Case Study: The Enterprise Resource Planning Project

1- Why did Prylon give Mannix Corporation a third chance?

Mannix Corporation did fail twice but then Prylon would have to look for another contractor and
their ERP system would not be useful until next 2 years. So, if Mannix Corporation would
continue and would achieve success, ERP system would be functional within less than a year.
With the mention that a new project manager must be assigned and that is the reason, they
were given 3rd chance. Going out for competitive bidding again and having another contractor
come back with an 18-month schedule would mean that the ERP system would not be
operational for at least another two years. If Mannix Corporation could succeed, the ERP
system could be operational in less than a year.
Prylon wanted to have one database with all of the modules in it, because currently they had
their entire ERP with variety of vendors. They couldn’t do this task themselves and so they hired
Mannix Corporation.

2- Do projects go from green to red overnight? If they do, then what is the most likely
cause?

 The projects do not usually go from green to red overnight. There are warnings signs that
are not understood properly. Almost all of the projects don’t turn green to red overnight.
They usually go from “green” to “yellow” to “red” - which depends on the margin of safety
(about timeline/costs) the current condition of project has over the final output. In special
case if project is unplanned and with a series of irreversible events with element of
surprise) a project can turn from green to red overnight.

Projects fail if it is not well planned and unnecessary work is done with excessive hours of
investment or sometimes overtime is assigned to the team. This kind of workload creates stress
and puts the team under pressure. Some team members are then driven to quit at a very tricky
time of the project. The team becomes emotionally drained and their morale become very weak.
Talented team members are usually very high in demand and in these situations talented
teammates would start looking for another opportunity. Their clarity on who the stakeholders
were and who the sponsors is missing and there is confusion.

3- Should a firm-fixed-price contract have been awarded from the ERP effort?

This is concerning on the practicality of embarking on an ERP project under a firm-fixed-price

contract. In this scenario, a firm-fixed-price contract should be awarded. When the contracting
officer can determine fair and reasonable prices at the outset, ERP requires reasonably definite
functional or comprehensive specifications.

(a) There is price rivalry among suppliers implementing ERP projects

(b) There is price competition among vendors implementing ERP projects
(c) There is price competition among vendors implementing ERP projects.
(d) There are reasonable pricing comparisons based on previous purchase data that can be
evaluated.
(e) Realistic cost estimates can be made ahead of time.
(f) Performance uncertainties and their cost impact can be detected and properly anticipated

4. Is it reasonable to expect that requirements will change during recovery?

It's normal to anticipate that some of the requirements will be modified during recovery. The
expense of getting a project back on track is enormous, and large resources or changes are
frequently necessary for adjustments. You'll need a crew with a high level of morale. Jerry's team
has gone through two project managers so far. Not all project managers are capable of rescuing a
stalled project.

5. What is the ultimate goal of a recovery project?

 The ultimate goal of a recovery project is not really to finish the project on time.
 With defined cost
 All promised features

 To finish with reasonably revised & accepted benefits and value for the customer and
the stakeholders with costs & timelines measured accordingly.

6. Do stakeholders expect trade-offs during recovery?

Yes, if the initial project has failed on one or more levels like benefits, cost, or time, they can
choose whether or not to sustain the initiative with revised budgets, schedules, and benefits.
Stakeholders expect trade-offs during the recovery phase of such a project, which is referred to
as a recovery project.

7. What generally happens to constraints such as time and cost during recovery?

 Time constraint: The time constraint refers to the project’s schedule for completion,
including the deadlines for each phase of the project, as well as the date for rollout of the final
deliverable. Once the project is up and running, the project team must examine how previous
stages of the project performed, note trends and their implications for future planning, and
communicate their findings to all relevant stakeholders.

 Cost constraint: The cost of the project, often dubbed the project’s budget, comprises all of
the financial resources needed to complete the project on time, in its predetermined scope. Keep
in mind that cost does not just mean money for materials — it encompasses costs for labor,
vendors, quality control, and other factors, as well. Materials, permits, labor, and the financial
impact of team members working on the project are all included in a project's budget, which
includes both fixed and variable expenses. Among the methods for estimating a project's cost are:
 Data from the past: examining how much similar initiatives cost in the recent past
 Estimating the rate of change in the cost of commodities and labor.
 Comparing historical data with current, relevant factors is a measure.

9. What are the characteristics of a death spiral on a failing project?

A project that the members believe is doomed to fail or that requires a duration of unsustainable
overwork. Because the members of the project are pushed to continue the project against their
best interests by their superiors, the overall feel of the project resembles that of a real death
march.
At the meeting, the team told Jerry that they felt they were on a death spiral. This meant that the
previous project managers gave them more work than they were supposed to do because of
which the team had to work for longer hours.

10. What was Jerry’s intent in canceling overtime and asking the team to stop working on
the project for a few days?

The morale was already low and everyone was already very stressed so Jerry felt that they
needed a break. This time would allow Jerry to evaluate the project and how to recover it.

11. What were the risks in Question 10?

The risks are:

 Project members might shift to another project

 Time constraints
12. As identified in the case, what were the life-cycle phases for recovery, and what is
accomplished in each phase?

● Understand is to gather the facts and figures about the project and interact with the
people.
● Audit is to determine how valuable the project will be for the company, if stakeholders and
Mannix Corporation agree with the recovery plan, Both Prylon and Mannix want to recover
the project. Jerry also helped the team work out their social issues as well during this
phase by having everyone analyze their relationships and work hours. The last part was to
determine which deliverables were necessary, which weren’t and which deliverables could
be skipped. They also determined how much time was needed.
● Trade-Off is prioritizing tasks. This phase is used to determine what is necessary
and what isn’t along with the risks of doing one portion versus not doing it.
● Negotiation is to present the recovery plan and allow the key stakeholders to decide if they
accept the plan.
● Restart is to begin the project again based on some criteria. The project can be
done all over, or wait till scope is established again, or continue with modifications.
● Execute is to being the project based on the new plan that was decided and, in
this case, the modifications have been made to the original project.
13. Suppose that during the audit phase, Jerry discovered that one of the team members,
who was a close friend of his, was the cause of most of the issues. How should Jerry
handle the situation?

● At first, Jerry should take accountability on behalf of his team member and assure the
business party that it won’t happen in future.
● He should move the person to another project or take action if found guilty and try to
understand what went wrong.
● Jerry should talk to his team member personally to look for the real reason behind it and
resolve the issue as soon as possible.

14. What should Jerry do during the negotiation phase if Prylon Corporation comes up
with its own recovery plan and the plan is unacceptable to Mannix?

Jerry seems very confident with his plan of recovering the team and the project. His team also
had faith in Jerry, he should explain his plan again to Prylon Corporation and tell them that his
plan had more chances of succeeding. Jerry himself is smart and have experience of 25 years
being a project manager; He can make this project work with his way of proceeding.

 Cost benefit analysis for every recommendation

 Reasoning behind each step
 Examples from his experience