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ENGR9704 Engineering Management Assignment Sample

Assignment 1 - Project Specification (group project)

Title page: The title page or cover page for the project should indicate:

• The name of your group
• Group members’ names and student ID
• Date of submission
• Topic name
• Topic code.

Table of Contents

1. Executive Summary of the main work undertaken, the achievements and other significant outcomes. Executive Summaries should not be a ‘prose of Table of Contents’ and should contain information about the background, statement of objectives, proposed solution and requirements, and description of deliverables to give a complete snapshot of the project. Ideally short and to the point, able to be read quickly to judge the viability of the project in a short viewing period. E.g., it should describe what the project is about, its key milestones, stakeholders and benefits/significance.

2. Introduction / Background.

This is used to introduce the business project, describe what has happened in the past to address the problem, and what the current status is at the time of writing the Project Specification. Purpose of the Project and Problem Statement

This section should clearly establish the benefit to the organisation of proceeding with the proposed project. It should contain:

• A description of the relevant market/industry conditions that affect the project/product

• An assessment of how the business needs are currently being met or not met (e.g. customers
currently have X we will provide a better product/service).

• An analysis of the gap between the current situation and the stated objectives (what needs to change to make your project a success).

• Identify who in the organisation is sponsoring the project and why? (or what outside organisation is sponsoring).

3. Project Overview for assignment help

This should include:

• Project Title

• Vision for the project – including goals for the project and what it is expected to deliver.

• Organisational Objectives – all projects should relate to and produce results that relate to pre- defined organisational goals. The relationship between the project and the Corporate Strategic Plan should be described.

• Scope - Develop a scope statement for the project. Use the template provided on the text companion Web site and review the sample in the text. Be as specific as possible in describing product characteristics and requirements, as well as key deliverables.

Table 1: Scope Statement

4. Critical Assumptions and Constraints

It is essential that assumptions made during the project planning process are recognised and recorded. Any requirements for specialist resources or skills should be identified here, and any dependencies that exist with other projects or initiatives.

5. Analysis of Options

This should be a high-level analysis of the possible alternatives that could be employed to bridge the gap between the current situation and what is proposed via the project.

Some options that need to be considered may include:

• Option 1 – Do nothing
• Option 2 – Undertake project
• Option 3 – Undertake alternative project
• Option 4 – The preferred option.

The advantages and disadvantages of the options can be compared in a table.

Note, that this does not necessarily need to be alternative projects (as some projects students have picked may not be suited for this type of analysis. Alternatives may also be in the form of different directions for the project to go down, such as using different materials for critical components, choosing alternative means of construction/assembly (in-house vs. outsourced), or different locations for facilities. The choice is yours for how this applies to your project.

6. Work Plan

Needs to outline project steps and phases, and major areas of work. Develop a work breakdown structure (WBS) for the project. Provide a tabular (list) version of a WBS, and a graphical version. The priority is a simple professional display of relevant information. Include a full list of tasks in the tabular version, and a condensed high-level list (if necessary) in the graphical version, to save space and make it easier to read.

7. Outputs

This needs to describe the main deliverables and outcomes that are generated by the project. Create a milestone list for this project and include at least five milestones and estimated completion dates for them.

8. Costing Section

Develop a cost estimate for the project. Estimate hours needed to complete each task (including those already completed) and the costs of any items you need to purchase for the project. Perform a Financial analysis of the intended project, include information to evaluate the potential of the project to investors (this may be included in the ‘analysis of options’ section as well in shorter detail). Use tools relevant to comparing projects such as Return on Investment, and the Net Present Value of the project.

9. Implementation Strategy

The information in this section is important. It needs to describe the main resources that will be involved as well as timelines and important milestones. Use the WBS and milestone list you previously developed to create a Gantt chart and network diagram for the project, (note that MS Project can generate both Gannt and Network Diagrams automatically from this information). Estimate task durations and enter dependencies, as appropriate. A network diagram should be included to deliver a realistic schedule. Milestones should be included as completion of major phases in the schedule and not arbitrarily defined beforehand. Once the project is well understood, the time and resources needed for its completion defined (including a realistic budget that includes the cost of the necessary contribution of time by the client, and “in-kind” cost of hours of the students. In this way, the students have a clear path to follow with sections logically dependent on each other and flowing from need to solution. Consider the resources needed for each of the tasks defined in the work plan, particularly the hours required.

