The Orion Shield Project was analyzed, particularly in regard to the program manager, Gary Allison. Having never managed a program before, Gary was given an opportunity to do so on this valuable project. Several stakeholders came into play; some that helped contribute to Gary’s demise, and others who were often left to pick up the pieces where Gary may have failed. Ultimately, it was determined that in more than one way, Gary was not a successful program manager. Technical, ethical, legal, and contractual shortfalls were addressed to see where Gary and his team may have gone wrong.
Introduction A good project manager knows that they must set a good example in order to lead their team to success. They are ultimately aware of the greater needs of their stakeholders, organizations, and clients, and are thus able to guide the project to a successful end (Schwalbe, 2012, p.20). In the Orion Shield Project, Gary Allison was given to opportunity to become the Research and Development Program Manager for an important client of Scientific Engineering Corporation (SEC). While it was his first time being in such a role, his supervisor, Henry Larsen, felt he was well suited for the opportunity. Upon reviewing the summary of the Orion Shield Project, it became clear that Gary Allison did not succeed in being an effective program manager. There were many areas with room for improvement, including difficulties in regards to technical, ethical, legal, and contractual issues. The balance of this report will seek to identify and discuss these areas of difficulty and where Gary Allen went wrong, along with the other stakeholders in this project.
Technical Issues
To being, there were several instances within the timeframe of the project that technical issues surfaced. These issues were often related to staffing, scheduling, and prioritization issues.
One of the first technical issues that Gary came across was the staffing of the
References: Pradip. (14 March 2012). Types of contracts in project management. Are you aware of the same? Retrieved October 20, 2012 from http://blog.simplilearn.com/project-management/types-of-contracts-in-project-management. Schwalbe, K. (2012). Chapter 1: An introduction to project, program, and portfolio management. In An introduction to project management, (4th ed., pp. 1-36). USA: Kathy Schwalbe, LLC.