Project Management Plans - Example

Project Management Plans Name: Tutor: Course: Date: Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 1.1 Human resource management plan 3 1.1.1 Roles and responsibilities 3 1.1.2 Staff management 4 1.2 Communication management plan 4 1.3 Cost management plan 6 1.4 Professional code of conduct 10 References 12 1.1 Human resource management plan A human resource management plan is developed for the Community Garden project to ensure that the best skills, expertise and knowledge are hired. They are expected to complete the work within the required schedule, quality and technical performance. Besides, the plan is meant to develop teamwork and assign roles to members. In this project, the HR plan describes the selection, management, assessment and development of a team that will have all the expertise and the skills required. HR plans interact with other project management plans and any other changes that will be met in the project (Government of Western Australia, 2015). This HRM plan will include roles and responsibilities of team members and staffing management plan such as resources, meeting timelines, training, performance reviews and recognition systems. If there are gaps in skills, the training and team building strategies will be implemented. Roles and responsibilities will be defined by role, authority, responsibility and competency. Role describes the project portion for which a member is accountable while authority is the level of decision-making over approvals or project resources (Smith, 2012). On the other hand, responsibility is the work that should be fulfilled by the team member by completing specific assigned work activities. Meanwhile, competency is the skills required to complete the project activities assigned. The roles and responsibilities are provided in the table below. 1.1.1 Roles and responsibilities Role No. required Responsibility Skills/Qualifications Project Manager 1 Manage the overall success of the Community Garden project approve and authorize project expenditures Communicate performance Degree in project management Project management skills such as scheduling, communication, budgeting and leadership Landscape designer/architect 2 Design and plan the community garden project Produce images of suitable plans for consideration Degree or diploma in landscaping and outdoor design At least three years experience in beautification and landscaping designs Quantity surveyors 2 Match quantities procured against prices Determine the amount of items and their costs required for the project Diploma in quantity surveying At least 5 years experiences handling construction quantities and costs Masons /gardeners 15 Construct the garden Complete assign tasks Experience in construction work Machine operators 5 Ability to handle complex construction machinery Diploma in construction machine driving Valid driving license 1.1.2 Staff management Architectural designs will be outsourced for this project. However, the project manager will engage the masons, machine and truck operators, and quantity surveyors to ensure the work is a success. All resource will be approved by the project manager and will be shifted to their new work stations. Each employee will work for 40 hours per week except for national holidays recognized in Australia. A brainstorming session will be done on the first day. No training will be required since all the people hired will be expected to have the needed skills. The project manager will be reviewing the work on daily basis and assign or reassign roles depending on his/her evaluation. No cross-training or monetary awards will be provided. Nonetheless, there will be a party for members and families when the project is being commissioned and the members will take a photo with the Newcastle council mayor. 1.2 Communication management plan This document defines the communication strategies and goals for the Community Garden Project and provides guidance for future and current communication efforts. The project will define the method and structure of how to collect, format, screen and distribute project information. The aim of this plan is to promote the success of the project by outlining communication efforts and meeting information needs of all the stakeholders. The plan stipulates the information to be gathered and distributed and will include communication vehicles such as face to face meetings and emails. Failure to plan for communication will results in reduced stakeholder confidence, duplication of effort and failure to achieve key project objectives (PMI, 2013). The intended audience of the Community Garden Project is senior leaders in the municipal council, Newcastle community, project sponsor, project manager and the project team. Communication action matrix defines how activities will be communicated in the project. The project manager will develop and maintain this matrix around each milestone. The matrix will detail activities such as designate ‘owners’ who communication each project milestone, communicate resources such as budgets and personnel, and list key benefit statements and messages. Besides, it will list the contacts from current project team members. The communication matrix to be used in