Introduction - Managing A Successful Business Project
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The title which has been selected for the study is What are the impacts of a global pandemic in accelerating workplace transformation in Deloitte?”
The working environment of Deloitte in the pandemic might be understood as a situation where the employees are asked to work in new guidelines. Many projects have been introduced where the employees were required to work as per the workplace transformation. In these types of case proper project management plan plays a very pivotal role in guiding the workers on how to achieve the set target by Deloitte. It is a true fact that managing a project is not at all an easy tasks and big MNC likes Deloitte need proper project management plan and need to follow steps of project lifecycle to accomplish the project.
Thus, it can be clear from the above discussion that one of the main notions behind conducting this study is to show how big organizations can make use of proper project management plan and in what manner they must follow the project lifecycle steps to attain the set objective. The study will also focus on using various types of data by creating questionnaire from which it can be identified the importance of the topic.
LO1: Explain the key stages of the project lifecycle that should be considered when project managing
Stages of the project lifecycle (PLC) and their importance to the success of a project
There are 5 stages of the project life cycle which includes project initiation, project planning, project execution, project monitoring and control, and project closure.
Project Initiation: This is the first and foremost phase of a project life cycle where the value of the project and feasibility are measured. The project manager focuses on typically using two evaluation tools for the purpose of deciding whether or not to pursue a project and involves a feasibility study and a business case document (Mansoori et al., 2022).
Project Planning: Once the green light is being received by the project, the team members require a solid plan which will be helpful in guiding them along with keeping them on time and budget. It is very important to have a well-established and written project plan which will be acting as guidance for the purpose of obtaining various resources, acquiring several financial aspects and preparing required materials for the project (Mansoori et al., 2022). Planning of a project provides the team with several benefits and direction which helps them in producing quality outputs, handling different risk creating acceptance, communicating the benefits of several aspects to the stakeholders along with managing suppliers.
Project Execution: During this phase, the execution is done which focuses on building deliverables which results in satisfying the end customers. The leaders of the team focus on getting this done by allocating several resources along with keeping the members of the team focused on the tasks that have been individually assigned to them (Kloppenborg and Petrick, 2018).
Project Monitoring and Control: Sometimes, monitoring and controlling are combined with execution because they most of the times occur simultaneously. As the team focuses on executing their plan, they should also constantly monitor their own progress which will focus on guaranteeing the delivery of the outcome that was promised to them (Keshta, 2019). It is very essential for the team members to monitor the task that has been provided to them in order to prevent three along with calculating several key performance indicators so that they can provide a guaranteed delivery of what they have promised to deliver to the customers in the first place.
Project Closure: After the finished project is being delivered to the customer, it is the responsibility of the team members to close the project while communicating completion to stakeholders along with releasing several resources of other projects (Kloppenborg and Petrick, 2018). This is one of the most crucial step in the project lifecycle which allows the team members in the process of evaluating and documenting the project along with moving on to the next one so that they can take into consideration the previous mistakes they have made in the project and can mitigate it in the next one for the purpose of building a strong process.
Factors to be considered when compiling a project management plan
There are four important factors which should be kept in mind during the planning of a project phase for the purpose of ensuring that everyone is in agreement with it.
Project estimation: It should be kept in mind that every project is different and unique. One of the best ways to ensure that an individual and the team are on the right track is to approach it from all the angles. It is essential to estimate the work hope which is based on similar projects and what specific skills that are needed in order to get the job done. It is also very crucial to ask the members of the team (Rehouma, 2019).
Setting up the project team: During the compilation of a project management plan, it is a team who can literally make or break a project. It is very important to caste a team in order to undertake any kind of project so that the overall picture can be received to ensure that the team members are accounting for everything from the very beginning (Yu et al., 2018). It is important to manage the size of the team along with assigning the task on the basis of their ability and qualification. It is also very important to take into consideration the planning and management of the various teaching resources in order to create and define team goals.
Scheduling the tasks on the basis of a project timeline: It is very important for the client to determine the timeline of the project and therefore it is very crucial for the team members to meet the deadlines and attend the business goals in a stipulated period of time (Kloppenborg and Petrick, 2018).
Balancing the priorities of a project: It is very important to have a better understanding that no two projects will have similar variables therefore it is important to take into consideration all the important factors in order to go about completing a project. It is also very important to find the right balance between what is necessary to establish success of the project (Ma et al., 2018).
Stages of the PLC and the factors to be considered in a PMP for Deloitte workplace transformation
As discussed above, there are 5 stages of the project life cycle which includes project initiation, project planning, project execution, project monitoring and control, and project closure. Deloitte will be utilising these five stages along with considering several other factors which will include identifying the aim and objectives of the project plan which will determine the deliverables and the quality assessment made to bring out and enhance the outcome of the project (Yu et al., 2018). The risk factors should be taken into consideration along with various community sources and research methods as well.
