Master of Business Administration-MBA Semester 2 Project Management (Book ID: B1138) Assignment Set-1 (60 Marks) Note: Each

question carries 10 Marks. Answer all the questions. Q.1 List and explain the traits if a professional manager. Answer: Traits of the professional manager The following traits enable a manager to be effective in his functioning. Endowe d with these it will be easy to be effective. The top management will look for these in a person who they want to employ for project management. (a) Leadership These managers lead by exhibiting the characteristics of leadersh ip. They know what they should do, know why they are doing it, know how to do it and have the courage and will to do it. They have the power of taking along with the m others. (b) People Relationships Any leader without followers cannot be successful. They have excellent human relationship skills. The manager builds up his team based on the core values of sincerity, objectivity and dedication. He ensures that his subordinate s get opportunities for growth based on performance. He makes them a part of the decis ion making process, thus ensuring cooperation and commitment during implementation. He delegates freely and supports them. (C) Integrity Highest -levels of trust, fairness and honesty are expected while dealing with people both within an outside the organisation. This includes the customers , shareholders, dealers, employees, the government and society at large. They ensu re that functioning is clean. Their transactions will be transparent. Ethics is som ething they practice diligently. (d) Quality The quality philosophy should not cover only the product quality, bu t every process that has gone into making it. Economy of words when instructions are giv en, acknowledging compliance, arriving on time, remembering the promises and above a ll a keen eye for details and patience to make others know what they want are compone nts of quality. (e) Customer Orientation It is now recognized that every organized two sets of customers. Internal customers are people in the organisation employees, director s, MB0049 -4 Credits

team members

any person who needs your services, whose needs of demands you

satisfy. External customers clients and all members of society we come in contac t in connection with our business. They need our solutions for their problems. So, th e manager s thinking about any problem is what can I do for him and all actions will be in that direction. (f) Innovation and creativity Professional managers think beyond the obvious. Th ey exhibit a keenness to go behind a problem and attempt to find the root cause of the problem. They will draw from their experience from diverse fields, seek further information and consider all possible alternatives and come out with some new an d unique solution. This happens when they have open minds. A saying goes the human mind is like a parachute, it is useful only when it is open. Such a work culture is very conducive for problem solving which is the aim of all creativity. Their persiste nce will reward them. Such actions observed by their team members nthuse them and a spiri t of adventure will bring about better solutions faster. (g) Performance Management The professional manager not only ensures that his performance is at peak all times, but motivates his entire team to do it. This c omes by appreciation and encouragement. If there any shortfalls he arranges for training them so that their performance improves. Thus the team members know that they are expect ed to perform, that they get help to do so and their effort is recognized. This is the simple path of performance management. The following seven step model will be useful: 1. Objectives/Performance standards are set. 2. These are communicated to the employees. 3. Review/monitor the above. 4. Check actual performance Vs. Standards set. 5. Identify gaps. 6. Jointly decide on corrective action, if needed. 7. Reset objectives for next period 1. Objectives/Performance Standards Are Set 1. To mange any criterion, it is necessary to measure the factors that were resp onsible for what is . The quality of the input, their quantity and their intended usage. Th en measures of the utilizationthe processes used, their suitability, and the diffic ulties faced in utilization and how they were resolved. Then the outcomes are they as they we re expected. Performance closer or beyond expectation is the degree of quality. For every employee the level of achievement is set in terms of quantities and extent to wh ich the performance approached the standard. This is the basis for evaluating performanc e. 2. These are communicated to the employees This procedure ensures that they know what is expected of them and help them to adjust their activities in such a way

as to meet them. This enables them to seek help, consult their colleagues or bosses, l earn so that they will meet the expectations. It is possible that some objectives can not be met at all. The communication to his boss, may help in reallocating the job, so that there will be no hiccups at the end of the period. 3. Review/monitor the above Review helps in resetting the goals when they cannot be achieved for various reasons shortage of resources, time etc. By monitoring, the

shortfalls can be made up with the allocation of extra resources, or even divert ing the operation. 4. Check actual performance Vs. Standards set This is the evaluation phase. Comparison on every detail is made. Differences are recorded. Particular areas a re chosen for improvement. 5. Identify gaps Gaps mean the shortfall in performance standards. The immediate supervisor is also involved. The extent to which they affect the functions of th e job itself are identified 6. Jointly decide on corrective action, if needed There is a possibility that th e performance has exceeded the set standards. But if performance is not good the reasons and extent having been identified, the course of action for effecting co rrections are decided. Giving extra responsibilities, training, relocation is considered. 7. Reset objectives for next period The targets are revised either upward or dow nward depending on the conclusion of the appraisal process. (h) Identification with the organisation A sense of pride and belonging goes wit h the ownership of the job, the project, team members and organisation. This is brought about by the culture and communication system in the organisation. Information s haring brings in trust and promotes belongingness. The tendency seen is that most manag ers strongly identify with their own departments, units or divisions and they lack a sense of organisation. In the light of increased competition and ever changing strategies to develop bu siness orientation, which in effect means every manager should be aware of the company s plans, products and policies. An obvious corollary to this is that the organizat ion s communication policy too should be conducive to such information sharing. Today, many organizations are using interventions such as team building, survey feedbac k, and other activities, to ensure that employees build up a strong sense of identi ty and pride in the organisation they work for. (i) Empowering employees: The professional manager should possess the ability to empower his employees down the line. Many managers are not even ready to delegat e their authority to subordinates and end up only delegating responsibility. Empow erment is the process by which employees are encouraged to take decisions pertaining to their area of work. Empowerment ensures execution of his duties. This leads employees developing a sense of pride in their jobs. But managers often hesitate to empowe r their subordinates as they feel insecure and show a sense of uncertainty. The professi onal manager practices empowerment and encourages employees to grow and develop in their positions.