10. Stakeholders

List of those to whom outputs will be delivered and a description of how each will use the benefits of the project. Related projects (or major change initiatives) that are significant for this project should be identified in this section.

11. Project Management Framework

This describes how the project will be managed, including:

? The proposed governance model (who is responsible for what?) Create a RACI chart for the main tasks and deliverables for the project.

? Quality assurance and control features of the project – consists of standards and methodology to be applied and project monitoring requirements to ensure outputs have been achieved. Create a quality checklist for ensuring that the project is completed successfully.
Also define at least two quality metrics for the project.

? Develop a communications management plan for the project. This should include:
Communication type (i.e., team meetings or project status meetings)

Objective of the communication
Medium (email, meeting, phone call)
Frequency
Audience or attendees

Who is responsible for the communication?

12. Risks

Create a probability/impact matrix and list of prioritized risks for the project. Include at least 12 risks

Solution

1. Executive Summary

The main idea behind this project is to analyse the manifesto of TESCO about climate change. In this report, a brief analysis of costing and time scale of implementation of the factors such as reducing carbon footprints, and food wastage control have been elucidated at the brief. Despite this, the report has delineated a stakeholder analysis of who is responsible for this project. Mainly three types of stakeholders have been identified in this project such as employees, local people, and government. Despite this, the impacts of the stakeholder on this project along with their roles and responsibilities have also been set forth in their report. In addition to it, the report further convened a brief idea about the RACI model where the report segmented people and their responsibilities with the help of four factors: Responsibilities, Accountability, Consultation, and Informed. At long last, the report identified two risks such as the effort to increase public awareness and climate change denial that the organisation TESCO can face during implementing their manifestation of climate change, In Addition, the report further segmented the risk as per their priority and recommended some approaches to extenuate those risks. Despite this, the report highlights other various factors such as the role of the zero deforestation soy initiative, the role of artificial intelligence in supply chain management and work plans such as project scopes, identification of the problems, and the final outcome of the project in the report.

2. Introduction or Background

2.1. Purpose of the Project

The main purpose of this project is to develop a manifesto for the purpose of tackling climate change. In this context, currently, the rapid climate change and environmental diversity loss are one of the greatest concerns of the UK government. As per the collected data, it is evident that the main sea level of the UK has risen significantly up to 1.4mm per year since 1910 due to the increasing business operations, economic activities, and the global transport system (Moore et al., 2019). Due to rapid climate change, the sea surface temperature of the UK has risen to .3 degree Celsius and 0.6-degree Celsius warmer climate. In order to mitigate this global concern and to expect more sustainable and global environment development, it is very important for the country to find the best possible options. Tesco is currently following the principle of developing the global climate through the application of developing a manifesto. In this context, through the application of this manifesto, it can be possible for the company to contribute much to the global environment development (Castle and Hendry, 2020). The main purpose of this project lies in the fact of developing evidence against the successful development of this program and to experience a sustainable global environment development.

2.2. Problem Statement

Rapid climate change and global environmental degradation are great concerns for the company. In this context, being a retail company, it is very important for the company to identify the key issues and challenges faced by the operational processes as a result of global climate degradation. In this context, the main issue is the increasing carbon emission from the manufacturing outlet of the company. Due to more emissions of carbon footprints, the company is facing several restrictions and issues in its current business operations (Raven and Wagner, 2021). Therefore, it is very important for the company to understand the current business applications and reshape the business accordingly.

The company needs to implement the latest technologies and make constant innovations in its existing system. Through the application making the entire business updated, it can be possible for the company to find the best possible ways, manage sustainable processes, and expect the minimization of carbon footprints from the manufacturing outlets (Nassaryet al., 2022). Moreover, it can also be possible for the company to expect successful ventures in their long-term and short-term goals for the development of the global environment.

