Introduction
The world is getting competitive and firms are struggling to come up with appropriate measures that can increase their efficiency and attract more customers in the market. In the automobile sector, competition has been taken a step higher. Different car manufacturers are coming up with different projects that can enable them capture larger market share.
Different models of cars and different engine models are coming up to meet the current market expectation. According to Liker (93), in the automobile industry, the customers are looking for speed, efficiency and safety of the products they purchase. They want an assurance that the product they buy can support a speed to a given maximum level that they desire. Similarly, they want a product that is efficient when on the road.
Lastly, customers look for comfort and safety of the product they purchase. These are some of the factors that have been defining projects of most of the automobile companies. They have been making concerted efforts to ensure that they come up with cars that can meet or even surpass the market expectations.
The fact that other competing companies have the capacity to meet and exceed the market expectations puts a lot of pressure on various firms to ensure that they develop products that can be satisfactory in the market.
The Land Rover Car manufacturer knows that it has a responsibility to ensure that it meets the market expectations. This company has always been making efforts to ensure that it produces cars with the capacity to meet customers’ demands. According to Wang (117), Land Rover has developed a good rapport with the market as a manufacturer of four-wheel drive cars with the capacity to be driven easily in rough terrains.
This saw the brand become very popular with the military forces and other government security agents. The car was preferred for the power of its engines that would enable it move in very challenging terrains. Its speed also made it be preferred by security agents in curbing crime in various cities. Land Rover has been known for its quality products in the market. It is this legacy that the management has been trying to maintain.
However, the recent complaint by some customers was a major concern for the management of this firm. Some customers have complained that the Land Rover engine has some effects. According to the report by Travis (47), a customer is reported to have complained that after using the car for about one week, the car developed some mechanical problems in the engine that could not allow it to move beyond 60 kilometers per hour.
Others complained that the engine of this car developed strange sound while going at a speed of over 100 kilometers. There were other complains from various individuals concerning the engine of this car.
What was worrying was the fact that the project that culminated into this faulty engine was a very ambitious project. The project was incepted after the realization that the market was satisfied with all the features of Land Rover but speed.
The market wanted a Land Rover with a higher capacity when it comes to speed. The project, therefore, was meant to ensure that the market gets exactly what they expected. The project management team was sure that this project would come up with a stronger engine capacity that could support higher speed or their product.
The report that the engine had some faults was worrying news not only to the project management team that was involved in this project, but to the entire firm.
The firm had enjoyed a long period of trust from its customers. The customers had believed that all products of this company could be trusted in any terrain. This news was tarnishing this reputation and the management had to act with speed. They brought in the engine of jaguar to replace the engine of Land Rover.
Assessment of the Business Case for the Project
Land Rover has a long reputation for production of cars that are efficient, safe to use and strong in engine capacity. The recent case where the firm registered dissatisfaction with the customers due to its weak engine capacity is very worrying. According to Travis (29), the essence of any project is to come up with a solution that can improve the current situation and make it better.
This scholar says that project management team’s main focus is always to solve pertinent issues that affect the normal growth of a firm. In project portfolio management, a project is always thoroughly assessed for its viability before it may be recommended for implementation.
At this stage, the project would be assessed to determine its costs, all the requirements (time and material resources), and any other requirements that the project may need. The process of implementing a project successfully is very costly. Liker (112) says that every project comes with its cost depending on the nature and time it takes for its implementation.
The Land Rover engine project was an ambitious project. It involved a number of engineers and management teams that were focused on bringing something unique to this firm. This team was focused on delivering quality to the customers but in a different approach. In this project, a lot of resources were spent in order to develop the final prototype that was finally approved by the relevant authorities as being the right model.
The development of the prototype was characterized by a number of challenges as this team was trying to balance the heavy body of the Land Rover, and an engine capacity that would be able to support the body. The project management team tested the brakes and confirmed that they were functional. They also confirmed that the car had an improved speed as compared with the predecessor.
When the complaint was raised, the firm had to act. The management had not received such a complaint before. This was sad news to a project that had consumed a lot of money for its completion. It was clear that the management had to come up with a solution that would not only restore back the confidence that customers had had on this brand, but also deliver a quality service within the expectations of the customers.
The management had to temporarily suspend production of this engine, but continue producing this new model of the car. The management, therefore, made the decision to use the engine of the Jaguar, a brand of the same company. The decision to use Jaguar was made after a very long deliberation by various stakeholders within the firm, including the project management team that came up with the faulty engine.
The choice of Jaguar was made based on two reasons. The first reason was because the Jaguar brand was of the same company (Pahl 57). As such, the firm would face no serious litigation case in case it used its engine on the Land Rover. The second and most important reason was that the engine for Land Rover had been confirmed to function appropriately.
The engine was known for its strength, and the team approved its capacity to support the weight of Land Rover. Finally, the decision was made upon the realization that this engine had the speed that the market was demanding of the Land Rover. The project management team was convinced that this product would be satisfactory in the market.
