Page 1
MAN 5401 Case Study – Falconer Festival
MAN 5401 Case Study – Falconer Festival
Introduction
The assignment is designed to test the application of what you have learned in this Unit, with particular focus on managing scope, stakeholders and communications in a project. Because it is a group project, and you will be completing it in groups of a minimum 2 and maximum 4 people, the assignment will be subject to peer and self-reviews (in terms of everyone’s contribution) when you submit it. The final mark you get for the assignment can be reduced as a result of the feedback from your team members if they can provide evidence that you did not contribute to the assignment in a fair way. As post-graduate students and budding project managers, you must manage the group yourselves. There is a group agreement template on Blackboard. Please read it (and amend as necessary). You must let your lecturer know if your group has not signed a contract. You must not begin work on the assignment until your contract has been signed. This contract is, in effect, an agreement between you all, and forms part of your project documentation in much the same way that a ‘statement of work’ and ‘employment contract’ exists in real projects. Your contract remains ‘external’ to the case study project documentation, but you will need it to complete your reflective journal / lessons learned report at the end.
Case Narrative
Falconer is a small regional ‘charter’ town 150 km south of Perth, Western Australia. It is situated on the estuary of the River Eskham, and has a population of 42,000 people. It is the administrative capital of the Shire of Falconer. The Shire itself has a total population of 138,000 people. It has long been a commercial, cultural and educational centre for the region, and has several unique ties to colonial settlements in Western Australia.
The charter is very important to the town, and Falconer celebrates the fact that it has one. The charter is a legal document developed from a European idea in the Middle Ages. Falconer was uniquely granted its charter by the Admiral of the first colonial settlers. This purported to grant rights to the settlers of Falconer in return for continued accommodation and servicing of passing military and civilian merchant navy vessels for an indefinite period. In effect, it assured colonial military and civilian merchant vessels that they could always be guaranteed a safe harbour, food and repairs whenever they were in the vicinity of Falconer. In return, the charter for Falconer grants certain freedoms to the original town and, more importantly, a right to trade with the merchant navy vessels mentioned in the document. Legally, the document no longer carries any weight given the role the federal government has in making international trade agreements on behalf of the Commonwealth of Australia.
Page 2
MAN 5401 Case Study – Falconer Festival
Nonetheless, the original charter remains on display in a secure part of the Town Hall; itself an old stone building that was built 150 years ago.
Politically, Falconer fluctuates between electing Liberal and Labor politicians and cannot be said to be a safe seat for either party. Sharing a similar climate to Perth, summer temperatures average 27°C, although that can rise to 40°C in exceptionally hot weather. In the winter, the average temperature is around 18°C. Rainfall peaks at around 190 mm per month in winter, dropping to around 10 mm per month in summer.
The waters of the estuary surround the town of Falconer, and it is here that the freshwater from the River Wesham feed into the Indian Ocean. The whole coastline north and south of Falconer undulates in a series of bays and sandy beaches. These have recently been developed into sizeable housing estates to support the expanding population who work in the local industries.
Falconer itself has several suburbs running along a major tourist route by the coast, which is easily reached from the main highway that runs along the west coast of Australia. The tourist route passes through Bunbury, Busselton and down towards the beautiful vineyards of Margaret River to the south; and heads towards Lake Clifton and Mandurah towards the north.
Falconer is unique in Western Australia in having its own small university. This developed from an agricultural college and now employs 500 staff and around 4000 students. In recent years Falconer University has focused on maritime technology, advanced agricultural research and business and tourism. Whilst many of the students come from across Australia; around 20% of students are from Southeast Asia, and are attracted by the high quality courses, lower than average fees and the close links with the regional industries. Falconer University is also developing a significant online presence focusing on lower cost courses and specialised subjects designed to be of use to emerging parts of the globe where traditional Australian universities do not seek a presence.
Falconer also has highly regarded schools serving the local population. Educational standards are high, and dropout rates are low in comparison with the national average.
Falconer offers an eclectic mix of cultural activity. Many of the older buildings in the town have been preserved and there is a relaxing cafe culture due to the large boardwalks that front the beaches of the town. Several small theatres operate in the town, and attract visitors of all ages from around the region. The town council and tourist board organise many themed festivals to attract visitors, and these include festivals dedicated to different music genres, food and wine. Town also has two small art galleries, and a museum celebrating the
Page 3
MAN 5401 Case Study – Falconer Festival
grant of its historic charter. Other facilities include Falconer Stadium where Falconer Crabs play home games of AFL, and a nearby large purpose-built sports park consisting of 20 floodlit playing surfaces and 3 large separate function suites combined with changing rooms and team physio and indoor training facilities.
