Week 6 Blog Assignment: Analyzing Scope Creep

I had the pleasure of help planning a 70^th birthday party for my mother. The event planning committee consisted of my seven siblings. At the beginning phase of this event, several of us had different ideas about whether we wanted the event casual, formal, or semi-formal. After much discussion we went with the semi-formal. In the different discussions, we talked about the budget, timeline, and resources.

There were several scope creep issues that occurred: (1) guests that were not invited, (2) budget, and (3) communications from some of the siblings. My siblings and I decided to allow uninvited guests to attend, in order to prevent a scene.  As far as the budget and communication issues, the siblings that were involved during the planning process decided to take the slack from the siblings that did not participate.

Looking back on this event, if I was the project manager, I would assign a task for each sibling. They would inform me if they could not handle the task given. If they could not handle the task given, it could be assigned to someone else and I could offer what would feel comfortable to them completing.  As far as the budget, I would have increased the amount and if we had any funds left, I would return it to each person. When it comes to the guest that was not invited, I would make sure that we had a list of people that was invited and if they were not on the list they would not have been allow to attend the party.

Overall, the party was a success and our mother was very happy.

Week 3 Blog Assignment: Communicating Effectively

After reviewing these different modalities, I see why communication is so important. Dr. Stolovitch states in the video “Communicating with Stakeholders,” communication should be clear, concise, and focused. Communication helps everyone to stay on target. Effective communication should be influenced by (1) spirit and attitude, (2) tonality and body language, (3) timing, and (4) personality of the recipient (Stolovitch, 2012).

The email modality that was demonstrated is very respectful and to the point. Jane stated in her email what type of situation she was in and included a solution to the problem. Her tone of the email was business friendly and respectful. Dr. Stolovitch stated we should always keep documentation of our work. Keeping documentations is important in case a problem arises (Stolovitch, 2012).

The voicemail modality is considered as an oral communication. In the voicemail modality, Jane was very respectful as well and to the point. Her tone on the voicemail was courteous. She expressed to Mark what she needed and how soon it was needed. In this situation, Jane need to document the date, time, and purpose for her voicemail in case she would need to refer to this information.

The face-to-face modality seems very pushy and bossy. The body language and tone was not appropriate. In the face-to-face modality she was pointing to Mark telling him what she needed and when she needed it. This type of behavior is a turn off and will make the person not want to help.

From looking at these three modalities, the email modality is the one that best conveyed the message. The message stated the purpose, time frame, and solution. Also, it is the documentation that you can refer back to if needed.

In communicating effectively with members of my team, I will use the strategies that Dr. Stolovitch suggested using; think of the spirit and attitude, tonality and body language, timing, and the personality of the recipient (Stolovitch, 2012). It is important to be respectful and communicate. Also, I will keep documentation of all of my work.

Stolovitch, H. (2012). Communicating with Stakeholders. (Video) Laureate Inc. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_1340289_1%26url%3D.

Week 2 Assignment: Learning from a Project "Post-Mortem"

On my job, I had the opportunity to work as an event planner for a symposium that we were having regarding Research Creativity Week. This event consisted of mentors and students from different community colleges and universities. The purpose for this event was for students to show work that they had created at their school.

The processes that was included in this event planning:

1.       Meeting with all the staff that will be involved in the event planning and delegate tasks

2.       Informing mentors & attendees to go on SurveyMonkey and register for the event

3.       Downloading the attendees to an Excel spreadsheet

4.       Contacting mentors from each school regarding the students that were going to attend

5.       Contacting vendors

6.       Reserve space for event

7.       Following up with staff

8.       Following up with vendors

The event was for students to show their talent during Research Creativity Week. Some of the topics that were presented during that event were biodiesel production, risk management, and many more. The presentations were presented through posters, oral presentations, and exhibits. By delegating different tasks to each staff member made things go smoothly. Having teamwork makes all the difference when working on a project. The only problem that I had in organizing this event was communication problem with the project head. The project head did not have any organization skills and communication skills. Even though I had these issues with the project head, the event was successful.

Welcome

Hello Everyone,

Welcome to my page. I am looking forward to working with each of  you this next 8 weeks.