Tesco currently has better business infrastructure. Moreover, the company has adopted several key considerations and policies to tackle global climate change and to meet the customer demands. As per the current marketing trends, customers are reliable on sustainable products and services with high shelf life, low cost, and eco-friendly. For this reason, Tesco has reduced carbon footprint emission significantly and it’s trying to practise zero carbon emission by 2050 to add more value to the global consumers. Tesco has also paid focus on the feedback system development for the purpose of making constant changes in the quality of the offering products for the purpose of meeting customer interests and demands.

The main gap between the current situation and the organisational objectives is the lack of proper considerations in the supply chain management and manufacturing output. As per the objectives, Tesco will bring out zero carbon emission by 2050 and to develop a sustainable supply chain. Tesco has initiated the process and adopted the implementation of a manifesto to tackle global climate change and to develop the supply chain.

The company needs to address UN goals and conduct accordingly. In order to raise more capital, the company needs effective sponsors. For this reason, it is very important for Tesco to tie up with multinational companies offering similar services in the global marketplace.

3. Project Overview

3.1. Project Title

Tesco launches manifesto to tackle climate change

3.2. Vision for the Project

The main vision of the project is to set different objectives for the purpose of maintaining the successful development of the entire project. In this context, the principal vision of the project is to tackle the rapid climate change in the UK. Therefore, through the application of maintaining a proper strategy and plan, it can be possible for the company to pay close attention to the details of the development of an effective policy to reduce the significant amount of carbon footprint reduction. Moreover, through the application of a proper plan and policy, it can also be possible for the business to bring out net zero emission of carbon footprints by the year 2050 and to effectively develop the supply chain.

3.3. Organisational Objectives

The objectives set out by the organisation are mainly to facilitate Tesco Plc to achieve climate change in a better manner. The objectives set out through the manifesto of Tesco to tackle climate change are as follows:

? To tackle the supply chain and the retailers of Tesco to tackle the climate crisis and ensure the reduction of emissions

? To implement renewable energy for all its operations by 2030

? To switch to the implementation of a fully electric delivery fleet by the year 2028.

? To bring about a net zero emission by the year 2050.

3.4. Scope Statement

This project has different scopes on its successful development. In this context, the main scope of this project is to lower the actual emission of carbon footprints through the development of a manifesto that can actively help the organisation tackle global climate change. Moreover, through the application of this project, it can also be possible for the company to develop its overall processes and practice the best ways to deal with the current global climate change.

There are several considerations included in this project that help the particular project to get successfully developed (Krogstrup and Oman, 2019). The project manager has been able to make the project accordingly through the application of identifying all the risks, timelines, and outputs. A proper digital timeline and alternative marketing operational strategies have been identified. In this way, this project can lead to the initiation of many more projects like this.

4. Critical Assumptions and Constraints

A high level of climate awareness has been implemented in the UK to help the country achieve net zero emissions. It has been observed that several companies in the country have undertaken climate control manifestos. From the studies of Gannon et al., (2022), it can be mentioned that the major constraints that can be faced in the development of a climate manifesto involve the capacity of the people to adapt to the change. From the research of Moussa et al., (2019), it has been found that the process of incorporating change on a wider basis becomes difficult since people are more comfortable with the older ways. Moreover, another important constraint of implementing a climate change manifesto involves limited knowledge of technology paired with limited awareness.

From the reports of the company, it has been observed that the critical assumptions that have been made by the company involve the following:

? A complete transition toward the use of electric vehicles would help in tackling carbon emissions.

? Creating a better basket for the customers and the planet would help in accelerating the process of climate control (Tescoplc.com, 2021).

? Improving the issues of food production would lead to preventing climate change in a better manner.

? Working with the suppliers in order to scale the technologies and target the causes of agricultural emissions would help in improving the climate manifesto.

Overall, from the identification of the constraints and the assumptions, it can be said that the planning process needs to be done in such a way that all the constraints are overcome and the assumptions are met. It needs to be mentioned that the implementation of project planning tools needs to be made so that the dependencies of the tasks can be identified in a better manner.

