Saturday, February 22, 2020

Importance of Monitoring and Evaluation in Complex Projects Essay

Importance of Monitoring and Evaluation in Complex Projects - Essay Example Evaluation is there to bring these into light. As bared by Bako (n.d.) however, evaluation and evaluators are still seen as elements of managerial work that inflame one's nerves rather than challenge one for change. Managers are often confronted with questions and challenges both from inside and outside the organization about projects. Questions asked include proper use of resources, results in line with efforts, services meeting beneficiaries' expectations or not, and proper spending of money. To answer these questions, evaluations are undertaken by organizations but relevant information must be gathered systematically first, which is the process of monitoring. Large-scale infrastructure projects would even more need monitoring and evaluation efforts. Examples of complex projects involve the development of power plants, telecommunications systems, water treatment facilities, ports, urban transportation systems and toll ways. Most of these are owned by private sector developers or are partnerships with public sector institutions. They are typically capital intensive, involving tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars of investment (CRGP, n.d.). Complex projects, according Coffman (n.d.) compose of a subset of projects large enough financially to pose a significant risk to the organization if they are not conceived of and executed well. There is multiplicity of the parties involved in the planning, financing and execution of the projects. There is also at times complexity in the multiple nationalities of the parties(CRGP, n.d.). According to the World Bank, a separate administrative unit for monitoring is expedient where project objectives are complex, or with projects with multiple components. (WB 1989). The purpose is to serve the information needs of the implementing agency and so accordingly such unit should be integrated into the management structure (Ibid.). Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) systems should be of quality. At the outset, projects are required to design and implement plans for M&E as far as the Global Environment Facility (GEF, 2004) Council is concerned. To them, an issue with complex projects is their over-ambitious objectives in relation to available resources and the periods for implementation. Another is the unrealistic assumptions about either project problems or solutions (Ibid.). Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) Monitoring is mainly an internal process carried out by those implementing the project. Preferably, monitoring should involve all stakeholders as the results need to be shared with them and fed back into implementation (www.bond.org, n.d.). Monitoring is the continuous assessment of project implementation with the main objective of providing continuous feedback (WB 1989). On the other hand, evaluation is the periodic assessment of the relevance, performance, efficiency, and impact of the project, both expected ad unexpected, in relation to stated objectives. It is intended to identify project design problems, and is essentially an internal activity undertaken for project management. (Ibidl). An evaluation is an assessment of an ongoing or completed project rendered as objective as possible. The aim is to determine the relevance and fulfilment of objectives, development, efficiency, effectiveness, impact and sustainability. Information in an evaluation should be credible and useful to enable learning from the lessons incorporated for the

Thursday, February 6, 2020

Participative Management - A Study of John Lewis Partnership Case

Participative Management - A of John Lewis Partnership - Case Study Example Competitors find it difficult to replicate the competitive edge acquired by such a firm over a period of time. The objective of this report is to analyze HRM principles and theoretical observations applicable to John Lewis Partnership. The report will also examine whether and where the HRM policies adopted by the company fulfill or fall short in strengthening its efforts to achieve organizational goals and attempts at suggesting remedial measures. Human Resource Management-Participative Management: The central theme of human resource management is to enhance employee performance through employee commitment (Armstrong, 1987, Storey 1995 cited in McGunnigle 2000). The right human resource management system attracts and retains the right talent, develops workforce skills, resolves or avoids conflicts and motivates workforce into a culture of commitment to achieve organizational goals (Storey 1995 cited in McGunnigle 2000). Watson et al. suggest that a culture of commitment may be induced by the application of specific practices within HRM areas such as recruitment and selection, training and development, reward systems, employee participation, involvement and empowerment (Watson et al. 1996 cited in McGunnigle 2000). Kinnie et al. ... Involvement in decision making Performance appraisal with tight links to contingent pay (Holbeche 2001 p.13) Kinnie et al. sound a word of caution when they argue that the application of specific HR policies may not have a uniformly desirable effect on all employees working in an organization. They argue that the extant debate on the links between HR policy and organizational performance has been based on the distinction between the 'best practice' and 'best fit' perspectives, both of which assume that HR policies have the same effect on all employees working in an organization. The best practice view put forth by Pfeffer (1994, 1998 cited in Kinnie et al. 2005) identifies a set of policies associated with performance improvement applicable to all industries and by implication to all employees. On the other hand the best-fit strategy proposed by Schuler and Jackson (1987 cited in Kinnie et al. 2005) and Miles and Snow (1984 cited in Kinnie et al. 2005) suggests that HR policies consistent with business strategy maximize performance. (Kinnie et al. 2005). There have been a number of references to 'participative management' within the literature on human resource management, which however must not be confused with permissiveness. According to Frohman, it is a "practical approach to solving problems and achieving performance targets by utilizing people as resources." As against the human resource approach which "aims to generate compliance and employee morale" participative management is a "quest for improved performance and quality." (Frohman 1988) John Lewis Partnership (JLP): JLP is an employees' co-operative, wholly owned by its 64,000 employee-partners. This unique democratic management model imbues the company with a corporate