Introduction
The Yang Sing Hotel was a potential project that had the capacity to achieve success in the city of Manchester as one of the top luxurious hotels in the country. However, the case study shows it was forced to close its doors after operating for less than eight months. The closure was a major blow to the ambitious investors who had believed that the project would be a success. One of the main planning problems with the Yang Sing project that is evident from the case study is that the investors did not envision a possible global economic recession. At the time of the launch in the mid-2008, major economies around the world, especially the United States and parts of Europe, had started experiencing economic recession (Sanderson et al. 2015).
It was a major mistake for the management to fail to predict the impact of the recession on such a luxurious hotel. The other major problem with this project was that the firm primarily relied on one product, the luxurious hotel services. When this product was affected by the recession, the management had no alternative but to close down the hotel. Project management techniques might have helped the owners of this hotel to mitigate these problems (Al-Hajj & Zraunig 2018).
If the stakeholders had planned for the recession and diversified the products to meet the demands of a wide range of clients without compromising on quality, Yang Sing Oriental would have remained operational through the recession. In this project, the focus is on developing a plan of re-launching the hotel.
Project Objectives
When developing a project plan, Belvedere and Grando (2017) believe that one of the initial steps should be the definition of objectives that should be achieved. Stakeholders involved in the project should understand what is expected of them in the process of implementation. The following are the objectives that will be realized in the new project:
- To develop a plan for a successful re-launch of Yang Sing Oriental in the city of Manchester;
- To use the available limited resources to ensure that all the project’s activities are carried out as planned;
- To ensure that the project is completed within a reasonable time frame as desired by the investors.
Performance Measurement and Management of Quality
The new Yang Sing project will emphasize on offering the same high-quality products to customers, as was the case when this firm opened its doors for the first time in 2008. However, the new project manager is aware of the cause of failure of this luxurious hotel and is keen on avoiding the same mistakes. Although the global economy is growing, one cannot precisely predict when the economic recession will strike. As such, the New Yang Sing Oriental will diversify its products. It will target two clientele bases, the rich, and the upper-middle-class. Maslow’s theory of needs shown in figure 1 below will help this firm to define the quality of its products that would meet the needs of the selected clients.
The first three classes of needs shown in figure 1 above are associated with the poor and the lower middle-class members of the society, and as such, they will be ignored because they do not reflect the target market for the products that the hotel will offer. The quality of products that the firm offers will be based on the last two classes. The middle upper-class members of society have esteem needs. They need prestige and a sense of accomplishment (Badewi 2015).
Yang Sing Oriental will offer them the prestigious hotel services and make them feel that they have accomplished a lot in their lives. They will be offered comfort in a secure environment. Then there will be services specifically meant for the super-rich who are in the last class of self-actualization (Szopik-Depczyńska & Lanfranchi 2016). The hotel will have presidential suites where these customers will be offered personalized services based on their tastes and preferences. The quality assurance department will be created to ensure that clients have access to the best services that they need every time they visit the hotel.
Stakeholder Analysis
Stakeholder analysis is a critical component of this project because it helps in determining the attention that they should be given based on the role that they will play in the program. Using stakeholder analysis model shown in figure 2 below, the project manager can classify all the relevant stakeholders in the project based on their power and interest on the project. The first class has stakeholders with high power and high interest in the project (Ibrahim & Hamid 2014).
Project sponsors fall into this category. They have a high power because they provide resources needed to accomplish the project. They also have a high interest in the project because they would want to see the project successful because of the stakes they have in it. These stakeholders should be given proper attention and their views should be taken into consideration when developing the plan and during its implementation (Radujković & Sjekavica 2017). The team responsible for the development of the plan and its implementation must ensure that these stakeholders are informed of the progress of the project and that they feel comfortable with steps taken.
The second category has high-power, low-interest stakeholders. These individuals can influence the progress of the project, but they have limited interest in the project. Government officials responsible for enforcing laws and policies relating to the hospitality industry fell in this category (Hassani 2016). The management should work closely with these government agencies to ensure that everything is done as per the legal requirements in the country.
Customers also fall into this category. Their interest in the project may be low in the sense that they are not keen on ensuring that the firm is profitable. However, they are powerful because the sustainability of this hotel relies on their regular visits. The project manager and other stakeholders also need to give them the attention that they deserve to ensure that they can become loyal to the company.
The third category has low power, high-interest stakeholders in the project. These individuals may not have the capacity to influence policies that define operations of the firm, but they have a great interest in the company’s success (Thakur 2017).
Junior employees of this firm fall into the category. They are committed to helping their employer to achieve success because of the need to protect their jobs. The low power, low-interest stakeholders fall in the last quadrant. These individuals are less concerned about the project and have a limited capacity to influence its progress. Locals within the city of Manchester, who rarely use services offered by luxurious hotels, fall into this category.
Communications to be Used
When defining communication channels to be used to share information among different individuals, it is important to consider the type of stakeholders involved based on the above classification. The high interest, high power stakeholders require regular detailed explanations of events in the project. Using a face-to-face communication system is appropriate in this context (Willoughby & Gore 2018). The planning and implementation team may also use phone calls to make updates in cases where the stakeholders cannot meet. The same approach of communication may be necessary when dealing with government officials falling in the category of high power, low-interest stakeholders. They may need to conduct a physical inspection of the facility to ensure that it meets the set standards (Machado & Martens 2015).
