Meticulous Planning and Execution

Section 1 Scope Management Plan

1.1 Project Description

The project is based on organizing a graduation ceremony for Bloomsbury Institute for the students who have graduated in November 2021. The project manager will be liable for the entire program. Under his direction, every financial department, technical department, and human resource department will conduct their duties. The project manager will supervise all the aspects and monitor the performance of different departments. There are two critical departments in the project, one is a financial department, which will be liable for assigning finances to respective authorities so that they can fulfil their duties, and the second one is an organizing committee, which will be responsible for the program, comprising activities like the decoration of the venue, rehearsals for the graduates and other participants and training of the critical speaker among others.

1.2 Project Scope

The key objective of the project is to organize a successful graduation ceremony within the budgeted amount and other resources. The key emphasis of the project is on managing the ceremony successfully irrespective of the number of audiences attending. The project manager requires to be capable of organizing the ceremony on the due date. Therefore time management is an essential element of the entire procedure. Furthermore, sound quality should be maintained so that the event is no less than the previous graduation ceremonies that happened in the university.

1.3 Assumptions

It is assumed that the new graduation ceremony program will be successful, and every project team member and the related departments will perform their duties carefully. Furthermore, it is also assumed that the budgeted expenses will not vary significantly. Besides, it is also believed that there will be no large adverse incidents that will hamper the event.

1.4 Constraints

There are some constraints in the project; for example, the first constraint of the project is money. The project activities require to be funded in such a way so that it stays within the budget allocated. Maintaining an account is a crucial constraint given the uncertainty regarding costs for decoration, food, and other aspects. It is hence advised to review every component of the event which is expensive and select much suitable substitute, which suits the budget. The second constraint of the project is time. The project requires to be completed within time. For that, every member and department should follow the schedule and act accordingly. The third constraint is roles and responsibilities. Every person should have clearly defined roles and responsibilities and should fulfil them.

Furthermore, it is also essential to properly select the personnel for conducting any task very cautiously. Only those who have previous work experience can perform within the deadline and can manage work effectively should be given priority for appointment. The fourth constraint is handling the task. Since there are many tasks in organizing the event, it is essential to prioritize the work (GSSPC, 2006) properly. Urgency should be given to those tasks which are lengthy and complicated.

1.5 Roles and Responsibilities

Finance department: The role of the finance department in the project is to allocate the fund for different activities and provide them when needed.

Project manager: The project manager will prepare the budget in collaboration with the finance department and organizing committee. He will develop the schedule and project activities that will be conducted and will ensure that all tasks are completed within time. Furthermore, the project manager will also oversee the performance of other departments and make necessary changes if the project does not progress according to plan. The project manager will also be responsible for managing risks in the project. He will develop a contingency plan in case any negative occurrences happen during the event.

Organizing committee: Organising committee will be responsible for event organizing. It will be liable for decoration of different rooms and stages, organization of foods, preparation of various events and speeches, organizing logistics, and organizing parking facilities.

Human resource department: Human resource department will allocate people for conducting different activities like transportation, logistics, procurement, and cleaning. It will develop the list for graduates, guests, practices for ceremonies, and prepare an invitation list for the event.

Marketing department: The marketing department will be liable for promoting the graduation ceremony within the community. It will generate awareness of the program by using different media like social media and print media. They will also give invitations to the graduates and the family members, and other essential guests for participating in the event. It will also develop media coverage and press attention to the event.

1.7 Project Work Breakdown Structure

The following figure demonstrates the WBS of the graduation ceremony event project.

From the above WBS, it can be observed that various activities require to be conducted for organizing the event. For example, the essential tasks needed to be undertaken for the event are categorized into invitations, food, and beverages, decoration, entertainment, hosting, marketing, and sound and lighting. Within these primary categories, there are various subcategories that need to be conducted for making the event successful.

Section 2: Time Management Plan

2.1 Project Activity/Time/Dependency Base Table

The following table demonstrates the project activity/time/dependency table.

2.2 Project Network Diagram

The following figure demonstrates the network diagram of the project.

2.3 Project Gantt chart

The following table demonstrates the project Gantt chart showing various activities and timetables.

Based on the Gantt chart, it can be stated that it will take around 6 weeks to complete the project, make all arrangements, and finalize the graduation ceremony event.

Section 3: Cost Management Plan

3.1 Cost Breakdown and Budget

The following table demonstrates the cost breakdown and budget for the graduation ceremony event.

Section 4: Communication Management Plan

4.1 Project Stakeholders

The key stakeholders of the project comprise

4.2 Stakeholder Communication Plan

Pre-event communication: Pre-event communication comprises even promotion. The objective is to create a strong buzz and excitement around the event to boost event participation. It will occur from 6 to seven weeks before the event date and at a minimum 2 weeks before the beginning of the event. For this reason, the meeting will be organized to share information and to create a team for the event. In this phase, invitations will be prepared, and notifications and reminders will be given to increase cooperation and attendance in the event. Various media like online media, social media, and email and text messages will be used to communicate with the key stakeholders of the event.

During event communication: During the event, the audience will be engaged in what is happening. There will be a single texting group for the team members to convey urgent information. Apart from that, media broadcasting will be used to record and make a video of the event to grab the attention of the target audience and essential stakeholders.

Post-even communication: Involving with the audience after the event will help to develop a strong relationship with them. Therefore a greeting message can be given to the attendees for giving their time and for their involvement in the event to make it successful. There is also an excellent opportunity to request their feedback about the event and their experience to make the event better in the future (Pathable, 2015).

Section 5: Risk Management Plan

5.1 Risk Identification, Analysis, and Action Plan

The following table demonstrates risk identification, evaluation, and action plan for the event.

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References

GSSPC, 2006. Project Handbook of the: Graduate Student Symposium Planning Committee (GSSPC).

Hoth, T., 2012. Graduation party Ideas and Organizing Tips. [Online] available at: https://simplysquaredaway.com/graduation-party-ideas-organizing-tips/

Lai, H., 2016. Wedding Project Management Plan. [Online] available at: https://www.slideshare.net/HungyuLai/japahindi-wedding-project [Accessed 05 March 2021].

Olive, 2014. Risk Management in Event Planning. [Online] available at: https://library.olivet.edu/subject-guides/communication/comm325/docs/risk-management-event-planning.pdf [Accessed 05 March 2021].

Pathable, 2015. 3 Must-Haves for Event Communication Plans. [Online] available at: https://pathable.com/3-must-haves-for-event-communication-plans/ [Accessed 05 March 2021].