DOI 10.17605/OSF.

IO/6HXFA
ORCID 0009-0009-2559-6676

Contents
OPERATIONS AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT ...................................................................... 2
TASK ONE. ................................................................................................................. 3
Operations vs operations management. ........................................................................ 3
PRINCIPLES OF OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT. ................................................................ 6
THE EXTENT TO WHICH OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT MEETS THE NEEDS OF TESCO. ........... 8
TASK 2. ....................................................................................................................10
The lean principles of continuous improvement. ............................................................11
Continuous Improvement Plan for Tesco. .....................................................................12
Recommendations. ................................................................................................14
TASK 3 .....................................................................................................................14
Applying the project life cycle (PLC) to a given context. .................................................14
The initiation phase. ..............................................................................................16
Planning phase .....................................................................................................20
The Implementation Phase. ....................................................................................21
The Closing phase. ................................................................................................22
TASK 4. ....................................................................................................................23
The process of reviewing and critiquing the process. ......................................................26
References ................................................................................................................29

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OPERATIONS AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT

In this report, Tesco PLC's operation and project management have been fully elaborated on. Tesco PLC is a

retail organization that deals with retailing and other related activities in insurance service and retail banking

(REUTERS, 2020). Tesco is multinational general merchandise and groceries with headquarters at Welwyn

Garden City in England. Based on gross revenue rating, Tesco is the third-largest retailer in the world. Tesco

was created by Jack Cohen in 1919 in Hackney, London as a set of markets stalls. Tesco developed and

expanded very fast in the whole world and above 100 Tesco shops in the entire Facebook. Tesco has

segments in ROI and the UK that is; central Europe (Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic), the Republic

of Ireland, and the United Kingdom which do similar activities to those done in Tesco bank in the United

Kingdom (Bedford, 2022). Tesco avails different personal banking packages (services and products) that

include personal loans, personal current accounts, and credit card receivables. Tesco's businesses are

therefore Tesco Hungary, Tesco UK, Tesco Czech Republic, Tesco Slovakia, Tesco Ireland, Dunnhumby, and

Tesco Bank.

The sector of retailing is a very big employment industry for the people of the UK. Some very many people

have been employed by this industry thereby reducing the increasing rates of unemployment in the country.

Since there are no better ways that can be used in the estimation process of the retail market, the discussions

are now focused only on the market segment which is a formal one. This is due to the challenges that are

seen as a result of lacking better estimation methods. Tesco ensures to carry out its operation in compliance

with the United Kingdom governance principles on human rights and business operation. Companies and

businesses ought to respect the rights of other people by following particular standards and policies that

manage, identify, and prevent the paying penalties for failing to obey human rights. Tesco is dedicated to

maintaining human rights processes and standards in its supply chain and during its business operations

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(Bedford, 2022). It also ensures that there is compliance between the government and the company

activities. Legal actions and legal issues need to be determined as the contract terms and conditions are an

important aspect of reducing the legal challenges an organization can face. The retailers can have selling

agreements, and these cannot be established without proper terms and conditions. The retailers in the new

markets cannot grow effectively with complete market research. It is one of the pressing challenges because

the new entrants may not be able to work again in the same market in case of a contract breach. Operations

management has therefore of great importance to Tesco plc.

TASK ONE.

Operations vs operations management.

Operations are defined as the practices of handling inner internal processes in an organization to make them

be executed effectively (Kiisel, 2018). Whether a person provides services, sells products, or manufactures

the products, every business person ought to monitor and manage the things that occur behind the scenes.

Therefore, the definition of operations depends on the company and the stage at which it is. Small companies

normally delegate the role of operations to a single individual yet the company owner and employees should

work together to the improvement of the day-to-day activities of the business (Lebedeva, 2022). To the

retailing company in Tesco, their sole aim is to purchase the products that their customer will need at a [price

that they think is fair to them. This, therefore, means perfecting the inventory that is, determining if the

products available are liked by customers and if they are willing to buy them at a given price.