The charter is very important to the town, and Falconer celebrates the fact that it has one. The charter is a legal document developed from a European idea in the Middle Ages. Falconer was uniquely granted its charter by the Admiral of the first colonial settlers. This purported to grant rights to the settlers of Falconer in return for continued accommodation and servicing of passing military and civilian merchant navy vessels for an indefinite period. In effect, it assured colonial military and civilian merchant vessels that they could always be guaranteed a safe harbour, food and repairs whenever they were in the vicinity of Falconer. In return, the charter for Falconer grants certain freedoms to the original town and, more importantly, a right to trade with the merchant navy vessels mentioned in the document. Legally, the document no longer carries any weight given the role the federal government has in making international trade agreements on behalf of the Commonwealth of Australia. Nonetheless, the original charter remains on display in a secure part of the Town Hall; itself an old stone building that was built 150 years ago.
10 years after the first grant of the charter, the ceremony had to be repeated because the original charter had been mislaid. In recognition of this mishap, every 10 years afterwards, Falconer has celebrated the festival of the charter. The aim is to remind the administrators of the town that they have a charter and should show it to the people to prove that they have not lost it again. The festival is usually celebrated over a two-week period starting on 24th of November. The next festival will take place this year. It is always a significant event for the region, and attracts up to 400,000 people over the course of the 2 weeks, both from within Western Australia, Australia itself and also internationally. This time of the year also coincides with the school leavers events in the rest of Western Australia, and beyond, and whenever the festival takes place, hordes of school leavers descend upon the town in order to celebrate their graduation from school in a way that can only happen once every decade. When the festival does not take place, many school leavers descend upon Rottnest Island and Bali, but celebrating in Falconer is viewed as something extremely special for many school leavers. This means that culturally and economically, the festival is very important for the town, and the region. The types of events that are hosted during the 2 weeks include SW-Jazz, ‘Australia’s Biggest Liar’, ‘Foodfest’, ‘Comedy Week’ and large pop concerts in the fields at the rear of the University. Various civic festivals including the parade of the charter, multi-faith prayers, sports events, celebratory fireworks at the start and end of the festival, and the hosting of various dignitaries from around Western Australia. As it is to be expected
Page 4
MAN 5401 Case Study – Falconer Festival
with such a festival, there are multiple semi-official and unauthorised events run by businesses and well-meaning citizens, as well as several unsavoury events linked to illicit alcohol and drugs. Furthermore, in the current political environment, protests against the colonial links and the charter are anticipated, and these could result in various levels of disruption and public protest.
The festival is organised by a committee comprising elected officials, local businesses, schools, university, sports organisations, churches and religious groups, the State government, and several important sponsors including VW cars, Little Creatures Brewery, Cadbury’s chocolate. This year, the sponsors also include Amazon.com.au and Uber.
The festival committee begins planning for the festival at least three years in advance. Most of the early administration is undertaken by a team of four people working for the town council. As the festival draws nearer, the team is expanded and begins to adopt project management methodologies. This year is no different, and the festival committee appoints members of a Project Board to oversee the festival planning, and to act as the ‘client’ for the festival Project Board. John White, an elected councillor, is the project sponsor and also sits on the main festival committee. It is his role to report back to the festival committee all relevant details of the project progress. John White therefore sits on the Project Board as well, and appoints the project manager.
Also sitting on the Project Board is Alice Black. She is a local accountant in the town, and is responsible for finance for the Project Board. She is also a prolific fundraiser for the festival, and is active all year round soliciting donations and sponsorship for the festival. Her husband, Phil Black, owns five bars and restaurants in the town including the largest indoor venue for live music in the town, The Charter Inn. This building has a large car park at the rear, and during festival time this is closed and turned into a temporary stage and outdoor auditorium for live bands.
