Part A: Project Influences
- Analyse the case study from PESTLE perspective. Include in your analysis the impact
(if any) of each PESTLE element. - As the Project Manager for the project, what steps might you have taken to prepare for these influences? Explain how each of these steps would have positively impacted the project’s success.
- Evaluate the decision to build. In your opinion, was the decision to build a good one? Explain your position.
Part B: Assessing Project Viability
- Describe the decisions you would need to focus on first regarding project feasibility.
- Assess how you might approach the size and scale of the construction project.
- Analyse the need for estimations of project cost and profitability.
- Explain how you would decide whether the decisions were effective and the recommendations you would make for those that were not effective.
Part C: Project Planning
- Analyse the role of each of the following plans that need to be implemented in the
construction project:- Value Management
- Risk Management
- Quality Management
- Change Management
- Environmental Management
- Health & Safety Management
- Resources Management
- Describe the impact these plans might have on the project.
Case Study 1: Project Influences, Viability, and Planning
The analysis of the case “Morris Terrace” is going to be presented in the following. The analysis indicates the importance of project management tools and practices so that complex projects get completed successfully and in no time.
Part A: Project Influences
Analysis of the Case Study from PESTLE Perspective:
Morris Terrace project under the CAP global project management group has to face some factors influencing the outcome of the project. They are political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environmental factors. Analysis of these factors would help decide to build the project or not.
- Political
- Economic
- Social
- Technological
- Legal
- Environmental
Political:
The project does not have any severe role in affecting its feasibility and success. The client and CAP GPM should be happy that there is no opposition from this factor. The government policy is only to ensure the project does not disturb and affect neighborhoods severely. For this purpose, there are some legal provisions, which the project team must adhere to (Sridhar, et al., 2016).
Economic:
Economic prospects for the business should look at the market conditions. It has been observed that there have been low sales of construction projects. The case study has mentioned that there have been low property sales. Many developers have withdrawn their projects or put them on hold. In this scenario, CAP Global Project management has to embrace the challenge with caution (Srdjevic, Bajcetic, & Srdjevic, 2012).
Social:
The most important factor going to affect the project is society. Strict laws and regulations on project approvals and town planning require no complaint from neighbors. Fortunately, the project has got approval, but there are some objections from neighbors. Moreover, there are concerns regarding fire control and protection of the space around the site. These social factors are centrally important for the completion of the project.
Technological:
The project can use modular construction methods. It is a modern construction method, and it can reduce the time to half compared to traditional methods. However, traditional methods would continue along with the modular construction method. However, the renovation and completion of the project would require technology, but this factor is not very crucial.
Legal:
The most important factor influencing the project is law and legal perspectives around the project. The project has to take many steps before taking construction approval. Moreover, the project also has to meet conditions after getting approval as well. Law ensures that there is no considerable opposition to the project. Therefore, the project should remain cautious so that it can keep complying with the legal requirements.
Environmental:
Environmental factors are important. The presence of two heritage trees in front of the property site ensures the project team to be environmentally concerned. Worker protection and dust control should also be a priority. There are additional challenges as well that the project does not affect the neighborhood severely. This factor should be combined with social factors because they have a considerable influence on the project.
Steps to being prepared for Influences from PESTLE steps:
As project management, the first concern would be to come up with the concerns of neighbors. Neighbors can cause problems during project completion. Therefore, the project manager must make sure that the project would add value to their neighborhood and surroundings. The prices of their properties would go up, and a stagnant position in the property market would ultimately end. Complete compliance with the law and legal requirements is vital for the project’s success. Therefore, the project team must not put them behind. Any legal proceeding against the project may hurt the viability of the project fundamentally. The client and the project team have to be cautious about these factors; otherwise, they may face financial issues. Financial constraints may hurt the project, and technical prospects may also go limited. However, compliance with the law and considering social concerns would be the secret for the success of the project. For this purpose, proper communication and active responsiveness would help eliminate the negative effects of PESTLE (Rivera-Ruiz & Ferrer-Moreno, 2015).
