Every 4 years the world gathers to participate in and spectate the Olympic Games. The planning and execution required for the games is at the highest level. There is little to no room for error, due to the world stage and all eyes focused on the spectacle of the games.

The next Olympic Games will be taking place in Paris. Planning for how the games will be delivered plus the construction of key locations and transport links is well underway.

You are a Project Manager who is working for a project management consultancy that has won the contract to construct a new main Olympic gymnasium and a number of hotels that will be repurposed after the games. You have been assigned as the Project Manager that will oversee the Gymnasium Project and the development and launch of one of the new hotels - 'HotelO24'.

Architect drawings are complete and agreed for both developments. The Office of the Mayor of Paris has raised some issues around access. Transport Officials are not happy with some of the proposed site locations and have drafted a report containing their concerns and recommendations.

After the Olympics, the gymnasium will serve local schools and there will be a push on developing grassroots gymnastics. The facilities need to consider child friendly fittings and fixtures to accommodate school aged children. France's Sports and Education Minister is planning a press conference and visit to the gymnasium site some time in Q4 this year. It will be a high profile event with press and politicians from across the country in attendance.

The project management consultancy you work for is a new company, although it has been established for around 8 years, it has not got a great deal of experience working on major developments such as these. They have won the contract based on the quality of previous developments and expert knowledge of building regulations and requirements in the Paris area. There is a team in place to deliver the contract, you are a part of this team, however, more team members are needed in certain skill sets. Currently, the team is low on Building Surveyors in particular.

Alongside working as part of the consultancy team, you are working closely with the Olympics International Olympics Committee (IOC) - Central Programme Team. This team is based in Paris, with satellite project offices in various countries. These satellite offices feed into the central programme team with updates on project status and budget.

It is currently Q2 of the current year. Both projects started last year and you are now part way through their timeline. You are working at 100% of your time across both projects with no capacity to take on any further projects. You have recently received the following emails and information.

 

In advance of our next meeting, I wanted to update you on a few things for your information and that we will need to discuss and plan towards.

I look forward to hearing from you on the latest reports from the Building Surveyors so that I can understand where we are on the build timeline. From our previous meetings, I am working to the hotel being open 6 weeks before launch, is that still the case? Is the build on track for launch?

In particular, what is the status regarding the rooftop terrace? The original plans include a terrace that overlooks the Olympic Stadium and grounds. When the Building Surveyor visited the site last month, I was told that they had not yet confirmed the safety elements of the terrace. You will recall that our hotel chain has said the terrace is non-negotiable and cannot be left out of the scope. If the terrace is not built, the hotel will invoke legal action. This open issue requires urgent attention.

My boss has also asked me to follow up on the commercial agreement between the hotel chain and the IOC about the use of the hotel after the games. The last we heard was that it was still with the IOC legal team, do you have any update on that?

When we meet next week, I would like to start looking at promotion. I would like your support in the marketing of the new hotel, including the provision of marketing materials and Olympic information. For me this will include: logos, official wording, official sponsor details, writing press releases, translation of content into different languages, social media coverage. Is this something you will be able to help with?

In the meantime, I am focussing on getting the hotel set up for launch and with my team, we have started recruiting staff to fill positions across the new hotel. I would like to bring new recruits on site in month 8 on the current High Level Plan, to show them around the site as part of their induction and training.

 

 

I'll get straight to the point - the Site Manager has handed in their notice as they have received an offer to work on a new development in Dubai. It is a more lucrative role for them.

They have been critical to the project as they know the location very well, they have lived and worked in Paris in site management for many years. Without them the site is going to become a mess, very quickly!

I don't know what to do, this role will need replacing ASAP. Do we have any budget to recruit a contractor quickly, rather than go through a lengthy recruitment process for a more permanent replacement? Can we meet to discuss please...

The Site Manager has also let me know that the building contractors are threatening a strike over pay and conditions. The contractors are a local firm based in France. I know that our in-house legal team does not have overseas trade union experience.

I also need to discuss the plan for the external aspects of the gymnasium with you. There is not enough time to import the trees from Japan that were going to surround the gymnasium, shipping issues have reduced the time available. I know that the Programme Sponsor is keen on receiving the trees from Japan, due to the link with the Tokyo Olympics. We need to agree a Plan B so that I can find an alternative supplier and place an order.

The gym equipment being purchased from the UK, US and a manufacturer in North Africa was on track for delivery, however, Brexit has introduced some import/export challenges. The same equipment is available from a supplier in Australia at less cost but additional time frame.

Lots for us to discuss - sorry to flood you with problems!

 

 

Please take note of the updates here and follow up with your designated Gym Committee Member.

Two new events have been added to the gymnastics schedule. This will require a different layout and set up which has not been factored into the current design and plans for the Gymnasium site.

Gymnasium officials from each participating country have asked for a tour of the facility before the games begin. Some will be in Paris ahead of the games, some have asked for a virtual tour that is interactive so that they can ask questions as they go.

 

 

Please can you help. I've asked for requirements from the participant gymnast teams as we need to fully understand what they need in their team areas and changing rooms. Are there any updates since the requirements from the 2020 games?

I have a long list of requirements from all teams but have not yet received anything from the UK or China teams, these need to be chased up - please can you help with that.

From what I have received already, this looks like it needs to be managed as a separate sub-project and I would like to scope this out in the next 2 weeks so that we can draw up the business case, seek funding and get it signed off in good time.

We will also need to order equipment and will need to have design and layout, plus measurements all complete within the next 6 weeks. Your help in chasing up the teams would be much appreciated.

 

Extract from Project Manager's Inbox

From: Paris University

We would like to send some Construction Degree students on site for a coursework project next month. There will be circa 50 students. Please can you let us know if we can arrange a visit.

