Operations Planning: A Comprehensive Essay For Project Managers.

1. a. List the resources requirements needed to develop an operational plan.

b. Explain the consultation process and whom you must consult while researching and documenting the requirements of an operational plan.  

2. What are key performance indicators, how they are developed within the operational plan and how they can help in measuring overall organisational performance?

3. When planning there is a need to include a ‘contingency plan’  Explain why is it is important for a health care practice to develop and implement contingency plan for each appropriate stage of their operational plan
                                          
4. a. What methods you will undertake to obtain the approval of the operational plan and who should be involved in the process?
b. Why it is important to obtain necessary approval for operational plan from relevant stakeholders. 

5. Managing resource acquisition is crucial in the process of operational planning. Explain how you will plan and manage acquisition of physical and human resources in the planning process.

Developing a Viable Project Plan

Operations planning are a basic requirement every manager must master to organize and manage a project's operations smoothly. The operations plan involves planning, implementation, monitoring and management with the objective ensuring a proposed project smooth operates (Munro, 2009).  This makes it important for every manager to organize and addresses each of these elements carefully while considering every aspect so as to maximize the proposed plans success rate. Project managers will in many situations be responsible for the development of proposals, planning, implementation and reporting of the projects.

The first step linked to managing any plan is developing a viable project plan. This is a very important stage of the management process where there the manager needs to identify viable projects and develop a proposed plan to exploit the idea (Abrams, 2003). Only after developing an idea can further research and analysis be done on the proposed plan to determine its viability.

Once identified the idea would require being closely analysed to determine important points linked to its viability. There are many elements linked to the plan which need to be closely evaluated thus most if not all of the areas need to be addressed (Wood & Kroger, 2000). It’s important that risks, resources, legalities, Finances and documentation related to the proposed project are closely examined and addressed before the proposed plan can move on to the next stage.

The consultation also plays a huge role in proposed projects developments since expert advice and guidance is gathered with regard to the proposed plan. This is important as it allows the proposer secure a wider perspective of the project and views from more stake holders and experts thus helping expand his understanding on the topic. This helps identify areas or points which may have been missed thus allowing the proposer first resolve those concerns before moving to the next stage.

It’s also important to identify a list of important key indicators and measures of performance which would be used during the proposed project. It’s important to list these so as to measure the proposed projects performance and outcomes thus maximizing the proposals success rate (Marr, 2012). There are also wide verities of computer and digital tools which can be utilized on the projects to maximize performance

Contingency plans help identify developments which could have either a positive or negative effect on the proposed plan (Allin, 2012).  It is important to highlight these points as it allows the proposer identify important benefits as well as drawbacks linked to the proposed plan which can be used to refine the plan and improve the success rate.

Analysing Key Elements of the Plan

The proposed project also requires being professionally presented so as to deliver a clear understanding linked to the intention and objective of the project. This is especially important on projects which external stakeholders who are approached to fund the project (Hill, 2013). In this situation, the proposed project requires being carefully outlined and presented clearly to help convenience the investors as well as secure approval for the proposed plans.

Once completed the proposal requires to be presented to the legal authorities for approval before it can be implemented or presented to the investor. It’s critical to secure legal authority and government approval to prevent complications at a later stage and ensure the proposed project is legal before proceeding further.

Every project is heavily dependent on resources to operate. These take the form so raw materials, services as well as a human resource which all require being carefully managed.  It is critical for the proposal to address aspects linked to resource management so as to deliver an accurate proposal plan. Resource quantity, stocks, locations, and human resource needs all require to be addressed (Dwyer, 2011). It’s also important to identify the location the proposed project intends to be located and also address certain aspects linked to the project such as transport and human resource needs especially when the projects are located in remote locations.

The recruitment process also needs to take into consideration staff qualification, experience, and understanding of the job description. This is an important requirement as it determines the rate of employee turn over the proposed project can anticipate (Smith, 2012). Employees with a better understanding and liking of the work are likely to be more satisfied with the position thus reducing the employee turnover experienced on the project.

