Rima

Assignment 2

2.1 Executive Summary
The Mission fire Project was an task to get well the structural capabilities of ISRO Shuttle Launch Booster and to use new materials that would consequence in a longer life period and the ability to meet new temperature specifications. Henry (Director Engineering) had questionable judgment as well poor ethics. His first bad decision was hiring an inexperienced Project Manager, Gary Allison, which was made because Gary (Project manager) ignored his own moral compass for the sake of getting a promotion. This was much too significant and expensive of a project to hire someone to manage the project that did not have enough knowledge to handle such a big project. After 14 successful years as an engineer at Scientific Engineering Corporation (SEC), Gary Allison accepted a promotion as a Project Manager on the mission Fire Project, at the heavy price tag of jeopardizing his own morals and judgment. Accepting this new position would ultimately be his fall from grace, going from the best engineer in the plant to eventually failing miserably as a Project Manager and losing his job. Many bad decisions were made by Gary which was created when he abandoned his better judgment to go along with Henry. These decisions were only compounded as Gary tried to cover the unethical decisions that were made in the preliminary stages of the project.








TABLE OF CONTENTS

Executive Summary --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3

Introduction-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5

Background and environment of project -------------------------------------------------------------- 5

Critical analysis of the project business case --------------------------------------------------------- 5

Conclusion ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10

Recommendation -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 11
Research & Academic Theory -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 11

Reference ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------15










2.2 Introduction-
The project must make the most efficient use of time, money, personnel, materials and communication in to successfully complete a project. The project manager must implement project control systems from the start so the project goes forward within time and budget constraints. Project control is essential but if implemented incorrectly it can have devastating effects on the outcome of a project. The mission fire project has been prepared to understand various issues relating to manage such big project. [6] It defines the project scope and how the scope of project can be changed and managed. What are the role of the project manager and his team, how the milestone of time and budget is achieved.
2.3Background and environment of project -
The Mission fire Project explains the importance of project management as a part of a team environment. It discusses how bad management can lead a team project to collapse as well as job dissatisfaction. The project was to be completed within stipulated time and budget constraint Gary’s lack of project management experience was obvious throughout the project and he failed to understand that the ultimate responsibility lied on his shoulders as the project manager even though it was under Henry Larsen’s encouragement. The problems that were created due to the bad decisions in the beginning could have been avoided had Gary better communicated what was going on to the rest of the team.[7]
2.4 Critical analysis of the project business case –
Q1) In what ways does your project conform (or not) to the definition of a project in the Literature?
A mission fire project has certain characteristics here as under which conform the definition of project–
• A mission fire project has set of objectives or a mission .Once the objectives are achieved, the project treated as completed
• This project has definite time limit which is shown in Gantt chart
• The project work is related with team work. Because it normally consists of divided areas.
• A project is a complex set of activities relating to diverse areas. Technology selection ,choosing the appropriate technology, procuring the appropriate technology, hiring the right kind of people ,arranging for financial resources, execution of the project in time by proper scheduling of the different activities etc. contribute to the complexities of the project.
Q2) who (or what) is the ‘sponsor’ of your project?
Project stakeholders- Chart of project Stake holders-
Following Chart will elaborate the details of the project sponsors.










































FIG-2.4 (Organization Chart)



Q3) To what extent was a ‘business case’ created for this project.
Business case has covered following points which is here as under-
Recognize the Business opportunity- The purpose of the mission fire Project is to get better the structural capabilities of the Shuttle Launch Booster, a launch rocket booster used by ISRO.
Identifying the risks and issues associated with each solution-there are the risk of technology financial, environment which is discussed in research & Academic theory details below
Recommendation and Describe the Implementation Approach- Recommendation and the implementation of the mission fire project will also be discussed in the project further.
Q4) In what ways are the benefits, cost and risk evaluated as part of the business case (or
Should have been)?

