Module 7 Paper

Robert Miller
College of Integrative Sciences and Arts, Arizona State University
OGL 321: Project Leadership, Strategy, and Scope
Ben Pandya
August 9, 2022
  Since first taking the quiz “How Good Are Your Project Management Skills?”
until now, can you identify areas of growth or knowledge regarding project
management specifically, or leadership in general? Do you find yourself giving
more consideration to particular areas, principles, or practices (e.g.
scheduling, scope management, communication styles, etc.)?

Since I took this quiz the first time, I did not agree with the outcome then and I still don’t

agree with its assessment. This quiz contradicts other teachings that we have received in our

classes from this university. For example, the question we were asked about how much we

communicate with our stakeholders when things change on the project, in this quiz, the correct

answer is not to communicate with all the little details and all the stakeholders. That’s too time

consuming with all these details. However, one video from the Project Management videos

stated we needed to communicate everything with our stakeholders. Previously, I scored a

perfect ten out of ten for project integration and this time I scored an eight. When it comes to

project integration, I believe I have the knowledge to understand how a project gets integrated

throughout the team and vendors. How all the pieces work together in harmony. If one piece

gets delayed, is it going to put other tasks behind schedule, or have you built in some slack to

compensate for certain tasks? For some tasks, there will be no slack available and those are

your critical tasks. You will need to know that if one of these tasks gets behind schedule, the

project will finish behind schedule unless you change something.

This leads into the next quiz assessment, understanding the scope of the project. For

me, I understand that my brain works different than others, but for me this is not rock science.

If one aspect of the project changes, something else will be affected. You will need to

compensate for this change by going over budget or reducing quality. If you increase one little

thing that, might seem insignificant, your project scope changes as well.
 This rolls into the next line of questions that gives you your project management

assessment. If there is anything that we took from this class, I took a lot more than one thing, is

that projects are going to change, and we need to be ready to adapt. The way the questions are

asked, I scored an eleven out of twenty, telling me I don’t know how to manage these projects.

This I disagree with. If there is something that I am good at, it is adapting to what needs to be

done, even if it means bending the rules. I used to have the personality and actions that human

relations departments did not get along with. I would see what needed to be done, and I would

get it done. Now I understand that I need to work with the HR department to follow

procedures. On large scale projects, this will be what needs to be. I don’t agree with this but I’m

not the director. I’m just an actor playing my part in this show.

All of this will influence your cost management. Understanding that one change of the

objective will influence the budget. If you have an issue with the design, budget. Do you need

to assign more team members to the project midway to ensure the schedule is met, budget. I

think we all understand that if one aspect of the scope changes, this will affect the project.

The quality of the project is important and delivering a product or service that meets the

quality expectations of the stakeholder will be one of the primary focuses. If you can finish a

project under budget but the quality suffers, the reputation of your company could be at stake.

I once asked a chef if we can reduce our food cost below a certain point, would that be a good

strategy. His response was one that I will never forget. He said that if we drop our food costs

below a certain point, we are now cheating our customers. You are delivering a product that is

inferior to what they are paying.

project, I understand that there is the right mix of technical skills and personalities that need to

be considered to ensure a projects success. On this score, I received a five out of ten. I

remember one reading that pointed out that an engineer was removed from a project because

of his disruptive behavior and his inability to communicate with the other team members and

the customer. Having the right mix for your team is vital for project success.

As the quiz continues, so do my questions about its validity. There will always be a risk in

every project that we do. Therefore, companies are spending as much as they do with project

management. They are understanding the importance of having somebody who can lead their

team on their projects can save them money in the long run. They need to have the right skills

to communicate with the stakeholders and know what needs more attention. You need to

know which stakeholders need to have priority when it comes to information.

 Given your previous experience, as well as your more recent interactions with
the Harvard Simulation scenarios, how would you define your personal
approach to project management? What areas do you tend to emphasize or
privilege while managing projects where trade-offs are inevitable? In what
areas do you find your biggest challenges?  

The Harvard Simulation scenarios was a new challenge that I tried to understand and do

well at. The areas that I emphasized throughout the weeks was focusing on schedule and team

morale. People are what make or break everything. If you are a good leader, you can lead your

team through controversy, setbacks, issues that will arise, unrealistic expectations that

management might set out, or unforeseen obstacles. My personal approach would not be
much different than the simulation. Leading your team and being there when they need help

solving difficult issues, when they are feeling stressed, could be a defining characteristic of a

good leader. If you can sit down in a meeting with your team and let them know, like the

simulation did, there was an accident, or management has asked us to deliver the impossible,

they might step their game up and deliver. If they don’t respect or like their leader, disaster

could be waiting around the corner. This is one aspect that the simulation could not factor in

properly. The human aspect of what we as project managers can bring to our team. Trade-offs

will be inevitable. There will be things outside your control, and you will need to accept them. A

simple prayer I have learned, “God, grant me serenity to accept the things I cannot change,

courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” This simple prayer

comes from Alcoholics Anonymous but can be applied through all our lives. When obstacles do

come our way, how are we going to react to them? Is there anything we can do? The simulation

helped me understand this. Management would come to us with unrealistic goals, and we had

to make the decision what trade-offs we were willing to accept. Mine was usually the budget.

