Operations Management homework help
Operations Management homework help. MGT 3302, Introduction to Project Management 1
Course Learning Outcomes for Unit VIII
Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:
1. Describe the components of a basic project schedule.
2. Discuss project management as a series of activities and tasks.
3. Explain how the project triple constraint is used to manage a project.
4. Develop a project plan.
4.1 Prepare a polished version of a simple project plan.
5. Analyze factors impacting control of project costs.
6. Summarize project management techniques.
6.1 Describe project closing techniques.
7. Examine project teams.
Course/Unit
Learning Outcomes
Learning Activity
1 Unit VIII Course Project
2 Unit VIII Course Project
3 Unit VIII Course Project
4.1
Unit Lesson
Chapter 9, pp. 304–317
Unit VIII Course Project
5 Unit VIII Course Project
6.1
Unit Lesson
Chapter 9, pp. 304–317
Unit VIII Course Project
7 Unit VIII Course Project
Required Unit Resources
Chapter 9: Closing the Project, pp. 304–317
Unit Lesson
In this unit, we discuss the activities needed to occur once we terminate a project. The termination could be
because we successfully completed all of the work and handed the deliverables to the customer, or there
could be reasons why we need to terminate the project early.
Project Closing
All planned projects should have an endpoint. Having an absolute end is a part of the definition of what a
project is. Once all of the work activities have been completed and the deliverables have been accepted, then
it is time to close out the project. Many times, the project manager (PM) will not do the closing activities. The
UNIT VIII STUDY GUIDE
Project Closeout
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organization may not require closing activities, or closing activities may not be considered a necessity. In
some cases, the PM is ready to move on to the next project. However, the importance of closing project
activities cannot be understated.
What are some of the activities needed when closing a project?
While the project deliverables should have been delivered and accepted, in some cases, final project reports
have not been created. These final reports may or may not be considered as being a part of the final
deliverables. For example, deliverable reports might include results of testing or quality reports.
Reports that are a part of project closing might include a report of project changes, a communication log, a
risk assessment matrix, or lessons learned. These types of reports would need to be organized and archived
with all of the project information for future reference.
A part of closing activities would include making final payments to vendors and suppliers. Also, any monies
owed to the organization would need to be collected. This is referred to as an accounting closeout. Team
members would need to be recognized and thanked for their hard work. The organization may require a postproject evaluation. And again, much of this information will need to be documented and added to the archived
project information.
Accounting Closeout
Based on the contracts we have with the customer, final payments would need to be collected. Also, the PM
would need to verify that invoices for materials, subcontractors, and contractors have all been paid. Once all
of the monies have been paid or collected, then the accounting closeout can happen. Most likely, the
organization will want an analysis of the actual cost versus budgeted cost.
Team Recognition
For many organizations, there will be some sort of a closeout party. This is to celebrate project success and
to reward team members for their hard work. It may be something informal like a bowling party or more formal
with speakers. Also, in many cases, the PM will be required to do a performance evaluation of all of the team
members.
Post-Project Evaluation
There is valuable knowledge to learn based on project performance. Most of the time, organizations do not
want to repeat the same mistakes over and over. The goal is to get better and better so projects will be
successful. The PM would have a meeting with the team and then with individual team members to get
impressions of project performance. In a team meeting, the following items might be discussed.
1. Technical performance: This item is not about how any specific technology worked; rather, it refers to
the technical aspects of the project. In other words, how accurate was the scope of the project? Were
there any changes to the scope? If so, what was the impact on the project?
2. Budget performance: In sum, how did the estimated budget compare to the actual budget? Were
there any cost overruns? If so, what was the cause? How can we prevent this in the future?
3. Schedule performance: How accurate was the original schedule? Did changes have to be made?
Were estimated activity durations correct?
4. Project control: Was there enough detail in the project plan? Was there too much detail?
5. Project risk: Were all of the project risks identified? Were there any unanticipated risks? Were the
responses adequate? Was the risk assessment matrix a helpful tool?
6. Customer satisfaction: Was the customer involved in the processes of the project? Were any
customer concerns anticipated? Were there any events that affected customer satisfaction?
7. Supplier and vendor relationships: Did the suppliers or vendors deliver as promised?
8. Team and stakeholder relationships: Were there any sources of conflict on the team? Were the
stakeholders involved in the processes of the project?