1. Benefits- ISRO wants new materials that support a longer age life for the Shuttle Launch Booster. Finally in result SEC Industries have succeeded to achieve technical specification and satisfied to their customers (STI Industries).and they have delivered the material within the stipulated time.
2. Cost
Project Budget


revenue & Support

Research and development $100000
Purchase Management $500000
Human Resource Department $ 150000
Testing $100000
Manufacturing $200000
Assembly Line


Total Revenue & Support $600000

Table-2.4.1


3. A risk management Plan


Task No


Describe the Risk

Likelihood
Impact
Overall Risk
A Finance Expected major Very High
B Research and Development Expected major Very High
E Testing Expected catastrophic Extreme
H Manufacturing Possible Moderate medium

Table 2.5


Q5) In what way/s is the preferred solution justified (or should have been)
Preferred sol is achieved because it has been achieved in proper timing and Budget showing the activity






Fig-2.5

Q6) In what way is management commitment and approval for the investment obtained (or
Should have been)?
Space Technology Industries (Sti) is the prime contractor for the ISRO Shuttle Launch Booster Program. If Scientific Engineering Corporation successfully bids and wins Mission fire project, it will be a subcontractor to STI. The criteria for subcontractor selection are based not only on low bid, but also on technical expertise and management performance on other projects. SEC management believes it has a distinctive advantage over most of the other competitors because they have successfully worked on other projects for Space Technology Industries.[10]




2.5 Conclusion

Project management issues that Gary Faced during the mission fire project. Throughout the mission fire project, Gary faced numerous technical, ethical, legal, contractual and other project management issues. Gary’s lack of project management experience was apparent throughout the project and several times he failed understand that the ultimate responsibility has to be with him, the program manager. Finally, the overall performance of the project manager is assessed. so we can say project is not single handed but it done along with team work there must be proper plan for the project and in addition there must be contingency plan.
Scope of the project, time schedule of the project, cost of the project, Quality of the project These above points can be included in order to achieve the desired result of the project.



2.6 Recommendation
Gary Allison’s was very new to project management, It was incorrect for Henry Larsen to let Gary be solely in charge of this project, the best way could have been to assign another more experienced project manager to work hand in hand with Gary or better still he could have allowed a more experienced project manager to lead the project while Gary worked as an assistant to the experienced project manager.
Solutions are recommended to decrease the incidence of issues in the future. These solutions include the proper use of strategic and business planning, pre-initiation and kick-off activities, and coordination tools, such as dashboards and project management software.
There must be proper, planning, scheduling, controlling implementation and project cost estimation of the entire project.
There must be proper consideration of ethical, legal issue.

2.7 RESEARCH & ACADEMIC THEORY-
Technical Issues Gary Allison faced many technical difficulties when attempting to create a product that could withstand the appropriate temperatures as well as ensure a long life span. The technical specifications stated that it must be able to operate normally and successfully through a temperature range of -65 degrees Fahrenheit to 145 degrees Fahrenheit. Unluckily the current testing showed that Scientific Engineering Corporation’s design would not function higher than 130 degrees Fahrenheit. Gary Allison attempted his best to approach the research and design phase of the project by paying close attention to detail and overseeing as much of the actual process as possible. Gary also spent a great deal of time actually participating in the research and design. By doing so Gary hoped he would be able to recognize and solve any technical issues. In end Gary found that the only way to overcome this technical obstacle is by changing the design material or by integrating new materials. After bringing this to the attention of Henry Larsen, they both agreed that new materials were necessary however with the encouragement of Henry; the decision was made to not disclose this in the proposal stage of the process.
Ethical Issues in addition the technical issues that Gary Allison faced, he also faced some ethical issues as well. Henry Larsen, the director of engineering, advised Gary to not reveal his technical concerns to the customer. Gary was told to inform the customer that their design would be operative up to 155 degrees Fahrenheit. Despite Gary’s concerns with being untruthful, he decided to go along with Henry’s recommendations, as a promotion of being a program manager lied in the balance. By not revealing the technical issues they faced and not disclosing the problematic design error, they also had to lie about where the funds came from to cover the expenditures of having to test new materials in order to meet the specifications set onward. The compounding lies created so many ethical issues and each lie turned into another lie.[2]
One must question both the judgment and ethics of Henry Larson in hiring an inexperienced person to lead such an extensive project. Many incorrect decisions were made by Gary as he incorrectly observes the poor and unethical advice of Henry Larson. Among the many adverse decisions and mistakes made by Gary was his lack of communication and honesty with the stakeholders involved with the project. If Gary would have been more informative with all parties involved (including the Space Technology Institute, the function manager, the team representative from the production department, and the production team as a whole), many problems would have either been avoided or rectified more smoothly. Henry Larson should have also been reprimanded for his involvement and contribution to the project over-run and mismanagement of funds. [14] This would have been the case if Gary would have upheld his integrity and simply communicated to the SEC about Henry’s involvement from the commencement of the project. Yet, among many other erroneous decisions that Gary made, he decided to be hidden about Henry’s involvement, which ultimately led to Gary taking on the complete responsibility, Gary operated in a top-down hierarchical organization in which he took orders without questioning management. This led to Gary making the decision not to question his supervisor when he was faced with an unethical choice. Unfortunately Gary went along with the status quo and resorted to being dishonest in order for SEC to stay competitive.
Henry Larsen''s motive could also be read in his choice of having Gary as the project manager, he needed a new inexperienced manager who could be easily manipulated to promote his unethical management standards.[3]

