Critical Analysis of a Project Management: How to use the Plan? (Case Study Sample)

A CASE STUDY OF THE GREEN INFORMATION COMPUTER AND TECHNOLOGY PROJECT FOR AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY
By Students name
Business
Tutor: …………………...
University of…………….
Department of…………..
13th May 2016
Executive summary
The case study will try and evaluate the Green Information and Computer Technology project carried out by the Australian National University from 2010 to 2011. This case study would evaluate various aspects of the project plan by investigating the major sections contained in the plan. This critical analysis will be done by determining the background of the project and the statement of the problem that was identified for the project management plan. It would also determine the key features that stand out from the plan and its various shortcomings. The study will also define the communication path used by the project planners and its intended audience. The study would also investigate the different opinions, theories and structures that are applied by different project plans project organizations and contrast them with the Green Information and Communication Technology project management plan. In conclusion the study determined that the communication plan set out by the project was deficient and the rigid structure of the project did not give room for consideration of any sudden eventualities. The study puts down a recommendation that the content of the plan should have been weighty so that it can be able to address any unforeseen circumstances.
Table of Contents TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u Executive summary PAGEREF _Toc451236966 \h 21Introduction PAGEREF _Toc451236967 \h 42Project Background PAGEREF _Toc451236968 \h 43Audience and Structure of the Project Management Plan PAGEREF _Toc451236969 \h 63.1Stakeholders and Information Needed PAGEREF _Toc451236970 \h 63.2Alternative Project Management Structures and Opinions PAGEREF _Toc451236971 \h 74Contents of the Project Management Plan PAGEREF _Toc451236972 \h 105Conclusions PAGEREF _Toc451236973 \h 146Recommendations PAGEREF _Toc451236974 \h 157References PAGEREF _Toc451236975 \h 178List of Appendices PAGEREF _Toc451236976 \h 198.1Appendix 1: Project management plan PAGEREF _Toc451236977 \h 19
Introduction
The Australian National University Green Information and Communication Technology (ICT) project management plan was initiated with the aim of improving the utilization of resources, increasing the productivity, improving efficiency and reducing the overall environmental impact of the Information and Communication Technology operations for the whole life span of the ICT Technologies and services. The project initiative proposed to highlight the contribution of Information technology energy consumption to the emission of Green House Gases and identify ways that would be used to minimize the carbon footprint of the Information Technology department at the Australian National University. This would be as accurately as possible considering the constraints that are identified in the project plan.
This report is prepared so as to evaluate the project management plan and pinpoint any key features that stood out from the project plan. The paper would also look at evaluating and determining the background of the project and identifying what key problems the plan was trying to be solve. The case study will also go further and analyze the key stakeholders of the project plan and how they communicated their findings and progress to all other affected personnel. Additionally, the study will try and compare the project plan (refer to appendix 1) to other similar projects and contrast to identify any significant differences. Finally, it would analyze the contents of the project management plan in depth and identify any shortcomings which would later be addressed in the recommendations section.
Project Background
The Green ICT project was established by the Australian National University and is managed by the ANU facilities and Services Division. This project was established in 1999 with the responsibility of implementing the University’s environmental policy, but began operation from 2009 until 2012. The project focuses on the University community itself and educates and empowers all the stakeholders involved so that they can play an active role in curtailing the collective environmental impact. The project so far has won multiple awards both in the international and local levels including the many many Australian Sustainable Cities Awards and the maiden International Sustainable Campus Network Award for Excellence in Impact (Sustainability.anu.edu.au, 2016). This program is aimed at making the Australian National University a campus leader in sustainability efforts and also to provide its graduates with the necessary knowledge and practical skills that would aid them effectuate a more sustainable environment.
Additionally, the Green Information and Communication Technology (ICT) project endeavors for a more efficient utilization of resources which would improve productivity, efficiency and reduce the impact of ICT operations on the environment. The project, which is part of the larger ANU Environmental Management Plan, aims to minimize emissions of carbon dioxide by 20% by 2015 through minimizing the consumption of electricity since its contributes greatly to the CO2 emissions (Greenict.anu.edu.au, 2012) (Environmental Management Plan Implementation Strategies, 2009). Furthermore, the project will provide the much needed knowledge base that will inform on future ICT energy requirements and how best to reduce the environmental impact. This project aims at accurately identifying, within the given constraints, the real contribution of energy usage on the carbon footprint by the ICT sector. This information would then be used to implement newer ways of curbing the menace of global warming that would be directly contributed by the Australian National University.
Audience and Structure of the Project Management Plan
Stakeholders and Information Needed
The key stakeholders of the project are clearly defined by the RACI matrix which outlines the: a) Responsible, who are the individuals who do the work to achieve a given task but there is the possibility of having the one person delegated as the Responsible and can then delegate the same to others; b) Accountable who are also known as the Approver or final Approving authority. This person is in the end, accountable for the accurate and careful completion of the deliverable or assignment, and the one to whom Responsible is accountable. That is to say an Accountable must accomplish any work that is provided by the Responsible; c) Consulted are the individuals from whom others seek opinion from; and with whom there is two-way conveyance; and finally d) Informed are those individuals who are acquainted on current progress, or maybe when an assignment or task is completed; and with whom communication is one way. All key individuals involved or affected by the project are classified under this matrix which would eventually dictate the level of communication that would be provided to each one of them.
The project plan also outlines in its scope matrix what they need to communicate and how this would be done. One of the projects outcome measurement is the development of a website that would be able to communicate to the Australian National University community about the consumption, cost and means to minimize energy utilization of Information and Computer Technology department. The output of the project would be the improvement of the awareness of sustainability efforts among the stakeholders with more than 40%. One of the highlighted constraints in the project plan is that the University has a decentralized system of Information and Communication technology infrastructure. Therefore, the streamlining of the project plan across the various campuses will require a systematic and continuous reminder of the objectives to the whole university. This kind of communication dissemination can prove to be a serious restriction.
The communication plan, as outlined in the project management plan, dictates the time frame and meeting groups that would meet up to discuss on the different aspects of the project. The time frames specified in the plan seem too long considering the project life span and the number of objectives that are defined. For instance, the Project Steering Group, who are responsible for ascertaining that the plan meets its objectives are scheduled to meet after every two months with no provision in the plan highlighting what they would do if a crisis emerged. The university students and community at large, who are the main audience of the project, don’t seem to be considered in the projects communication plan. In summary the project plan does try to communicate to the major stakeholders about the key milestones that are expected from the project but it needs to highlight more in the communication plan by appreciating the need to involve the University students and staff who are also affected by the project deliverables and also redefine the time frame after which the different committees meet to discuss the projects issues.
Alternative Project Management Structures and Opinions
The fundamental rationale underlying many of the publications in journals, for instance the PMJ (Project Management Journal), is the embracing of the idea of management of a project as a way for finding a solution to complex situation in an organizational. Moreover, this standpoint espouses the idea of project management as one of many ways for controlling organizational activity. Packendorff asserted that the many that consider a general theory in project management is ...