During such engagements, it is often necessary for the manager to accompany them so that further clarification can be offered as might be necessary. Employees, falling in the category of low power, high-interest stakeholders, would need internal communication systems such as internal memos, face-to-face discussions, and phone calls to help in directing them on what they need to do. Zhao (2014) warns that the low power, low-interest stakeholders should not be ignored. The management can use the mass and social media to communicate with them about products that it offers and the benefit that the institution has to the immediate community. Keeping them informed will help in ensuring that they support the existence of the firm in their community. Others may be convinced to become customers of the firm.
Resources to be Used Including Project Budget
At the planning stage of this project, it is important to identify resources that will be needed to accomplish the set objectives. The team will require financial resources to conduct various activities. Table 1 below shows that the project will need four million starling pounds. The money will be used to fund the renovation of the building to meet the expected stands. Equipment such as new beds, curtains, bed sheets, towels, utensils, and other items needed within the hotel will have to be purchased or improved. The cost of labor for the first year of operation has also been taken into consideration. Consumables will take almost half of the proposed budget. The team should also take care of the legal fees.
Table 1: Proposed budget.
Activities to Be Carried Out, Scheduling, and Milestones
The project team members must understand when and how to conduct different activities in the project. Table 2 below provides a schedule of activities, which are expected to start on January 1, 2020. The team will start with the renovation of the building to ensure that it is brought back to its initial glorious state. The renovation work is expected to last about three months from January to the end of March. The team will then focus on equipping the rooms with luxurious bedding sets and other relevant items.
Another team will also focus on equipping the kitchen and other parts of the building. The work is expected to be completed in April. The firm will start recruiting employees from April 1 to April 28. They will then undergo a training process for one month to ensure that they understand what is expected of them. Promotional campaigns will start on April 1 when the firm starts hiring employees. The process is expected to continue as long as the firm remains operational. The schedule shows that the hotel will be launched on June 1, 2020.
It is important to appreciate the fact that some milestones have been made in this project. Given that this will be a re-launch, the project will not be starting from scratch. The building is already in place, which is the most important milestone upon which other project activities will be conducted. It is important to note that some kitchen wear and bedding sets are also in good condition and can still be used in the project.
Constraints and Risks
During the re-launch of this hotel, he project manager and the entire team may encounter some challenges that may affect the progress. Although Yang Sing Oriental successfully made a positive name for its high-quality products, the fact that it closed its operations after operating for less than eight months is a negative reputation that the new team will have to address. They will have to convince their customers that such an eventuality will not be witnessed once it starts operations.
Resistance to change may be another constraint that the firm may encounter, especially if it decides to hire some of the previous staff. Kurt Lewin’s change management theory shown in figure 3 below may help in addressing the problem. The model identifies three stages of managing resistance to change. In the first stage, the management of this hotel is expected to prepare the team for eminent change. Preparation involves justifying why change is needed and taking employees through some form of training. When they are ready for the new system, the change will be introduced in the second stage. The last stage will involve reinforcing new practices to ensure that stakeholders can work easily under the new system.
Possible Success/ Failure Factors for the Project
The project manager and other relevant stakeholders must understand that success and failure are two possibilities, depending on various factors within the firm and forces in the external environment. Understanding factors that can lead to success or failure is critical. External success factors include a thriving national and global economy, growth of the local tourism industry, and reduced competition.
Internal success factors include an effective identification of a unique market niche, delivering quality products to the identified niche, and maintaining a positive image in the market. External failure factors include a slowing economy that may reduce demand for luxury products, stiff market competition, and insecurity in the region. Poor service delivery, inability to address customers’ complaints in time, and high employee turnover rate are some of the internal factors that may lead to the failure of the project.
Considerations Concerning Future Operations
When the hotel is re-launched, the management should primarily focus on ensuring that it becomes successful despite the socio-economic challenges that might exist. One of the considerations for future operations that the management should consider is the diversification of products it offers. The decision to target two classes is the first step of the diversification. The second step will be to venture into other products and services that will increase the revenue stream. As Poluha (2016) argues, one of the ways of enabling a firm to survive negative economic forces is to have two or more revenue streams.
The hotel services will be the mainstream of income and an effort will be made to ensure that this segment of business flourishes in the market. However, the management can consider having a restaurant within the same facility or at a nearby location to ensure that the firm does not rely on revenues from the hotel. In such diversification endeavors, the management should avoid exploring to unrelated industries. Any additional product that is added to the current portfolio should be related to the current products that the firm offers. Introducing travel services is another option to ensure that their clients can move easily from one place to another without having to hire cars from other companies.
Conclusions and Recommendations
Yang Sing Oriental was a unique business concept that brought the Far East culture to Europe through a hotel that offered luxurious services to its patrons. Unfortunately, it became one of the casualties of the 2009 global economic recession. In this project, the focus was to re-launch the project in a way that would avoid past weaknesses and be capable of withstanding external forces in the market. The document has identified steps that should be taken to ensure that the hotel becomes operational again. With a budget of about 4 million starling pounds and six months of operation, the hotel will be ready to start operations once again. Stakeholders who should be involved in this project have been identified and their role stated. The following recommendations will help ensure that this project is a success.
- The recruited workers should be taken through a rigorous training process to ensure that they understand what is expected of them at this facility;
- The management should invest in innovation to ensure that the firm offers products based on emerging technologies;
- The company should introduce travel services to ensure that their patrons can move easily within the city of Manchester and its environs.
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