ARE 5.0 - PJM - Resource Management
& Project Work Planning
Strategic planning - answerIt necessary to develop a strategic plan within the context of
the internal vision, issues, and initiatives of the firm as well as the larger world within
which firm does business, taking into account trends, drivers, and forces that comprise
these external dynamics
Strategic planning steps - answer1. Research (employee surveys, interviews, financial
reports, industry reports, published data, firms own surveys)
2. Analyzing findings (SWOT analysis,
3. Prepare strategic planning team (share findings, allow time to digest and have ppl
come up w own goals and solutions,
4. Choose members of planning team
5. Planning workshop
6. Implement strategic plan
7. Communicate plan
8. Update plan
Strategic planning team members - answerThe best leaders and experts from both the
operations and admin/corporate teams
Ppl who represent firm's leadership and management, market and practice
Ppl who will have the greatest bested interest in the firm's future
Considerations when forming planning team - answerSize of team: 6-12, diverse but
intimate
Responsibilities of the team: chose only commited ppl and active participants, maybe no
principals or key personnel that take care of clients and main projects
Planning workshop - answerOpportunity for open discussion of the most importan
mtters affecting irm: the future vision and how to reach it
Commit to a 1-2 full dedicated planning period
Hold workshop off-site
Set ground rules (take broader firm wide view, think strategically)
Prioritize issues and intitiatives of workshop agenda. Allow time for discussion
No golf or rec act during it
Migh benefit from third-party facilitator
Small firms might include the whole office
Sole practitioners benefit more from 3rd psrty facilitator (reality check, sounding board)
(colleague, consultant, friend, spouse)
,Consensus: no winners and losers, instead achieve consensus , allow ppl to object to a
desicion if they can voice a reason., all for the greater good of firm
Project manager key points - answerKnowing when and how ti apply appropiate tools
and techniques makes management act easier
PM does not personally produce major project deliverables, but knows the who can,
when they should be ready, and how they fit in proj delivery scheme
PM direct work of others, delegate responsibilities
PM should be actively involved/ included in development of proposals and intitial and
final agreements (foundation of project success). Thus, PM will have intimate
knowledge of firms and clients goals, maintain continuity in delivery process. This is
crucial stage of client relationship building and shows firms confidence in PM
PM activities in clusters - answerOrganizing the project
Facilitating the work
Effect of client expectations on the project
Organizing a project - answerSchedule consideration
Relationship organization betw parties
Firms available resources
Fees
Leadership organization
Elements of workplan - answer1. Project description and client requirements
2. Statement of deliverables
3. Team organization
4. Responsibility matrix
5. Preliminary project schedule
6. Preliminary staffing needs
7. Project directory
8. Internal project budget and profit plan
9. Code information (optional)
Workplan key points - answerMaintaining it is an ongoing process
Organizational tools are elements of an effective workplan
Projectionsfor staffing, schedules, budges must be revisited and adjusted as new info
becomes available
Project description and client requirements includes - answerScope and client's budget
Record of work client has authorized
Client's primary goals for scope and quality of project
Project description and client requirements example - answerA 300-room four-star
luxury hotel, located on the waterfront at 212 Boardwalk Street in Any City, including
two restaurants, conference facilities for 500 guests, a full-service spa, a resort-quality
, swimming pool, and landscaped grounds. (Later expanded in greater detail as project
progresses)
Client authorizations - answermay be represented in the work plan by a simple checklist
of authorized work keyed to copies of signed owner-architect agreements. Client
authorizations can include various kinds of documentation, ranging from letters of
agreement to formal contracts to phase-completion sign-offs. The project manager
tracks and monitors all of these authorizations.
Summary of deliverables - answerMay include reports, sketches and drawings,
specifications, virtual or physical models
The work plan should include estimates for the types and quantities of deliverables
required to complete the work.
The format of this estimate can be a simple list or a storyboard or cartoon depiction of
the deliverables for each phase of the architect's services.
This description and estimate provide a basis for developing the project schedule,
staffing needs, and budget for the architect's work.
Team organization - answerhow the architect will organize project staff, and how that
staff will relate to other parties involved in the project.
A chart is helpful for communicating the relationships between the project team
participants.
A team chart typically reflects who the primary project leaders will be, such as the
principal-in-charge, the project manager, designers, project architects, and job captains.
While there can be many position titles in an architect's office, the basic intent of the
team chart is to define the hierarchy of the architect's team, reflect who will be
responsible for what assignments, and show primary relationships between members of
the project team.
Project coordination matrix - answerDetermines who will dowhat on the project
Be specific. There must be explicit understanding of what each consultant will do
Ex. of description of consultant responsibilities - answernot enough to have a seat-of-
the-pants understanding that the MEP engineer will "do the MEP engineering."
A more detailed understanding would distinguish responsibilities such as these: "The
electrical engineer will wire and circuit the landscape architect's lighting design," or "The
MEP engineer will coordinate HVAC equipment selections with the acoustical engineer."
Preliminary schedule - answerProject schedule typ relates to RFP
Prem proj schedule should be as accurate as possible
Owners goals for project often dictate major milestones (openin shop mall for fall shop
season, etc)
Into this mix, architrct must project team's ability to perform work within the owner's set
of key dates
Prem schedule is one of the primary drivers of the assesment of staffing needs