During festival time, all of the major institutions in the town host various events. The purpose of these events is to celebrate the grant of the charter, but to also raise funds for the next 10 years to pay for the four employees of the council who will organise the next festival. In this way, the festival has always been financially self-sustaining, and many venues also make a profit. For example, the University allows its lecture halls to be used as theatres for plays and comedies, and even live music. The sports centre also allows its playing fields to be used for events such as food and wine exhibitions, car rallies and second-hand markets. During the festival, sporting tournaments are arranged between local teams and ad hoc teams of visitors. This is invariably manipulated so that teams such as the Fremantle Dockers ‘happen’ to be in the town during the festival and will play against local teams. A
Page 5
MAN 5401 Case Study – Falconer Festival
portion of the profits from the various games goes to charities within Western Australia, and always attracts significant media attention. This year the festival organisers are considering arranging for players from the Australian rugby union team to play an exhibition match against the New Zealand All Blacks. If this goes ahead, they intend to conveniently ‘leak’ details about it on social media, and this will mean that rugby fans across Australia and New Zealand will travel to the town, with many coming from Sydney and Melbourne.
Planning for the festival increases significantly in the two years before it takes place, and the Project Board is also mindful of more recent political developments in Australia and beyond that suggest several protest groups may plan to disrupt the festival. There is very little to connect these protest groups other than their desire to cause disruption, and the main groups have already been identified by the police and are as follows:
“Disrupt Colonialism” is a protest group founded on social media. The main organiser in Western Australia is Kai Orange. His group disagrees with the concept of the festival because its celebration for the grant of the charter that disrespects the original inhabitants of the area and their unique history.
“Stop Pollution” is a protest group that disagrees with globalisation by multinational companies, arguing that many of them pollute local environments and exploit precious local resources. They are particularly aggrieved about the sponsorship of the festival by VW cars, and Cadburys (Mondelez International). They also accuse Uber and Amazon.com.au of disrupting established businesses such as self-employed taxi drivers and small shops. They accuse these companies of stripping profits from local communities, and sending the money to anonymous international tax havens that do not benefit towns such as Falconer.
Sergeant Ruby Red from Western Australian police in Falconer is the local intelligence specialist. She has examined the police intelligence regarding these protest groups, and has told the project sponsor that she does not anticipate any violence. She is confident that the previous history of these groups suggests several high-profile stunts such as throwing eggs at famous people, shouting during plays in the theatres, and bombarding the various Facebook and Twitter feeds for individual events with offensive and negative comments.
Phil Black would like to make sure that the live music event that takes place in The Charter Inn on day 12, the night before the rugby match is spectacular and memorable. He currently has several acts booked who have appeared in the finals of the Australian Pop Star TV show. He also has the option to book a major international star as well, although this will cost far more money. To increase his revenue and cover the costs, Phil Black would like to use a sports playing field that adjoins The Charter Inn. This is owned by the University, and will be used for the rugby match the following day.
Page 6
MAN 5401 Case Study – Falconer Festival
The scale of the various events in this year’s festival are causing concern for local residents. Many are voicing their concerns on social media including Facebook groups. The consistent message appears to be that many residents believe the festival committee is being too overambitious, and is commercialising the festival too much. As the town has grown and diversified, the festival disrupts a great deal of ordinary business. Were the rugby match and music concert with the international star to go ahead, this would mean that many roads would be closed, and many businesses would be inaccessible for several days. Since these events are also taking place in the waterfront area near the estuary, this is likely to disrupt visitors staying in the town for the festival. They would have to park their cars further away, and may choose not to travel to other festival events during this period. This would reduce the financial viability of these other events. Candidates for the upcoming local elections are aware of these concerns, and the political party that comes up with the most appropriate solution is likely to be the winner in these elections. To make matters worse, information from the police in Brisbane reaches Sergeant Ruby Red, and this suggests that “Disrupt Colonialism” and “Stop Pollution” may be considering working together to cause more disruption to the main festival events than was previously thought possible, although this has not been confirmed. One of the tactics that the police believe may be used is to put pressure on the University to withdraw the use of their land for the festival events in return for not being targeted on social media in Southeast Asia. The police information also suggests that another tactic may be to target consumers through social media, and ask them to boycott sponsors of the festival.
The police advise the festival committee that whilst the information they have received is from several credible sources in the eastern states, it cannot be verified, and does not amount to solid intelligence that would warrant further investigation. Sergeant Ruby Red tells the festival committee that it is for the organisers of the individual events and the festival committee to risk assess all the information they have, and make judgements based on these. The local police in Falconer will support the festival events as before, but it is for the individual organisers to coordinate security and facilitate access to the town for all residents and visitors.
