BINDURA UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE EDUCATION

FACULTY OF COMMERCE
GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS (GSB)

MSc. Entrepreneurship and Innovation

NAME Caspur Kamwendo

REG NUMBER B232477B
LECTURER Doc M. Matambo
LEVEL 1.1
COURSE TITLE & CODE Project Management MEI506

Assignment I

a. Explain to Luke the role of a project manager [20 marks]

b. Explain to Luke the project context and how it is likely to affect his project [20
marks]

Due Date 04 NOVEMBER 2023

 a. Role of a Project Manager

A project manager is an individual who is assigned by the performing organization to lead the team
that is tasked with achieving the project’s objectives and fulfilling stakeholder expectations (PMBOK,
2017). A project is an endeavour with a beginning and an end that creates a unique product, service,
or result (Sanghera, 2019 ). Because of the nature of their job project managers are regarded as change
agents as they bring into being products, services or results that were not there before, they are
innovators who lead project teams to successfully complete projects (PMI, 2023). In tackling the
project so as to ensure success of the project, the project manager leads the team whilst taking into
cognizance the triple constraints of project management which are Scope, Time, and Cost (Budget).
The project manager has to balance these constraints whilst ensuring that the quality of the end
product of the project is not compromised.

Figure 1: Triple Constraints of Project Management Source: (ProjectPM,

2021)

Luke as the project manager is tasked with ensuring that the rehabilitation of the Harare – Bindura
highway is achieved within time, that the cost is within budget, that the scope of the project is as
agreed with the stakeholders, and that there is no gold coating as this can lead to cost ballooning.
Project managers play the lead role in planning, executing, monitoring, controlling, and closing out
projects. They are accountable for the entire project scope, the project team and resources, the project
budget, and the success or failure of the project. To succeed in their role, project managers must be
adept at coordinating resources, managing budgets, measuring and tracking project progress, and
communicating with team members and stakeholders. They also assess risks and resolve any issues
that arise throughout a project’s life cycle, and they are often called on to make difficult decisions
regarding complex and competing priorities in an effort to achieve desired project outcomes. The job
of the project manager can be further described by the list of responsibilities below as follows.

The project manager provides:

 Leadership and effective communication

 Project planning
 Creating a schedule and timeline
 Executing each phase of the project
 Managing the budget
 Serving as the liaison among all stakeholders
 Troubleshooting and maintenance (Risk identification and mitigation)

Leadership and effective communication

The role of leadership in project management encompasses a wide range of activities,

including effective planning, task coordination, overseeing projects, inspiring team members, and
making decisions vital to setting up a plan of action for project implementation.

Communication is a key component of project management because it ensures that every person
involved knows what they are working toward. For instance, at the beginning of a project, a manager
will need to:

 Clearly define the goals of the project

 Make sure that every team member understands these goals.
 Outline performance expectations for all project members, as well as everyone’s
individual responsibilities.

If a project manager can clearly articulate a project vision and make sure that the people working
under them understand this vision, completing the project will be much easier, and the manager may
not need to be as hands-on in directing the team. A project manager who can envision a project and
make this vision understood by those around them will be better able to make their projects stand out
from the crowd. The primary role of communication in project management is to make certain that
everyone involved shares this vision and the goals of the project.

Project planning

In order to bring a project to fruition, the project manager will need to assemble a project plan. The
project plan describes the cost, scope, and schedule for the project which speaks to the triple
constraints mentioned earlier. This plan lays out exactly what activities and tasks will be required, as
well as the resources needed, from personnel to equipment to financing, and where they can be
acquired. Good project planning also factors in risk and how to manage it, including contingency
plans, a quality management regime as well as details of a communication strategy to keep all
stakeholders up to date and on board.

Creating a schedule and timeline

Assigning accurate amounts of time to each task helps ensure timely completion of individual
elements and the project as a whole. It can increase efficiencies, effective decisions and avoid
unnecessary stress on project personnel and potential project failure. Scheduling converts the project
action plans for scope, time cost, and quality into an operating timetable. The translating of the project
criteria for scope, time, cost, and quality and the requirements for human resources, communications,
risk, and procurement into workable “machinery” for the project team is a critical interface juncture
for the project team. Taken together with the project plan and budget, the schedule becomes the major
tool for the management of projects. In addition, the integrated cost-time schedule serves as the
fundamental basis for monitoring and controlling project activity throughout its life cycle.