9. Communication: Were the team, stakeholders, and leadership kept apprised of any issues that
occurred? Did the team members feel comfortable approaching the PM with any concerns?
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10. Problem management: Were the team members encouraged to anticipate any problems? If there
were any problems, were they dealt with quickly and efficiently?
11. Lessons learned: What could have been done differently?
12. Recommendations: Based on all of this information, do we have some new best practices for future
projects?
The discussion of these items should be put into a project performance report. Depending on the
organization, this information may be dispersed to leadership and/or added to the archives for future
reference.
Lessons Learned
Lessons learned are an important part of the knowledge that a PM gathers during project closure. This
knowledge is valuable for future projects and whether they are successful. This information will likely go into
the archive along with the project information; however, it should not be placed there and just forgotten.
Lessons learned need to be shared for other PMs to benefit.
Archival of Project Documents
It is very frustrating when a PM tries to find information about a previous project, and they cannot find it. It just
makes sense that if an organization plans to have other, similar projects that the organization should hold on
to that information in a repository. Yes, the PM could contact the PM for that previous project, but what if the
PM does not work for the company anymore? It just makes sense to retain all of the information for future
use.
Customer Feedback
One may think that just delivering what the customer asked for is enough to determine customer satisfaction.
We may even think that, if we deliver on time and within budget, the customer will be happy. But, that is not
always the case. Not only do we want to deliver on expected benefits, but we need to get feedback from the
customer. For example, what if the customer’s impression was that we were very unorganized in our project
planning? What if there were a lot of delays in delivery of materials or machinery that led the customer to
believe that we do not have good relationships with our suppliers or vendors? These types of impressions
might lead to a customer choosing a different organization next time. Therefore, the PM needs to know this
information to correct for future projects.
But, what if we terminated our project before it was completed?
Yes, this does happen. In some cases, something will happen and will cause us to either fully stop the project
or put the project on hold. What if it was determined that some idea for a new technology was not
economically feasible? We might have to put the project on hold pending future research or changes in
economic condition. What if there were some issue that caused an organization to be low on capital? Larger
projects might have to be put on hold until a future date. What if there was a potential merger? The
organization might put a freeze on all hiring and capital expenditure until decisions were made regarding the
merger.
What if a customer decides that we will not deliver what they are asking for? They might terminate the project.
Even though a project is moved to a future date or is terminated, we still have to take measures to close out
the project. It does not make sense to do a lot of project planning and then just throw that information away
only to have to redo it again next year. That planning could serve as an initial project template for the new
project plan.
What if the project no longer supports our organization’s strategic plan? A good example of this is having
planned projects for our remote facilities and then discovering that we need to close one of those facilities.
Any projects based on that facility will need to be closed.
Also, what if we have a 3-year technology project but we know the technology will advance in 2 years?
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Summary
This unit wraps up our unit lessons. After completing this course, you should have a much clearer
understanding of how to plan and manage a project. Hopefully, you realize it is not a simple endeavor. It can
be quite complex with a lot of moving parts. Being able to successfully manage a project involves both
academic knowledge and experience. This course serves as the foundation for being able to manage a
project throughout its life cycle. But, the more experience you get, the better you will be at project
management.
Reference
Gido, J., Clements, J. P., & Baker, R. (2018). Successful project management (7th ed.). Boston, MA:
Cengage Learning.
Suggested Unit Resources
In order to access the following resources, click the links below.
The video below discusses how to determine lessons learned at the closing of a project.
Project Management Videos. (2013, September 30). How to capture lessons learned at the end of a project
[Video file]. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/DBUqW_ek4hI
Transcript for How to Capture Lessons Learned at the End of a Project video
The following video walks you through the process and reasons for closing a project.
Project Management Videos. (2015, June 21). How and why to close a project – Project management training
[Video file]. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/aakuB-BtdlQ
Transcript for How and Why to Close a Project – Project Management Training video
Learning Activities (Nongraded)
Nongraded Learning Activities are provided to aid students in their course of study. You do not have to submit
them. If you have questions, contact your instructor for further guidance and information.
In each chapter, there are questions to “Reinforce Your Learning” found in the left margin on some of the
pages. For example, in Chapter 9, questions are found on pp. 306, 307, 308, 310, 311, 312, and 314. Answer
the questions to check your knowledge. The answers may be found starting on page 487.
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