Davidsen: Assignment 2
Boston University
MET AD 642 Project Management
(Year and Term)
Assignment 2
Case Study: Macondo Well Project
NOTE: THIS IS NOT REALLY ABOUT MACONDO! THIS IS AN OLDER TOPIC PROVIDED
TO SHOW FORMAT, LENGTH, AND STRUCTURE, AS AN EXAMPLE ONLY!!!!
Leif Davidsen
Issues:
There were several issues related to global teams working across multiple sites and time
zones.
1. The first major issue was that local sites created silos to insulate them from changes that
were not in their best interest but needed for global team to succeed.
2. The next issue was that working across several time zones was affecting work/life
balance and team performance.
3. Another challenging issue was the low cost objective that drove a disproportionate
amount of new hires and graduates in low cost regions.
4. The team also struggled with project communication and coordination.
Alternative
Solution
s:
An alternative solution to the first issue related to geographic silos is to increase the
team’s cultural competence. One idea is to make newsletters on global business developments
and trends available to team members, and ask them to describe the most significant implications
for each region during weekly meetings. The Overall Project Manager (OPM) should meet
regularly with the area leaders to discuss important trends, issues, and common opportunities.
The OPM should also work with HR to institute voluntary language and cross-cultural awareness
training programs.
The solution to the second issue is to work with HR to institute flexible working hours,
telecommuting, compressed work weeks, part-time hours, and job sharing programs so that team
members can adjust to different time zones without affecting quality of life. This solution needs
to include training on prioritization to ensure critical tasks are completed or escalated to mitigate
schedule risk. The third solution is to work with HR to identify skills training courses and use
technology so that a command of the company’s language is not critical. It will also be
important to establish rewards valued by each cultural group for sharing expertise, and conduct
regular skill gap assessments and development plans.
The final solution is to establish a communication plan for different levels of complexity
and frequency. For example, important technical documents should be in multiple languages,
contain pictures and diagrams to assist people who are not fluent in the company’s official
language. Moreover, complex information should be communicated face to face whenever
possible, and then follow-up with printed version, and documented minutes and action items
discussed. Videoconferencing, net meetings, and online chats should be utilized wherever travel
restrictions apply.
Analysis of
.
1. Davidsen: Assignment 2
Boston University
MET AD 642 Project Management
(Year and Term)
Assignment 2
Case Study: Macondo Well Project
NOTE: THIS IS NOT REALLY ABOUT MACONDO! THIS IS
AN OLDER TOPIC PROVIDED
TO SHOW FORMAT, LENGTH, AND STRUCTURE, AS AN
EXAMPLE ONLY!!!!
Leif Davidsen
2. Issues:
There were several issues related to global teams working
across multiple sites and time
zones.
1. The first major issue was that local sites created silos to
insulate them from changes that
were not in their best interest but needed for global team to
succeed.
2. The next issue was that working across several time zones
was affecting work/life
balance and team performance.
3. Another challenging issue was the low cost objective that
drove a disproportionate
amount of new hires and graduates in low cost regions.
4. The team also struggled with project communication and
coordination.
Alternative
3. Solution
s:
An alternative solution to the first issue related to geographic
silos is to increase the
team’s cultural competence. One idea is to make newsletters on
global business developments
and trends available to team members, and ask them to describe
the most significant implications
for each region during weekly meetings. The Overall Project
Manager (OPM) should meet
regularly with the area leaders to discuss important trends,
issues, and common opportunities.
The OPM should also work with HR to institute voluntary
language and cross-cultural awareness
training programs.
4. The solution to the second issue is to work with HR to institute
flexible working hours,
telecommuting, compressed work weeks, part-time hours, and
job sharing programs so that team
members can adjust to different time zones without affecting
quality of life. This solution needs
to include training on prioritization to ensure critical tasks are
completed or escalated to mitigate
schedule risk. The third solution is to work with HR to identify
skills training courses and use
technology so that a command of the company’s language is not
critical. It will also be
important to establish rewards valued by each cultural group for
sharing expertise, and conduct
regular skill gap assessments and development plans.
5. The final solution is to establish a communication plan for
different levels of complexity
and frequency. For example, important technical documents
should be in multiple languages,
contain pictures and diagrams to assist people who are not
fluent in the company’s official
language. Moreover, complex information should be
communicated face to face whenever
possible, and then follow-up with printed version, and
documented minutes and action items
discussed. Videoconferencing, net meetings, and online chats
should be utilized wherever travel
restrictions apply.
Analysis of
