INSTRUCTOR’S RESOURCE GUIDE
PROJECT MANAGEMENT: A STRATEGIC MANAGERIAL APPROACH
11TH EDITION
CHAPTER NO. 01: PROJECTS IN CONTEMPORARY ORGANIZATIONS
PROJECT MANAGEMENT IN PRACTICE
A Unique Method for Traveler-Tracking at Copenhagen Airport
Question 1: Are the triple constraints of this project clear? What are they?
Yes.
Scope – Passenger flow analysis, including the impact on security screening
Time – Three years
Cost – The cost included two, $30 readers, plus the additional time and effort to analyze
the results and implement the solutions.
Question 2: What was unique about this project? What was the main conflict?
The uniqueness of the project was the use of the cell phone Bluetooth signals to track
passengers. The main conflict was related to passenger privacy.
Question 3: Why are the travelers themselves a stakeholder in this project, since
most of them won’t even know they are being tracked?
Passengers are stakeholders because it is their cell phone signals being tracked and
because they benefits from improved service.
Question 4: How widespread do you think this technology will become? What
uses will be garnered from it? Do any of them concern you?
This technology has the potential to become more widespread if the privacy issue can
be resolved.
Student responses will vary considerably on the second and third questions.
The Smart-Grid Revolution Starts in Boulder, Colorado
Question 1: Are the triple constraints of this project clear? List each of them.
The triple constraints are all clear
Scope: “smart-grid” electrical system that would span the entire city
Time: 3 years
Cost: $100 million
Question 2: Given the range of benefits listed for the new technology, what
interdependencies and conflicts do you suspect smart grids will create for
utilities?
,Interdependencies: all of the system to work correctly; customer technology abilities and
system use
Conflicts: users and the system; employees fearful of getting replaced
Question 3: A major portion of this project had to do with carefully managing all
the stakeholders. List those mentioned in the article and divide them into the four
groups mentioned above. Do any stakeholders fall into more than one of the
groups?
The stakeholders and their groupings are below. Some of these stakeholders fall into
multiple categories.
Clients Parent organization Project team Public
Xcel leading technologists Accenture consulting for business leaders
engineering
customers business leaders energy industry consultants IT experts
IT experts leading technologists Boulder city managers
senior project manager IT experts Boulder city leaders
Project Management senior project manager user-citizens
Office
Project Management Office
Many of these will fall into more than one group.
Question 4: What conflicts do you suspect might have occurred between all the
different stakeholders in this project?
Conflicts that could have arisen are numerous and could have included:
• Business leaders and city managers related to costs versus features
• Engineers versus city leaders related to costs
• Citizens versus city leaders related to costs
Question 5: Why do you imagine Xcel agreed to invest $100 million in this risky
experiment? What might their ancillary goals have been?
Any new project idea is a risky experiment. Xcel Energy believes that if everything is
planned properly and the scope and results of the project are clearly documented, then
with careful execution it is possible to employ a new technology that helps the company
to manage its resource pool effectively and efficiently. An ancillary goal could have been
to learn from this project and apply it to other municipalities.
The Olympic Torch Relay Project
Question 1: Which of the three universal and three common characteristics of
projects are displayed in the regular torch relay?
The three universal characteristics are unique, one-time, and finite duration. Each of
these are displayed in the torch relay.
The three common characteristics are interdependencies, resources, and conflict. Of
these, the interdependencies and resource characteristics are the main ones displayed.
,Question 2: Since this is such a regular project—every four years since 1936—
would you consider it a nonproject, or a quasi-project? Why, or why not?
I would consider this a project because each torch relay is unique in that they all travel
different routes and are managed by different organizations.
Question 3: Is the torch relay another part of the Olympics themselves, perhaps a
sub-project?
The torch relay is a project by itself based on its length and complexity. You could
consider it a project that is part of the overall Olympic “program.”
Turning London’s Waste Dump into the 2012 Olympics Stadium
Question 1: What shape of life cycle did this stadium project have? Compare it
with the life cycle of the river dredging portion of the effort. With the Olympic
Torch Relay project described earlier.
The life cycle of this project is S-shaped. As the project is initiated and better
understood, it would gain momentum giving the project a S-shape. An example would be
the time when the team realized that a lighter roof was required. As the understanding of
the project increases so does the momentum.
Even river dredging as a project was S-shaped due to obvious reasons as was the torch
relay.
Question 2: Which of the “triple constraints” seems to be uppermost here? Which
constraints were Crockford trading between?
Time is the constraint that seems to be the uppermost here, given the deadline of the
project and the required amount of work to be done before the project could take-off.
Crockford was trading between scope and time, since the team involved people from
different positions and this could have led to scope creep, thereby increasing the time
required.
Question 3: Were there any ancillary goals for this project? What might they have
been?
The ancillary goals of this project could be the learning of skills needed in the integration
of a tightly scheduled project and the coordination and control of the various resources in
the project.