Proposed Schedule of Events
Day Event Location Day Evening Visitors 1 Festival opening ceremony Town Hall x Large Fairground rides Town centre x x Moderate Remembrance ceremony 2km from town x Small 2 World’s Biggest Liar The Charter Inn x Moderate
Page 7
MAN 5401 Case Study – Falconer Festival
Day Event Location Day Evening Visitors Food Festival 4km from town x Small Charter processions Town centre x Moderate Fairground rides Town centre x x Moderate 3 History of the Charter Museum x Small Classical music in the park Park x Moderate International Reception Town Hall x Small Fairground rides Town centre x x Moderate
4
Young Choir, Young Musician & Young Singer
The Charter Inn x Small
Big Dance 1
University Lecture Hall
x Moderate
AFL match 1 Playing fields x Moderate Fairground rides Town centre x x Moderate
Best pet dog show
Town centre car park
x Small
5 Wine Festival 4km from town x Small AFL match 2 Playing fields x Moderate Silent Disco for Teenagers Park x Moderate Beer Festival Marina bars x x Large 6 Multi-faith religious festival Town Hall x Small AFL match 3 Playing fields x Moderate 7 Civic ceremony Town Hall x Small Fairground rides Town centre x x Moderate Bread and Cheese Show 2km from town x Small 8 SW Jazz Event The Charter Inn x Moderate Yacht Festival Marina area x Large Fire Hero Procession Town centre x Moderate Fairground rides Town centre x x Moderate 9 Public Display of Charter Town centre x Moderate ‘Alternative’ music in the park Park x Moderate International Student Awards Town Hall x Small Fairground rides Town centre x x Moderate 10 Dance awards The Charter Inn x Small
Big Dance 2
University Lecture Hall
x Moderate
AFL match (Final) Playing fields x Moderate
Page 8
MAN 5401 Case Study – Falconer Festival
Day Event Location Day Evening Visitors Fairground rides Town centre x x Moderate RAAF air show Over estuary x Large 11 Chocolate Festival 4km from town x Moderate Cricket match 1 Playing fields x Moderate Alcohol-free Drinks Festival Park x x Small Wine Festival Marina bars x x Large Fairground rides Town centre x x Moderate
12
Heritage and indigenous population celebration
Town Hall x Small
Cricket match 2 Playing fields x Moderate Live music event The Charter Inn x Large Fairground rides Town centre x x Moderate 13 Rugby match Playing fields x Large Fairground rides Town centre x x Moderate Parade of the charter through the town Town centre x Moderate Beer, wine and cocktails Festival Marina bars x x Large 14 Festival closing ceremony Town Hall x Large Fairground rides Town centre x x Moderate Beer and BBQ Festival Marina bars x x Large
Page 9
MAN 5401 Case Study – Falconer Festival
Case Study Tasks
Task 1 – Group Task – Week 5 Presentation to Project Steering Committee
Each group will need to provide your lecturer with a five slide PowerPoint presentation. This will replicate your briefing to the Project Steering Committee. This will be done in Week 5. seeking approval for their project approach. This will be an in class presentation where your project team will be given approval to commence the project. In PRINCE2 this would be the Project Mandate. 5 Slides from each group are due 27th March by start of your class (registered on-campus students) or by 11.59pm 2nd April (registered off-campus students).
Task 2 – Group Task – Business Case
You and your team have been appointed as the project manager for the festival, and the project sponsor has asked you to prepare an outline business case for the Project Board / Project Steering Group. This business case should summarise the current position of the festival project and, in effect, should provide the Project Board with all the information they need to understand the continued business justification for the festival project.
As a minimum, the project sponsor expects that you include the following items and address associated issues in your outline business case:
Executive Summary Background Finance Objectives and Scope (In-Scope and Out-of-Scope) Benefits Summary of Stakeholder Issues Stakeholder Management Plan Timescale Project Phases and High Level Schedule Financial Issues Project Budget Risks Assumptions, Constraints and Dependencies Project Communications Quality Management Appendices
Page 10
MAN 5401 Case Study – Falconer Festival
Task 3 – Group Task – Recommendations Paper – Stakeholders
The festival Project Board would like to examine the impact that the current proposed schedule of events may be having on residents, tourists and businesses in the town. They are concerned about the future reputation of the festival, and in particular whether the claims that the current schedule is too commercial and too ambitious. They have asked for you to explore relevant opinions of stakeholders. This means that you and your team should undertake some appropriate engagement work with stakeholders. You should then produce a recommendations paper for the project sponsor. This paper should contain details of the results of your work. You should also include details of the requirements gathering tools you used, and the engagement strategies that you are recommending to the project sponsor. Some of this information should not go in the main body of the report but should be included as part of a set of relevant appendices.