this project is as shown in the table below. Vehicle Target Description Purpose Frequency Owner Distribution Vehicle Internal/ External Comments Budget estimates Newcastle Mayor Spreadsheet of project budget Once PM Email Internal BoQ also included Status Report All Stakeholders One page communication of deliverable status and project progress Weekly PM Email Internal Suitable platform for all stakeholders Press briefing Community Explains benefits of the project Monthly Sponsor Television External Good presentation skills Designs and approvals Sponsor Approve designs and budget Once Sponsor In-tray/out tray External Interpretation and synthesis of designs The above communication will also apply for project meetings (status meetings) to communicate project progress and project reporting if there are any schedule, cost or performance reports to be attached to the communication mode. The project will have a two-way communication so as to avoid misallocation, omissions, duplication of effort and to forestall surprises (PMI, 2013). The communication flowchart is as shown in the figure below. From the above chart, the project manager is at the centre of communication and is tasked with reaching all the stakeholders through various media and modes. This communication plan will facilitate efficient and effective communication with various audiences who have a say or control over the project. By describing how communications will occur, the plan includes target audiences, key content for communications, communication objectives and communication frequency and method. The key to the success of this project will be through a good two-way communication involving the project manager, Newcastle municipal council and the rest of the stakeholders. 1.3 Cost management plan This project is intended to plan and manage all the costs that accrue to the project. Suitable cost management initiatives will be undertaken. Of particular interest will be the Project Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT). This technique will provide the optimistic, most likely and pessimistic value for costs and schedule (Medak, 2011). The project manager and contract manager shall be charged with calculating the costs subject to approvals by the Director. A weekly status report shall be made through the communications plan to the sponsors to show how the projects funds are being spent. The management approach to costs in this project will be based on baseline costs versus the actual costs. The baseline costs will be estimates using known information at any time period. As mentioned earlier, the three point estimates will be applied because it combines PERT, triangular distribution, duration and risk uncertainties and incorporates cost. Costs will be controlled by monitoring and reporting variances (Medak, 2011). Suitable corrective mechanisms shall be taken using forecasting, PERT and Earned Value Management (EVM). The use of these techniques, especially the last two, will help management scheduling and monetary costs related to the project. These methods accurately identify the correct actions over which the project will be completed on budget and time (Jackson, 2012). The Gantt chart breakdown will be used to calculate costs based on expert judgment. Some of the costs will be related to materials, equipment, and labor. The total estimates of the project will be $748,660 though some 25% allowance or variation will give a pessimistic figure of $1 million. The summary of breakdown of the costs is shown in the table below. Labor cost Equipment cost Materials cost Travel cost Total task cost $346120 $330002 $74000 $6000 $755120 Moreover, the individual costs as shown in the PERT method and the Earned Value Method are featured in the table below. This project will try as much to ensure it stays on schedule because currently, the project is behind schedule (SV is negative; SPI 1. This shows that when the project is midway, 45% of the costs will have been incurred. Therefore, the project will stick to the plan so as to meet a budget estimate of $900,000 and not $1million as shown in the Earned Value Method. The other costs also include occupational and health costs which must be factored into the project as shown in the table below. Risk and opportunity Description Cost estimation Worker injury $100,000.00 Tools and machinery damage $12,000.00 Visitor injury $160,000.00 Fire incidents $50,000.00 Electrical issues $1,500.00 Infrastructure breakage $7,500.00 Drainage system damage $2,500.00 1.4 Professional code of conduct This project will adhere to professional conduct and code of ethics. In particular, it will observe present and future needs, integrity, competency, and leadership, engagement, and health, safety and wellbeing of the project team. The project manager is the hallmark of ethical responsibility e in the duration of contracts (Vee & Skitmore, 2003). He/she will be tasked with upholding ethical situations to avoid blame and wrongdoing. This project will develop initiatives and codes of ethics that will guide it from planning stage to closure. First, the project will uphold integrity, truthfulness, reliability and honesty. The project manager and the team will act in a way to demonstrate honesty estimation