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MGT530 – Operations Management
MGT530 – Operations Management
Project Management
Module Introduction
Readings
Note: The following readings may require you to be logged in to the Saudi Digital
Library. You may do that here (https://lms.seu.edu.sa/bbcswebdav/xid-27610786_1).
Required
Chapter 17 in Operations Management.
Chapter 17 PowerPoint slides (https://lms.seu.edu.sa/bbcswebdav/courses/MGT-530MASTER/Presentations/Stevenson_13e_Chapter_17.pptx) – Operations Management.
Alawneh, A. R., & Sweis, R. J. (2016). The relationship between the emotional intelligence level
and the effectiveness of a project manager: The case of Jordan (https://search-proquestcom.sdl.idm.oclc.org/docview/1809941698?accountid=142908). International Journal of
Information, Business and Management, 8(3), 13-27.
Baghdadi, A., & Kishk, M. (2017). Assessment of risks associated with Saudi aviation
construction projects and of the risks importance (http://www.ijimt.org/index.php?
m=content&c=index&a=show&catid=83&id=1054). International Journal of Innovation,
Management and Technology, 8(2), 123-130.
Recommended
Prodan, A. P. (2017). A tailored methodology for project management (https://searchproquest-com.sdl.idm.oclc.org/docview/1927462618?accountid=142908). FAIMA Business &
Management Journal, 5(2), 5-13.
For Your Success
In this module, you will explore the behavioral aspects of project management as well as components of the
work breakdown structure. Think about projects that you have worked on in the past. Are there tools you
could have used to better plan and track the projects? What worked well and what needed improvement?
This week:
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Participate
in the Discussion Forum, which asks you to examine a past project and consider what
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Participate in the Discussion Forum, which asks you to examine a past project and consider what
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MGT530 – Operations Management
contributed to its success or failure.
Take the graded quiz, covering concepts from Modules 11 and 12.
In this course, the Discussion Forums are an excellent way to share your observations and learn from the
history and experience of others. Remember the following:
Embed course material concepts, principles, and theories, which require supporting citations along with at
least one scholarly, peer-reviewed reference in supporting your answer unless the question
calls for more. Keep in mind that these scholarly references can be found in the Saudi Digital Library by
conducting an advanced search specific to scholarly references.
You need to reply to at least two peer discussion question post answers to the discussion question. These
post replies need to be substantial and constructive in nature. They should add to the content of the post
and evaluate/analyze that post answer. Normal course dialogue doesn’t fulfill these two peer replies, but is
expected throughout the course. Answering all course questions is also required.
Use Saudi Electronic University academic writing standards and APA style guidelines.
Learning Outcomes
1. Evaluate the behavioral aspects of project management.
2. Apply project management models, including Gantt charts, PERT, and CPM.
1. Introduction
Projects are different than routine work. Stevenson (2018) stated that “projects are unique, one-time
operations designed to accomplish a specific set of objectives in a limited time frame” (p. 732). Most often,
projects focus on what are called the triple constraints of time, budget, and scope (or, cost, schedule
and performance).
Imagine how Saudi Telecom does business. Even though the same circuit type might be sold to all
customers, each customer’s installation is unique based on the location where the circuit is terminated.
That installation would constitute a project. It is unique to that customer and geography, happening one
time, and accomplished within specifications in a specific time frame. Once the circuit is working, Saudi
Telecom would monitor the circuit for alarms. That ongoing monitoring is routine work and not project
work.
As the project manager completes the installation of the new telephone circuit, the project, like all projects,
follows a life cycle. Review the life cycle, which occurs in five phases:
Phase 1
Phase 2
Phase 3
Phase 4
Phase 5
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Managers and leaders must determine which projects to implement, select a project manager and project
team, plan and design the project, control the resources, and determine when a project should be
terminated. The project manager (PM) must keep track of the work completed, underway, and planned to
ensure that the project is completed on time, within budgeted amounts, and within scope. The PM must
also communicate appropriately to ensure the resources of the organization are used effectively to deliver a
quality project outcome. Alawneh and Sweis (2016) have determined that there is a positive relationship
between successful projects and the emotional intelligence of the project manager.
Review the twelve steps in successful project management in the following video.
Project Management in Under 8 Minutes
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkuUBcmmBpk)
Explore
If you are considering project management as a career, research the
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MGT530
– Operations
Management
professional certification options
offered
by the
Project Management
Institute (http://www.pmi.org/) (PMI). PMI certification is globallyrecognized.
