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The case study used for this tutorial is the development and construction of an energy efficient house for a couple.
Once the planning phase is complete, it's time to put the plans into effect and begin the work of creating the project deliverables.
To make sure everyone understands the work involved in the home construction, the project manager organizes a kick-off meeting at the building site. The architect, the homeowners, and the leads for the construction crews attend.
At the meeting, the project manager leads the group through the plans created during the planning phase, presenting the crew leaders with an accountability statement outlining the expectations for their work.
The communication plan is also reviewed during the meeting.
Throughout the house construction, the project manager will communicate often with all levels of the construction crews, the homeowners, and the architect. All available methods of communication should be used.
| Methods of Communication | |
|---|---|
| Email updates are sent every day to the stakeholders, detailing the progress made on the home and alerting the stakeholders of any issues that were encountered. | |
| Website | The project manager may create a website where the schedule can be viewed and where the homeowners can provide feedback on the work. |
| Meetings | Phone calls, in-person meetings, and video conferencing from the building site are used to communicate about the project with the architect. |
It's the project manager's responsibility to make sure every team member is aware of the communications that should be used. The project manager should also use these communication methods to set a strong example.
The project manager will also formally communicate project progress with the homeowners and the architect through weekly status updates.
These weekly status reports contain updates on:
| Weekly Status Report | ||
| Schedule | Planned | Actual |
| On Target | 70% Complete | 70% Complete |
| Budget | Planned | Actual |
| On Target | 70% Spent | 68% Spent |
| Activity/Task Last Period | Status | |
| Install Kitchen Cabinets | 100% | |
| Install Tile Floor | 85% | |
| Risk Issue | ||
| Overheating experienced in dining room | ||
| Contingency | ||
| Installing tile instead of wood floor | ||
To provide detail for the status report, the project manager closely monitors the project’s schedule and budget.
For each task and individual working on the task, it's important for the project manager to track the percent of the work complete and the actual time and effort already put into the task. The schedule and the budget are updated based on this information.
| Monitoring Time and Effort on a Task | |
|---|---|
| Task | Rough In Electrical |
| Percent Complete | 80% |
| Actual Time and Effort | 2 of 3 days complete |
The project manager also oversees the quality of the work. In our project, it is noted that the wrong type of shower head was installed, which would result in the homeowners using more water. The project manager would discuss with the crew, and the shower head would be changed. Without this quality review, the homeowners might have been the ones to discover the problem, leading to frustration with the team.
In addition to monitoring the schedule and budget, the project manager actively manages risks during this phase.
All risks are categorized using the risk matrix and are evaluated based on the likelihood they would occur and the impact on the project if they did occur.
| Probability | ||||
| Low | Medium | High | ||
| Low | ||||
| Impact | Medium | Summer Overheating | ||
| High | Homeowner Changes | |||
One possible risk we mentioned in this project was the danger of the house becoming too hot in summer due to the number of windows used to gather solar heat.
After the installation of the windows, this risk is triggered as the crew finds the house becoming too warm. The architects adjust contingency for this risk. Tile should be installed in some areas to absorb the heat and release it more slowly. However, any change this large to the project scope needs approval from the homeowners.
Change management is the project manager’s responsibility, so a change request is prepared and submitted to the homeowners and architect for approval. The change request should describe:
| Change Request |
| Issue |
| Overheating experienced in dining room |
| Change |
| Install tile instead of wood floor. |
| Schedule |
| 1 day delay |
| Budget |
| Additional $500 |
While overseeing the work, the project manager continues to communicate with all individuals in the project.
When team members suggest ways to save money for the homeowners or provide more energy efficiency, the project manager praises their efforts and recognizes their work during the daily progress meetings.
Feedback is also shared from the homeowners and the architect with the project team. This motivates the team since they understand that their efforts are appreciated.
As a result, the house is finished within the budget and schedule, approved by the homeowners, and ready to move on to Phase Four, closing the project.
Source: this work is adapted from sophia author jeff carroll.
