The Challenge
Taylor Wimpey were keen to improve on their ability to open show homes to schedule, to ensure home-buyers expectations were met and levels of customer satisfaction remained high.
A team of TW executives were charged with exploring ways in which these improvements could be made. Agreement was reached that standardising and adopting principles of project management best practice, would potentially resolve these issues. The initiative was then taken to discuss potential solutions with the Association for Project Management (APM), the largest chartered professional body of its kind in Europe.
Following a rigorous selection process, Provek were duly awarded the initial contract, starting in June 2015 to support the improvement programme.
Solution
The de-centralised nature of the business, led to a plethora of stakeholders with whom engagement was required. Therefore, a combination of developing a solution centrally with considerable Business Unit engagement was the most viable option.
To support the proposed approach Provek created a phased programme to articulate the individual stages of the programme, anticipated time-frames and the overarching governance requirements (Gates).
The Provek solution comprised three elements:
- Process
- Toolkit
- Training
PMIP Process
The PMIP Process has evolved into an electronic intranet model that allows the user to navigate through the processes various phases and drill down to required task level detail, including procedural guidance and specific governance. The entire Project Team has access to the Process and is encouraged to review it regularly to ensure they understand the full project life cycle, not just their part of it. The Process has now become a key asset in Taylor Wimpey’s ‘Working Together’ initiative.
PMIP Toolkit
Having agreed the process, the team could now commence with the design of the PMIP Toolkit that would guide the Project Manager (and their teams) in managing their projects to the approved process. This facilitates more predictable outcomes and fewer surprises.
PMIP Training
Due to the completeness of the PMIP Solution, it became critical to develop customised training courses to support the following stakeholder groups.
- PMIP – Project Managers – a five-day interactive course blending the PMIP Solution with project management best practice principles.
- Project Sponsor/ Key Stakeholders – a one-day customised course introducing the PMIP Solution with elements of project management best practice.
- Team Member – a one-day customised course introducing the PMIP Solution with elements of project management best practice, with emphasis on the role of the Project Team.