5. Analysis of the Options

5.1. Option 1: Zero-Deforestation Soy Initiative

Considering all the alternatives for tackling the climate change manifesto, Sainsbury’s has implemented a “Zero-deforestation soy initiative” (Sainsburys.co.uk, 2022). From the reports, it has been observed that this initiative helps in the protection of forests. It can be mentioned that the management of the financial incentives has been done by the company in such a manner that they are able to fund the Brazilian farmers. Therefore, it must be stated that choosing this option significantly contributes to environmental management. A 12-month trial phase was started, and the results have assisted in encouraging Brazilian farmers to protect the country's native Cerrado vegetation as well as the preservation of the water quality and the decline in biodiversity.

5.2. Option 2: Recyclable Packaging

The sustainability commitments of ASDA can be considered another important option for the management of the sustainability process. As per the reports of the company, it can be mentioned that the initiative undertaken by the company is to implement sustainable packaging. The company has been observed to reduce the total packaging weight by 27% (Asdasupplier.com, 2022). As one of Walmart's sustainability goals, it should be noted that the company has made a strong commitment to achieving 100% package recycling by 2025.

5.3. Option 3: Blockchain or AI in the Supply Chain

Certain small retail SMEs have been trying to comply with the “Forest Risk Rules” in order to prevent deforestation measures. From the recent reports, it has been observed that the UK government has been seen to aim at preventing deforestation rates in the country (Retail-week.com, 2021). Overall, in compliance with the UK rules and regulations, it can be mentioned that the development of agile supply chains and the implementation of technology such as blockchain and AI help in reducing waste at all levels of the supply chain. Overall, it needs to be mentioned that the implementation of these options helps in increasing the sustainability of the companies.

However, a negative aspect of the SME has been observed to be in the funding aspect. Hence, the adoption of technology has been observed to be highly difficult for companies.

5.4. Option 4: Reduction of Carbon Footprints

It has been noted that Aldi supermarket has adopted sustainable tactics like reducing operational emissions. The reports have been observed to have opted for a reduction of plastic pollution. The most innovative option implemented by the mentioned company is the implementation of smart shopping (Corporate.aldi.us, 2021). The reduction of carbon footprints has been the main aim of the mentioned company.

5.5 Advantages and Disadvantages of the options

Table 2: Comparison Table for the Options Discussed

From the above table, it can be seen that the alternative options have almost similar kinds of disadvantages. Therefore, it can be said that every green or sustainable strategy raises the cost of production.

6. Work Plan



Table 2: Manual Work Plan (Tabular)

From the studies of Matheson et al., (2019), it can be mentioned that the work plan is important to identify the chronological order of undertaking a particular work. Additionally, it can be mentioned that the work plan is important as it helps in identifying the major areas of priority in a project.

The work plan, in this case, has been broadly classified under the following groups:

? Project Scope
? Identification of the problems
? Meeting the Objectives
? Risk Assessment
? Achieving Future Profitability
? Adaptation Options
? Communicating the Changes
? Executing the Plan
? Final Outcome

The work breakdown structure as derived from Project Libre has been represented in the following image.

Figure 1: Work Breakdown Structure

From the work breakdown structure, it can be seen that the priority of the tasks involves assessing the important aspects of the work breakdown structure. As seen in the present case, it can be mentioned that the process of assessing the risks and evaluating the financial aspects of implementing the changes can be considered the most important. Overall, the evaluation process of the climate manifesto needs to be considered based on these aspects.

Figure 2: Digital Work Plan (tabular)

7. Outputs

Milestones

There are 9 different milestones that are going to be achieved through the successful development of this project. In this context, there are different durations decided to meet each milestone. The entire work starts on 28.09.22 and will end on 22.07.26. Each milestone is going to be achieved through the application of dividing each task into sub-tasks. All these milestones are identified as a result of the plan and processes being set up by the project manager. It is very important to consider every step for the purpose of developing this project accordingly.