The budget was my biggest challenge the entire time. I was able to finish everything, but that

budget was not a friend of mine.

 Lastly, although the scenarios that you worked through in this class offered a
very narrow arena in which project management techniques can be applied, I
would like for you to now make the connection between the skills that you
employed and learned in your own professional environment—whether you
are already working within it or aspiring to soon work within a particular
industry. For example, how can project management skills be useful in
government jobs, education, the non-profit sector, etc.? In other words, what
 are your “takeaways” that hold direct relevance to you professionally? Be
specific.

The scenarios that we received were enjoyable. Getting the opportunity to try different

strategies, knowing that it was only a computer simulation. But how are these techniques going

to play out in real-life? Like I previously mentioned in the last question above, the human

aspect was the one thing that was not a factor. It did its best to try, like having coaching

meetings. Project management skills can be useful not only in our professional careers but also

to life in general. If you look at any given scenario, for example, buying a car, you can look at

the scope of this project, apply risk management, scheduling, trade-offs, and budget to assess

whether buying the car is possible. You may feel on your first thought that you can do this.

Then you break things down into smaller, more manageable parts to see if you really can. You

know you can afford the car payment without a problem, but you forget about the taxes and

delivery charges. So now the payment is more every month. You still feel confident that you can

do this, and a friend asks how much your insurance costs per month. (You forgot about this).

You now realize that you can barely afford to buy this car and insurance. You friend asks, again,

is this for comprehensive or just liability only? You feel that liability is all they require so that’s

all you are going to get and that’s what you tell them. They ask you what happens if you are at

fault in an accident, liability won’t cover that. You are now realizing that the car you wanted is

not the car you can afford. You think about the risk management you learned about in class and

contemplate whether you are willing to risk getting into an accident. What are the

consequences? Is this project, buying a new car, a reality or something that you can understand

before making any mistakes, that it is more than you can afford?
  Suggestions on how to manage the three most visible levers of project
management (scope, resources, and schedule).
 Critical trends or patterns that you found in the different scenarios.
 Your own personal “model” of the causal relationships that exist within
projects.

In this simulation you will be facing some interesting challenges, some will seem

impossible, but it’s up to you to find the secret of success. I have some insightful advice that

may give you help when faced with some of the difficult decisions.

 Get your classmates information so you can exchange ideas and techniques.

 When running through, find what is important to management. Each scenario you will

be given extra bonus points for achieving higher success and, on the flip side, you will be

deducted a certain degree for areas that you fall behind.

 Look at the scope of the project and determine what trade-offs you will make when

accomplishing the objective.

 Outsourcing is a key factor with team members and their ability to know what is

happening with the project. Too much outsourcing will reduce your cost in the short

term but finding the right balance will help the big picture.

 Schedule was always important to me but sometimes you were awarded more points

for finishing under budget opposed to finishing on time.

 Including coaching meetings in the beginning helped my team produce more at the end.

Trends seem to show a slow start but as the team learns, the production grows.

 Your team’s morale is important. Knowing how hard you can push them before they

break down and tasks being finished drops.

concept of social loafing to be present in this simulation.

 Try different combinations of skill levels.

 When adding team members, always have one additional meeting to keep the team

informed. Try not to change the number of team members too often.

 The two things that my management approach focused on was schedule and team

morale. When I tried to focus primarily on budget, the reverse affect happened. The

budget was then over by more than before and we would finish several weeks behind

the deadline. This class and simulation taught me that you need to be prepared for

change. Learn to adapt. You may think that you are right on schedule and then an issue

would arise.

In the end, I think what I learned from this simulation is very applicable to real

situations. We will be given a project that may be unrealistic, and it will be our job to find a way

to get it done. We will need to make trade-offs whether it be with budget, which is what I did in

the simulation, or pushing your team beyond their limits. If we go over budget, we may face

consequences more severe than a low score. Looking at the big picture at the beginning is more

important than assigning several team members. You might take into consideration the level of

skill needed to do research or an IT project. Is this a simple construction job that has been done

many times before or is this a custom home that has unique blueprints? Understanding what is

being asked of us will be essential for our success.

Harvard Business Publishing Education (2022). Project Management Simulation: Scenario E