LO2: Produce a Project Management Plan (PMP) for a business project using primary and secondary research methods
The project-management process for workplace transformation in Deloitte
Deloitte has been able to identify several impacts that covid-19 has on the workplace transformation. While designing the project management process for workplace transformation in Deloitte, the company has focused on both individual employees and on team members in order to ensure that the individuals have proper skills, tools and mind-sets which are required to drive the change systematically (Ma et al., 2018). The project management plan focuses on changing the employees in order to foster organisational culture and keep the activities of the employees in alignment with the mission and vision of the organisation. The project management process of Deloitte is to identify the aim, objectives, deliverables, quality, risk, communication resources and research methods and then lay out a plan (Ma et al., 2018).
Work breakdown structure
A work-breakdown structure within a venture administration along with in a system programming is a delivery-based analysis of a venture within smaller units. A work breakdown structure is a main venture deliverable which manages the group’s work within controllable division. As discussed in the above section that Deloitte is planning to implement workplace transformation after the global pandemic so below given is the work breakdown structure created for them to understand how the transformation should go about.
Gantt chart
A Gantt chart can be defined as the sort of bar chart which shows the scheduling of a venture. Below given is the Gantt chart for the work breakdown structure created for Deloitte.
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Identification of the change
Analysing the need for change
Creating procedure to execute the change
Final implementation of the change
LO3: Implement the Project Management Plan (PMP) to communicate results from the research and make conclusions from the evidence of findings
Collection of primary data
Data collection is identified to be an important facet in doing a proper investigation. In order to conduct a study the facts and figures might be accumulated by means of two main processes. The two known facts collection process are primary data collection and secondary data collection method (Kabi 2016). In this segment of the study the prime focus will be given on primary data collection method where few questions will be generated and based on the poll data will be analysed. It can be identified that the topic which has been created for this research is related to the effect of worldwide pandemic on fastening the place of work modification in Deloitte. With an intention to carry put the study proper primary data collection method will be used so as to get perfect result. The primary data collection was carried out by means of doing some interviews with the chiefs of Deloitte. For this reason, a sample of 25 supervisors was chosen. Assurance of the size of the example is portrayed as the technique for choosing the number of members or perception inside a specific example. Deciding the example size is a significant part of the whole examination. During test determination, the primary point of the specialist is to give reasonable comments to the general populace from examining just the chosen people. The 25 chefs who have been selected with the end goal of meetings are all knowledgeable and profoundly connected with the selected research topic. On the other hand, the inspecting procedure utilized in the study is basic arbitrary examining. This multitude of 25 supervisors was offered a bundle of 14 inquiries concerning the provided subject area. These 14 inquiries were made preceding the meeting based on the selected topic. Proper use of pie charts and bar graphs has also been done to show the actual result.
Question 1: How far do you consider worldwide pandemic have provided an impact over the working situation?
Response
No. Of responses
Percentage
Agree
10
40
Disagree
4
16
Strongly Agree
5
20
Strongly Disagree
2
8
Neutral
4
16
Total
25
100
Question 2: Do you feel that the worldwide pandemic has adversely impacted the functioning circumstances?
Response
No. Of responses
Percentage
Yes
15
60
No
10
40
Total
25
100
Question 3: How much do you think work environment change is fundamental during a worldwide pandemic?
Response
No. Of responses
Percentage
Agree
11
44
Disagree
4
16
Strongly Agree
4
16
Strongly Disagree
3
12
Neutral
3
12
Total
25
100
Question 4. Do you think that digitization is significant to carry about workstation conversion?
Response
No. Of responses
Percentage
Yes
20
80
No
5
20
Total
25
100
5. To what degree do you think digitization might aid in transporting about office revolution?
Response
No. Of responses
Percentage
Agree
12
48
Disagree
4
16
Strongly Agree
4
16
Strongly Disagree
3
12
Neutral
2
8
Total
25
100
6. Do you think that Deloitte has been able to recognize the office challenges raised at the time of pandemic
Response
No. Of responses
Percentage
Yes
13
52
No
12
48
Total
25
100
7. To what degree do you think that Deloitte has got workstation conversion through worldwide pandemic?
Response
No. Of responses
Percentage
Agree
9
36
Disagree
5
20
Strongly Agree
5
20
Strongly Disagree
2
8
Neutral
4
16
Total
25
100
8. How far do you think Deloitte has deployed digitization to transport about workroom alteration at the time of Covid?
Response
No. Of responses
Percentage
Agree
11
44
Disagree
7
28
Strongly Agree
3
12
Strongly Disagree
2
8
Neutral
2
8
Total
25
100
9. Do you believe that alternate steps are important to fetch work environment change during a worldwide pandemic?
Response
No. Of responses
Percentage
Yes
17
68
No
8
32
Total
25
100
10. What is your age?
Response
No. Of responses
Percentage
20 - 25 years
3
12
26 - 30 years
5
20
31 - 35 years
8
32
36 - 40 years
4
16
41 - 45 years
3
12
above 45 years
2
8
Total
25
100
11. What is your gender?
Response
No. Of responses
Percentage
Male
13
52
Female
12
48
Total
25
100
12. What is your marital status?
Response
No. Of responses
Percentage
Single
8
32
Married
14
56
Divorced
3
12
Total
25
100
13. Educational Qualification?
Response
No. Of responses
Percentage
Undergraduate
7
28
Postgraduate
10
40
Doctorate
8
32
Total
25
100
14. What are the domestic level earnings?
Response
No. Of responses
Percentage
Less than $5,000
5
20
$5,001 to $10,000
8
32
$10,001 to $15,000
6
24
$15,001 to $20,000
4
16
More than $20,001
2
8
Total
25
100
Analysing the data and communicating the result
So, from the responses for the questions given in the above scenario it can be comprehended that the questions and answer which we get are all on trial and error basis. Below describe is the detailed analysis and the final outcome of the data collection.