of costs and dealings with the Community Garden Project stakeholders. For example, accurate reporting of costs based on reliable statistics and figures will be undertaken. Furthermore, the project will represent the needs and desires of all the beneficiaries involved such as couples, travel parties, families and children. Second, the project team will demonstrate high levels of professional proficiency and competency. The project should hire professionals based on their skills, educational qualifications and experience (Vee & Skitmore, 2003). The project manager will be required to be equipped with project management skills and competencies such as coordination, planning, implementation and people management to ensure that the projects constraints of quality, schedule and technical performance are followed to the latter. Third, the project will perform at the highest level of competence. This will ensure communication, accountability, trust and reputational management in this project is upheld. The project will be tasked with communicating reliable and honest messages about the project deliverables and milestones. The Newcastle community will trust the project if they are informed of their benefits and project risks addressed in advance through proper risk management strategies. The manager will ensure that the reputation of the project will not be tainted by employee go slows, negative media publicity and instances of poor remuneration. As a demonstration of leadership, the project will conduct feasibility studies, surveys, and collect information then communicate their findings to the respective parties. Fourth, the project will engage and all levels with all the concerned stakeholders. As noted earlier, the most influential project stakeholders will be contractors, employees, sponsor, land owners and business owners. The project will identify and analyze their needs and expectations. Particularly, the factors that will be considered are; influence, classification, phasing, requirements and expectations. To visualize their importance, each stakeholder should be placed on a power/interest visualization grid (AIPM, 2013). In this project, a stakeholder mapping will be conducted to understand the influence and interests of these stakeholders. This will be done by listing all the stakeholders that the Newcastle Community Garden project will engage than map them on the influence on influence/interest grid. Fifth, health, safety and wellbeing of this project will adhere to the requirements of UK occupational Health and Safety (OHS). All employees will be provided with additional medical insurance cover above health insurance cover (AIPM, 2013). Furthermore, there will be a provision of a standby ambulance and first aid van to ensure injured employees are treated if minor or referred to the nearest hospital if emergency. The Community Garden Project will ensure safe storage of chemicals, equipment and machinery from young children and other members of the community who are regarded as vulnerable. The project will also provide toilets, washing facilities, drinking water, and facilities for rest and changing rooms. In addition, the site will provide for wellbeing such as eating places and commuting services for project employees to ensure that their wellbeing is maximized. Lastly, this project will ensure sustainability by harnessing the present and future needs of beneficiaries. Therefore, it will apply green technology in construction by ensuring some trees are grown on site. The project will also erect solar panel and energy saving lighting and heating systems. Furthermore, the project will ensure that the needs of the disabled are catered for by providing playgrounds for multipurpose use. The site will also provide waste collection sheds which will serve as dump bins for any wastes from the users. To ensure that the project meets the present and future needs, the project team will perform a cost-benefits analysis using discounting methods such as net present value or cost benefit ratio to obtain the benefits to the local community. References Australian Institute of Project Management (2013). Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct. Available at: https://www.aipm.com.au/documents/aipm-key-documents/aipm_code_of_ethics_2015.aspx Farrow, E. (2015). Ethical Practice in project management. Project Management Institute. Government of Western Australia (2015). Human resource change management plan. Department of Local Government. Jackson, G. (2012). Contingency for cost control in project management: A case study. Queensland University of Technology. Medak, K. (2011). A project manager’s guide to cost estimating and cost planning. FRFime. Available at: http://www.framegroup.com.au/cost-estimating-and-planning/ Project Management Institute (2013). Communication: The message is clear. White Paper. Available at: http://www.pmi.org/-/media/pmi/documents/public/pdf/white-papers/communications.pdf Smith, A. (2012). Making the best of it? Strategic human resource management in Australian RTOs. Charles Sturt University. Vee, C. & Skitmore, R.M. (2003). Professional ethics in the construction industry. Engineering Construction and Architectural Management, 10(2): 117-127. Read More