. At the same time, Dymocks Booksellers and corporate sponsors Qantas, Starbucks
Coffee, and Monsignor Chardonnay would be adding to the value of their brands and
reputations.

The external stakeholders would also have their interests in having the project accomplished
successfully. The common book-buyer would be able to obtain a copy of Mr. Kings novel with
the added value of having Mr. Kings signature affixed on it. The State Library of Victoria would
gain a high measure of recognisability as an appropriate venue for other similar projects in the
future. The Australian Booksellers Association would be able to promote its profile amongst
professional booksellers, while the Melbourne City Council would be able to demonstrate that
the CBD of Melbourne is an ideal location for promoting cultural activities.

11) Explain how you will communicate with each group of stakeholders

Face-to-face meetings, telephone communication, video conferencing through Skype, written

communication through memos and lists, etc., and email communication would best be utilised
when communicating with the principal group of stakeholders in the project, including:

The staff who will perform their roles in the event itself
The Simon and Schuster Australia Marketing Team
Stephen King and his literary agent
Simon and Schuster Australia, Inc.
Dymocks Booksellers

Formal video conferencing through Skype, written corporate communication, and email
communication would best be utilised when communicating with the following corporate
partners:

Simon and Schuster, Inc., New York, USA

The corporate sponsors: Qantas, Starbucks Coffee, Monsignor Chardonnay

External promotional media and emails would best meet the information and communication
requirements of the following external stakeholders:

The common book-buyer

The State Library of Victoria
The Australian Booksellers Association
The Melbourne City Council

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PART THREE
12) Action Plan including milestones and timeframes from the start of the change process to
completion

14 June 2013 is the first milestone

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 28 June 2013 is second milestone

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 12 July 2013 is the third milestone

09 August 2013 is fourth milestone

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 30 August 2013 is the fifth milestone

12 September 2013 is the sixth milestone

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 13 September 2013 is the seventh milestone

16 September is the eighth milestone

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13) What resources you require to complete the project

The following are the most essential resources to complete the project:

Adequate budget to cover the purchase of book stocks, transport and honorarium of
Mr. Stephen King, wages of the Team, to buy the media necessary, to procure the
necessary technical equipment and supplies, and to cover the booking fee of any venue
requiring it.
Telecommunications and documentation
Two separate venues for the program of the events
The presence of specialists and staff to oversee operations of technical requirements
and logistics
Backing of sponsors
Creative input for promotional materials
Promotional materials electronic, print, radio broadcast
Tables, chairs, and other typical office equipment
AV equipment

14) What contingency plans you have in place to ensure your project is completed on time
and on budget

Suggest that Stephen Kings son and fellow-novelist Joe Hill accompany Mr. King in
order to stand in his place if it would be needed
Have a plan to collect all books if Mr. King is absent, and give Mr. King time to sign them
later on in his more convenient time
Give buyers the ample opportunity to pick-up their books later on after Mr. King has
signed them
Allocate enough overhead budget to cover Mr. King and his sons journey
Promote the pre-selling of the books through emphasis on online purchases to cover the
expenses even before the event itself
Allocate enough time for all promotional materials to be reviewed and approved before
release
Give members of the team enough time to be familiar with each others tasks so that in
the event that one or more may not be able to be present in a critical instant, another
available team-member may be available to perform the missing team-mates functions if
needed.

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15) GANTT chart for the event and preparations

Chart 1 for first two milestones

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Chart 2 for next three milestones

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 Chart 3 for next three milestones

Overall Total Costs: $40, 350.00

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16) Project Control Schedules

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17) Budget Chart

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PART FOUR
18) How would you monitor the progress of the plan and what would be done with the
information compiled

As detailed in the Action Plan chart and GANTT chart, the progress of the project is marked by
eight milestones, and before each milestone is reached, a number of corresponding subordinate
tasks have to be delivered. It is therefore essential that I regularly compare the ongoing
operations of the team and cross-check them with the items listed on my charts; doing this
frequently would alert me to any positive or negative developments which could either mean
that the project is proceeding as intended, or is not being implemented properly.

Every milestone marks a significant stage of progression towards the desired outcome, and all
information compiled regarding their accomplishment or failure must form the basis for
evaluation on subsequent encouragement or intervention in order to ensure that the other
milestones are reached. By necessity, the information gathered and the evaluation rendered
should be disseminated to the relevant personnel participating in the particular task or tasks
involved in order to address current or imminent risks or problems at the earliest instance
possible.

19) Discuss how you will encourage your team members to provide you with feedback or
suggestions for other work improvements?

Other companies have successfully employed the open-door policy to their employees,
through which all members in the hierarchy are urged to voice their concerns or suggestions to
the manager or leader of the enterprise within reasonable bounds. This same open-door
policy can be applicable to this particular project, given that the communication lines are open
for electronic, personal, or written exchanges.

The appropriate procedure for managing the open-door policy would be to implement the
Situational Leadership Theory which was popularly advocated by Hersey and Blanchard. The
mixture of the two principles has been previously demonstrated as an effective strategy for
expediting multiple tasks amongst teams. Such a strategy would also fall into the Concurrent
Control method of feedback.

20) How would you ensure that team-members are provided with guidance and coaching
during the project and on its completion

Given that the event duration itself is only of minor proportions despite the relatively longer
period of preparation, conducting three two-hour face-to-face meetings and a subsequent event
rehearsal would prove sufficient enough duration for all team-members to be wholly guided and
coached. In addition to face-to-face meetings, however, I may also provide opportunities for
team-members to be guided through electronic communication, which, because of its
convenience and prevalence, can also be a viable, cost-effective channel for propagating
relevant data and information.

21) What organisation systems and technology will you use to monitor the progress toward
objectives

One of the most convenient electronic applications for coordinating the efforts of a multi-
specialist team is the infrastructure provided by Google Technologies, specifically their Gmail
and Google Drive software. These two systems allow for free use of powerful digital
mechanisms through which groups of workers can share electronic documents with each other,

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including charts, progress reports, images, presentations, etc., through an integrated pipeline
that can be utilised at practically no cost to the company or the team-members. The
infrastructure provided allows for files and documents of different formats to be shared amongst
the relevant users, thus eliminating the need for having to convert various types of
communication into one single format.

The technology provided by Google is already being used by many other businesses and
companies for free, and its previous record of reliability amongst other teams can be sufficient
basis for employing its systems and technology for use in this particular project.

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References:
1
Anonymous, Corporate Information, Web Article published in
http://biz.simonandschuster.com.au/corporate_information, Undated
2
Anonymous, Simon and Schuster, Web Article published in Wikipedia.com,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_%26_Schuster, Undated
3
Anonymous, Simon and Schuster, Web Article published in
http://www.cbscorporation.com/portfolio.php?division=104, Undated
4
Anonymous, Stephen King, Web Article in Wikipedia.com,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_King, Undated

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