Project Motorcycles

In the modern world, there are three types of organizational structures that can be applied in project management. They include functional organizations, project-based organizations as well as a matrix structure. Among the three organizational structures, the project-based one would suitable for large touring motorcycles. It defines the development of an independent project team with a separate management team from the organization. This structure requires the new project to have an independent technical staff manager and needed resources. The outline of the structure is the following: director – project manager – analyst – architect – developer – tester.  The structural organization ensures that the company can continue running the production of motorcycle cruisers and also initiate the production of new motorcycle class. In the project-based organization structure, the project manager concentrates on a single department and avoids multiple leaderships. In addition, the decision of the project team is developed in the context of the project. The team members are highly cohesive. All participants share the common goal and individual responsibilities are clear.

Every organization requires balancing of long-term needs and short-term strategies (Hubbard, 2009). There is a necessity for the project to connect the goals of short-term operations to the long-term vision. In essence, both long-term and short-term strategies are essential. To ensure that the new project can balance the long-term and short-term needs, the executive of the organization should consider attracting new clients and retaining current buyers. Among the current clients, some would require the new type of motorcycles that the organization wishes to produce, while new customers can be attracted by the new supply. Innovation is also necessary for balancing long-term and short-term operational goals. Many clients prefer the newest models of all products. Therefore, innovation helps to balance current and future needs, since it promotes sales and products of the company. Motivation of the skilled employees also plays an important role in balancing between short-term needs and long-term strategies. The success of any company is governed by the morale of employees. Employees have to stay motivated so as to work happily and produce good results. Therefore, the executive should consider the morale of the skilled workforce in the process of making the new project successful.

There are several inputs that a person would require as a project manager to run the existing business and at the same time change to the production of touring class motorcycles. Among these resources is a pool of professionals with qualifications in both technical and logistic fields. The success of any business is regulated by professionalism and expertise of its staff. Therefore, any business leader requires a team of professionals who have experience, exposure, and morale. An organization also requires a pool of non-skilled employees, who are responsible for small tasks, such as cleaning and transportation of goods in the organization. However, they are still an important resource towards the achievement of organizational goal. Another necessary resource is a defined market for the finished products. Every manager is motivated by the demand to produce more and concentrate on new strategies that can improve quality and quantity. Today, the market for finished products is achievable both locally and internationally. It is important to have an established market in order to sell the finished products and meet the objectives of the organization. In addition, the organization requires identifying the specific target market for the new touring class motorcycles and outlining the advantages of the product as a way of attracting more customers. For the new project, one would require a well-established promotion team to market the new product and convince the clients that the new touring class motorcycle is stable and convenient for their use.

Another important resource is an established supply chain. A supply chain ensures smooth distribution of finished products. It ensures that the finished products can reach the consumer without imposing extra costs on the organization. Therefore, an established supply chain, or chain of distribution, reduces the challenge of mishandling of products and makes it easier to market and distribute goods. The sources of raw materials are another important input that can ensure that the firm can successfully run both existing and new projects. The production process requires a consistent supply of different raw materials, including metals, petroleum products, plastic, and glass materials. To ensure that the two projects can run consistently, the supply of raw materials must be smooth. Therefore, the reliability of the supplier of raw materials is important. In addition, for any project to run smoothly, it requires an authority (Ireland & Cleland, 2006). It is necessary to have an operating license that is acquired through the set of legal procedures. It is a resource, since it ensures that the project is operating legally and producing standard goods that are acceptable in the market. This resource ensures that an organization can sell the finished products without restrictions by the government. Lastly, communication is the heart of every organization’s operations. Organizations require a good communication network to reach all the stakeholders and avoid challenges and risks in the organization. Thus, communication is a crucial resource in the success of the project.

The production of touring class motorcycles requires caution during production, since it involves handling dangerous metallic parts that can cause injury of the employee. In other words, it involves high risk on the part of the workers. Thus, there are two significant inputs that are important for the operation. The first one is an insurance policy that covers both the employees and the organization. The employees can get injured, hence risking the welfare of the organization by high hospital bills. An insurance cover can assist the organization to handle the bills in case such injuries occur in the place of work. Insurance cover is an important resource that should be considered while handling the proposed projects. On the other hand, the health of the employees is a crucial asset in the process of production. Therefore, there should be an established plan of dealing with employees’ sickness and the first aid plan. Apart from the insurance cover, the organization needs to sign a contract with the health services provider. Another option is to hire medical professionals to attend to employees’ health needs and first aid whenever there is a need.

Transportation of goods and personnel is an important aspect that must also be considered for the success of the two projects. There should be enough transportation tracks to deliver raw materials and finished products. Disasters, such as fire, can occur making disaster management department a necessity.

The organization adopting a new project requires a management leadership style that is conducive and that can guarantee business growth. The application of laissez-faire leadership style is advised for the project. It is whereby a manager requires having a vision and being ready to share it with his team. Such manager also encourages his employees to collaborate and offer contributions on how they can make the project successful. Although this style requires manager to be knowledgeable, the technical staff is allowed to contribute ideas, suggestions and critiques about the project. Individual contribution is treated with respect and the interest of every stakeholder is under consideration.

While developing the project plan, there are some details that might be forgotten or overlooked. Therefore, the project manager has to propose some risk mitigation strategies to address the possible failures. The essence of risk mitigation is reducing adverse effects. There are three strategies proposed for risk management:

The first strategy is to accept the risk. It is vital to accept that risk can happen and be prepared to deal with it. It is evident that this strategy does not reduce any effects. Acceptance enables a person to avoid the psychological costs of the risk.

The second strategy of risk mitigation is risk avoidance. It is the action of avoiding exposure to risk. It can be achieved by putting into writing full details of the project in a chronological order and ensuring that the project is approached step-by-step to avoid forgetting any detail. This strategy can also be applied by putting into consideration all details of the project without overlooking any detail. Of course, such approach will not always be successful.

The third risk mitigation strategy is risk limitation. It limits an organization’s responsibility for some actions. The manager accepts that some risks can occur, makes effort to avoid them and ensures that in case of an incident, it will not have a great impact on the organization. For example, the organization can be insured in case of possible fire. In such case, the infrastructure of the company will not suffer financial losses (Bolles & Hubbard, 2007).

To sum up, first of all, the success of the project is determined by the organizational type that is applied. Project-based organizational structure ensures that the new product is considered as a new project and led by a manager who is directly answerable and responsible for the venture. He concentrates on one department, which increases effectiveness and success of outcomes in this particular sphere. Balancing short and long-term needs of the organization is necessary for ensuring that the organization is running smoothly and has a defined plan with minimal social and economic challenges. Project management leadership style requires a keen selection so as to come up with the style that is more suitable for the type of business. Empowering project management style offers a best solution for the motorcycle producer, since it encourages sharing of ideas between employees and managers. Hence, production of goods is not only standardized, but also innovated. In every field of production, risks occur, and the management must come up with risk mitigation strategies to deal with these emergencies and ensure that the risks do not affect the production process.

Related Free Management Essays