On the other hand, operation management is the control and direction of the process and converts the input

materials to outputs (services and products) (ANDERSON, 2013). It is a segment of management that deals

with controlling, designing, and overseeing the processes involved in redesigning and production of products

and services. Therefore, operation management simply means control of the process and systematic design

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of the directing activities (Duvigneau, 2022). One has to direct activities involved in the conversion of the

inputs into the outputs that the customers will like.

The basics of operation management for the retailing companies are as shown below;

Figure 1 shows operation management as a system design and control process.

In Tesco, the following measures are taken in their operation management (Kleynhans, 2022).

 When the clients are not satisfied with the way things are done, the entire system ought to be

revised.

 When the clients are pleased with the current system being used, that system should be maintained

to keep the business relevant.

 Value is constantly added to the activities that are executed so that they maintain their customers and

even gain more to overcome competition from other retailers.

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The operation management system ought to assign resources to different activities, protect the resources

needed for each activity, and permit the sharing of information between the service or goods providers with

their customers (Team K., 2020). Operations management is normally elaborated in the form of production

and manufacturing and is multidisciplinary. It is accountable for effectively transforming input to outputs

given that it delivery-focused. The inputs for production include human resources, technology, and

production equipment. Operations management also includes monitoring the relations in a company to

obtain the organization's sustainability (Advan et al., 2018). The features of operation management include

activities linked to the manufacturing of goods and services and converting the material inputs into outputs.

Processes like controlling, leading, staffing, organizing, and planning are all involves in operation

management (Theodara, 2022). The organization of tasks in Tesco is done with the help of operation

management. Some of the importance of operation management are explained below;

 Inventory management: Operation management controls the inventory in an organization and causes

effectively conservers the economic resources in it. The inventory at Tesco is therefore reduced with

the help of operation management.

 Cost Reduction: There is a reduction in wastage of the funds of the company with the use of

operation management which discards the irrelevant and unnecessary procedures that could have

occurred at the production line.

 Optimization of Resources availed: Tesco can optimally use the resources they have and different

techniques and tools are put to work, for instance, statistical analysis, and linear programming.

 Administration of the Suppliers: With the use of operations management, the managers can know

their suppliers, and keep a record of the distribution centers, customers, warehouse, and the number

of networks they have.

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 Quality management: Operations management cause effectiveness and efficiency factors into the

operation of company activities. It converts the working principles of the company by presenting the

concept of quality management which is vital in satisfying the needs of the customers.

PRINCIPLES OF OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT.

Operations management has 10 principles which are explained below;

Reality: The overall problem in the organization should be given attention but not focusing on the techniques

and tools only (Theodara, 2022). This is done because no tool or technique can fully solve the problem faced

by the company.

Organization: Inside the company, all things are normally interrelated. The features that are interrelated

ought to be predictable and consistent if not the activities being executed may not be profitable to the

company.

Humility: The process of try and error is very expensive as it may affect the profitability of the business. A

company needs to know its limits so that it saves time and money to be in the provision of goods and services

to the customers.

Success: The success of a company is providing what is needed by the customers and satisfying their needs at

prices that are fair to them. The success of Tesco is therefore determined by how happy their customers are.

Accountability: Running a business required one to be accountable for the processes they execute in the

company. While an individual is doing the activities of the company, they ought to be frequently whether the

goals of the company are being met. The CEO is the overall head of operation in the business and all other

members are under his supervision (Almahirah, 2022). Different people in various positions in Tesco carry out

particular operations that suit their capability and skill to ensure the proper running of business operations.
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Causality: Problems that occur in a company always have a cause from which they result. To avoid the

occurrence of the problem, one has to eliminate the causes as well. A lack of understanding of markets is a

great challenge in retailing. It becomes a challenge when a new need of the customers enters a market; they

may not develop a strategy as per the regional culture. This is another challenge that reduces the ability to

develop market segments. For establishing retail stores in a new market, understanding and knowledge are a

few important aspects. The operations management provides effective information about the market trends

from information about market demographics and various tools that can help reach more customers in the

target market (Ahmed, 2021). It is therefore important for retailing to know the needs of customers before

they stock items.

