Project management challenges and supply chain improvements at Boxer Pumps Limited

Project Management at Boxer Pumps Limited

Project management is a crucial undertaking in every organization. It implies the application of methods, processes, experiences, skills and knowledge in a bid to achieve the objectives of the project. A project is intentional and geared towards the achievement of certain specifications. A project refers to a transient and unique endeavor that is done to meet the planned objectives. These objectives are definitive and could be in the form of outputs, benefits, outcomes, all with figurative measurements. While seeking to achieve these merits, the project has to be put into different sections in the form of departments, which will work hand-in-hand like a system since similar objectives bind them. All the departments have to meet the requirements that comprise a project like a scope, the costs of production, the time, and the quality of the processes and products. This study has explored on the Boxer Pumps Limited, a company facing project management-based challenges that have affected and risk depleting the existence of the organization.

Initially, the Boxer Pumps Limited has been successful in terms of its project management approaches. It was meeting its objectives in the market. In fact, it had a promising future now that its production had acquired a market share of the global market. Nonetheless, because of the managerial and project execution challenges, everything has changed, with the fate of the company clouded (Wu et al. 2015). This study endeavors to explore the scenario and identifies the issues leading to the current problems and failures at the company. The comparison of these issues with sound project-based management practices, a recommendation of the steps necessary to bring in the management by project, and the improvements to the supply chain practices for future projects are also covered.

Issues leading to the current failures

Several issues have contributed to the current failures at the Boxer Pumps Limited. These issues touch on some factors. Some of the factors include the nature of the structure of the limited, the definition of the phase of the limited, the definition of the goals of the limited, and transparency of the workers and the managers. They also include recognition of risks in the limited, management of issues on disturbance, and the responsibilities of different members of the production process. The issues are outlined as follows:

Boxer Pumps Limited has been in the market building industrial pumps since 1953. It had a tremendous growth all throughout until the late 1980s that these issues became critical to further growth and development of the limited. During this period of productivity, the company failed to have requisite measures to ensure standardized production and the reduction of internal problems. During this time, the limited had to go global, as a way of increasing its market share in the global phase. It had the right and practicable strategies that managed to lift the limited to the global scene and continue its dominance and success. As it continued to produce standard designed large-scale products in its line of production, it failed to develop new and responsive models or even new products during this period. This was a failure relating to the scope of the project and the strength relating to specialization. When the company had stabilized supply and production processes, it failed to foresee the dangers related to changes in suppliers and customer preferences in the market. Besides, it overlooked the need to study the transformations in market demands and supplies (Wu et al. 2015).

Typically, it became complacent and naive. With an increase in competition when China became a major importer and exporter, Boxer Pumps Limited had to face a stiff competitive scale in the global market. As the preferences of the clients simultaneously fluctuated, with each client demanding that it be given products based on their specifications, the company could not offer this. Typically, Boxer Pumps Limited failed to foresee a change in preferences and tastes of the customers in the market, something that is even made worse with the existence of a competitor product in the market. As a result, the large-scale pumping equipment had to diminish in order.

The other issue touches on the competitiveness to schedule and manage costs of production. Since the company boasted of the capacity to manufacture products based on varied customer specifications, it failed to have the requisite managerial skills in scheduling and costs management. The company was running at net losses. The issue here is that the management had failed to diversify its production avenues to have a stable profit margin in the market without depending on one major design of the production. With variances in the designs and competition, the company did not have the expertise to diversify immediately and respond to the needs of the customers without having to indulge in loss-making endeavors (Hung & Chou 2013).

With an increasing challenge in managing a diverse market demand, the company failed in maintaining a diverged and stable supply chain. It used one chain of supply that had a complete chance to interfere with the production processes of the company. The company lacked foresight in the supply department. The company lacked the essential plans relating to the planning and managing of the manufacturing costs based on the new designs and diversified specifications from the customers. The company lacked enough expertise in managing costs, suppliers, and the changing customer preferences in the market. It lacked foresight knowledge of these parameters of growth.