(j) Coping with changes: It is often said The only constant in this world is chan ge . A professional manager has the ability and capacity to cope with change. He accept s the fact that change is inevitable and is ready to implement change at the workplace . To

implement change successfully, it is essential that employees are involved in th e implementation of change. Further the positive and negative consequences of change need to be discussed and understood before implementation. Thus a professional manager has the attitude to accept change as a way of life a nd takes it in his stride Q.2 Describe in brief the various aspects of programme management? Answer: Some of the considerations for effective programme management are given below: Focusing on the various strategic initiatives taken up for multiple projects and the issues related to benefits and risks. Bringing about the attention of management to a defined set of benefits, which a re understood immediately, which are managed throughout the implementation and at completion. Helping top management to set priorities, choosing options and allocate resource s Setting up mechanisms to measure and ensure that the projects making contributio ns for realizing expected business benefits. Leading the organisation on the path of where it an where it wants to be Ensuring that the effects of the programme driven changes are coordinated, the transition s are successfully managed. The operations are effective and efficient. Process of P2M :The objectives sought to be achieved and the methods which are adopted and the activities that are going to be undertaken i.e. the process incl ude the following steps : Preparing and maintaining a set of activities and the workflow that is to be fol lowed and identifying business areas responsible for different stages in the above; 1. Making sure that the priorities that the above generate are relevant and the projects are run on the basis of their impact on the business as a whole; 2. Structuring the programme so that the responsibilities and roles at both prog ramme and project level are acceptable to both the top management and managers; 3. Planning the various points of review between various phases of the projects. The process has to incorporate all the important aspects which are to be addressed d uring implementation and management of the projects. It is important to identify all f actors and incorporate resources men, materials, technology and time so that their provision can be planned. Managing the Programme When we consider the portfolio of projects as a programme, the main consideratio ns will be on resources, risks associated with the programme, quality of the projects at every

stage of the executionas meeting the requirements of the client as per the contr act and monitoring the change processes that get enmeshed during implementation. The specifics concerning the above are listed below: i) Evaluating the risks associated with the programme business operations; ii) Ensuring that the processes to ensure quality are sufficient and purposes ar e fully met; iii) Keeping track of the changes and developments external to the project envir onment and studying their impact on the programme. iv) Making sure that the personnel in business affected by the above are informe d and trained so that the projects are smoothly; v) Ensuring that the support services like human resources and IT are able to ad opt to the changes that take place in the projects and business operations as a whole. Q.3 Compare the following: a. Traditional Vs. Projectised Organization b. Reengineering Vs. E-engineering Answer: a. Traditional Vs. Projectised Organization: Projectised organizations are not s pecial or a separate species but those which tend to treat most of the work they do as compartmentalized projects. The main concept that a project has a team responsib le for all activities. The time schedules are derived for a specific set of objectives. Each job gets fitted into a slot so that resources required will be identifiable and theref ore control becomes easier. The purpose is to consider all the projects from the organizatio n s view point as a programme for implementation. No doubt, development of technology and its application for this purpose is essential. We will also see the various steps th at are taken for development of technology. We will go through the process of making innovation as an enterprise wide effort so that benefits and experiences will take the organis ation further in the field of technology. Projectised Organizations This is one of the various models of organizations, which enterprises adopt to r un their businesses depending on the policies they follow, the opportunities they want to exploit and the constraints that the environment forces on them. Most organizations foll ow some sort of projectisation of their activities be it manufacturing, development o f a product, research, entering a market, acquiring of another company, training programmes, setting up a new plant etc. In some situations they find it advantag the planned changes to the

eous to treat a set of activities requiring resources of different kinds for short perio ds to reach a particular stage. They call that a project. Projectised operations have in them some are all of the following objectives, so that this business model to be useful.

 Accommodate discrete projects as a group in certain organizational units to faci litate monitoring and controlling performance levels at various stages. Assign priority of divisional management efforts based on Pareto s law backed by statistics or rules of thumb for prevention of problems or profit growth on a gr oup of projects in hand. Facilitate project resource assignment and subsequent adjustment especially huma n and information resources among the various projects. Enumerate, evaluate and implement various procedures of standardization in the f orm tables, charts, manuals, templates with the abundance of data that get generated across projects. Analyses of data help in identifying opportunities of making ch anges in similar projects. The project management capability can be enhanced perhaps with the help of the PMO, by setting objectives and measuring them with success achieved. Each projec t can be measured for its maturity level. Enhancement of the levels of different p rojects does become a motivational factor for performance enhancement. A system of inter nal benchmarking gets initiated almost automatically resulting in highly efficient o rganisation as a whole. The principles of Project Management can be extended to various traditional operational type units. The main differences between the traditional and project approach are mentioned below. Here, we would like to emphasize that no one approach can be considered t he better for all businesses or at all times for the same business. However, many organizations have found the project approach worth giving a try to improve prod uctivity. Traditional organizations We have the formal organisation structure, with departments, functions, sections having an hierarchy of managers and their assis tant. All of them function on a continuous basis catering to a series of requirements issued by the planning department. An assembly of various units of their production forms a products and a variety of such products make up the business of the company. No one particular member or a department or a team is responsible for the completion of any particular product. Their creativity and innovation is particular respect of job s. Most of them do not get exposed to other areas of operations in the organisation . They will become specialists and be insular. Projectised organizations have teams comprising members who are responsible for completing one completely deliverable product. They will have all the resources required to do all jobs or operations to complete it. Most importantly, they hav e a time schedule within which all the elements of the projects have to be completed. It

