In general, it is traditionally believed that the concept of project management refers to the spheres of construction or IT. However, in reality, an employee in almost any industry may face the necessity to run a project when he is responsible for particular tasks that should be performed, considering the timeframe or budget for positive outcomes. I was involved in project management while working in the restaurant of my cousin. Although I predominantly helped as a waiter in rush hours, it was not my only occupation. One day, my cousin mentioned that his restaurant requires some improvement in order to stay competitive and ensure stable growth and development. After a small conversation, it was decided that the introduction of new dishes would attract new customers and spark the interest of loyal ones. While my cousin was extremely busy being responsible for multiple routine questions and critical work-related issues when they occurred, he asked me for help, ensuring that he trusted in my management skills.
According to the general steps of project management, the necessity of a project along with a rationale for its initiation was defined. The next step required a project’s formulation – thus, on the basis of the analysis of a local community’s demographics and surveys, several dishes of Asian cuisine were decided to be included. Subsequently, the implementation of a project included a spread of awareness concerning a renewed menu, staff training, the design and order of new menu cards, and advertising in mass media. Finally, the evaluation of a project referred to the assessment of the restaurant’s attendance and its comparison with previous levels.
Project Management
In general, project management may be regarded as a process that involves planning, organization, and overseeing a team’s performance to create and improve a particular organizational project within the framework of the achievement of organizational goals. Project management does not presuppose a focus on routine operations and everyday duties – instead, it refers to a project from a broader perspective. According to Gül et al., a project is “a series of work tasks that have a certain beginning and an end and leads to an outcome” (42). The life cycle of a successful project corresponds with the stages of project management and includes the following: initiation, analysis, and formulation; planning; implementation and monitoring; termination (Gül et al. 42). As projects traditionally refer to activities that should be thoroughly planned and coordinated in order to reach appropriate outcomes, project management implies the coordination of their processes balancing the demands for quality, time, scope, and cost as well.
Project management plays a crucial role in the performance of multiple organizations that operate in almost all spheres and industries, including food and beverage services. In restaurants that operate in a highly competitive environment, success is determined by several factors, including its advantages and relationships with stakeholders (Chen 11). In addition, management factors that typically include “decisions about the restaurant’s location, purchasing and ordering, hiring and training staff, price and quality of products, and marketing and financial control” play a crucial role (Chen 11). At the same time, when continuous development is essential, project management is an important process that ensures the successful implementation of changes.
In general, there are several techniques that are applied in project management, taking into consideration a project’s conditions and purpose. For instance, projects that aim to provide distinct results in relation to a particular aspect use the waterfall structure or Six Sigma’s and Plan, Do, Study, Act (PDSA) cycles that presuppose a linear consequence of distinct phases (Hakim par. 3). In turn, agile management is an iterative style on the basis of team principles designed for continuous development in a time-sensitive manner. Finally, project management currently integrates modern technologies presented in software for better coordination and accessibility for all participants.
Project Manager
While project management is a structured process of planning, execution, control, monitoring, and termination of a project, a project manager is a person who plays a leading role at all these stages. Being a leader of a team, a project manager ensures the cooperation of its members for appropriate outcomes within the framework of limitations, such as scheduling or budget. Besides leading his subordinates, a project manager communicates with stakeholders, defines goals, and supervises all activities related to a project till its closure. Regardless of the industry, project managers may be regarded as people who heavily determine their projects’ success or failure.
In turn, a project manager’s performance strongly depends on his competencies and skills. Although a project’s success is associated with a combination of several factors, such as the elements of an organization, project management methodologies, and project management competence, a project’s type and orientation, and external conditions, a manager’s technical, contextual, and behavioral characteristics have a great significance (Radujković and Sjekavica 609). He defines a project’s scope on the basis of schedule, assesses risks, plans costs, manages available resources, solves appearing problems, and documents progress. Thus, a project manager should have a set of various skills that may contribute to a project’s success from various perspectives.
First of all, a project manager should have knowledge, qualification, experience, and technical skills related to the sphere in which a project is implemented, along with the principles of project management. Other personal and professional skills include communication, critical thinking, a strategic mindset, and organizational and problem resolution capabilities. And it goes without saying that leadership skills may be regarded as highly significant in project management as a manager should articulate a project’s goals, motivate his subordinates by serving as a role model, and address their needs using emotional intelligence as an ability to understand the feelings of others and control personal emotions.
