Case Analysis Chapter #1
Case Study
A Day in the Life
E. Larson and C. Gray
By
Charlene Cordova
The problem with project manager Rachel is that she has to divide her time throughout the day in order to keep track of her project, socialize with co-workers and attend meetings with superiors. At the beginning of the case we notice that the first thing that Rachel does when starting her day at work is check her voicemail and emails. She also reviews her schedule and to-do list. Then she goes over project reports and prepares for the weekly status meeting. These tasks that she completes show the level of organization that a project manager must have in order to complete its projects and do his work properly and effectively. Then, Rachel gets interrupted by her boss. Afterwards, she attends a meeting that starts 15 minutes late. After the meeting she talks to another manager and returns to her desk to make some phone calls. Throughout the case we notice how she was able to talk to different people about projects and that shows how important communication is for project managers. They need to be great communicators, since they spend much time talking and emailing a variety of people. It is also good that she decides to walk around and talk to others, that is a good way to know how others feel and think about the projects. That is similar to the technique “managing by walking around”.
I think that Rachel got many things done during her day. I would personally be slightly stricter with my schedule if I were to be a project manager. Nevertheless, she resolved some issues that the project was having and acted as a link between the customer and the project. We can notice too how she was keeping track of the project’s schedule and how she tried to accommodate the client’s requests and at the same time protect the schedule.
Charlene Cordova
Review Questions Chapter #1
1. A project is a group of tasks with a time constraint, resources and a goal, done by one
A Day in the Life
E. Larson and C. Gray
By
Charlene Cordova
The problem with project manager Rachel is that she has to divide her time throughout the day in order to keep track of her project, socialize with co-workers and attend meetings with superiors. At the beginning of the case we notice that the first thing that Rachel does when starting her day at work is check her voicemail and emails. She also reviews her schedule and to-do list. Then she goes over project reports and prepares for the weekly status meeting. These tasks that she completes show the level of organization that a project manager must have in order to complete its projects and do his work properly and effectively. Then, Rachel gets interrupted by her boss. Afterwards, she attends a meeting that starts 15 minutes late. After the meeting she talks to another manager and returns to her desk to make some phone calls. Throughout the case we notice how she was able to talk to different people about projects and that shows how important communication is for project managers. They need to be great communicators, since they spend much time talking and emailing a variety of people. It is also good that she decides to walk around and talk to others, that is a good way to know how others feel and think about the projects. That is similar to the technique “managing by walking around”.
I think that Rachel got many things done during her day. I would personally be slightly stricter with my schedule if I were to be a project manager. Nevertheless, she resolved some issues that the project was having and acted as a link between the customer and the project. We can notice too how she was keeping track of the project’s schedule and how she tried to accommodate the client’s requests and at the same time protect the schedule.
Charlene Cordova
Review Questions Chapter #1
1. A project is a group of tasks with a time constraint, resources and a goal, done by one