has been found that a sense of ownership of the project motivates them for being creative, cooperate among themselves to achieve high productivity. b. Reengineering Vs. E-engineering: Reengineering This is a process by which managers redesign a bundle of tasks int o roles and functions so that organisational effectiveness is achieved. By doing s o

dramatic improvements in critical measures of performance like cost, quality and service are expected. There will be a radical rethink about the business processes adopt ed. A business process is any activity like inventory control, product design, order processing, delivery systems. No reference is taken to the existing process igno ring it, an entirely new process is adopted. The following rules for reengineering are ef fective i) Make changes with the outcome in mind not the tasks that result in them. ii) Make the users of the results of the process effect the change iii) Let the people on the spot decide on the solution decentralize

b) EEngineering The term EEngineering refers to the attempts of companies to mak e use of all kinds of information systems, to make their functions efficient. New information systems are installed for conducting all business processes in the organisation. The use of electronic communication within the organisation enable frequent interactions between employees and resul ts in better communication. Meetings require their presence, but with teleconferencing a lot of time is saved. Data have repositories which are accessible, transferable and updatable instantl y and used by all concerned. Crossfunctional workflows make it easier to coordinate ac tivities. The increase in efficiency makes the organisation to meet customers requirements faster. All these result in widespread utilization of knowledge in the organisation. It helps in creating and making available high quality of information. The information syste m using intranet and internet solutions to carry on their regular activities on line. Q.4 List out the macro issues in project management and explain each. Answer: Macro issues a) Evolving Key Success Factors (KSF) Upfront: In order to provide complete stability to fulfillment of goals, one needs to constantly evaluate from time to time , the consideration of what will constitute the success of completing a project and as sessing its success before completion. The KSF should be evolved based on a basic consen sus document (BCD). KSF will also provide an input to effective exit strategy (EES). Exit here does not mean exit from the project but from any of the drilled down elemen tal activities which may prove to be hurdles rather than contributors. Broad level o f KSF should be available at the conceptual stage and should be firmed up and detailed out during the planning stage. The easiest way would be for the team to evaluate eac h step for chances of success on a scale of ten. KSF should be available to the managem

ent duly approved by the project manager before execution and control stages. KSF ri des above normal consideration of time and cost at the levels encompassing client expectation and management perception time and cost come into play as subservien t to these major goals.

b) Empowerment Title (ET) ET reflects the relative importance of members of the organization at three levels: i) Team members empowered to work within limits of their respective allocated responsibilities the major change from bureaucratic systems is an expectation fr om these members to innovate and contribute to time and cost. ii) Group leaders are empowered additionally to act independently towards client expectation and are also vested with some limited financial powers. iii) Managers are empowered further to act independently but to maintain a scien tific balance among time, cost, expectation and perception, apart from being a virtual advisor to the top management. c) Partnering Decision Making (PDM) PDM is a substitute to monitoring and contro l. A senior with a better decision making process will work closely with the project managers as well as members to plan what best can be done to manage the future better fro m past experience. The key here is the active participation of members in the decision making proce ss. The ownership is distributed among all irrespective of levels the term equally shoul d be a\voided here since ownership is not quantifiable. The right feeling of ownershi p is important. This step is most difficult since junior members have to respond and resist to b eing pushed through sheer innovation and performance this is how future leaders would emerge. The PDM process is made scientific through : i) Earned value management system (EVMS) ii) Budgeted cost of work scheduled (BCWS) iii) Budgeted cost of work performed (BCWP) iv) Actual cost of work performed(ACWP) d) Management By Exception (MBE) No news is good news . If a member wants help he or she locates a source and proposed to the manager only if such help is not accessible for free. Similarly, a member should believe that a team leaders silence is a sign of appr oval and should not provoke comments through excessive seeking of opinions. In short leav e people alone and let situation perform the demanding act. The bend limit of MBE can be evolved depending on the sensitivity of the nature and size of the project. MBE provides and facilitates better implementation of effectiveness of empowerment titles .MB E is

more important since organizations are moving toward multiskilled functioning ev en at junior most levels.

Q.5 Describe the various steps in risk management listed below: a. Risk Identification b. Risk Analysis c. Risk Management Planning d. Risk Review Answer: a. Risk Identification : To identify risks, we must first define risk. Risks are potential problems, ones that are not guaranteed to occur. When people begin performing ri sk identification they often start by listing known problems. Known problems are no t risks. During risk identification, you might notice some known problems. If so, just mo ve them to a problem list and concentrate on future potential problems. Risk identification can be done using a brainstorming session. The brainstorm ty pically takes 1530 minutes. Be sure to invite anyone who can help you think of risks. In vite the project team, customer, people who have been on similar projects, and experts in the subject area of the project. Limit the group size to nine people. In the brainst orming session, people call out potential problems that they think could hurt the proje ct. New ideas are generated based on the items on the brainstorm list. A project manager can also use the process to refer to a database of risk obtained from past. The information obtained from such databases can help the project manager to evaluate and assess the nature of the risk and its impact on the project. Also t o a great extent the judgment of the project manager based upon his past experience comes very handy in dealing with risks. Another important method is to generate alternative solution or methodology to deal with risk. Generate solution by means of group review meetings or a brainstorm session. During the brainstorm, consider the following items: Selection of weak areas in a project, such as unknown technology being used or t o be used. Things, that are critical or extremely important to the effort, such as th e timely delivery of a vendor s database software, creation of translators, or a user inter face that meets the customers needs. Things that have caused problems in the past, such as loss of key staff, missed deadlines, or Errorprone software. Example of risks are: We may not have the requirements right, The technology is untested, Key people might leave, The server won t restart in situation X, and People might resist the change. Any potential problem, or critical project feature , is a good candidate for the risk list. Once you have created a list, work with the gr oup to clarity each item. Duplicate items can be removed. b. Risk Analysis : The first step in risk analysis is to make each risk item mor e specific. Risks such as, Lack of Management buyin, and people might leave, are a little

ambiguous. In these cases the group might decide to split the risk into smaller specific risks, such as, manager Jane decides that the project is not beneficial, Database expert might leave, and Webmaster might get pulled off the project.