Project’s Challenges
The first challenge occurred at the stage of a project’s analysis when customers were asked about what cuisine they would like to see in the restaurant. People were suggested to provide feedback on the restaurant’s official pages on social nets or answer orally during their visit, and a large amount of unstructured information was generated. In this case, it was hard to define what cuisine should appear in the restaurant and what exact dishes should be included.
Another challenge referred to a lack of communication and consistency in a project’s planning and implementation. When I chose dishes, I needed to communicate with employees in order to spread awareness and organize training as all of them should know about changes. However, I provided essential information to waiters and cooks at different times and on the basis of their responsibilities. However, this created misunderstanding, a lack of cooperation, and constant irritation among employees when they realized that data was either insufficient or incomplete. Moreover, I felt a lack of employees’ desire to consider my requests. In other words, it was obvious that neither cooks nor waiters accepted my authority.
Finally, the last challenge was connected with budget as an update of all menu cards was cost-inefficient. In addition, my cousin could not afford launching the whole advertising campaign in mass media, especially when only several new meals were introduced. In this case, it was necessary to search for alternative decisions as advertising was necessary and could be regarded as a part of a project’s implementation.
Solutions
First of all, in order to avoid information inconsistency, online and paper questionnaires for customers were introduced. They consisted of two questions: “What national cuisine would you like to see in our restaurant?” and “List several dishes of this cuisine which you would like to see in our restaurant.” This approach allowed to minimize the amount of unnecessary information and focus on the subject of a project. In other words, from questionnaires, it was clearly seen what cuisine and meals people would like to try.
The next step was the creation of a specific team for the planning and implementation of a project. It included the representatives of waiters and cooks and people responsible for information technology-related tasks. First of all, I thanked all specialists for joining, articulated the necessity of a project, and formulated its main aspects. Moreover, I emphasized that although I was in charge of project management, I respected the competencies, experience, and skills of every employee – thus, a project could not be successful without their contribution. Through communication with each other, a new menu was created, all staff was informed concerning updates, and the responsibilities of every person were identified as well.
Finally, financial constraints were also considered – in particular, old menu cards were not changed, however, small menu cards with new dishes were printed and spread. As changes were connected with only several new meals, the creation of new cards was not expensive. In addition, it was decided to organize a small advertising campaign on social networks. It included free advertising on the restaurant’s official pages and purchasing of advertising on local news websites and popular community pages.
Summary
Working in a restaurant, I was asked to launch a project dedicated to the introduction of new dishes on a menu to attract new customers and ensure business development. On the basis of project management steps, the details of a project were formulated, activities were planned, implemented, and monitored, and the outcomes of a project were evaluated on the basis of the restaurant’s attendance. In general, this experience dedicated to project management was highly beneficial for me. First of all, it demonstrated the significance of strategic planning and continuous implementation of activities for successful results in any sphere. In addition, it demonstrated the necessity of theoretical knowledge provided in the class for efficient practical application as positive outcomes will be impossible without management-related competency.
Moreover, I realized that project management is inefficient without a team. First of all, a team ensures stable communication and appropriate distribution of data. In other words, every team member receives the same information and provides it to his subordinates ensuring efficient performance. Finally, this project showed the significance of project management skills within the framework of leadership. While a project manager is responsible for all activities, he should consider the experience, skills, and competencies of his subordinates. Respecting them will ensure stable relationships, effective communication, motivation, commitment, and high productivity. All in all, I may say that due to this project, I have acquired essential skills necessary for successful organization and implementation of changes, especially when time or budget is limited.
Works Cited
Chen, Beverly (Shih-Yun). “What Makes Restaurants Successful?” Hospitality Insights, vol. 2, no. 1, 2018, pp. 10-12.
Gül, Muhammet, et al. “Project Management in Healthcare: A Case Study for Patient Flow Evaluation in an Emergency Room Using Fuzzy CPM and Fuzzy PERT.” Sigma Journal of Engineering and Natural Sciences, vol. 8, no. 1, 2017, pp. 41-51.
Hakim, Amin. “Hybrid Project Management Has a Role in Health Care.” Physician Leadership, 2019.
Radujković, Mladen, and Mariela Sjekavica. “Project Management Success Factors.” Procedia Engineering, vol. 196, 2017, pp. 607-615.