Elizabeth Mounts was hired by the Battleground Plants & Shrubs $($BPS$),$ a commercial plants and shrubs nursery in Greensboro, NC$,$ as an Analyst in their newly$-$formed Project Office $($PO$).$ She reported to work and was assigned a small cubicle with a laptop computer with all the typical Microsoft Office suite of software including Microsoft Project. Not what she had hoped for in her first job, but she was grateful to land her first job in a rapidly growing economy and in the midst of the COVID$-19$ Pandemic. She resolved to give it her best effort. The PO reported to the Finance group, and she liked the VP$-$Finance who had hired her.

BPS has grown steadily into a dominant regional supplier of plants, trees, shrubs and related supplies to area retailers, including big$-$box chains, home improvement chains, and retail nurseries. BPS$\text{'}$s profits had not kept pace with growth, however, prompting President Tom Stafford to look for cost management and profit expansion opportunities. BPS$\text{'}$s history of doing projects was mixed at best. Most projects finished over budget and were late to deliver benefits $($if they delivered at all$).$ Behind the decision to hire Elizabeth Mounts was the intent to use her and the Project Office to manage projects to ensure they delivered the expected outcomes.