Project Organization and Resource Management
Projects, even the more conventional ones for new products, are created and developed thanks to the contribution of resources belonging to various departments (although Design department plays the principal role). In other words, even those functions whos
- PDF / 118,028 Bytes
- 12 Pages / 439 x 666 pts Page_size
- 26 Downloads / 263 Views
Project Organization and Resource Management
9.1
Company-Wide Project Management
Projects, even the more conventional ones for new products, are created and developed thanks to the contribution of resources belonging to various departments (although Design department plays the principal role). In other words, even those functions whose tasks do not include the definition of project specification may and indeed must contribute to the project (the matrix structure – typical of a project, as we shall see later – has the objective of formalising this call for competencies). Figure 9.1 depicts the involvement of three specialisms in a project: Marketing (whose task is to ensure that the output of the project appeals to the market, thus justifying the investments made), Design (whose specific task is to develop and implement the project) and Production/Delivery (in charge of delivering the product/service specified in the project in an efficient manner and with a high level of conformity). However, other functions can be involved, such as Purchasing, the Engineering or Technology Department, Quality Management, Machinery Maintenance, Technical Assistance, Customer Service, and so forth. Their contribution to a project is not constant throughout time, but varies according to the stage reached by the project, as illustrated in Fig. 9.1. By tracing an upright line, it is possible to see the percentage of involvement of the various functional units at a given time. Every project has its stakeholders, whose interest goes beyond technical and economic issues, and may include personal satisfaction as well as that of the entire company, a factor that contributes to making a serene working environment. The field of interest can also stretch beyond the boundaries of the firm, to include customer satisfaction, that of the suppliers, who preserve a market outlet, and even of the entire community, when themes of social utility and eco-compatibility are at stake. Company-Wide Project Management requires integration between functional units, but also between the tasks assigned to single persons. Two types of integration are possible: horizontal (or job enlargement, with a larger number of tasks being carried out by one person) and vertical (or job enrichment, with greater responsibilities, including decision-making). In the former case, the employees
S. Tonchia, Industrial Project Management: Planning, Design, and Construction, © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2008
109
110
9 Project Organization and Resource Management
RESOURCE INVOLVEMENT
100%
MARKETING UNIT 50% DESIGN UNIT PRODUCTION UNIT 0% Concept idea
Product planning
Overall design
Detailed design
Engineering
Production TIME
Fig. 9.1 Involvement (percentage) of the organizational units in relation to the project stages
become more skilled in a variety of activities, and are therefore able to carry out a wider range of operations, either sequential or similar, to the advantage of coordination and flexibility; motivation and a bent for learning is required, as
Data Loading...