The next step is to set priorities and determine where to focus risk mitigation efforts. Some of the identified risks are unlikely to occur, and others might not be seri ous enough to worry about. During the analysis, discuss with the team members, each risk item to understand how devastating it would be if it did occur, and how likely i t is to occur. For example, if you had a risk of a key person leaving, you might decide that it would have a large impact on the project, but that it is not very likely. In the process below, we have the group agree on how likely it thinks each risk item is to occur, using a simple scale from 1 to 10 (where 1 is very unlikely and 10 is very likely). The group then rates how serious the impact would be if the risk did oc cur, using a simple scale from 1 to 10 (where 1 is little impact and 10 is very large). To use this numbering scheme, first pick out the items that rate 1 and 10, respectively. The n rate the other items relative to these boundaries. To determine the priority of each risk item, calculate the product of the two values, likelihood and impact. This priority sc heme helps push the big risks to the top of the list, and the small risks to the bott om. It is a usual practice to analyze risk either by sensitivity analysis or by probabilisti c analysis. In sensitivity analysis a study is done to analyse the changes in the variable v alues because of a change in one or more of the decision criteria. In the probability analysis, the frequency of a particular event occurring is de termined, based on which it average weighted average value is calculated. Each outcome of an event resulting in a risk situation in a risk analysis process is expressed as a probability. Risk analysis can be performed by calculating the expected value of each alterna tive and selecting the best alternative. Ex : Now that the group has assigned a priority to each risk, it is ready to sel ect the items to mange. Some projects select a subset to take action upon, while others choose to work on all of the items. To get started, you might select the top 3 risks, o r the top 20%, based on the priority calculation. c. Risk Management Planning : There are two things one can do to manage risk. Th e first is to take action to reduce (or partially reduce) the likelihood of the ri sk occurring. For example, some project that work on process improvement make their deadlines earlier and increases their efforts to minimize the likelihood of team members b eing pulled off the project due to changing organizational priorities. In a software product, a critical feature might be developed first and tested early.

Second, we can take action to reduce the impact if the risk does occur. Sometime s this is an action taken prior to the crisis, such as the creation of a simulator to u se for testing if the hardware is late. At other times, it is a simple backup plan, such as run ning a night shift to share hardware. For the potential loss of a key person, for example, we might do two things: Plan to reduce the impact by making sure other people become familiar with that person s work, or reduce the likelihood of attrition by giving the person a raise, or by providing daycare. d. Risk Review: You want to review your risks periodically so you can check how well mitigation is progressing. You can also see if the risk priorities need to chang e, or if new

risks have been discovered, you might decide to rerun the complete risk process if significant changes have occurred on the project. Significant changes might incl ude the addition of new features, the changing of the target platform, or a change in pr oject team members. Many people incorporate risk review into other regularly scheduled project reviews. Q.6 ABC Company implements got a very big project and they decided to allot the same to a new project manager, who joined the company recently. In order to execute t he project successfully, what are the various phases in which the project lifecycle should be divided. Answer: A new Project manager of ABC Company should divide the project life cycle in following phases: a) understanding the scope of the project, b) objectives of the project, c) formulation and planning various activities, d) project execution and e) project monitoring and control the project resources. A project manager is a person who manages the project. The project manager is responsible to carry out all the tasks of a project. Responsibilities of the pro ject manager Budgeting and cost control Scheduling tasks Allocating resources Tracking project expenditures Ensuring technical quality Manage relations with the customer and company Life cycle of a project manager overlaps with the development life cycle in the middle. Duties of a project manager starts before the development and continue after del ivery of the product. The main knowledge areas and processes in project management and their relationships, along with the process groups and its connection is shown in the following figures.

Phases Of Project Management Life Cycle The various phases in project management life cycle are Analysis and evaluation Marketing Design Inspecting, testing and delivery Post completion analysis Analysis and Evaluation Phase It starts with receiving a request to analyze the problem from the customer. The project manager conducts the analysis of the problem and submits a detailed report to th e top management. The report should consist of what the problem is, ways of solving th e problem, the objectives to be achieved, and the success rate of achieving the go al. The tasks of this phase are as follows: Specification Requirements Analysis (SRA): It has to be conducted to determine the essential requirements of a project for achieving the target. Feasibility study: To analyze whether the project is technically, economically a nd practically feasible to be undertaken. Tradeoff analysis: To understand and examine the various alternatives which could be considered Estimation: To estimate the project cost, effort required for the project and functionality of various processes in the project System design: choose a general design that can fulfill the requirements Project evaluation: evaluate the project in terms of expected profit, cost and r isks involved Marketing Phase A project proposal is prepared by a group of people including the project manage r.