Executing each phase of the project

The project execution phase is usually the longest phase in the project life cycle; and the most
demanding. In the project execution phase:

 The team carries out all the planned activities, constructs deliverables, and presents
them to the project stakeholders
 The focus, as a project manager changes to performing and supervising all activities
to create deliverables as outlined in the project plan
 There will be need to continuously track the project’s progress and ensure that the
milestones and deliverables stick to the project schedule
 During this phase the project manager steps back, a bit and lets the team carry out
the project plan

In project management, there might be hiccups along the way but through the systems set by the
project manager these hiccups can be identified early on, and this makes it easy to course-correct. For
this reason, the execution stage always happens in concurrence with the next phase–project
controlling and monitoring. The majority of the activities during the execution phase will be handled
by the project team. It’s a fine line to tread because the project manager needs to give the team
enough autonomy while taking care that everything goes according to plan.

In essence, the project manager has three main objectives during the execution phase:

 Managing people
  Managing processes
 Managing communication

The benefits of a well-executed project are threefold:

 The project can be completed on time and budget

 Team morale can be maintained
 Stakeholders are satisfied with overall project progress

Managing the budget

Project budget management helps ensure the project manager to align the costs with the right goals
and verify what benefits the organization will derive from the investment through investigating the
Return on Investment (ROI). In Luke’s case the road will lead to the socio-economic development of
the lives of people in the Bindura region through the use of a well-constructed highway.

Managing the project budget makes it possible to determine the revenue needed to reach the targets.
The funding can be used to determine the financial objectives compatible with the level of the
company and the team. These objectives must be achievable to reach an acceptable result against
expenditure.

Luke would also need to ensure cognizance of the process of preparing the project budget that entails
the following steps:

 Identification of the project's area of work

 Identification of resources
 Allocation of amounts
 Budget preparation
 Obtaining and implementing final approval
 b. Project context
Luke would have to understand that the project context is important and it is the internal and external
environment that a project operates in. The influences within the environment will have an effect on
the project and this needs to be understood by the project manager. An example of this is the
implementation of a new IT system limited to a small group of people, which will be very different to
the building of a new airport runway, which will have far more influences that need to be considered
i.e. political, regulatory, environment, emerging economies etc. In Luke’s case the project context is
international rather than national as they could be international stakeholders that are interested in the
implementation of this project such as bankers, environmentalists to mention but a few as well as
local (national) stakeholders such as the communities living along the highway and political
leadership in the country.

Understanding the context of a project is important to evaluating a project and incorporating

sustainability into ongoing projects. Every project has a unique context. The scope, setting, phase,
decision processes, and stakeholders affect the opportunities to incorporate sustainability into any
project. Understanding the project's context is critical to the successful application of sustainability
goals. Context should be viewed as both a constraint and an opportunity.

While the context for every project is different, Luke will have to understand that every project has a
context. An inventory of the context may include the following:

 Political factors
 Organizational factors
 Economic factors
 Sociological factors
 Technological factors
 Legal factors
 Environmental factors

Political factors

Luke has to understand that political factors are important and they impact on project success. The
political factors could be internal and external political issues that need to be considered especially
since he is managing a project of national significance. The highway project is of national interest and
might face opposition even from players in the main stream political discourse such as ZANU PF and
the CCC. Since the highway project is bound to introduce big changes there is a possibility that a
certain section of the community may not easily accept it and there is need for Luke to be able to
engage these stakeholders and have their buy-in. The international community is another segment of
stakeholders that Luke will need to engage especially with the Sanctions that were imposed on
Zimbabwe. There is a need for Luke to gain their buy-in so that they see the importance of this
highway to lives of the ordinary Zimbabweans. Organizational politics and team politics can also
negatively impact the successful completion of the project, so Luke must engage all the different
groupings in his team and ensure that they are united for the success of the project.

Organizational factors

Luke’s organization plays an important part in the successful completion of the highway
refurbishment as it will have to provide the project team with all their resource requirements. The
resources will be human resources, financial resources, technological resources, equipment, and other
various forms of resources. It is therefore important that within the highest hierarchy of Luke’s
organization, a project champion who will represent the project team is part of all the decision-making
processes involving the project activities. The other organizational factors such as the organization's
structure, size, project capabilities, customers, leadership, competition, culture, teamwork, and change
readiness also play an important role in the successful completion of the highway refurbishment
project. The risk appetite of Luke’s organization is also another important factor at play in trying to
ensure the success of the project. This means that Luke’s organization must have well-laid-out plans
with regard to mitigating any risk that might be encountered in the highway refurbishment project.
The level of risk averseness of the organization will also impact the type of projects that Luke’s
organization gets involved in.