Fundamentals: The Pareto Rule of Efficiency is applied in operations management, that is to say, the 80/20

rule. This means that 80% of the company's progress is obtained from contemporary activities and 20% from

the application of novel techniques (Adwan et al., 2018).

Variance: The variance in the operation of activities in a company ought to encourage creativity and permit a

better response to problems that the company is facing.

Managed passion: A company needs to have employees that are passionate about their work as the

motivation they have is directly important for the company. Therefore, motivating the workers of the

company is very important.

Change: Normally, changing the way things are done is beneficial to the company. The constantly changing

needs of the customers necessitate varying the way of hailing different circumstances in the company to keep

the customers satisfied. New entrants require effective market operations to minimize the barriers related to

exclusive dealings. Expertise in dealings is acquired from proper operations management as it sets the

strategies to cope with the changing needs of the customers. It depends on the behavior or leadership role of
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the new entrants as they can establish a flexible system that can be settled in a new environment without

facing structure-based challenges (PENDLETON, 2012). Adopting new market strategies is necessary to sell in

the market due to demographic and cultural needs. The demographic factors are of great value in terms of

human resources and the supply chain of the products.

THE EXTENT TO WHICH OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT MEETS THE NEEDS OF TESCO.

Most companies need someone to oversee the activities done in it to maximum efficiency. In Tesco,

operations management ensures that the customers' needs are met to keep the company relevant. The

operation manager needs to have good communication skills, knowledge of business, and forecasting of the

things needed to achieve the business objectives. Operations management at Tesco involves auditing to trace

the progress of the company in attaining the set objectives. Auditing is very important in operations

management to effectively run a retail business (Webster, 2022). The term audit is a common term in the

world of business in both small businesses and big organizations. This is the process of inspection or

examination of the different books of accounts, followed by checking the inventory physically by an auditor

to see that all the departments are following the right channel which is a well-documented system of

allocating funds and to make sure that all the transactions which are made are recorded. The process of

auditing is done to make sure that there is accuracy in allocating the funds in the company and that the

financial statements match the amounts that are used (Bennett, 2021). There are three types of financial

audits, these are internal audits, external audits and internal revenue service (IRS) audits. All three find their

work in making sure that the financial records in the company are ascertained and match the amount of

money that was used physically, meaning there is no financial mismatch in the company. Certified Public

Accounting is the kind of auditors that do perform external audits and the result is always included in the

audit report. An external audit includes reviews of both internal controls of the company and the financial

statements of the company.

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Therefore, employing an external auditor is necessary for strengthening Tesco, especially in areas of

government compliance since it is a multinational company. This is so because it is the work of an external

auditor to determine areas that are not complying with the regulations of the government so that corrective

measures are taken.

Proper operation management can help the company to attain capital for business activities (Reiss, 2007).

Some of the significant factors that are obtained with the help of operations management in the company

are;

1. The capital required; Without having the capital required for business activities, it is difficult to

manage to penetrate the market. Capital here not only means cash but also buildings, land, and also

network. The networks in this case are created as a result of proper operations management.

2. The scope and economies of scale. These are major elements in the business industry. They are the

determinants of any business' success. Without proper operations management, economies of scale

are considered to be a significant barrier and hence limiting the entry into the retailing business.

3. The regulatory and administrative requirements are very crucial are achievable if the operations

management applied in a company is proper.

The requirements met by the operations management at Tesco include the following;

Designing the processing involved in retailing of, merchandise at different Tesco outlets. Process design

involves formulations of novel procedures that deal with the needs of the company effectively. The

operations manager at Tesco designs the novel accounting system that is meant to determine the expense

that the company makes as well as its revenues (Team I. E., 2021).