Evaluation of the Decision to Build:
The above PESTLE analysis has not mentioned any challenge that can put the project into any uncertainty. Social and legal factors are the most important, with strong economic factors playing a role in the project’s success. The project team must address these factors to get a successful project. Therefore, it is wise to build because these concerns and issues are normal. Moreover, there is a solution to these concerns as well that has been presented above.
Part B: Assessing Project Viability
Decisions for Project Feasibility:
- Technical feasibility
- Economic feasibility
- Legal feasibility
- Operational feasibility
- Scheduling feasibility
Project feasibility relies on technical, economic, legal, operational, and scheduling aspects. The CAP global project management group has ensured to possess technical skills, and it has acquired skills by hiring requires a talent for the job. The client in the project lacked technical expertise; it hired a project management team that had the expertise to complete the project. Therefore, the project fulfils technical feasibility.
Economic feasibility calls for conducting a cost and benefit analysis. The project has calculated detailed cost estimates, and it has felt the need to get assistance from the quantity surveyor. The surveyor would help the project team in reaching the cost of the project. However, currently, sales in the property market is low; therefore, it might affect profitability in the short term at least. However, the project has a strong economic perspective in the long run (Corriveau, 2012).
In terms of legal feasibility, the project team has focused on compliance with several legal requirements and conditions. Therefore, the project team is perfect in terms of legal feasibility. Moreover, the project is viable in the light of operational and scheduling feasibility. Thus, the project is feasible because the project team has made decisions to make the project workable and practical. It is the strength of the project.
Assessment on Approach to the Size and Scale of the Construction Project:
Project size and scale must be in light of resources. Resources are in the form of time and money. Financial resources are crucial for the success of a construction project. The project in the case study is limited to one site, and presently, it is only one project. Its success would open new opportunities and lead the client to future aims and ambitions. Presently, the project can be considered as a medium level project. The size and scale of the construction project are medium-level, and the project team is engaged in responding to every detail to meet the success. The project scope can help determine the size and scale of the project. It has three elements that include time, cost, and quality. The project is to be completed in around one year, and its development cost might be below $3 million. However, it is yet to finalize because the quantity surveyor would have his final say about it. In terms of quality, the project team is working hard and has been getting assistance and support from different experts in the construction industry (Toor & Ogunlana, 2009).
Analysis of the Need for Estimation of Project Cost and Profitability:
The project team has to make sure to reach exact estimates on project cost and profitability. Any project has a financial benefit at its center where cost and benefit work on priority. Research on project management and practices in the field highlight the central importance of estimation of these aspects. A construction project is robust and very complex. It involves many stakeholders and their efforts. Some stakeholders, like development and construction experts, solve problems on the way to the project. While some stakeholders might cause hurdles like neighbors in this project. The government and legal obligation also raise costs if they put extra conditions. Therefore, the project has to estimate its cost so that it can be profitable. For this purpose, a construction project has to consider all aspects of cost. Expert and realistic estimates for the cost would ensure profitability because cost management is crucial for profitability (Román, 2011).
Explanation and recommendations on Effectiveness of Decisions:
In the project, decisions to build and ways to build the site were effective. The client hired CAP global project management to build the site with the boutique design. The client could not build the site, and this decision to hire the CAP GPM was effective. The selection of PH architects was also effective because it has expertise while costing in the middle of the highest and lowest quote for the project. Other steps towards getting approvals from the government bodies and hiring other professionals were also effective. These decisions were effective because they solved problems and eradicated hurdles on the way to the completion of the project. However, the project recommends considering the social and technical factors because the project has to face challenges in these areas. Moreover, the project team has not yet taken a specific decision on cost management. Therefore, it is wise for the project team to look into it as well.
Part C: Project Planning
The project planning should implement different types of necessary management processes so that the project can be successful and perfect. The project management team in the construction project must implement the following:
Value Management:
Value management is central to the construction project because it has to consider time, cost, and scope. It also has to be within the resources and away from any risk. Therefore, the project has a value if it does not incur costs above estimate and completes within time. It applies to the construction project as well that will offer value if it adheres to these components of value management.