This proposal has to contain the strategies adopted to market the product to the customers. Design Phase Inputs received Project feasibility study Preliminary project evaluation Project proposal Customer interviews Outputs produced System design specification Program Functional specification Program design specification Project plan Inspecting, Testing and Delivery Phase During this phase, the project team works under the guidance of the project mana ger. The project manager has to ensure that the team working under him, implements th e project designs accurately. The project has to be tracked or monitored through its cost, manpower and schedu le. Managing the customer Marketing the future work Perform quality control work Post Completion Analysis Phase The staff performance has to be evaluated Document the lessons from the project Project feedback analysis Project execution report Analysis of the problems encountered during the project

Master of Business Administration-MBA Semester 2 Project Management (Book ID: B1138) Assignment Set-2 (60 Marks) Note: Each question carries 10 Marks. Answer all the questions. Q.1 Write a short note on the following: a. Work Breakdown Structure b. Estimation Approach Answer: a. Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) The entire process of a project may be considered to be made up on number of sub process placed in different stage called the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS). A typical example of a work breakdown structure of a recruitment process is indi cated below : MB0049 -4 Credits

This is the technique to analyze the content of work and cost by breaking it dow n into its component parts. Project key stages form the highest level of the WBS, which is then used to show the details at the lower levels of the project. Each key stage comprises many tasks identified at the start of planning and late r this list will have to be validated.

WBS is produced by Identifying the key elements, breaking each element down into component parts and continuing to breakdown until manageable work packages have been identified. These can then be allocated to the appropriate person. The WBS does not show dependencies other than a grouping under the key stages. I t is not time based there is no timescale o the drawing. b. Estimation Approach : There are two types of estimation approaches: a. Bottom up approach The bottom up approach consists of the following i. Project manager first divides the product under development into major module s. ii. Each module is subdivided into smaller units. iii. Project manager defines a standard for manufacturing and selftesting as Identify modules in the system and classify them as simple, medium or complex. As much as possible, use either the provided standard definitions or definitions from past projects If a project specific baseline exists, get the average build effort for simple/medium/complex (S/M/C) programs from the baseline. If a project specific baseline does not exist, use project type, technology, lan guage and other attributes to look for similar projects in process database. Use data from these projects to define the build effort of S/M/C program. If no similar project exist in the process database and no project specific base line exist refine the estimates based on project specific factors. b. Top Down Approach The top down approach consists of the following i. Get the estimate of the total size of the product in function points ii. Using the productivity data from the project specific capability baseline fr om the general process capability baseline, or from similar projects, fix the productiv ity level for the project. iii. Obtain the overall effort estimate from the productivity and size estimates . Use effort distribution data from the process capability baselines or similar projects to e stimate the effort for the various phases. Refine the estimates taking project specific fact ors into consideration. Q.2 List and define in Brief all the tools for Post Implementation Review Answer:

After every stage of a project is implemented, it may so happen that there could be a minor change or modification which has to be reviewed. A review may by in the following form a) Final product review The product obtained after every stage must meet the requirements of that stage. If it completely meets the stated objectives then fo cus on the issues of maintenance of the processes and product performance. If the final pro duct does not completely meet the objectives then identify the variations in the prod uct and analyze the variation. Study the factors responsible for the change and evaluate each one separately. b) Outstanding project work review Many times it is found that there may be some

item of the project which is still not in its stage finished form. It may be ins ignificant as it may be a byproduct of that stage not required immediately for the next stage. Th en the items that are open should be resolved and necessary steps be taken to close suc h open items.. c) Project ReviewEvery aspect of a project from start to end has to be reviewed. The objectives, perfor mance criteria, financial criteria, resource utilization, slips and gains of time, adh erence to the project definition and plans have to be reviewed. All such review details and re ports have to be well documented for future use. d) Process review Every process is important in any project. One may review the process to see if any changes can be made to improve its performance. Tools for Post Implementation Review There are various tools for post project implementation review that may be consi dered for improving and developing processes of the project. Reports are prepared on t he same which becomes the basis for all future discussion. Some of the tools that m ay be considered for post implementation review are a) Final product evaluation This may be done through regularly organized meeting s and quality reviews. b) Outstanding project work evaluation All outstanding works of a project can be

reviewed to check its output quality, its performance compared to planned and ev aluate the same. c) Project review questionnaire may become important if the reviews are to be structured and group discussion may be initiated depending upon the points to be

discussed. d) Process evaluation ect evaluation of any process is one of the key issues of proj

Q.3 Define the Basic categories of performance management. Answer: Performance Management The professional manager not only ensures that his performance is at peak all times, but motivates his entire team to do it. This c omes by appreciation and encouragement. If there any shortfalls he arranges for training them so that their performance improves. Thus the team members know that they are expect ed to perform, that they get help to do so and their effort is recognized. This is the simple path of performance management. The following seven step model will be useful: 1. Objectives/Performance standards are set. 2. These are communicated to the employees. 3. Review/monitor the above. 4. Check actual performance Vs. Standards set. 5. Identify gaps. 6. Jointly decide on corrective action, if needed. 7. Reset objectives for next period 1. Objectives/Performance Standards Are Set 1. To mange any criterion, it is necessary to measure the factors that were resp onsible for what is . The quality of the input, their quantity and their intended usage. Th en measures of the utilizationthe processes used, their suitability, and the diffic ulties faced in utilization and how they were resolved. Then the outcomes are they as they we re expected. Performance closer or beyond expectation is the degree of quality. For every employee the level of achievement is set in terms of quantities and extent to wh ich the performance approached the standard. This is the basis for evaluating performanc e. 2. These are communicated to the employees This procedure ensures that they know what is expected of them and help them to adjust their activities in such a way as to meet them. This enables them to seek help, consult their colleagues or bosses, l earn so that they will meet the expectations. It is possible that some objectives can not be met at all. The communication to hisboss, may help in reallocating the job, so that there will be no hiccups at the end of the period. 3. Review/monitor the above Review helps in resetting the goals when they cannot be achievedfor various reasons shortage of resources, time etc. By monitoring, the shortfalls can be made upwith the allocation of extra resources, or even diverti ng the operation. 4. Check actual performance Vs. Standards set This is the evaluation phase. Comparison on every detail is made. Differences are recorded. Particular areas a re chosen for improvement.