Carrying out the standard management activities. The activities of this nature include day-to-day

management practices like maintenance, employee oversight, and budgeting. The operations manager

creates schedules for maintenance of working areas with precise and clear checklists that the employees can
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use.

Optimization and improvement of the processes involved in retailing through evaluating the various steps

that are involved in retailing at Tesco. The operations manager ensures that the resources available are used

rightly and for the right purposes.

Supervising the employees; The operations manager at Tesco oversees the work done by the employees to

ensure that their work is possible and efficient. For instance, the operations managers ensure that the

packaging of the products needed by customers is done rightly (Team I. E., 2021).

The operations manager does strategic planning at Tesco. Strategic planning is very important in a business to

ensure that it retains its relevance and even new clients for its products or services.

Interacting with different departments in Tesco to determine what they need to improve the productivity of

the company. The operations manager should first find out what takes place in another department before

deciding on the entire company.

TASK 2.

In a company, continuous improvement is a tradition that ensures that all the workers in a company focus on

how to achieve the goals of the company (Grenzfurtner et al., 2020). Therefore, the workers ought to

contribute ideas they think can be implemented to improve the efficiency of the company operations, avoid

participating in unproductive work, and analyze the contemporary practices to know where to improve.

Most businesses today apply Toyota's kaizen to improve the activities done in companies. Kaizen implies

changing something for the better by focusing on the employees of the company. Continuous improvement

involves reducing waste, increasing the quality, and improving processes. Every individual has an idea that is

beneficial to the company. A company that used continuous improvement welcomes ideas from all the

people in the company (Mokhtar et al., 2021). In such companies, employees are encouraged to give ideas on
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the things they think are challenges to them and hinder them from working effectively in the company. When

the employers give the workers a chance to take part in decision-making, the employees look at what will

improve their work and can easily implement changes to improve the state of the company. A company

needs to allow the application of updates to the processes involved (SLACK, 2013). Different companies build

routines and processes as time goes by. Some routines take time before they become beneficial to the

company even after the company has adopted them for use. Unlike a company that changes its organization

to incorporate the ideas of its workers, it may never know what its employees are capable of.

The lean principles of continuous improvement.

Some of the principles of continuous improvement include the following (I-nexus, 2021);

1. The power originates in the why.

In continuous improvement, one has to ensure that his point is understood by everyone concerned. If the

point is not understood, then considerable time should be taken n in explain to members why something

needs to be done.

2. The customer is the main important asset to the company.

In business dealings, the customer ought to be given priority since they are the ones that determine the

profitability of the company (Taouab et al., 2019). When a customer suggests something regarding the

products and services it should be incorporated into the planning of different business activities. It is

important for the company to know the needs of the customers and satisfy them to remain relevant.

3. The people that do the work know the best answer to the challenges that the company is facing.

Engaging the employees is important for the company to get the ideas that the employees have towards the

achievement of the goals of the company.

4. Facts not opinions.

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Continuous improvement of given prices should be based on the clear facts, not just the opinions that the

people may be having.

5. Everything is a process.

Improving the processes or products in a company takes time and occurs as a result of various processes that

occur.

6. The repeatability of the procedure and the level of the standard are very important.

The steps must be taken in continuous improvement to be repeatable for replication of the results.

7. Incremental Enhancement can yield big outcomes.

The business people need to transform the way they operate the different business activities for the better of

the company.

8. It's more than fixing equipment, it's a way of working.

Changing the business so that it improves its performance does not deal with what is used but rather how is

it used. Changing the attitude that people have towards work is worth more than simply changing the

equipment or tools for use in improving the efficiency of the company (Caldera et al., 2019).

Continuous Improvement Plan for Tesco.

For Tesco to continually improve upon its activities a continuous improvement model is necessary. The model

is explained below (Plan, 2020);

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Figure 2 shows the continuous improvement process model.