Risk Management:
Risk management is highly essential because every project has to face unfavorable circumstances and issues. The risk may occur in resources management, dealing with stakeholders, financial resources, and other aspects of project management. The construction project should note that each stage may be exposed to risks, and they need immediate attention (Serpell, Ferrada, & Rubio, 2019).
Quality Management:
The construction project must focus on quality so that it comes up to the expectations of the client. Later, it would only be quality that would attract customers for the project. The project management should follow a consistent process that can plan quality, assure it, and control it throughout the project.
Change Management:
Long and complex projects have to change to be relevant. Change management is a crucial part of any construction project because a construction project involves many stakeholders and aspects. They may not be on the same page for a long time. Therefore, the project must be ready for change management. It requires an integrated and collaborative approach across the project team.
Environmental Management:
Environmental management is crucial for the success of the project, as is the construction project. Considering the heritage trees and dust control steps indicates the importance of it. Environmental protection has increased in importance in recent years because human activities are increasingly polluting it. Otherwise, neighbors and government bodies may cause hurdles on the way to project completion that can increase the cost of the project (Chi, Ruuska, & Xu, 2016).
Health and Safety management:
It has a vital role in projects like the construction project. Masons and workers have to work on the project, and they are exposed to dangerous situations. Any injury or, unfortunately, the casualty may lead the project to go off track. It may increase the cost and hurt the timely completion of the project.
Resources management:
The project must remain within resources; otherwise, it would not be beneficial. The construction project would need customers at the end or completion of it. If it costs too high, then the market sale price, it cannot be worthy. Similarly, completion beyond the timetable is also not useful, and it would increase the cost. In any case, the project may not be beneficial; therefore, resources management keeps it relevant (Chung-Chi, Lee, & Chou, 2016).
Impact of these Plans:
The effect of these plans is evident from the above description that without management, every resource would spoil. The planning of the project requires these plans so that the project remains on time and under cost. Otherwise, the project would not be useful
Conclusion:
The analysis of the construction project in the case study has revealed different aspects of project management. The analysis calls for adhering to project management practices and principles to be successful in complex projects like the construction project in the case study.
References
Chi, C. S., Ruuska, I., & Xu, J. (2016). Environmental impact assessment of infrastructure projects: a governance perspective. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 59 (3), 393-413.
Chung-Chi, C., Lee, G.-G., & Chou, T.-C. (2016). A process model for college-based resource co-management for a resource-constrained government IT project. Information Technology & People, 29 (1), 200-220.
Corriveau, G. (2012). How do local businesses assess the feasibility of their projects? Journal of Global Business Administration, 4 (1), 31-47.
Rivera-Ruiz, I., & Ferrer-Moreno, E. (2015). The Relationship Between Strategic Leadership, Human IT Infrastructure, Project Management, Project Success, and Firm Performance. International Journal of Information, Business and Management, 7 (2), 77-84.
Román, F. J. (2011). A Case Study on Cost Estimation and Profitability Analysis at Continental Airlines. Issues in Accounting Education, 26 (1), 181-200.
Serpell, A. F., Ferrada, X., & Rubio, L. (2019). Measuring the performance of project risk management: a preliminary model. Organization, Technology & Management in Construction, 11 (1), 1984-1991.
Srdjevic, Z., Bajcetic, R., & Srdjevic, B. (2012). Identifying the Criteria Set for Multicriteria Decision Making Based on SWOT/PESTLE Analysis: A Case Study of Reconstructing A Water Intake Structure. Water Resources Management, 26 (12), 3379-3393.
Sridhar, R., Sachithanandam, V., Mageswaran, T., Purvaja, R., Ramesh, R., Vel, A. S., et al. (2016). A Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal and Environmental (PESTLE) approach for assessment of coastal zone management practice in India. International Review of Public Administration, 21 (3), 216-232.
Toor, S.-u.-R., & Ogunlana, S. O. (2009). Construction professionals’ perception of critical success factors for large-scale construction projects. Construction Innovation, 9 (2), 149-167.