With the challenges at hand, Boxer Pumps Limited decided to have a change of impetus by bringing in a new CEO. This precise move by the management was invaluable as it could reduce the problems presently faced. Nonetheless, the new strategies offered by the new CEO were squashed out by the existing managers since they felt that the new strategies put forward were not of any difference (Allen et al. 2015). With this, the company had no managerial capability to handle disturbance of management and production. As far as the managers and workers have been given the mandate to execute production based on the existing strategies, it had no sound authority that will convince such managers to involve new options as a way of bringing change within the organization. As the existing managers have shown, the old methods of production had proved powerful ad successful in the 1980s, and hence there was no need to change (Hung & Chou 2013).This showed that the company had no initiative for change, which is as good as growth within a company.

The company workers, especially managers, had issues of transparency within the company. They are not transparent when it comes to handling finances of the different projects and bids from the customers. The assignment of the projects is based on the drive by the bonus. Cases of corruption and insubordination are evident between the sales department, the marketing department, and regarding the internal costs figures. Deals are concluded on unrealistic margins together with verbal promises about what would be delivered. There is no chain of order in management as cases of corruption are rampant. Such issues can only affect the profit margins of the company, meaning the company will have an imbalance in terms of its costs of production and the subsequent returns.

Further issues are attached to the chain of command that is missing from the management process of the company. No direct chain of command can respond to any prioritized item. Probably, different managers work without having to listen to other departments and managers. There is disunity in meeting the objectives of the company. Different workers are working for different bosses, issuing different commands, most of which are not promoting the one interest of the company. With change being embraced, there is resistance that had caused division within the working phase of the company. The senior managers are not recognizing and working with the new project managers who are coming as part of the strategic change measures. The processes of production are thus facing challenges to meet the needs of the clients on time.

With the issues increasingly affecting the profitability of Boxer Pumps Limited, the company had to be taken over by a larger conglomerate. A new CEO is appointed to take over and turn the fortunes of the company. The new CEO gets the advice to approach the issues with an approach project management, although faces the existing resistance sticking to the new approach to managing orders. This means that the company still faces quite a variance of resistance to change when the time comes. The sum of these issues has all contributed to the failures being experienced by Boxer Pumps Limited.

Comparison of the issues with comprehensive project management policies

Project Structure

A sound project policy stipulates that every project should have a project structure. The project structure brings out three main components of the project, which project quality, project time, and project resources. These three features make up a project. The Boxer Pumps Limited has not shown any commitment to linking these three features in its desire to succeed in its operations. The work packages within the company together with the special relations and interdependencies to each other are not clear. As a sound project, Boxer Pumps Limited has failed to bring out what exactly to be done (Harrison & Lock 2004). As a result, there is stagnation and complacency in production. The project seems not to know when should something be done and in which order. The lack of a flow chart means that managers cannot visualize the starting point, the endpoint, and the order of the work packages. With Boxer Pumps Limited, different flow charts have been established by different managers. Hence, there is no flow of activity with one objective.

A sound project policy stipulates that a project should have a milestone plan. The project will use this plan to derive the different phases of the project together with the corresponding costs and results. Milestones are a representation of the different decisive steps that have been taken by the project. Through a series of different packages, the project will achieve different sub-goals. As argued by Kerzner (2013), with the use of the milestones, the project manages to be visionary by gathering different resources together as they happen in the process of project implementation. This is something that is not happening at the Boxer Pumps Limited.

Definition phase

A comprehensive project management policy stipulates that a project should have a definition phase. The definition phase I directly related to the success of the project. When the definition phase is long enough, the processing line within the project will be shorter. At Boxer Pumps Limited, there is no clear definition phase. Complacency has been brewed by poor definition phase that should estimate future costs and incurrence that determine changes within the project.

Clarity of Goals

A succinct project management policy states that one of the critical features of a project is to have a clear definition of goals and objectives. At Boxer Pumps Limited, the goals of the projects done are nebulous. With a clear definition of goals, diversity and growth will be achieved by the project. Boxer Pumps Limited does not have clarity of goals in that it relies on and gets satisfied with the present success not looking at the future status in terms of production and competitiveness. It is solely based on the present state and no focus on the future state. The lack of clear goals made Boxer Pumps Limited have limited strategies to navigate into the competitive and challenging future.