From: L

Hello! I was a Project Manager on the previous Olympic games, it would be good to network with you, find out how your projects are doing and share some lessons learned. When would be a good time for a coffee or Zoom catch up?

Extract from Building Surveyors Report

Findings

Post the games, the hotel chain is planning for part of the hotel to become residential accommodation. We have found some issues with the plans to convert the accommodation. We are suggesting that an estimate of an additional 1,500,000 will be required to apply the changes required.

Areas Requiring Resolution

We are aware of a report from Transport officials but this has not been supplied to us, we are unable to comment on it or factor any recommendations into our findings.

The deadline for confirming the safety certificate for the terrace at the hotel has passed. We were not able to support this piece of work due to other priorities that our team needed to work on.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Project Resources

Role	Time Allocated to Projects	Notes
You - Project Manager	100%	Responsible for total delivery of both projects including all project planning, stakeholder management and risk management aspects.
Design Lead	100%	Responsible for design layout and logistics planning for both of the new buildings. They are due to roll off the projects at the end of Q2.
Operations Lead	100%	Responsible for ensuring the gymnasium site meets requirements and that it will be able to function to the required quality for the games. Has one direct report, a Site Manager who oversees the build work across both sites.
Tech Lead	100%	Responsible for ensuring all technology requirements have been identified, documented and implemented as required across both sites. From the start of Q3 they are needed on another project for 50% of their time through to end of Q4. You have agreed this with the other project. There is some budget saved during this time that can be used against something else.
Member of the Olympics Gym Committee	25%	They are close to the detail of individual gymnasiums events, timetable of events and needs of the gymnasts.

Other Key Resources and Touchpoints:

There is a pool of Building Surveyors that is shared with other projects, there is not a dedicated Building Surveyor for your project.

Hotel Manager. They are extremely passionate about the new hotel and the need for everything to be perfect for launch.

There is a central IOC Communications Team based in Switzerland. All projects have been requested to contact them for marketing and communications guidance and collateral in the first instance.

At a recent team meeting, the Resource Manager at your consultancy presented the latest resource plan. From this you are aware that there is a Project Manager currently working on another Olympic site project who is becoming available at the end of Q2 as their project is close to completion.

Project Reporting and Governance:

Fortnightly meetings are held with the Hotels Programme Team on the essential requirements that all hotels need to have in place plus any dependencies across the hotel portfolio.

The Paralympics Programme Office is based in Lyon. The team has asked for monthly reports on project progress and to ensure requirements for the Special Olympics have been met in the gymnasium.

The Gymnasium Project has a Fortnightly Project Board meeting.

The HotelO24 Project has a monthly Project Board meeting.

Every month there is an opportunity to request new/additional funding through the Olympics Change Control Board.

Taking everything into account, acting as the Project Manager and using the templates provided, you are required to complete the following:

Each question/ sub-question will count out of 10. Marks will be allocated per question as follow - an average of 65% will be required to pass

		Mark
Professional Format	As a Project Manager, you always need to be professional in your reporting to stakeholders - demonstrate professionalism	2
Correctness based on Scenario	Did the student understand the case study and scenario to provide the correct answers and solutions	2
Attention to detail Attention to detail	As a Project Manager, you need to catch the detail in situations and be able to provide resolutions - demonstrate problem-solving	2
Critical thinking	As a Project Manager, you need to be able to demonstrate critical thinking and insight to fact and scenarios	2
Project Management Theory	Is the student able to revert and provide the theory and methodology for best practices?	2

Project Management Area	What is Required?
PLANNING	Review the High Level Plans for both projects. There are some key milestones missing from the Project Manager's current High Level Plans? Suggest what these could be and when they should take place. Suggest a better place for project closure for the HotelO24 High Level Plan. Which milestones are on the critical path for the HotelO24 plan? Which milestones should be shown as AT RISK on the HotelO24 plan? Which milestones should be shown as AT RISK on the Gymnasium plan? Create a High Level Project Plan for the Gymnasium sub project, from Business Case sign off to Snagging. This plan should run no longer than 12 weeks. It can run simultaneously with equipment delivery and testing on the High Level Gymnasium Plan. The sub project must complete by month 2, Q1 next year.
BUDGET	Review the combined budget for the project team. Based on what you know, what else may need to be included in the budget? Do you need to use the contingency for anything? Where else could you get funding from to increase the budget?
MANAGING RISK	Identify and define the key risks in these projects (minimum of 3 across both projects). Document them on the Risk Log.
MANAGING ISSUES	Identify and define the key issues in this project (minimum of 6 across both projects). Document them on the Issue Log.
MANAGING RESOURCES	The Programme Sponsor has asked for an update on resources across both projects. Based on the information you have, what are the key resources that are needed to complete both projects to time and to quality? What resource moves/changes/new hires need to be made?
STATUS REPORTING	Complete a Weekly Status (Highlight) Report for each project. This is a view of current status that will be submitted to the Programme Sponsor. What are the things you need to escalate? Include these in your report. Monthly Report for Paralympics Programme Office Draft an email containing the key things that the Paralympics Programme Office needs to be made aware of.
MANAGING STAKEHOLDERS	Based on the information you have, draft a reply email to the Hotel Manager.
TEAM STRUCTURE & GOVERNANCE	Based on the information you have and including any changes you think need to be made, draw the project team structure for each project.
PROJECT MANAGER'S LOG PRIORITISING WORK	Based on the information you have, what are the actions you need to take over the coming days and weeks? (minimum of 5 across both projects). Add these actions to the Project Manager's Action Log. Ensure you think carefully about the actions that are a priority vs. the actions that can wait and be tackled at a later date.
PROJECT COMMUNICATIONS	What are your suggestions for improving communications within the team and with other key Stakeholders? How could the Project Manager handle work more effectively?