The responds gotten from the first question shows that a total of 10 respondent accepts he asked fact however 4 respondents did not agree with the situation. Hence from the reactions it tends to be plainly expressed that a larger part of the supervisors feel that worldwide pandemic has impacted the functioning circumstances. As per the responses received from the second question it has been identified that it tends to be presumed that the pandemic has affected the functioning circumstances. Nonetheless, it has likewise worked with telecommute which can be ordered as a constructive outcome. Based on the third question the reactions inferred that work environment change is of outright need to deal with the effects of a worldwide pandemic on working environment conditions. Now, the responds which was received from the fourth question communicated that the chiefs of the Deloitte accepted with the fact that place of work alteration might be effectively carried out by means of digitalization. Overall from the entire data presented it can be said that the managers of Deloitte have provided neutral answers to the topic and half of them are happy with decision and half are not.
Conclusion and recommendation form data analysis
From the above segment it can be concluded that as the total amount of respondents who accepted to on the topic are more or less same in number, thus no adequate final verdict can be drawn from it. Rather it can be said that the company needs to execute the transformation in such a manner which will not hamper the both segment of executives. It can also be depicted from the above workplace transformation is not an easy procedure and it needs various factors to be considered while Based on the data identified and communicating the result below mentioned is some of the recommendation for Deloitte:
Comprehending the respondents: In order to make a workplace transformation a constructive one it will be important for the top management of Deloitte to understand what sort of modification is important for the betterment of employees and what sort of modification will be accepted by both the positive and negative respondents.
Focussing on teamwork: The teamwork effort of any kind assist with enlarging the range of information in manner that are very far-fetched to anybody. With the assistance of joint effort, one can reach regions that are past the field of the ability of the analyst. The possibility of cooperation augments the range of the scientist as well as naturally emulsifies the development of thoughts and spreading of the examination into various circles.
Planning the transformation: Planning the transformation is usually a kind of technique within which manager provide their focal point on building a tactical plan for transforming a company’s business techniques by means of altering of strategies, techniques to shift the company from slow to fast functioning. So, it will be important for Deloitte to create transformation plan before implementing it and also need to do various testing to see whether that transformation will fit to the company or not.
LO4: Reflect on value gained from implementing the project and the project management process
I learnt the several trends which are required to create a workplace transformation along with considering digital innovation in order to reshape the workplace of Deloitte. It is very important for us to consider the impact of covid-19 can make on the workplace which has been one of the major reasons that have allowed Deloitte to adopt the digital transformation and new workplace environment. I have been able to understand the importance of project management plan and project life cycle in the stages that take place in order to ensure that a well-established and well-written project plan is made. This has helped me in understanding the importance of a project plan for Deloitte and the way the company has been able to retain its employees in order to increase their organisational culture so that they can focus and reflect on the vision and mission of the organisation. I have come to realise that every project focuses on providing a valuable experience which might be both positive as well as negative. I have been able to understand that a new project means it should be mistake free but risk should be considered in order to understand and improve the quality of the project. I have been able to understand that it is very important for Deloitte to implement four phases within the project management plan which includes informing and building a proper project management team where they will be able to gathering phase and prepare for any kind of workshop. The process of informing and building the team will be required for the management of the company to inspire and motivate the project management team in order to utilise the proper method to clear any kind of potential with understanding that might take place while building the project and compiling various other steps. I have also been able to understand and gather separate insights and information about various steps required for Deloitte to take certain actions within the business environment in order to gain experience and impression of the situation and to mitigate it. While gathering data, I have also systematically been able to learn the different ways in which a questionnaire is supposed to be formed so that the responses of the participants can be recorded in such a way where I will be able to focus on analysing it to come to a proper conclusion.
Conclusion
This report has focused on analysing several stages of project life cycle which includes preparing the initial project plan, completing secondary research as well as primary research, production of the first draft of finding along with suggesting several recommendations. With the outbreak of covid-19 pandemic, the workplace of Deloitte has been impacted majorly which required the company and their employees to be trained in order to promote workplace transformation. It has been significantly noticed that project management is not at all easy and Deloitte requires a proper and well established management plan which follows systematic steps in order to accomplish the project. Therefore, the company is required to focus on discussing the aims and objectives of the company along with aligning their activities with the mission and vision statement so that they can focus on conducting a proper study which can make and use a proper project management plan to attain the objectives that have been established by the organisation. The report has also systematically focused on gathering various types of data and analysing it by creating questionnaires from which the information will be analysed in order to identify the significance of the research and report.
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