Transparency

A sound project policy stipulates that in any project, there should be elements of transparency and accountability. Such are issues to deal with the work ethics and code of conduct. At Boxer Pumps Limited, most managers are not to be trusted. They are no ready to embrace change. They are engaging in the mismanagement of the costs of products and production, something that has led the company to incur unnecessary losses. The clients who have submitted projects to be accomplished cannot trust them. They do not stick to the periods they have agreed with most of their clients. Concisely, they are not ethical as supposed of any project policy. Probably, the company lacks an ethics body that would eradicate such behaviors, and hence help save the company of it produces and customers. With transparency, a company manages to put together its flow charts, milestone plans, and the structure.

Risk Recognition

A succinct project management policy stipulates that every project should have measures to deal with contingency issues (Gaudenzi et al. 2015). A project should have measures to foresee risks, evaluate and inculcate prospectus steps to be taken to evade these risks, and promote longevity of the project success. Boxer Pumps Limited has no tip of this policy. It has no measures to deal with contingency issues like changes in customer preferences in the market and change in suppliers of the company. It deeply lacks requisite measures to deal with risks likely to overturn the production of the company and head it for the worst (Gaudenzi et al. 2015). Moreover, Boxer Pumps Limited deals with its projects with no strict goals as regards costs and management of costs, performances of the different sectors and their progress, and the appointments. With a requisite appointment and human resource management schedule, Boxer Pumps Limited should have introduced new measures and new production avenues, something that would have caused regular appointments for growth and progress. Nonetheless, it has dealt with the same managers for a long time, something that is risky for a competitive project.

Management of Project Disturbances

The project management policy will not miss a point in highlighting procedures to be used in managing project disturbance. At Boxer Pumps Limited, employee disturbances together with those from the managers are common. The company has no specific measure that it can use to manage larger risks that likely disturb the production processes. The company does not react instantly something goes wrong. For instance, there is a rift between the newly hired managers and the existing old managers yet the company takes the time to deal with such issues. It seems that it fears to sack disturbing employees, preferably because it has stacked to them for a long time as is necessary (Hung & Chou 2013).

Responsibilities of Members

Accountability and responsibility are other fine sentiments that make the broth of a project management policy. Boxer Pumps Limited has given many managers some level of managerial authority as a way of boosting productivity and use of their skill and expertise. Nonetheless, there is no monitoring and responsibility measure that help to monitor their mandate and successes together with failures. There is no order in which all the managers, although with authority to manage their dockets, can report to one manager who will ensure they take responsibility for their decisions and processes at work (Hung & Chou 2013). As long as the personification of an assignment by the project manager helps to boost confidentiality and increase his or her success, it is necessary to determine and monitor their competencies and actions. This will ensure that they are related and promoting the goals of the project, and not working as a counter-productive.

Recommendations

Improvements to Supply Chain Practices for Future Projects

Three basic improvements can serve to advance the supply chain practices for future projects at Boxer Pumps Limited. First, the company needs to differentiate the supply chain and its corporate strategies. The company should ensure that the supply chain is meeting the important points of the strategy. All the leaders within the company should be involved in bringing out the best suppliers. While seeking to achieve this, the company should ensure that it collects all the data the company must deliver. As Poirier (1999) shows, marketing should tell the company the value of the customers and their variances with others while providing the key points that differentiates the company from its competitors. The supply chain and the product-development functions deliver ways to innovate products that suit the preferences of the customers while lowering the costs under control. Second, the company should create a modern, supply chain organization that is end-to-end (Bolstorff & Rosenbaum 2007).

The company should not manage the supply chain in separate tiers as it has been doing. Instead, it should use sophisticated data analysis in real time. For instance, the company should appoint one person to carry out end-to-end performance for delivering improvements for the projects between different tiers and its traditional functions like procurement, marketing, and manufacturing. Finally, (Pei et al. 2016) has stated explained that Boxer Pumps Limited needs to set standards of performance. With this strategy, it should allocate incentives to the supply chain to deliver the most value for the business while checking on the risks involved. In such a case, the company should learn how to use not just capital, service and cost, but should include the needs of the business, the market segments, and the product.

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