5. Identify gaps Gaps mean the shortfall in performance standards. The immediate supervisor is also involved. The extent to which they affect the functions of th e job itself are identified

6. Jointly decide on corrective action, if needed There is a possibility that th e performance has exceeded the set standards. But if performance is not good the reasons and extent having been identified, the course of action for effecting co rrections are decided. Giving extra responsibilities, training, relocation is considered. 7. Reset objectives for next period The targets are revised either upward or dow nward depending on the conclusion of the appraisal process. (h) Identification with the organisation A sense of pride and belonging goes wit h the ownership of the job, the project, team members and organisation. This is brought about by the culture and communication system in the organisation. Information s haring brings in trust and promotes belongingness. The tendency seen is that most manag ers strongly identify with their own departments, units or divisions and they lack a sense of organisation. In the light of increased competition and ever changing strategies to develop bu siness orientation, which in effect means every manager should be aware of the company s plans, products and policies. An obvious corollary to this is that the organizat ion s communication policy too should be conducive to such information sharing. Today, many organizations are using interventions such as team building, survey feedbac k, and other activities, to ensure that employees build up a strong sense of identi ty and pride in the organisation they work for. (i) Empowering employees: The professional manager should possess the ability to empower his employees down the line. Many managers are not even ready to delegat e their authority to subordinates and end up only delegating responsibility. Empow erment is the process by which employees are encouraged to take decisions pertaining to their area of work. Empowerment ensures execution of his duties. This leads employees developing a sense of pride in their jobs. But managers often hesitate to empowe r their subordinates as they feel insecure and show a sense of uncertainty. The professi onal manager practices empowerment and encourages employees to grow and develop in their positions. (j) Coping with changes: It is often said The only constant in this world is chan ge . A professional manager has the ability and capacity to cope with change. He accept s the fact that change is inevitable and is ready to implement change at the workplace . To implement change successfully, it is essential that employees are involved in th e implementation of change. Further the positive and negative consequences of chan ge need to be discussed and understood before implementation. Thus a professional manager has the attitude to accept change as a way of life a nd

takes it in his stride Q.4 Write a short note on the following:

a. Professional Responsibility b. Business Orientation c. Personnel Productivity d. Conflict Management, Answer: a. Professional Responsibility : With increasing competition organizations have to finds new ways of customer retention and adopt innovative measures to improve th eir customer base. However, one common requirement is productivity improvement . Managerial and executive productivity are measures in relation to zero defects a nd overall Team Performance. The type of activities which can be performed only by the executives and managers. Installing Development Methodologies and Quality System s is the responsibility of managers. Another area of Professional Responsibility for mana gers is Reduction in Process Cycle Time. A few examples of high cycle time activities ar e: i) Procurement time for outsourced Software and hardware. Time to identify the requirements, the details regarding them, verification and authorization inputs from our company the start of the activities by the vendors lack of follow up with the ve ndors these should be avoided ii) Overall processing time linked to sales commitment, Financial cycles and Pro gress imbalances; iii) Order confirmation time loose ends not being connected and important not be ing considered at the early stages of process There are many opportunities for laxness to enter. The common factors for all thes e for these are absence of details, lack of awareness and absence of checks and balanc es. The Project Manager should set up systems will take of these. In addition to the se a few more areas whereby managerial productivity are taken into reckoning are : a) Creativity b) Lateral thinking c) Quality Circles d) New Product Introduction Lead time e) Managing Change f) Implementing TQM g) Empowerment of Junior level executives. You will notice that none of these factors are directly connected with the implementation. But, when these are undertaken the effectiveness of every member improves bringing about all round development. b. Business Orientation : The Project Manager should understand the business of the organisation he works for. He should know the way things are looked at by the to p management and align his thoughts and conduct, so as not to be in confusion or c

onflict with them. He should have his senses tuned to grasp business opportunities that crop up during the implementation.

c. Personnel Productivity : Productivity at the junior level can be assumed and controlled only if all other supporting elements of business are well balanced. Higher productivity cannot be expected if they are not motivated. Through a) Sufficient content of development activities the work should be interesting a nd bring a sense of satisfaction and achievement; b) Favourable working conditions environmental conditions should make a man/woman feel comfortable to stay at the workplace c) Planned activities clear line of authority and recognition of performance; d) Adequate availability of resources; otherwise frustration sets in and commitm ent is lost; e) Properly planned system of quality control though Process Control If the proc ess is not good, even the best efforts will not be enough to get tolerable quality and the person doing it is made responsible; f) Adequate maintenance support for Hardware and Software; these ensure that no work gets held up on this account efficiencies bring in productivity. As far as productivity as well as quality is concerned, especially, where projec ts are concerned, it is good to follow Deming s philosophy, which states create condition s for performance, do not use rhetoric, pay him well and give the pride of working. Assessment of Personnel Productivity Unlike productivity on shop floors, Personnel Productivity can be considered on a collective basis. The following can be used as guide lines to make assessments; a) Time for development of a new product b) Index of financial cycles c) Time for finding and proving a solution to serious customer complaints; d) Time for development of a bigger market for an existing product. It is better to avoid the following for assessment: a) Individual achievements or failures; b) Individual outputs; c) Reflection on Financial Health d) Reflection on Inventory It is better to remember always that the first person to know that something has gone wrong is the person who caused. If left alone or hinted in privacy, contemplatio n and a desire to make amends is strong in every individual. It is not suggested here th at mistakes should be forgotten or excused. If tendency persists, then serious corr ective action should be initiated at the earliest. Some times, training will help. d. Conflict Management, : It is possible to manage the conflicts in one of the f ollowing ways