The main challenge that this firm was now facing was how to approach the market and inform them of this new development. In the car industry, brand is a very important factor. Most customers would always develop trust with specific brands in the market. Once a customer develops trust and loyalty towards a given brand, such a customer would feel cheated when presented with a different brand in the name of a trusted brand.
There are a section of Land Rover’s loyal customers who do not believe in Jaguar for one reason or the other. They only trust Land Rover, from its engines to the body. The management had to face this challenge of explaining to the loyal customers why it was important to use this engine in the cars.
The project management unit in charge of this project had to coordinate with the marketing unit and find a way of convincing the market that this engine was appropriate and could meet their demands just as well as the engines for the Land Rover. It is important, however, to note that this was not a permanent solution for this firm. The brand Land Rover had to be maintained in its purest form.
As such, a lasting solution had to be found as soon as would be possible. The following is a recommended strategy that the management and the project management team can apply in getting a permanent solution for this case.
Recommended Strategy for Reduction of Uncertainties and the Management of Associated Risk
In project management, it is always important to eliminate any form of uncertainty and associated risks. According to Wang (19), in any project there are always risks that the project may face. This scholar says that these risks are always dangerous for their occurrence may render a project inappropriate.
In this project, the project management team failed to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the possible risks that the firm may face in this industry. This team did not analyze the possibility of developing engine failure in the prototype that they developed. Travis (117) suggests a series of steps that can be used in coming up with an appropriate strategy of reducing risks within a given project.
The first step is to list down all the possible risks that the firm may face in its implementation process. The project members should come up with all possible risks that may occur, stating the reasons for their possible occurrence. The team members should then come up with a step by step solution of how all the identified risks can be eliminated within the system.
The team should give a clear solution to each issue, and in every stage, the issue should be comprehensively addressed in order to avoid failure in the finale prototype. According to Pahl (37), it is always important to understand some of the risks that are always presented in any given project and how to manage them (Jeanette 76).
In this project, the management of project risks should be conducted by a special group which will be responsible for quality management. They will be responsible for detecting and managing of the risks in time. The team will be responsible for monitoring various activities within the firm, and determining the best control methods for these risks and other issues that may arise in the process of project implementation.
When it comes to managing the uncertainties, the management should develop a clear mechanism of detecting some of the uncertainties that may occur during the implementation of the project. According to Lu (82), uncertainties are incidents that may occur in a project that were not planned or expected by the stakeholders. Some uncertainties may have serious consequences to the firm.
The incident of break failures was an example of uncertainty which came out to be a risk to the customers, hence to the firm. The process described above. Mechanisms should be put in place to ensure that these uncertainties can be dealt with as appropriate.
Recommended Structure and Process for Monitoring and Control of a Project
Land Rover is one of the best car brands in the world, associated with superiority and effectiveness. According to Liker (47), most of the loyal customers of Land Rover always refer to it as a ‘machine’ instead of a car. This shows the level of trust they have on this car. It demonstrates that they believe that this ‘machine’ cannot be with any faults.
As such, the management of this firm should do all within its powers to ensure that this remains a machine. This machine should not have any faults experienced that saw it develop mechanical difficulties. The firm should therefore develop a structure and a process for monitoring and controlling the project.
For this to be a success, all the stakeholders within the project should know their roles clearly. The following chart is a recommendation of the stakeholders that should be involved in this project, and how they should relate.
The chart above demonstrates that in this project, the project manager will be responsible for every activity that will be taking place within the firm. He or she will be responsible for managing all the project members and ensuring that they undertake activities that are expected of them. Under him will be software developers.
They are the technocrats that will be involved in coming up with the appropriate engine prototype that will be appropriate for this car. Their activities will be supported closely by the technical team that will be working hand in hand with them. Then the finance representative will be there to represent the interests of the project in the finance department.
Within the project, this officer will ensure that the finances of the project are spent wisely. Within the finance department of the firm, the officer will ensure that sufficient funds are allocated to the firm. Finally, the project members, who basically will be the marketers of this firm, will be present to ensure that the market demands are met in the development of this new product.
Although the project will be done by a group of engineering officers, it shall also incorporate developers of this project. Their participation is important in ensuring that that they understand important issues concerning marketing of their project.
The project manager will be at the helm of all the activities talking place in this project. The developers will have a special niche in this project where they will be allowed to give their views on this project, while directly taking part in the activities of the project.
The marketing officers selected for this project should have basic knowledge about issues regarding the engine. This way, they will be in a position to act as members of monitoring and evaluation team.
This will also allow them easier time when they get to the market. They will be in a position to explain to the customers the importance of the new product in meeting their objectives. This will help ensure that the final product delivered to the market is of fine quality.