Legal Issues As an effect of their dishonesty during the proposal process, it ultimately created a domino effect, with what once started as just a technical issue, turned into an ethical issue which then turned into a legal issue. The ethical issues ended up turning into legal issues as Henry Larsen’s team was spending the customer’s money on for testing materials that were not called out in the program plan, exceeding the budget drastically unless they are able to prepare a tradeoff analysis to figure out what could be deleted downstream in order to not overrun the budget. Managerial Issues By not disclosing the testing of the new materials in order to meet the technical specification, it created bunch of issues all the way around. First of all it set the stage of distrust. Not only did Gary’s team no longer trust him but across the board this raised red flags for everyone as to what was going on with the management of this project. In an effort to reduce costs Gary accepted responsibility himself for developing the hill of materials, which then put the manufacturing plans a week behind schedule. Which then created a whole slew of other issues as the verification mix was then rescheduled. It was then discovered that Gary had never asked the engineering integration to prepare the bill of materials which then caused its own set of issues because in order to get it done, they had to reschedule his mix, require staff to work overtime which then increases costs.
A contract is legal agreement. It is an exchange of promises by two or more persons. When major work is undertaken by a main contractor, he can entrust some of the works to be executed by sub contractors. There will be separate contracts between the main contractor and his sub contractors. such sub contracts should provide for the execution of work by the sub-contractors as per the requirements of the original contract. SPACE TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRIES (STI) is the prime contractor for the ISRO Shuttle Launch Booster Program. If Scientific Engineering Corporation successfully bids and wins the Orion Shield Project, it will be a subcontractor to STI. The criteria for subcontractor selection are based not only on low bid, but also on technical expertise and management performance on other projects. SEC management believes it has a distinct advantage over most of the other competitors because they have successfully worked on other projects for Space Technology Industries. On February 10, Space Technology Industries announced that SEC would be awarded the mission fire Project. The contract called for a ten-month effort; negotiated at a 6 million Fixed Price Incentive Fee (FPIF).SEC violates their contract on using the money of the customer.[15]
The stakeholders involved did not have a firm grasp on R&D contracting and the innovation that is allowed. Gary resorted to lying in order to make his results fit in with the proposal as opposed to striving for open and honest dialogue and embracing innovative practices.
One of the major problems Gary faced was that he had poor management skills and did not lead his team in an effective manner. There were complaints both internally
The most important job of a project management is to deliver unique results within time constraints as well as according to a budget. The project must make the most efficient use of time, money, personnel, materials and communication in to successfully complete a project. The project manager must implement project control systems from the start so the project goes forward within time and budget constraints. Project control is essential but if implemented incorrectly it can have devastating effects on the outcome of a project. As Saran Wilson complained, he spent way too much time doing and not enough time managing. The fact that his memo authorized the vice-president and general manager to book 75 percent of $200,000 profit of the program for corporate profit spending for stockholders was an amateur but costly mistake that eventually cost Gary his job.