Economic factors

Luke as the project manager in his execution of the highway refurbishment project must consider the
following economic factors as they have a bearing on the project. The economic factors affect the
budget (cost) of the project which is one of the triple constraints of project management and Luke
must always be conversant of the economic factors affecting the project. The economic factors are:

 Budget availability.
 Import and export taxes.
 Interest rates.
 Economic growth or recession.
 Inflation rate.
 Exchange rate.
  Minimum wage

These economic factors play an important role and Luke must factor them in as he is planning the
project, during the project initiation, execution, monitoring and evaluation as well as the closing stage.
Zimbabwe as a country has high inflation rates and the highway refurbishment project will require
machinery from other countries and this means Luke must always have his eye on the inflation rates
as a failure to do so might lead to the failure of the project as a whole.

Sociological factors

Sociological factors may influence the project context. The needs of particular groups of society
needs to be considered by engaging and consulting with them. The highway refurbishment project
must be done with the end user in mind considering that areas along the highway are farming
communities, this means they use heavy vehicles such as tractors, combine harvesters, which means
the issues to do with road wideness must be attended to as well as trying to ensure that the road
refurbishment program is done during the time of the year when farmers will not be using the
highway frequently. The Bindura University of Science Education community is also an important
stakeholder that the refurbishment of the road will affect and therefore Luke has to consider their
needs and incorporate them in his stakeholder management plan for the project since he is the project
manager.

Technological factors

The information age is characterized by the development of different technologies that have made
tackling difficult tasks simpler. Project management has not been left behind and various applications
and software are available on the market that make the management of complex projects such the one
Luke is managing simpler. Advances in technology have been instrumental in providing the right
project management tools that can help make projects a success no matter the magnitude of the
project. Previous eras of project managers and teams could only dream of these valuable tools and
wished they were available in their time. These project management tools have made it easier to
perform project tasks. They have also enhanced the members' performance and created a better
overall collaboration experience.

Legal factors

Legal factors my influence the project context. Project managers needs to be aware of legislation that
can affect the project. For example, the working time regulations prescribe rules regarding the
amount of time employees work. If time is a limiting factor the project manager needs to ensure that
there are sufficient numbers of employees to deliver to schedule and if not then they may need to
allow time for recruitment in the plan. For construction projects planning permission may be needed
and the time required will need to be understood and allowed for in plans. In Luke’s case issues to do
with the clearing of trees can become topical and therefore there is a need to ensure that every activity
the project team members engage in is within the confines of the law of Zimbabwe for the
organization not to be prosecuted by the authorities. Luke also has to ensure that the employment
policy of the organization is not discriminatory even as they execute the project since the employment
law in Zimbabwe is buttressed by the need for equal representation of genders in employment.

Environmental factors

Environmental factors have an influence on the project context, in Luke’s case with the type of work
carried out in highway refurbishment projects the environmental factors have to be considered. The
global warming phenomenon has further exacerbated calls for everyone to be more concerned with
the effect of what they do on the environment. The highway refurbishment project will mean trees
have to be cut down which not only has an impact on the immediate surrounding but the environment.
Luke must therefore carry out an environmental impact assessment exercise even before the
commencement of the project activities. Stakeholders such as the Environment Management
Authority (EMA) have to BE contacted even where there are waterways the Zimbabwe National
Water Authority (ZINAWA) as these will allow Luke and his team to work in a way that is guided
and that will help protect the project’s impact on the environment. For every construction project, an
environmental impact assessment needs to be done early on in the project so that the project manager
can understand all the risks involved and allow the project manager to plan time to allow consultation
with the relevant authorities or to gain permits e.g. an environmental permit for discharges to land
water and air.

Conclusion

The success of the highway refurbishment project rests on Luke being able to harness all the factors
within the project’s context so as to exploit every opportunity presented by the contextual factors and
minimize any risks that they may present. Luke must therefore have a clear understanding of the
project context factors and use them to the project team’s advantage. This will help to garner the
required support from the different stakeholders that the project will impact and will also make Luke’s
execution of the project flow without any resistance emanating from the factors within the project
context.
References
PMBOK. (2017). A Guide to the PROJECT MANAGEMENT BODY OF KNOWLEDGE (6th
ed.). Pennsylvania 19073-3299 , USA: Project Management Institute Inc.

PMI. (2023, October 24). PMI. Retrieved from PMI: https://www.pmi.org/about/learn-about-

pmi/who-are-project-managers

ProjectPM. (2021, July 21). ProjectPM. Retrieved from ProjectPM: https://project.pm/triple-

constraints-of-project-management/

Sanghera, P. (2019 ). PMP® IN DEPTH. San Francisco, California, USA: APress.