Appropriate Tools and Techniques for the Planning and Managing of a Project
Project planning is a complex project that involves defining the entire project deliverables of the project, all the resources needed for the project, including time, the constrains that may be faced in the process of project implementation, and any other little detail that may be necessary in running of the project.
According to Li (116), project management can be a success only if the stakeholders involved decide to develop a clear plan of how every activity should be performed and all the individuals who will be responsible for this. Lan (67) says that for a long time, many project managers have always considered planning projects in an inward-out approach.
This is an approach where the management starts by planning for activities to be done that will lead to the desired results. This scholar faults this approach, saying that the appropriate approach should start by understanding what is to be achieved, then planning on how to achieve them. It is, therefore, important to start by defining all the project deliverables before a consideration can be given to the actual project.
Project Deliverables
Project deliverables are some of the tangible and intangible outcomes of a project. In this project, some of the project deliverables include the extent to which people will be aware of this product upon its introduction to the market (Hino 89). Another deliverable in this project includes the amount of income that the firm shall generate through the sale of their project.
The ability of the product to be sold in the market without any form of piracy is also another deliverable in this project. Another deliverable for this project will be the level of satisfaction that the product will generate to its consumers in the market. These deliverables will help in planning and management of the project.
Constrains
In every project, there are always project constrains that should be considered in making the project successful. In this project, the first constrain was time. As a project member with a series of activities to perform, it is not easy to get free time to conduct a massive awareness of the product in the market. Another constrain in this project is finance to enable project members explore their ideas fully.
There is always pressure to ensure that any wastes are reduced to the minimal in order to reduce the overall costs of the project. In order to manage constrain of time, the management should come out with a clear table stipulating that activities that should be performed within a stated time.
Timeline for the Project
In every project, there must be a clear schedule that should be followed to ensure that it achieves its objectives. This project should be completed within four months. The engine should be up and running within the four months from the day it is officially set operational. The Gantt chart below specifies the activities that will be carried out in this project
Gantt chart
The above Gantt chart demonstrates all the activities that should be accomplished within a specified duration. The activities should be accomplished within a time span of four months. The activities will start from May 2013, to August the same year.
Strategy Formulation for the Implementation of Change
Change is one of the most important factors within any business environment. According to Dam (67), strategy formulation for implementation of change should be taken as a key factor in project implementation process. Change is one of the constant factors in every organization. Change is considered constant because it will always present its self in different ways.
Tastes and preferences of customers are constantly changing in the market. With such changes, the strategy development team must ensure that the change is reflected in all the projects that are formulated. Similarly, technology is changing on a daily basis. Given that this project is in the field of technology, change is an inevitable occurrence. It is, therefore, important to formulate strategy for implementation of change.
The best approach to start from is to create a unit for change monitoring and evaluation within the project. This department will be responsible for monitoring all the changes in the market, technological, economic, political, social, and legal environment. These changes shall then be reported to the appropriate unit within the project so that action can be taken to ensure that the project is in line with the changes.
It is important to ensure that all the departments of the project become flexible to change. All the project members should appreciate the fact that change cannot be avoided within the organization. They should appreciate the fact that change can come when it is least expected or least desirable.
All the same, change shall always remain relevant, and the important issue would be how to manage it in a positive way. The project will be aware of the project that should be implemented, and which to avoid in its quest for success.
Conclusion
The Landover is one of the strongest brands that exist in the current market of cars. The management has the responsibility to come up with proper strategy in this project to ensure that customer trust is maintained. The project should be closely monitored by the relevant authority.
As shown in the discussion, the management should make an effort to eliminate all the uncertainties in the project. Uncertainties always impacts negatively in a project. With a dedicated team and enough finance, the problem that was detected in the engine would be resolved with a lot of ease.
Works Cited
Dam, Jespersen. Supply Chain Management: In Theory and Practice. Copenhagen: Business School Press, 2005. Print.
Hino, Satoshi. Inside the Mind of Toyota: Management Principles for Enduring Growth. New York: Productivity Press, 2006. Print.
Jeanette, Martins. Global Business Etiquette: A Guide to International Communication and Customs. Westport: Praeger, 2008. Print.
Lan, Yi-chen. Project Management. Hershey: Idea Group Publishers, 2006. Print.
Li, Ling. Project Management: Concepts, Techniques, and Practices Enhancing the Value Through Collaboration. Hackensack: World Scientific, 2007. Print.
Liker, Jeffrey. The Toyota Way: 14 Management Principles from the World’s Greatest Manufacturer. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2004. Print.
Lu, David. Management Begins at the Workplace. Cambridge, Mass: Productivity Press, 1989. Print.
Pahl, Nadine. Swot Analysis – Idea, Methodology and a Practical Approach. München: GRIN Verlag GmbH, 2009. Print.
Travis, Thomas. Doing Business Anywhere: The Essential Guide to Going Global. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, 2007. Print.
Wang, William. Project Management: Issues in the New Era of Collaboration and Competition. Norwood Mass: Books M, 2007. Print.