EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
A year ago, given the need to find a new source of income, the idea to start an enterprise that would take quality bakery and pastry products at an accessible price for customers was generated. This is how Santo Pan was born in 2020 when Marta and Ademar's family decided to open a store located in La Uruca, Costa Rica.
The creation of small and medium-sized companies in Costa Rica has been increasing little by little in recent years, thereby increasing Santo Pan direct and indirect competition, which is why it is important for the company to have a clear plan for project management and its different areas (knowledge areas) in order to easily detect improvements that can be made to make the business more efficient, reduce possible risks, among others.
Costa Rica is a country susceptible to change in any of its approaches due to its development condition. For this reason, companies are not exempt from suffering consequences, which is why the better the investigation and prevention is, the lower the risk and its repercussions are.
The final graduation project general objective was the development of a Project Management Plan for Santo Pan Bakery in order to manage the opening of a new store based in Costa Rica.
The specific objectives were to develop the Project Charter in order to combine and coordinate the project activities, to create the Project Scope Management to ensure all work required is included in the project, to define the Schedule Management Plan to manage the timely completion of the project, to create a Cost Management Plan to ensure the project is within the budget, to generate a Quality Management Plan to incorporate the quality policy to ensure stakeholders’ expectations, to create a Resource Management Plan to identify, acquire, and manage all resources needed in order to successfully complete the project, to develop a Communication Management Plan to ensure transparency and efficiency during the process, to develop a Risk Management Plan that outlines the project risk management approach from identifying to categorizing and effectively responding to project risks, to generate a Procurement Management Plan to handle the purchase of materials or acquisition of services or results needed for the project, and to create a Stakeholder Management Plan that ensures the proper identification and categorization of stakeholders with appropriate engagement strategies throughout the project.
The methodology used for the project used primary and secondary sources, which were interviews, The PMBOK Guide and Internet research. Santo Pan Bakery Project Management Plan provided a documented, organized, and clear methodology for a new small business in Costa Rica, highlighting that any small, medium, or big project should be managed with the same level of importance.
The results of the Project Management Plan showed the importance of planning every area involved in a project. The Project Charter provided an overview of the project and let the definition of the Scope Management Plan establish the activities required to achieve the results by three levels. Once identified, a Schedule Management Plan was developed to provide guidance on the baseline vs the actual project status; those activities had a cost, which is the reason why a Cost Management Plan was created in order to ensure the project was within the budget.
Quality is key on a business focused on gastronomy as Santo Pan; that’s why a Quality Management Plan that integrates different quality areas as cleaning, supplies, human resources, among others was generated to ensure the expectations. Resources make the difference in a successful project.
A Resource Management Plan was created in order to identify the staff needed to complete the tasks and goals; it included the documentation of staff acquisition, training, and recognition and a reward system. When managing people, communication is a pillar; a Communication Management Plan was developed focused on both internal and external approaches. Risk mitigation is key to every project.
A Risk Management Plan was developed; it includes the identification of potential risks as well as its response plan. Santo Pan has several products acquired through suppliers for which a Procurement Management Plan was generated where the due process of acquisition of goods or services was documented and the final section was the management of stakeholders, for which a Stakeholder Management Plan was created to identify them, set responsibilities, and understand their level on impact and interest on the project
The Santo Pan Project Management Plan conclusion is holistic; it integrates different areas as one. In the first place, mapping risks allows to be better prepared but not risk-free, in order for a proper documentation of processes and excellent resource management (staff, budget, supplies, etc.) to take great relevance in the process of any Project Management Plan. In addition, if due controls of those efforts are not carried out with clear communication between stakeholders, the result will not be as expected. To define this result, clear roles and responsibilities must be established, as well as a realistic schedule that shows the status of the project, so that, as with the controls, it is easy to identify anomalies.
It is recommended that Santo Pan follow the control procedures, don’t assume the project is risk free, invest in their employees and their growth, maintain an open communication with the stakeholders in order make them feel involved in the project, and consider having a time budget buffer in case of changes. No project is 100% risk-free. During this year, companies worldwide face the problem of the COVID-19 pandemic, which, no doubt, none of them expected. This is why a company must carry out a Project Management Plan to prepare in the best way for new challenges or even decide if it’s not the best moment to invest
Descargar Aquí:
https://www.uci.ac.cr/Biblioteca/Tesis2113.pdf
Estudiante :Mónica Morales Calvo
Lector: Sophia Crawford
Lector: Paula Villalta
