Question

Purchasing a new home is the single largest investment most
of us will make in our lifetime. You can either purchase the
home from a reputed real estate building company or manage
the construction of your home using project management
principles that you have mastered. The latter approach can
save significant amounts of money over the life of a typical
30-year mortgage. Additionally, it is likely to provide you with
one of the most satisfying experiences in your life because
you will get an opportunity to see the results of choices you
made in building your home.1 However, on the downside, if
you manage the project poorly, it also has the potential on
many levels to be a disaster.
The experience of managing the construction of a
single-family home provides a coherent account of costs,
benefits, other considerations related to construction,
risks, hazards, and critical decisions. The experience also
has the potential for joy if the project is a successful
endeavor.
Suburban Homes is a medium-sized, fast-growing construction
company in the Midwest region of the United
States. Due to its significant growth and good reputation for
building quality single-family homes and townhomes, the
company decided to expand its business to several Southern
states in the United States. However, Suburban Homes recognized
the scope for managing resources effectively and
efficiently to increase profits. It has decided to formalize project
management practices by developing and implementing
standard and promising processes, tools, and techniques.
For this purpose, the company was looking for a competent
project manager to manage its projects. They hired Adam
Smith as their new project manager.
Adam Smith had worked for several years in the construction
industry and supplemented his experience with project
management education. Consequently, he gained considerable
experience and developed expertise in managing construction
projects. Adam believes in managing projects by adhering to
various project management processes, tools, and techniques.
In his new position as the project manager, Adam s primary
task is to improve the performance of project management
and increase the project success rate.

1. What advice would you offer to Adam Smith?

Answer 1

I would advise Adam Smith the following:

To ensure successful completion of a project, he must dedicate time and energy for proper planning. Construction like most other business needs proper planning. From every construction step to the amount of time it will take to complete it and the money it will cost should be planned before going any further. Moreover, he should be able to delegate specific tasks to qualified individuals working for him instead of trying to do it all alone. This will ensure great quality work as the workforce will be dedicated to complete one set of tasks on which they can focus properly. Also, he should communicate his ideas for the project and the quality standards he expects beforehand to all the contractors and workers. Quality is very important in the construction business and a lack of it may prove to be a disaster for the company and Adam must ensure high-quality standards and protocols are followed at all times.

If he is able to do this, the success rate of the project would be very high and the company will enjoy the long-lasting trust of its customers.