Sample PROJ6000 Principles of Project Management Case Study 3

PROJ6000 Principles of Project Management Case Study 3 Sample

Assignment Brief

After reading the project case study, use it to develop a 2,000-word Project Charter, describing the entire project in a short, succinct, and professional document.

Context

Project leadership is about inspiring the project team to do their best from the outset. This requires a combination of verbal and written communication skills and a range of applied leadership skills. One of the foundational documents that helps “kick off” a project is the Project Charter. The Project Charter describes the entire project in a short, succinct, and presentable document that can be shared with project staff or other stakeholders and aims to commence the project in earnest. The Project Charter helps to clarify the project context, the project team roles, and the goals of the project.

Instructions

You will be given a project case study to use in order to develop your Project Charter. Though all students will receive the same case study, it is expected that each student will think about the project from their own perspective as an up-and-coming project manager in order to formulate a unique Project Charter. Use your own style based on your critical thinking of what it means for you to lead a project. You may use one of the templates provided in the learning resources or develop your own format.

Please follow the instructions below:

1. Read the case study provided by your lecturer. This will form the basis for your Project Charter, because you will assume that you are the project manager for this project.

2. After reading the case study, begin to develop your project charter. This needs to be a 2,000- word report (+/- 10%) and must use a minimum of six (6) references (academic literature and industry publications—please consider the case study as a 7th reference). Please ensure all references are cited in-text.

3. The Project Charter must include the following headings and should be written as if you are presenting it to the project team that will build this project. You are the project manager.

The contents of your Charter should include:

a. Background of the project

b. Reasons for the project

c. Project objectives

d. Proposed project management approach or methodology/methodologies

e. Constraints, limitations, and risks

f. Leadership structure (project manager and his or her senior aides: list their roles and explain what each does in the project. You need to cite four (4) roles)

g. Project risks and their mitigation

h. Projectstakeholders and how to interact with them

i. The vision of the project and the type of project team culture you wish to promote in your team

j. Reference list

Referencing
It is essential that you use appropriate APA style for citing and referencing research. Please see more information on referencing here: https://library.torrens.edu.au/academicskills/apa/tool

Solution

a. Project Background

The project in concern is the development of satellite phones for a company that is a “global satellite communications service provider”. This project is led by Sasken Technologies, which is a communication service company, operating in India. The key aim of the project is to improve the communication abilities in regions that have limited connectivity (Sridhar & Vadivelu, 2020, p:5). The prime stakeholders in the project are Sasken Technologies itself, which is working as the sponsor of the project, government agencies providing funds and support, regulatory bodies, and other technology partners and users, who will ultimately benefit from this project. The key location focus of this project is global, specifically targeting distant locations where there is a lack of communication infrastructure.

b. Purpose or project justifications

The project mainly aims to address the increasing demand for dependable satellite communication, specifically in remote as well as underserved regions (Sridhar & Vadivelu, 2020, p:5). The present infrastructure is not able to meet the adequate need for connectivity in those areas, which results in communication gaps and constrained access to crucial services.

Justification

This concerned project is needed to fill up the gap in communication along with the requirement for string, reliable and efficacious satellite phones. This project is also in alignment with the strategy of Sasken which is to extend its specialisation in the field of high-tech communication solutions, thus strengthening its position as a leader in the market of global technology for the assignment helpline.

c. Project Objectives

Business Strategy objectives:

- To enhance the global connectivity by supplying dependable satellite communication in the remote regions

- To support the economic development as well as a state emergency response via enhanced communication infrastructure

- To improve the market position of Sasken Technologies in global communications technology

Project objectives (SMART objectives):

- Specific - Designing, developing and establishing a satellite communication system, which would be capable of supplying high-speed internet communication to distant areas.

- Measurable: Attain 95% coverage of the remote areas targets and also maintain 99% operational time

- Attainable: by making use of the existing satellite technology and collaborating with other leading technology organisations to make sure the feasibility of the project.

- Relevant: This objective is relevant as it aligns with increasing demand globally for enhanced communication infrastructure and also assists the goals of the organisation.