? Project Scope: 5.9.22 to 29.9.22
? Identification of the problems : 29.9.22 to 27.4.23
? Meeting the Objectives: 27.4.23 to 4.1.24
? Risk Assessment: 4.1.24 to 14.3.24
? Achieving Future Profitability: 14.3.24 to 4.4.24
? Adaptation Options: 4.4.24 to 30.1.25
? Communicating the Changes: 30.1.25 to 17.4.25
? Executing the Plan: 17.4.25 to 30.4.26
? Final Outcome: 30.4.26 to 11.6.26

8. Costing section

8.1 Cost estimate

Table 3: Cost analysis
(Source: Self-developed)

8.2 Financial analysis

In order to accomplish the project total cost has been estimated at £10,800 and the total time frame has been kept for the entire project completion is 4 months. During the entire project,

ROI or Return on investment for this project will be calculated with the help of

Where
R is the return on investment
Vf is considered as the final value which includes dividends and interest
Vi=initial value
ROI will be more than 10, which can be considered a good investment for the project by the organisation.
The calculation for NPV or Net Present value will be calculated with the help of the formula:

Where Rt stands from net cash flow at time t
And i=discount rate
t is the time frame
NPV or the Net Present value for the project is Zero which clearly indicates that TESCO can expect a profit and should move forward with the investment. NPV above zero signifies inflows are greater than outflows therefore; it will help the organisation earn a profit.

9. Implementation Strategy

Figure 2: Digital timeline
(Source: Created by the learner)

Figure 3: Digital timeline
(Source: Created by the learner)

The entire project is developed through the application of developing a digital timeline of the entire project. In this context, through the application of a digital timeline, it is possible for the project manager to include all tasks and schedules accordingly based on the desired timeline and duration. The entire project has different phases. In this context, the first phase is project scope identification. It is followed by the identification of the objectives and the meeting of the objectives. Risk management and assessment of future profitability are also done through the application of developing the digital timeline (Cullis et al., 2019). The fourth step of the Gantt chart is the adaptation options which refer to the adaptation of electric transport and other considerations. The next step is the communication plan which involves the practice of regular communication within the project management. Execution of the plan is also done through the application of considering the expected dates and times of the entire process. In this way, the outcome is determined and thus the project is developed.

Project scope: identification, preparation, Assessment of the critical constraints, and making feasible assumptions.

Identification of problems: Change management, Choosing framework, accessing funding.

Meeting the objectives: Manage the supply chain, focus on reduction of emissions. Moreover, use of renewable energy, and development of electric fleet to meet the objectives.

Risk assessment: accessing challenges, finances, governance issues, and procurement process.
Assessment of future profitability: evaluation of future revenue.

Adaptation outcomes: electric transport, management of food waste, implementation of sustainable food production.

Communication of the changes through the climate manifesto: Setting dates, looking for sponsors.
Execution of the plan: increasing partnerships, implementation of methane reducing feed, implementation of electric vehicles.

Final outcome: Assessing the outcomes, final evaluation.

Figure 4: Gantt chart
(Source: Created by the learner)

Figure 5: Network diagram

10. Stakeholders analysis

Table 4: Stakeholder’s analysis

11. Project Management framework

11.1 Governance Model (RACI model)
R= responsible
A=accountable
C=Consulted
I=informed

Table 5: RACI model
(Source: Self-Developed)

11.2 Quality assurance and checklist with two quality matrices

As per the views of Fernandes et al. (2022) quality assurance can be envisaged as a process of determining and analysing whether products or services meet with the specific requirements or not. Considering the case study, process control will be considered for the project as a part of quality assurance.

Table 6: Quality assurance

11.3 Communication management plan

Table 7: Communication management plan

12. Risks

Table 8: Risk Matrix

Table 9: Risk Register

13. Conclusion

The primary idea behind the project is to prepare a manifesto to tackle climate change and for this, the organisation has taken several approaches such as making a risk management plan, doing stakeholders analysis and preparing a budget to estimate the cost of the project implementation. The project also confabulated some developing evidence against the successful development of this program and to experience a sustainable global environment development. Despite this, the report has critically analysed various constraints that can arise during the project implementation and based on the risk proposed some mitigating strategies. Further, the report has confabulated the advantages and disadvantages of the zero-deforestation soy initiative, recyclable packaging, blockchain in the supply chain and reduction of carbon footprints with proper illustrations.