2. Project Management Concepts
Project managers have many tools at their disposal that aid in tracking a project’s status for time, budget,
and resources, and to ensure that the project does not get off track and suffer from scope creep. One such
tool is the work breakdown structure (WBS), which is a listing of tasks to be performed along with the
associated dependencies for work that must precede or follow any other task. Today, software programs
are available to aid the project manager with developing the WBS.
Project managers also use Gantt charts, named for Henry Gantt, who pioneered the use of these charts
for industrial scheduling activities in the early 1900s. The purpose of the Gantt chart is to organize and
depict the actual or planned use of resources by unit of time. The image below is a simple Gantt chart
showing how one might track the use of three hospital operating rooms, including when they are in use,
idle, or are being cleaned and readied for the next surgery.
Click to enlarge
(Source: CSU-Global Faculty)
The program evaluation review technique (PERT) is another tool used to schedule, organize, and
coordinate tasks within a project. PERT charts add the dimension of linking tasks to each other so that
dependencies may be shown and a critical path identified. With a PERT chart, we begin to see that certain
paths toward project completion may take longer than others. The following diagram depicts activities on a
construction site using an activity-on-arrows approach. Time for completion in days is tracked.
Click to enlarge
(Source: https://www.dlsweb.rmit.edu.au/toolbo
x/buildright/content/bcgbc4007a/03_develop_tr
ack_revise/03_network_systems/page_001.htm)
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The critical path method (CPM) is a tool that can be used to consider paths through a project to its
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The
critical path method (CPM) is a tool thatMGT530
can be– Operations
used to Management
consider paths through a project to its
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conclusion. With CPM, the longest path through the project determines the expected duration for the
project. Knowing the critical path can help the project manager understand the critical activities for ontime project completion.
Review project management in action with the building of the Alton Bridge in this video clip.
Alton Bridge
Go to the Video (https://www.viddler.com/embed/27703c50/?
f=1&autoplay=0&player=full&disablebranding=0)
This video explores the project to build a new bridge across the Mississippi River in the United States.
3. Risk Management Responsibilities
Whether it is the construction of a house, the implementation a new software system, or planning for a
sporting event, projects run the risk of failure. Baghdadi and Kishk (2017) studied aviation projects in
Saudi Arabia and found that labor issues, design changes, corruption, knowledge and skills deficiencies,
incomplete designs, changes in the law, and poor design quality are just some of the risks that befall
projects. Projects may run over budget, take more time than was estimated, or have to be changed in some
way that impacts the original scope of the project. Managing these undesirable outcomes is part of risk
management for projects.
Projects follow a specific lifecycle from planning, to implementation, to completion. The risk of undesirable
outcomes has a higher probability of occurring earlier in the project. If the project is further along, then the
probability of those identified risks occurring is lower. If one should occur, however, costs will have been
sunk in the project, and it may require costly adjustments to successfully complete the project. Thus, the
cost of risks is greatest at the end of the project, as shown below.
Click to enlarge
(Source:
Stevenson, 2018, p. 763)
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Therefore, project managers should plan risk management strategies. The objective of such planning is to
mitigate the risks that may occur. Not all risks can be eliminated, but risk mitigation strategies can be put
in place to lessen the impact should they occur. Examples of mitigation strategies might include purchasing
spare component parts for critical elements, keeping contingency funds available, or having additional
technicians on hand in case they are needed. Still, some risks may be unavoidable. For example, a project
team may determine that the risk of bad weather delaying work on a project is just something to accept
since it cannot be controlled. Another example would be the currency exchange rate when executing an
international project.
4. Conclusion
Projects simultaneously represent the organization’s strategic opportunities and risks. Understanding and
managing resources for projects then becomes important in reducing risk and maximizing
opportunities. Whether projects end successfully or unsuccessfully, the closing phase is important to
understanding what failed and what went well in order to limit the former and replicate the latter in future
projects.
In closing, watch how successfully aligning strategy with project management leads to positive results in
this video.
Michael Porter: Aligning Strategy and Project Management
(Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKcSzH1SvCk)
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– Operations Management
Harvard Professor M. Porter discusses how to MGT530
align strategy
and project management within an
organization.
Check Your Understanding
Place the five phases of the project life cycle in the order in which they occur.
Check Your Understanding
Click Here to Begin
References
Alawneh, A. R., & Sweis, R. J. (2016). The relationship between the emotional intelligence level and the
effectiveness of a project manager: The case of Jordan. International Journal of Information,
Business and Management, 8(3), 13-27.
Baghdadi, A., & Kishk, M. (2017, April). Assessment of risks associated with Saudi aviation construction
projects and of the risks importance. International Journal of Innovation, Management and
Technology, 8(2), 123-130.
Stevenson, W. (2018). Operations management (13th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Irwin.
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