a. Avoid the issue b. Approach the problem in such a way as to obtain the solution quickly. c. Discuss and share the problem d. Any misunderstanding should be resolved by means of a discussion among projec t members. e. Work on a common solution technique that will lead to a win win situation. f. Emphasize on collaboration Q.5 Comment on the following a. Importance of DMAIS in project management cycle b. Knowledge areas of project management Answer: a. We can consider the five steps DMAIS as generic for any system of a journey towards excellence. It is highly relevant in Project Management for the simple r eason that all the steps give out in detail the steps to be taken and that they will e nsure readiness for the next. Verification of implementation is possible with checklis ts which can be prepared and used by employees at all levels. The team members can be giv en training to follow them. We will consider them one by one. 1. Define This step requires that what is sought to be achieved is identified in all its detail. The following are the inputs which will define what we are going to make: a) Benchmark The standards achieved by the best in the industry. Our product is set to meet them. b) Customer Requirement c) Process Flow Map Activities that take place to result in the product at the e nd of them. d) Quality Function Deployment This tool compares the quality characteristics in our product with those in our competitors and their relative importance to the custom er. To achieve them, we find the technical specifications we have to incorporate in our product. e) Project Management Plan This includes the materials, men, activities, schedul es, milestones etc. 2. Measure Measuring the outcomes of the activities a) Data collection Data about the work that is done and compare as to how it corresponds with what is required b) Defect Metrics The deviations that are in the effective potion of the work wh ether they are acceptable or can they be rectified. c) Sampling If the volumes are high, select a few of them and inspect them to se e whether the entire batch is acceptable

3. Analyze Use the data on measures to perform analyses. Tools used can be a) Cause and Effect Diagrams also called Fishbone Diagrams b) Failure Mode and Effect Analysis FMEA c) Root Cause Analysis d) Reliability Analysis 3. Improve Measures to remove the defects found earlier are implemented for improving the process a) Design of Experiments The effect of changing values of parameters is done in a controlled way so that the effect of variations are experimentally determined an d results used for optimizing the process b) Robust Design To reduce the variations, the equipment design is made robust. c) Tolerances the permitted deviations are made closer, so that the capability o f process is increased 4. Standardize When improvements have become consistent, the methods adopted are standardized. b. Knowledge areas of project management : It comprises of various techniques needed to manage projects, the practical methodologies adopted in formulating a project and managing the resources which would affect the project completion. Relationship with other management discipli nes is essential for a project to be successful. Supporting disciplines includes law, s trategic planning, logistics, human resource management and domain knowledge. The main knowledge areas and processes in project management and their relationships, along with the process groups and its connection is shown in the following figures.

Q.6 What are the various SCMo soft wares available in project management? Explain each in brief. Answer: The various SCMo soft wares available in project management are: ARIS Web Publisher The task of the ARIS Web Publisher is to create HTMLpages of the models (Web Publish) that can be released in the internet /intranet and displayed via the In ternet Explorer. How to navigate in the Web Publish The following chapters give support for the navigation in the Web Publish in ord er to look at the modeled processes. Home page The Home Page is split into three sections: Below the header you can find a brown bar with a link to this document. Below th e bar you can find the Model selection and the Model list.

 IN either one, all models can be found but in a different structure. The models in the Model selection are structure in folders like in Windows Explo rer and the models in the Model list are grouped by their type and within a type are listed alphabetically. Navigation in the Model selection: Folders can be opened by clicking on the +/ symbol. Models can be opened by clicki ng on the model name Navigation in the Model list. Models can be opened by clicking on the model name. The Web Publish allows the standard Internet Explorerfunctionali ties, for e.g., the function key to get back to the previous page. Model Page On the model page the Model graphic is displayed, Depending on the size of the m odel, scroll bars may be found on the right hand side and bottom of the model. With th ese scroll bars you can scroll to the parts hidden in the current view of the model. The graphic of the model can be enlarged or shrunk. To enlarge the model graphic, cl ick in the white background of the model graphic and press the = key. Clicking on an obje ct in the model graphic you can open the object page with further information conce rning that object. Clicking on the assignment symbol, the assigned model is opened. Object Page On the Object page you can find information on the following points: Object attributes ARIS offers a variety of different attribute fields. On this page only attribute fields containing information are displayed. These are on one hand Standard attributes of the object such as name, last change an creator and on the other hand attributes suc h as remark/example or description with detailed information concerning object, in pa rticular functions. Object relationships Information concerning the edges between this particular object and the ones it is linked to. Object occurrences A list of the models / processes is considered. Find the occurrence of this part

icular object as part of the process. Object hierarchies, Master object, variants and F eedback are not relevant here. Master Global Materials Management Operations GuidelinesObjectives of Document Produce a common Materials Planning and Logistics evaluation that can be used by all business partners both internal and external Enable Materials Planning and Logistics continuous improvement plans to be developed and prioritized, thus enabling time to be spent on those activities th at offer the greatest benefit. Establish the components of Materials Planning and Logistics system for supplier s of goods and services within the automotive industry a. Drive continuous improvement within the organization b.Improve delivery performance within the supply organization.