References

Asdasupplier.com, 2022. Our Sustainability Commitments. Available at: https://asdasupplier.com/responsibility/our-sustainability-commitments [Accessed on 05-09-2022]

Brock, A., Kemp, S. and Williams, I.D., 2022. Personal Carbon Budgets: A Pestle Review. Sustainability, 14(15), p.9238.

Castle, J.L. and Hendry, D.F., 2020. Climate econometrics: an overview. Foundations and trends® in econometrics, 10(3-4), pp.145-322.

Corporate.aldi.us, 2021. ALDI Tops the Sustainability Chart. Available at: https://corporate.aldi.us/en/corporate-responsibility/sustainability/#:~:text=ALDI%20achieved%20this%20 ranking%20as,recyclable%20or%20compostable%20by%202025. [Accessed on 05-09-2022]

Cullis, J.D., Horn, A., Rossouw, N., Fisher-Jeffes, L., Kunneke, M.M. and Hoffman, W., 2019. Urbanisation, climate change and its impact on water quality and economic risks in a water scarce and rapidly urbanising catchment: case study of the Berg River Catchment. H2Open Journal, 2(1), pp.146-167.

Fernandes, M.R., Donders, K. and Loisen, J., 2022. Ibermedia as a collaborative space for film co-production policy? A stakeholder analysis on decision-making processes. Communication & Society, pp.137-153.

Gannon, K.E., Castellano, E., Eskander, S., Agol, D., Diop, M., Conway, D. and Sprout, E., 2022. The triple differential vulnerability of female entrepreneurs to climate risk in sub?Saharan Africa: Gendered barriers and enablers to private sector adaptation. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, p.e793.

Krogstrup, S. and Oman, W., 2019. Macroeconomic and financial policies for climate change mitigation: A review of the literature.

Matheson, E., Minto, R., Zampieri, E.G., Faccio, M. and Rosati, G., 2019. Human–robot collaboration in manufacturing applications: A review. Robotics, 8(4), p.100.

Moore, F.C., Obradovich, N., Lehner, F. and Baylis, P., 2019. Rapidly declining remarkability of temperature anomalies may obscure public perception of climate change. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(11), pp.4905-4910.

Moussa, L., Garcia-Cardenas, V. and Benrimoj, S.I., 2019. Change facilitation strategies used in the implementation of innovations in healthcare practice: a systematic review. Journal of Change Management, 19(4), pp.283-301.

Nassary, E.K., Msomba, B.H., Masele, W.E., Ndaki, P.M. and Kahangwa, C.A., 2022. Exploring urban green packages as part of Nature-based Solutions for climate change adaptation measures in rapidly growing cities of the Global South. Journal of Environmental Management, 310, p.114786.

Raven, P.H. and Wagner, D.L., 2021. Agricultural intensification and climate change are rapidly decreasing insect biodiversity. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(2), p.e2002548117.

Retail-week.com, 2021. Why retailers must be mindful of the impending Environment Bill. Available at: https://www.retail-week.com/retail-voice/why-retailers-must-be-mindful-of-the-impending-environment-bill/7039790.article?authent=1 [Accessed on 05-09-2022]

Sainsburys.co.uk, 2022. Zero-deforestation soy initiative underway with major UK supermarket backing. Available at: https://www.about.sainsburys.co.uk/news/latest-news/2022/02-08-2022-zero-deforestation-soy-initative [Accessed on 05-09-2022]

Schlund, D., Schulte, S. and Sprenger, T., 2022. The who’s who of a hydrogen market ramp-up: A stakeholder analysis for Germany. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 154, p.111810.

Tescoplc.com, 2021. Tesco sets out its climate “manifesto” ahead of the crucial COP26 Conference in Glasgow. Available at: https://www.tescoplc.com/news/2021/tesco-sets-out-its-climate-manifesto-ahead-of-crucial-cop26-conference-in-glasgow/#:~:text=If%20we%20are%20to%20 safeguard,a%20net%2Dzero%20future.%E2%80%9D [Accessed on 05-09-2022]

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