- Time-bound: 36 months (Phase 1 - 18 months and Phase 2 - 18 months)

d. Project methodology and justification

The chosen methodology for this project is PRINCE2 because of its focus on clearly explained roles, phases and processes. These roles, phases and processes are crucial in an international project including several stakeholders. This methodology will give a structured paradigm towards managing the project through its lifecycle, making sure that the risks are determined and also reduced at an early stage (Issa & Pan, 2021, p:77). For this kind of project, where time schedules and specifications stand very crucial, this approach will help in outlining a roadmap that allows for detailed planning and tracking of project progress.

It will also make sure that the project maintains its association with the objectives of the clients (Varajão, Lopes & Tenera, 2024, p:7). This is because the PRINCE2 methodology focuses on managing the changes and adjustments effectively, which is an important aspect, keeping in mind the possibility of changing needs and technological advancements throughout the project.

This methodology invoices procedures for the systematic handling of changes, making sure that any kind of changes are done with minimum damage to the project. Thus, it can be said that the structured approach of PRINCE2 along with its clearly defining roles, capabilities in risk management as well as change management process has made it a perfect option for effectively managing the development and deployment of the satellite communication system. This would guarantee the efficient and effective execution of other projects.

e. Project constraints

1. Scope

The scope of the project involves the designing, development as well as deployment of the target satellite communication system, particularly focusing on remote areas and regions. The project is restricted to the development, testing and execution of the satellite phone and then the warranty period for maintenance and support.

2. Time

Table 1: Project Timeline and Schedule

3. Budget

The budget has been estimated based on similar projects, and data collected from a peer-reviewed journal (Daehnick et al. 2020, p:11). The budget includes personnel costs, such as salary, production costs, prototyping, certification, and logistics.

Table 2: Project Budget

4. Quality

The quality of the project can be passed by the number of certifications gained by regulating bodies right after delivering the final prototype. Some of the certification examples include “specific absorption rate (SAR) for radio emission levels”, “universal serial bus (USB) standards”, “testing for Bluetooth and GPS” and adherence to the “Federal Communications Commission (FCC)” and “European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI)” norms and standards (Sridhar & Vadivelu, 2020, p:8). Thus, the project getting so 0many licences and certificates along with others demonstrates its high quality and reliability.

f. Project Imitations

This project has also faced multiple limitations because of the influence of the external environment. These include a lack of experience and an unclear budget. The designing and development of cutting-edge satellite technologies might give rise to different challenges and risks because of the limited experience of the team in this particular field. As stated by Sridhar & Vadivelu (2020), this was the first project of this kind for Sasken Technologies. The uniqueness of the satellite phone technology might lead to unpredicted technical issues or time delays, which would create an impact on the overall quality of the project and its timeline. Unclear budget and limitations to budget along with the fluctuating costs cause many risks (Thornhill-Miller et al. 2023, p:3). This is because an unclear budget can impact the scope of the project, which could lead to potential adjustments or even compromises such as in quality or the efficacy of the technology.

In addition, variations in the costs of technology and materials might have an impact on the overall financial planning, which would further make project adjustments necessary in domains such as financial strategy, thus affecting deliverables and milestones (Renaud et al. 2024, p:280). These limitations and constraints make it mandatory to plan carefully and manage risk to make sure that the project is on track and in alignment with the set objectives.

g. Leadership Structure

As the project manager of this concerned project, I will look over the execution of the project and make sure that it is aligned with the vision and objectives of the client. Along with the Project Manager, the leadership team will include a Technical Lead, Risk Management Lead, Quality assurance Lead and Financial Analyst.
Technical Lead - A technical lead is responsible for looking over the technological aspects such as designs and integration. He or she will also oversee the development of the target satellite system.

Risk Management Lead - They are responsible for determining the potential risks and incorporating mitigation strategies (Flyvbjerg, 2021, p:539). They will identify all the risks and issues at an early stage during the project lifecycle and also innovate mitigation strategies to address the issues on time.

Quality assurance Lead - The one who is responsible for making sure and guaranteeing that all the project deliverables address the required standards as well as the certification standards is the quality assurance lead. He or she will be in charge of making sure that the project surpasses all standards and regulations for the needed certifications and licences for the project to be executed.