 Prepare basis for benchmarking activities and to identify Best Practice Criteria o f materials planning and logistics processes for driving continuous improvement pl ans. Strategy and Improvement 1. Vision and Strategy a. The organization has a strategy that ensures the Materials Planning and Logis tics vision is achieved b. Key performance Indicators (KPIs) shall cover objectives for all areas of the Materials Planning and Logistics process. 2. Objectives a. Objectives relative to the Materials Planning and Logistics function are defi ned, communicated and understood within the organization. b. Key performance Indicators (KPIs) shall cover objectives for all areas of the Materials Planning and Logistics process. 3. Measurement, Analysis and Action plans a. Objectives are measured, analyzed, and action plans created where necessary b. Corrective and preventive actions, identified by KPI analysis, to improve per formance are documented. 4. Supply Chain Development a. Internal customer satisfaction objectives related to Materials Planning and L ogistics are identified, measured and communicated within the organization. Work Organization Organizational Processes Materials Planning and Logistics processes are described starting from customer interface, through internal production until supplier interface Organizational Procedures Organizational procedures exist for all functions with in Materials Planning and Logistics Resource Planning i ) Resource flexibility and availability are optimized ii) Contingency plans shall exist to avoid disruptions when something unexpected happens in the supply chain iii) A System exists for highlighting and communicating with both customers and suppliers within the plant, any incident or deviation from the production plan. Work Environment and Human Resource Plans exist for the control and improvement of the work environment The roles and responsibilities within the Materials Planning and Logistics funct ion are clearly documented. There is a process identifying current and required skills within the organizati on A training and development program exists for each employee in the Materials Planning and Logistics function Actions are taken to improve employee motivation and empowerment in the Material s Planning and Logistics function.

Capacity and Production Planning 1. Product Realization

a. The organization s Materials Planning and Logistics function shall formally par ticipate in, and sign off/on, the product Realization Process 2. Capacity Planning a. The organization shall perform a comparison of its resources against the cust omer s long, medium and short term requirements. A process shall be in place that ensur es prompt communication to the customer of any risk that could affect their operati ons 3. Capacity a. The organization s capacity planning process has the flexibility to ensure that the Product Approval Process (PAP) requirements are available in a timely manner to support customer changeover/ launches 4. Implementation 1. The organization implements measures to minimize obsolescence of Raw Material , WIP and Finished Goods There is a process to ensure the availability of service/spare parts 5. Production Planning .A process shall exist to plan production requirements and to maintain the param eters of the production planning system The production scheduling system supports lean manufacturing (e.g., pull systems ) 6. System Integration a. The customer information shall be processed directly into the organization s pl anning and scheduling systems b. The organization sets the timing of the Material Requirements Planning System (MRP) process to coincide with the receipt of the expected customer requirements 7 Customer Interface The attributes of customer interfaced with the system are Communication 1. The organization maintains a process to ensure a cooperative communication ba sed on actual and adequate information for both the parties. 2. The organization shall receive requirements planning and shipping information electronically, when available from the customer 3. The organization shall have a process to ensure that any potential problems t hat could impact the customer operation are communicated as soon as they are identif ied. Packaging and Labelling 1. The organization shall have a procedure for packaging development, coordinate d with the Product Approval Process 2. The organization manages the container process to ensure that the availabilit y of returnable/non returnable containers is adequate to support the material flow requirements.

 Shipping 1. The organization controls its processes to assure that the physical shipments correspond with the customer demand 2. The organization shall have a process to ensure complete and accurate data co ntent and timely transmission of all Advanced Shipping Notices (ASN) 3. The organization inspects and calibrates all shipment quantity determination equipment at planned intervals to an acceptable accuracy level, as defined by th e customer.

 Transportation 1. The organization shall assure the transport of finished goods satisfied custo mer requirements (e.g., carrier, mode, special equipment, cost responsibility) 2. Optimization of transportation capacity should be considered during the suppl y chain design phase Customer Satisfaction and Feedback 1. The organization has a process to assess customer satisfaction whether or not the customer provides feedback. Production and Product Control Material Identification 1. There shall be a process/method in place to ensure that all parts are labeled accurately and identified easily Inventoryprocess 1. The organization has one integrated system encompassing both perpetual invent ory and associated financial functions (e.g., one set of books ) 2. There are systems in place facilitate access to an management of all types of inventory finished goods, Worksinprocess (WIP), and raw material 3. The organization has a process to optimize the material flow 4. The organization has a process that ensures that all material records are mai ntained and accurate and deviations investigated and corrected. Inventorymaintenance 1. The organization has a process in place to coordinate phased out inventories (e .g., those affected by engineering changes and programs that are being phased out) wi th both supplier and customer. 2. The organization has a process to continuously evaluate and optimize inventor y buffers 3. The organization shall have a process to identify and route defective/obsolet e material in a timely manner. This process shall ensure that defective/obsolete m aterial is segregated and disposed off properly (e.g., reworked or scrapped) Engineering Change Control 1. The organization shall manage engineering revision levels with documented procedures for customer, supplier, and internal changes 2. The organization manager the life cycle of tools to ensure customer requireme nts at all stages of production. 3. The organization shall use a process to obtain written customer authorization for deviation whenever the product or process is different from that currently appro ved through Product Approval Process (PAP) Traceability 1. Where regulation and/or the customer require traceability, a system that supp ort lot and/or serial traceability shall be in place.

Supplier Interface

 Supplier Selection : Materials Planning and Logistics criteria is considered whe n selecting suppliers or other business partner for new or existing products or se rvices. Materials Planning and Logistics Agreement/Instruction : Documented agreement/Instruction shall exist with suppliers and sub contractor/outside proc essors regarding Materials Planning and Logistics. Communication : A method of communication exists among suppliers, subcontractors and logistic providers covering day to day issues and emergency situations. Proc edures for data exchange shall be implemented with Suppliers and Logistics Providers. Packaging and Labelling : There is a documented procedure for packaging development. Packaging management and control is organized in an efficient way. Transportation : Procedures exist regarding management and cost optimization of inbound transportation. Material receipt : Sufficient capacity and appropriate equipment in the material receiving function is ensured and optimized. A process exists to verify labeling and documentation against Materials Planning and Logistics requirements for procured parts. Supplier Assessment : Partners (suppliers, subcontractos and logistics service providers) in the supply chain are assessed regularly according to a defined pro cedure.