In addition to qualification, the proposed project human resource manager must also provide suitable terms and conditions on the employment policy which will encourage employees to remain with the organization.  The organization must be able to offer attractive compensation, facilities, and incentives which will encourage the staff to remain with the organization.

During the staff recruitment process, it’s critical for the organization to recruit the best staff as well as plan on investing, acquiring and securing the rights to different resources the organization will require operating efficiently (Henkin, 2000). All resources need to be listed and identified thus allowing the proposed project manager develop acquisition plans thus helping secure adequate resources to safeguard the performance of the project.

Seeking Expert Advice and Conducting Consultation

The proposed project will require be monitoring, reviewing and reporting on thus making it important to develop and use suitable monitoring equipment and tools. These can be specially designed or commercial versions purchased which helps with devitalized the process and speeding up performance.

Finances also require being closely, this is especially important while during the initial stages of establishment where the proposed project would be recovering and repaying any borrowed funds. It is important to therefore use a wide varsity of financial and budgeting tools available online to help monitor and manage finances so as o retain control of the projects finances.

Every project will experience some areas of underperformance thus it’s important to locate and address them as soon as possible. This is best achieved by involving all stake holders by offering open communication and contributions towards reporting on areas of underperformance and recommendation (Kaplan & Norton, 2008). Stake holders must be involved as they may be experiencing issues the management does not observe and require to be addressed to maximize performance.

All individuals and teams associated to an organisation or project require being stream lined so as to ensure they maintain high performance. To achieve this it is important to provide straining and support sessions with the aim of educating individuals or teams regarding current as well as new processes.

Not every recommendation will be feasible thus it’s important to the management to evaluate each recommendation and develop a feasible approach to address the approved ones. Some may be rejected but approved or feasible recommendations require to be negotiated so as to avoid over burdening the organisation or project management as well as respond to the recommender thus both stake holders benefit from the process.

All projects developments must be monitored, reported and documented to ensure clear records have been maintained. This makes it important to document and report performance thus allowing the teams involved on areas which may require additional efforts as well as areas where have archived the set targets. Documenting performance also allows for the stake holders and management visits their performance story to determine aspects which may have affected performance and address those points 

Conclusion

Project management has been termed by many businesses owners as a skill managers must be able to master and develop a passion towards. This makes t important for managers to also focus on entrepreneurial skills and mindsets which can be used to develop important projects proposals and plans which can be used to continually perfect, build and expand the performance of the project. With younger professional turning to business as their preferred profession, it has become important to project managers to improve their performance so as to ensure the projects they spearhead remain operational at all times.

References:

Abrams, R. M. (2003). The Successful Business Plan: Secrets & Strategies. Paulo Alto: The Planning Shop.

Allin, L. (2012). Contingency Plan. Orca Book Publishers.

Dwyer. (2011). Management Strategies & Skills. Tata McGraw-Hill Education.

Frost, C., Allen, D., Porter, J., & Bloodworth, P. (2000). Operational Risk and Resilience: Understanding and Minimising Operational Risk to Secure Shareholder Value. Woburn: Butterworth-Heinemann.

Henkin, A. H. (2000). Honoring Human Rights. Martinus Nijhoff Publishers.

Hill, G. M. (2013). The Complete Project Management Office Handbook, Third Edition. Boca Roton: CRC Press.

Kaplan, R. S., & Norton, D. P. (2008). The Execution Premium: Linking Strategy to Operations for Competitive Advantage. Harvard Business Press.

Marr, B. (2012). Key Performance Indicators (KPI): The 75 measures every manager needs to know. Pearson UK.

Munro, A. H. (2009). Structures for Strategy: The Operations Plan. Garden City: Morgan James Publishing.

Smith, J. (2012). Planning the Recruitment Process - What You Need to Know: Definitions, Best Practices, Benefits and Practical Solutions. Emereo Publishing.

Wood, L. A., & Kroger, R. O. (2000). Doing Discourse Analysis: Methods for Studying Action in Talk and Text. London: SAGE.