Financial Analyst - A financial analyst tracks the set budget for the project along with its financial performance (Fallaw, Grable & Kruger, 2020, p:5). This project's financial analysis will have to make sure that the project does not exceed the set budget and performs financially well.

h. Project Risks and Their Mitigation

It is very important to identify risks in a project and address them as early as possible in order to keep the project operating successfully. Some risks have been identified for this project and they are:

Technological failures – The implementation of latest satellite technology may pose high risk of disruption or failure during integration or deployment.

This can be mitigated by incorporating PRINCE2 methodology’s “Mange by Stages” principle. This will make sure that every phase of the development project is thoroughly tested and taken approval before continuing with the next stage (Fabbro & Tonchia, 2021, p:35).

Delays in getting regulatory approvals - Gaining so many approvals and certifications can lead to possible delays in the project execution.

This can be mitigated by implementing strict controls on the budget and developing a contingency fund (Rybnicek, Plakolm & Baumgartner, 2020, p:1183). This kind of risk can be mitigated by engaging with government and regulatory bodies early during the project and also maintaining constant proactive communication.

Budget Overrun - It happens many times that the overall project costs exceed the estimated and set budget and this is also possible in this project.

This can be mitigated by implementing strict controls on the budget and developing a contingency fund. Also, implementing PRINCE2’s “Manage by Exception” principle and conducting regular financial audits would make sure that any variation from the original budget plan are taken care of at an early stage without any unnecessary damage.

Resistance from the stakeholders - At any point of the project, any of the stakeholders out of the many can resist or disagree on a decision. This can also happen with end users, who are the ultimate beneficiaries of the project deliverables.

However, this can be mitigated by engaging and communicating with stakeholders about decisions early and also updating them regularly and working on the feedback they provide.

Supply Chain disruptions - Interruptions can also be faced by vendors in the supply of crucial components and materials (Alves, Ferreira & de Nadae, 2021, p:10).

In order to mitigate the issues, preparations must be done early by using PRINCE2’s methodology to develop extensive procurement plan, including fostering close relationships with several suppliers, who will be able to help during times of crisis and also maintain inventory guards.

i. Project stakeholders and how to interact with them

Table 3: Project stakeholders and way of interacting with them

j. Vision of the project

The vision of the satellite communication system projects is to bring revolution in global connectivity by supplying dependable and high-speed advanced satellite communication to distant regions that lack such facilities. The key goal is to fill the gaps brought by digital communication and enable access to crucial services for the communities and areas that are in need.

k. Team culture

The primary goal as the project manager for the concern project for Sasken Technologies regarding the satellite communication system is to develop a dynamic team culture that embraces and promotes collaboration, innovation and accountability. In order to attain this, the project managers have to incorporate multiple principles, values and characteristics. It is very significant to promote a work culture of creativity and future thinking capabilities (Thornhill-Miller et al. 2023, p:9). Such an environment will be promoted where the team members are given the power to explore and propose new ideas as well as solutions for issues. Regular sessions of brainstorming and innovation relationships will be a crucial part of the routine, which will make sure that the approach remains problem-solving. Additionally, effective communication and teamwork are very essential for project success (Mercader et al. 2021, p:2). As a project manager, I will foster open communication for birth ideas, giving every member of the team a scope to showcase their expertise and perspectives.

Regular feedback sessions and progress reviews will also aid in maintaining focus on the project and mitigate any issues as quickly as possible. Moreover, I will also provide opportunities for growth along with enhancement in training and skills of my team members, motivating them to pursue growth and achievement electrifications or even learning activities that are associated with their individual career goals as well as the project needs. I will also promote a workplace culture of inclusivity and respect and encourage members to value diverse perspectives. It will help in making each member feel respected and heard. Ultimately, this will aid in developing a work environment that will be productive and positive, recognising all contributions. Thus, by embracing these principles and values, as a project manager, I focus on building a high-performing team that meets all project expressions all the while maintaining a collaborative and positive work environment.

References