Also, the impact of using a waste dumpsite as a Olympics stadium is in itself one of
those properties that commands respect towards a nation’s engineers and their
combined vision.
MATERIAL REVIEW QUESTIONS
Question 1: Name and briefly describe the societal forces that have contributed to
, the need for project management.
Refer to the section titled “Forces Fostering Project Management” in the text.
1) Modern societies have experienced an exponential expansion of human
knowledge. As a result, an increasing number of academic disciplines can be
used in solving problems associated with the development, production, and
distribution of goods and services.
2) Satisfying the continuing demand for more complex and customized products
and services depends on the producers’ ability to make product design an
integrated and inherent part of their production and distribution systems.
3) Worldwide markets force producers to include cultural and environmental
differences in their managerial decisions about what, where, when, and how to
produce and distribute output.
Question 2: Describe the life cycle of a project in terms of (1) the degree of project
completion; (2) required effort.
Refer to Figure 1-3, Figure 1-4, and Figure 1-5: The Project Lifecycle and to Section 1.3
in the text. A lifecycle is used to describe a period of time between a starting point and a
terminating point. As the project nears termination, the percentage of project completion
should rise. For most projects, the required effort and the project completion level are
strongly correlated. While problems may detract from efficiency, it’s usually true that as
more work is done, the completion level rises as well. There are limitations, particularly
in intellectual projects (e.g. software development) where too many cooks can spoil the
broth and hurt the project more than help it.
The typical life cycle is then characterized by a slow beginning, when the project is
organized, a busy middle when most of the work is done, and a tapering off to
completion as tasks are wrapped up and finishing touches are added.
Question 3: Describe the limitations of project management.
Refer to Section 1.2 in the text. Project management is an approach taken to initiate,
plan, execute, control, and terminate projects with the intent of achieving the objectives
used to justify the project’s approval. There are some important limitations associated
with project management. They include:
1) The project characteristic of uniqueness tends to be associated with uncertainty.
Uncertainty can affect a project for better or for worse. For example, it can be
difficult to forecast important items related to budget, schedule, customer
satisfaction, and business impact.
2) Projects often use a temporary organizational structure that is different from the
way most organizations typically perform work. This can lead to conflicting
priorities between the project and daily operations, especially when management
has not clearly established formal authority over the resources responsible to
multitask on one or more projects and on one or more routine jobs.
3) Conflict is inherent in projects. Since the project manager usually has limited
power and authority, the options for modifying the behavior of others are often
limited in relation to the accountabilities carried by a project manager.
PROJECT MANAGEMENT: A STRATEGIC MANAGERIAL APPROACH
11TH EDITION
CHAPTER NO. 01: PROJECTS IN CONTEMPORARY ORGANIZATIONS
PROJECT MANAGEMENT IN PRACTICE
A Unique Method for Traveler-Tracking at Copenhagen Airport
Question 1: Are the triple constraints of this project clear? What are they?
Yes.
Scope – Passenger flow analysis, including the impact on security screening
Time – Three years
Cost – The cost included two, $30 readers, plus the additional time and effort to analyze
the results and implement the solutions.
Question 2: What was unique about this project? What was the main conflict?
The uniqueness of the project was the use of the cell phone Bluetooth signals to track
passengers. The main conflict was related to passenger privacy.
Question 3: Why are the travelers themselves a stakeholder in this project, since
most of them won’t even know they are being tracked?
Passengers are stakeholders because it is their cell phone signals being tracked and
because they benefits from improved service.
Question 4: How widespread do you think this technology will become? What
uses will be garnered from it? Do any of them concern you?
This technology has the potential to become more widespread if the privacy issue can
be resolved.
Student responses will vary considerably on the second and third questions.
The Smart-Grid Revolution Starts in Boulder, Colorado
Question 1: Are the triple constraints of this project clear? List each of them.
The triple constraints are all clear
Scope: “smart-grid” electrical system that would span the entire city
Time: 3 years
Cost: $100 million
Question 2: Given the range of benefits listed for the new technology, what
interdependencies and conflicts do you suspect smart grids will create for
utilities?
,Interdependencies: all of the system to work correctly; customer technology abilities and
system use
Conflicts: users and the system; employees fearful of getting replaced
Question 3: A major portion of this project had to do with carefully managing all
the stakeholders. List those mentioned in the article and divide them into the four
groups mentioned above. Do any stakeholders fall into more than one of the
groups?
The stakeholders and their groupings are below. Some of these stakeholders fall into
multiple categories.
Clients Parent organization Project team Public
Xcel leading technologists Accenture consulting for business leaders
engineering
customers business leaders energy industry consultants IT experts
IT experts leading technologists Boulder city managers
senior project manager IT experts Boulder city leaders
Project Management senior project manager user-citizens
Office
Project Management Office
Many of these will fall into more than one group.
Question 4: What conflicts do you suspect might have occurred between all the
different stakeholders in this project?
