Suburban Homes Case Study Purchasing a new home is the single largest investment most of us will make in our lifetime. You can either purchase the home from a reputed real estate building company or manage the construction of your home using project management principles that you have mastered. The latter approach can save significant amounts of money over the life of a typical 30-year mortgage. Additionally, it is likely to provide you with one of the most satisfying experiences in your life because you will get an opportunity to see the results of choices you made in building your home. However, on the downside, if you manage the project poorly, it also has the potential on many levels to be a disaster. The experience of managing the construction of a single-family home provides a coherent account of costs, benefits, other considerations related to construction, risks, hazards, and critical decisions. The experience also has the potential for joy if the project is a successful endeavor. Suburban Homes is a medium-sized, fast-growing construction company in the Midwest region of the United States. Due to its

significant growth and good reputation for building quality single- family homes and townhomes, the company decided to expand its

business to several Southern states in the United States. However, Suburban Homes recognized the scope for managing resources effectively and efficiently to increase profits. It has decided to formalize project management practices by developing and implementing standard and promising processes, tools, and techniques. For this purpose, the company was looking for a competent project manager to manage its projects. They hired Adam Smith as their new project manager. Adam Smith had worked for several years in the construction industry and supplemented his experience with project management education. Consequently, he gained considerable experience and developed expertise in managing construction projects. Adam believes in managing projects by adhering to various project management processes, tools, and techniques. In his new position as the project manager, Adams primary task is to improve the performance of project management and increase the project success rate.

Suburban Homes realized that its ambitious plan of expanding its business to several Southern States in the United States is possible if it is known for its high-quality homes that meet local, state, and federal standards as well as exceed industrial standards for quality. Suburban Homes placed an emphasis on quality by focusing on meeting industrial standards. The company now realizes that it must exceed all the quality standards to expand its business successfully. Although Adam Smith worked for several years in the construction industry, he is not specifically trained in quality management and he is not well versed with quality management tools and techniques. He is actively seeking help internally and externally. Adams primary task is to develop a Quality Management Plan. Employee turnover and the expansion of the business in the southern states has led to Suburban Homes developing a centralized quality management team. You are hired as a consultant to help Adam understand possible tools and techniques for managing and controlling quality that he can included in his Quality Management Plan

Review the list of quality tools and select two tools that you think would be a good choice for Adam to reference in his quality management plan for the Suburban Homes expansion. There are so many tools and techniques available, that Adam needs a place to begin the focus on managing quality in construction projects.

For each of the two tools you select, include the following:

• Describe the purpose of the tool and how it should be used.
• Provide an example of a the tool to show to Adam.

Provide a rationale for your selection of each tool and indicate why it is appropriate for Suburban Homes construction projects as the company improves its focus on quality.