Task 4 – Group Task – Report for Project Sponsor: Summarise Stakeholder, Communications & Political Issues
The project sponsor has also asked you to produce a report that summarises all the stakeholder, communications & political issues that are raised by the case. This should bring together the information in the outline business case and the report for the project sponsor, together with any other information that you believe will be of use to the project sponsor in making recommendations to the festival Project Board.
Task 5 – Individual Task – Reflect on the Assignment and on Group Work
You should produce a final (individual not team) written report about how you approached the case study, and how you dealt with group work. This is your ‘reflective’ report that should include the following:
What you have learnt from the case study What worked What did not work What you would do differently next time How your project management skills have been tested during the assignment How you communicated with the other group members (including evidence of contact – such as placing work into a shared folder) (If relevant) How you responded to change and difficulties, including whether other members of the team contributed less than others, and any evidence you may have to support this view
Page 11
MAN 5401 Case Study – Falconer Festival
Marking Guide
The marking guide is on page 6 to page 10 of the Unit Plan (on Blackboard). Please refer to this marking guide when preparing your assignment.
Page 12
MAN 5401 Case Study – Falconer Festival
Notes and Guidance
When you have decided on your groups, let your lecturer know and he will create a group on Blackboard for you. You can use this group on Blackboard for collaborating and for keeping records of meetings/member contributions.
Should any dispute arise regarding contribution, your lecturer will use the group Blackboard to make the assessment of contribution. In the event you are excluded from a group, then you must let your lecturer know. However, the scope of the assignment will NOT be reduced, nor any consideration be given to the fact that you had to do it on your own.
As this is a project management unit that addresses time / workload management, your lecturers cannot grant any extensions without medical certificates or other official documentation. ECU policy excludes heavy workloads at your work place as grounds for extensions.
It is up to you and your team to agree on the format of the concept document or outline business case to use. There are many examples on the internet. Be guided by the details of the case provided and the information you obtain about requirements via your research and mock interviews.
This assignment is used to assess your use and understanding of the tools and techniques of project scope, stakeholder and communications management covered in the Unit. Think about how you can ‘showcase’ what you have learnt when you preparing your assignment.
The concept document / outline business case should therefore address as many sections of the concept phase or Starting Up a Project stage described in the textbooks and any other documentation or references, as you think appropriate. This may include a stakeholder analysis and stakeholder management plan. Where the section of the document(s) is one that is covered by another area not covered in detail in this unit (e.g. risk assessment/matrix; budget, quality plan etc.), you can use a ‘placeholder’ i.e. state in that section what could normally be contained therein e.g. ‘This section will contain a risk assessment matrix for the proposed project options’ or ‘This section will contain a budget’. However, your lecturers would expect you to demonstrate critical thinking and recognition of the context of the case affecting certain areas of project management not covered in this Unit and make a comment where applicable/relevant (for example ‘Given XXX, a couple of major risks for the project will be…..’ or ‘The proposed budget will need to show allocation for ………’ or ‘The proposed budget will need to demonstrate that consideration has been given to …..’).
You can ‘invent’ details that you can use to support any recommendations you make to the Project Board / Project Steering Group in your concept document/outline business case and
Page 13
MAN 5401 Case Study – Falconer Festival
recommendation memo in terms of scope, stakeholder and communications management of the project, but they must be reasonable and realistic.
You should submit supporting documentation, to highlight your planning and preparation activities e.g. requirements elicitation instruments/tools, WBS/PBS, pictures, etc. Remember that it is up to you to demonstrate, as much as you can, what you have learned in the Unit but in a way that is integrated into the documentation that you will have in a real project environment.
Please don’t make the mistake of thinking that quantity in the assignment equals quality. Including lots of detail about things not covered in this Unit will not gain you any extra marks, and you should gauge how best to demonstrate in your assignment what you learn in this Unit.
Submission details are in the Unit Plan and on Blackboard. Please ask your lecturer for clarity if you are confused about any aspect of the assignment.
The assignment is worth 40% of the total assessment for the Unit. You will need to provide references (ECU referencing style), both in-text and end text and including URLs of websites (in-text citations will appear in the concept document/business case and any other supporting documents you provide – think about how to incorporate this into the ‘realistic’ documents that you provide for the assignment).