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Carl, a project manager in a publishing company, was placed in charge of a multi-departmental team directed to work with a software company to develop an interactive book/software product targeted for the special needs market

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Carl, a project manager in a publishing company, was placed in charge of a multi-departmental team directed to work with a software company to develop an interactive book/software product targeted for the special needs market. Both the publishing and software companies had recently undergone significant layoffs, and one of the objectives of the joint project was as a means of developing greater viability for both organizations.

Aware that team members from both companies were still stunned from the recent layoffs, Carl considered what he could do to address these sensitivities. Carl wanted to help team members remain positive and motivated.

Therefore, during the first several project team meetings, Carl minimized conflicts between the team members from the two companies. Disagreements over the technological requirements were never clarified, nor were the disputes among team members regarding roles, responsibilities, and reporting relationships. Carl believed that these issues would clear themselves up over time. His concern was to avoid conflict at all costs.

During the project planning phase, both the team participants and the sponsors noticed that core priorities had not been established and that key commitments had not been obtained from senior managers. Additionally, the extent of teamwork was minimal because the early personal clashes over roles, style, and status had not been addressed.

1. Clearly, Carl's methods were not working. What would have been a better approach?
2. What type of project leader do you think is most likely to avoid active conflict resolution?
3. While avoidance can cause problems, prioritizing conflicts is also important. Explain the meaning of this statement

Written Assignment 3.2

Part 1

Answer the following questions:

1. Suggest two ways in which the concept of MBWA might result in positive outcomes. Then suggest two ways that this method of managing could backfire, if it were handled clumsily.

2. Which of the principles for maintaining relationships (see Kendrick, p. 193) do you think are especially valuable during the execution of a project? Explain your choices.

Part 2

Imagine that you are in charge of a home-building project.

1. Three activities are going on at the moment: laying the roof, heating, and plumbing. Completing the roof is a critical activity: any delay in laying the roof jeopardizes the completion date of the house. The other two activities are non-critical and, what is more, are basically on schedule. What actions might you take to ensure that roofing is completed on time?

2. The overall cost of completing the house appears to be headed toward a cost overrun. The house is about half done and well over half of the budget has been consumed. What are some actions you might take to reduce costs to minimize an overall cost overrun?

3. Certain activities have been outsourced to subcontractors. Suppose the subcontractor who is performing the wiring is not performing up to your specifications in terms of the quality of material and the quality of installation work. At this point, what actions can you take to assure quality work?

4. Risk monitoring is a never-ending task. One risk is, of course, is poor performance as described above with the electrical subcontractor. What actions could have been taken before the electrical subcontractor was selected that would have reduced the risk of poor performance? What actions can be taken during his or her performance to identify the risk at an early stage to mitigate the extent of any loss?