Conflicts that could have arisen are numerous and could have included:
• Business leaders and city managers related to costs versus features
• Engineers versus city leaders related to costs
• Citizens versus city leaders related to costs
Question 5: Why do you imagine Xcel agreed to invest $100 million in this risky
experiment? What might their ancillary goals have been?
Any new project idea is a risky experiment. Xcel Energy believes that if everything is
planned properly and the scope and results of the project are clearly documented, then
with careful execution it is possible to employ a new technology that helps the company
to manage its resource pool effectively and efficiently. An ancillary goal could have been
to learn from this project and apply it to other municipalities.
The Olympic Torch Relay Project
Question 1: Which of the three universal and three common characteristics of
projects are displayed in the regular torch relay?
The three universal characteristics are unique, one-time, and finite duration. Each of
these are displayed in the torch relay.
The three common characteristics are interdependencies, resources, and conflict. Of
these, the interdependencies and resource characteristics are the main ones displayed.
,Question 2: Since this is such a regular project—every four years since 1936—
would you consider it a nonproject, or a quasi-project? Why, or why not?
I would consider this a project because each torch relay is unique in that they all travel
different routes and are managed by different organizations.
Question 3: Is the torch relay another part of the Olympics themselves, perhaps a
sub-project?
The torch relay is a project by itself based on its length and complexity. You could
consider it a project that is part of the overall Olympic “program.”
Turning London’s Waste Dump into the 2012 Olympics Stadium
Question 1: What shape of life cycle did this stadium project have? Compare it
with the life cycle of the river dredging portion of the effort. With the Olympic
Torch Relay project described earlier.
The life cycle of this project is S-shaped. As the project is initiated and better
understood, it would gain momentum giving the project a S-shape. An example would be
the time when the team realized that a lighter roof was required. As the understanding of
the project increases so does the momentum.
Even river dredging as a project was S-shaped due to obvious reasons as was the torch
relay.
Question 2: Which of the “triple constraints” seems to be uppermost here? Which
constraints were Crockford trading between?
Time is the constraint that seems to be the uppermost here, given the deadline of the
project and the required amount of work to be done before the project could take-off.
Crockford was trading between scope and time, since the team involved people from
different positions and this could have led to scope creep, thereby increasing the time
required.
Question 3: Were there any ancillary goals for this project? What might they have
been?
The ancillary goals of this project could be the learning of skills needed in the integration
of a tightly scheduled project and the coordination and control of the various resources in
the project.
Also, the impact of using a waste dumpsite as a Olympics stadium is in itself one of
those properties that commands respect towards a nation’s engineers and their
combined vision.
MATERIAL REVIEW QUESTIONS
Question 1: Name and briefly describe the societal forces that have contributed to
, the need for project management.
Refer to the section titled “Forces Fostering Project Management” in the text.
1) Modern societies have experienced an exponential expansion of human
knowledge. As a result, an increasing number of academic disciplines can be
used in solving problems associated with the development, production, and
distribution of goods and services.
2) Satisfying the continuing demand for more complex and customized products
and services depends on the producers’ ability to make product design an
integrated and inherent part of their production and distribution systems.
3) Worldwide markets force producers to include cultural and environmental
differences in their managerial decisions about what, where, when, and how to
produce and distribute output.
Question 2: Describe the life cycle of a project in terms of (1) the degree of project
completion; (2) required effort.
Refer to Figure 1-3, Figure 1-4, and Figure 1-5: The Project Lifecycle and to Section 1.3
in the text. A lifecycle is used to describe a period of time between a starting point and a
terminating point. As the project nears termination, the percentage of project completion
should rise. For most projects, the required effort and the project completion level are
strongly correlated. While problems may detract from efficiency, it’s usually true that as
more work is done, the completion level rises as well. There are limitations, particularly
in intellectual projects (e.g. software development) where too many cooks can spoil the
broth and hurt the project more than help it.
The typical life cycle is then characterized by a slow beginning, when the project is
organized, a busy middle when most of the work is done, and a tapering off to
completion as tasks are wrapped up and finishing touches are added.
Question 3: Describe the limitations of project management.
Refer to Section 1.2 in the text. Project management is an approach taken to initiate,
plan, execute, control, and terminate projects with the intent of achieving the objectives
used to justify the project’s approval. There are some important limitations associated
with project management. They include:
1) The project characteristic of uniqueness tends to be associated with uncertainty.
Uncertainty can affect a project for better or for worse. For example, it can be
difficult to forecast important items related to budget, schedule, customer
satisfaction, and business impact.
2) Projects often use a temporary organizational structure that is different from the
way most organizations typically perform work. This can lead to conflicting
priorities between the project and daily operations, especially when management
has not clearly established formal authority over the resources responsible to
multitask on one or more projects and on one or more routine jobs.
3) Conflict is inherent in projects. Since the project manager usually has limited
power and authority, the options for modifying the behavior of others are often
limited in relation to the accountabilities carried by a project manager.
