Exercise

Project Phases

Using the scenario below, build a phased project plan.

Ellen$$s organization was moving to a new facility. People were currently located in four different buildings at four different locations in the city. Ellen was managing the project to get everyone moved to the new building and for them to be operational in their new offices or workspace.

Ellen did not have responsibility for building construction, but she did have several facility related aspects that she had to manage. Her team included IT which had responsibility for all the phones and internet connections to be working when someone was relocated. Also, she was responsible for furniture, some of which was being moved from the old facilities and some would be new. In addition, the engineering department had special equipment and systems that required permits and special handling to be reinstalled in the new facility. She had to install the special equipment, but engineering would take care of calibration and testing.

Ellen had decided that the best way to manage the project was in phases. The project did not fit the organization$$s normal stage gate methodology, so she had to create her own phases. Based upon her experience with the organization she saw three areas of high risk: $1)$ the facility infrastructure being ready to support the IT systems, $2)$ relocating everyone and their stuff to the right office on the right day, and $3)$ the engineering special equipment. Based upon these risks, she created three phases. Phase $1$ was facility preparation with an emphasis on IT readiness and getting furniture in$.$ Phase $2$ was the relocation of office which she decided to schedule based upon moving one function at a time. Phase $3$ moving the engineering special equipment. Phase $2$ and phase $3$ would likely overlap, but she would start phase $2$ as soon as phase $1$ was complete and would start phase $3$ once she was certain that things were going smoothly in phase $2.$ The list below is a partial list of tasks on the project. Divide them into the three phases based upon the objectives of each phase.

$$ Conduct management reviews

$$ Conduct team meetings

$$ Install Call Center system

$$ Install database servers

$$ Install Engineering Lab #$1$ equipment

$$ Install Engineering Lab #$2$ equipment

$$ Install Engineering Lab #$3$ equipment

$$ Install Engineering Lab #$4$ equipment

$$ Install furniture

$$ Install network servers

$$ Install telephone system

$$ Move Call Center office

$$ Move Call Center system

$$ Move Engineering

$$ Move Engineering Lab #$1$

$$ Move Engineering Lab #$2$

$$ Move Engineering Lab #$3$

$$ Move Engineering Lab #$4$

$$ Move Executive offices

$$ Move Facilities

$$ Move Finance

$$ Move HR

$$ Move IT

$$ Move Logistics

$$ Move Marketing

$$ Move Purchasing

$$ Move Sales

$$ Purchase furniture

$$ Send notification to employees of their move

$$ Setup new furniture

$$ Test Call Center system

$$ Test network servers

$$ Test telephone system