Case Study

Corporate Division Shutdown

I was a project manager for a data communication chip design company during the dot-com boom and bust periods. The dot-com bubble grew due to speculative investing for Internet-based com- ponies, but these companies failed to turn a profit in a timely ash- ion. From 2000 to 2002, the Nasdaq Index lost about 80% of its value due to a rapid burst in the dot-com bubble. One day in 2001 we got the bad news that our corporate was going to close down our company's operations. I was right in the middle of a data com- medication chip design project. My customer was U.S. based. I had a group of five engineers working on my team. We all got very excited. The rumor mill was circulating at a very fast pace. My team's work efficiency immediately dropped. Everyone started to worry about his or her future rather than focusing on their tasks.

This chaotic situation lasted about 10 days. Then a group of executives from corporate came to our facilities and they finalized the details of our company's shutdown with our president. They gathered us in a large conference room and explained to us how the company shutdown was going to take place. It was a phase- out process. The first week they laid off 50% of the total work- force. They gave everyone a compensation package consisting of outstanding vacation pay and bonuses depending on seniority and salary level. Then they decided to phase out every project's

remaining tasks. My project had another three months to go. A junior engineer from my team was laid off during the first week of the phase-out plan. I had four engineers and me to complete the project in three months.

I gathered my team and went over the remaining tasks one by one. If we worked efficiently without any glitches we were hopeful to complete the remaining project tasks in three months. I told my team members that they could spend a reasonable amount of time during the day to look for their future jobs. I emphasized that I would allow them to go to interviews during the week as long as they made up the lost time during off hours. We also decided that I was going to deal with our customer's project manager during these three months so that my team members did not get dis- traced and lose any precious time.

ThenI called mycustomer's project managerand gave him the bad news about our company's closure. I assured him that his project was going to be completed in three months with a final acceptance review meeting before my team members and I left the company. I skipped the news about my junior engineer's early departure frommy team. Mycustomer's project managerhad high confidence in me because I always delivered my commit- mints on time and with highest quality to him.

My team and I worked very closely during those final three months. Our offices were like a ghost town. All the cubicles were emptied out. During the phase-out process, we were saying good- byes to several colleagues every week. I had lunch with my team members daily during those three months. During lunch we only discussed everyone's future plans. We never discussed the project tasks. We became a very close-knit bunch during those 13 weeks. I wrote outstanding recommendations for all my team members. We had to work a couple of weekends to complete all the remain- ing tasks. During the final week we had our internal acceptance review meeting. There were a couple of tasks that needed to be polished and retested. We had to extend our project one more week for the customer's final acceptance review.

I discussed my project's status with the company president. I told him that we needed an extra week to complete the project. He told me that he did not have any funds to cover my team's expenses for an extra week. During our team luncheon, I dis- cussed the bind we were in with my team members. We all agreed to work another week without any compensation and complete

the job. I immediately called my customer's project manager and explained our situation. I told him that we would be ready the following week for the final acceptance review. I told him that my team and I were working pro bono for a week to complete the project. He was very appreciative of our sacrifices.

The project's final acceptance review went without a hitch. Our customer accepted the data communication chip design without any change request.Afterward our customer'sproject manager took my team and me out to dinner to celebrate. Working as a very close-knit team during these hard times paid off well. We com- pelted our project in 14 weeks. We came out of the dot-com bust with flying colors. My team members and I found jobs at other companies and immediately switched over to our new positions.

LESSONS LEARNED FROM THIS PROJECT EVENT

Downsizing and/or shutting down a division of a corpora- ration is very painful.

Keeping up your project team's morale during difficult times is a challenge.

A close-knit project team can overcome tough hurdles in chaotic times.

Your customer always comes first.

By Studying The Case Study, It Is Important To Answer The Following Questions:

1- What Tools And Methods Did The Project Manager Use In The Planning Process For Project Stakeholder Engagement? How Did He Do It?

2- Your Project Team Is The Most Important Part Of Your Project Management Structure. Any Weakness In This Structure Will Surely Degrade Your Project Performance.. How Did The Project Manager In This Case Study Keep His Team Under Control And Get Them To Perform At The Highest Level?

3- What Are The Strengths And Weaknesses That You Found Through Your Study Of This Case Study?

4- Are There Additional Lessons Learned That You Found Through Your Study Of This Case Study?