Project : Vision
You are a project manager for Advancement Corporation, which specializes in providing quality pharmaceuticals to doctors throughout the United States. The company is based in Atlanta, Georgia and has over 20,000 employees. As such, Advancement Corporation must have a large, mobile sales force to market the pharmaceuticals to doctors' offices and hospitals. In addition, it is critical that skilled scientists and technicians be hired to ensure the proper development of pharmaceuticals through clinical trials. In summary, it is absolutely essential for Advancement Corporation to continuously recruit, select, and train qualified personnel.
A crisis now suddenly confronts Advancement Corporation. A predatory executive search firm has convinced the following staff members to hand in their resignations after accepting employment with Advancement Corporation's main competitor:
- All of the recruitment and selection specialists with Advancement Corporation's human resources department (20)
- Many of the leading scientists of the corporation (25)
- The top 10 sales managers of Advancement Corporation
As the project manager chosen by the CEO to address and rectify this crisis, you are granted the following authority:
- You have the ability to act as the CEO's deputy. This fact is known throughout the company based on a top management meeting with the CEO.
- The knowledge throughout the company is that it will be the full-time position of the project manager to develop and implement this and similar projects for the corporation.
As a project manager for Advancement Corporation, you discuss the following with other project managers facing the same dilemma:
- What will be the greatest opportunity and the greatest challenge that you will face in relation to planning and executing an ongoing solution to Advancement Corporation's staffing dilemma?
- In developing a plan to be presented to top management, what factors should you, as the project manager, consider in terms of the costs, scope, quality, and risk issues associated with your proposal for dealing with this crisis?