The model of continuous improvement involves four steps as illustrated above. The four steps can be a plied

for continuous improvement at Tesco as explained below;

Plan: Recognize a chance and plan for change. For instance, if Tesco sees an opportunity to invest in like

another country. Planning is very important for the organization to attain the set objectives.

Do: The change that was planned to be done is then done. Implementation should be done on a small scale

to see its effect. Whatever improvements were planned to be worked on are implemented in this stage.

Check: This step involved monitoring of activities that are being done. The progress being achieved by the

novel tools or activity implemented is then monitored to determine the accuracy of the results. If the results

got are the results that were desired by the company, then the novel process should be applied on a large

scale.

Act: The people in charge take corrective action at this stage if any divergence occurs after checking. The

adjustments are made and implemented in the company to attain the goals set. At Tesco, the adjustments

are done to suit the needs of the customers so they are satisfied better, for instance, packaging what they

perchance from the company in a pleasing manner.

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Recommendations.

Customers are the most important to a company like Tesco. Therefore, Pricing and negotiation are primary

factors to improve sales, and they can help increase the market share of Tesco. Tesco can therefore come up

with a premium price, but every product line pricing and segments need to be observed. This is indicating

marketing is a bigger challenge for the organization in a new market. Marketing and segmentation also

involve cultural values because marketing tactics used in various markets are also influenced by religion and

local culture. Although Tesco may not have much time to observe the market trends, lack of business

experience to see the particulars, lack of research and development, and the technology are not required.

These factors are also pressing the new entrants in grocery retail as the giants in the rail store are acting

perfectly to entertain their customers (Mokhtar et al., 2021). Necessary training and education and working

in the field can help to increase their expertise, but this is not possible without interacting with the

association or the buyer groups.

Developing new markets with the help of the latest technology and demographics can assist in understanding

the market that Tesco serves. Today, a lot of business is conducted with the help of technology. Tesco can

use the internet to interact with their customer and improve on what they offer to them based on their

feedback.

Tesco ought to improve the way employees do their services while at the workplace. Since Tesco is a

multinational retailing company, seminars should be held periodically to train their employees on the modern

business tactics that can attract more customers to buy their products.

TASK 3

Applying the project life cycle (PLC) to a given context.

One of the most sensitive departments of a company is the projects department. The projects department is

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the key department that keeps the company running. This is because all the money that the company

generates comes from accomplishing the contracts. Now it's the role of the projects manager to contract

these contracts for a company and also monitor the progress of how the work moves (Barron., 2022). This so

to ensure the quality and to make sure completion is done in time. This, therefore, implies that a projects

manager should be so hardworking since he is the overall seer of the projects in the company.

Choosing an example of a small business based in the U.S can be Tesco plc, which is a multinational retail

company. This means that the company has to keep going and being invested in all the countries as long as it

can find its full potential. In so doing, the project here comes to be the company itself. By identifying the

opportunity that this company can be set up in a certain country and still be beneficial to the company, then I

as the projects manager together with my team will be responsible for all the activities that a project has to

undergo to be a success (Watt, 2018).

The projects manager together with his or her team will always share one common goal. This goal is to always

carry out the project work to finish it and meet its main specific objectives. Before the project kick starts, the

objectives of the project should be well known by the project management team, which could simplify the

better ways of doing that project. For the project phases mostly all the projects undergo are; the beginning

phase, the middle phases (where the project progress is easy to monitor and this can even be seen by

everyone on some projects like the construction. The progress can be monitored by seeing development on

the site, maybe say raising a building.) and here is where the progress is monitored towards project

completion, and lastly is the ending phase (the project ending phase may see a project counted as successful

or unsuccessful once completed).

However, for a project to be standard, it should consist of four stages, not three as mentioned above. These

four stages are the major phases of a project and each has a well-outlined agenda that a project management

team has always to follow when accomplishing a project (Teixeira et al., 2019). These four stages are; the

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initiation phase, planning phase, implementation phase, and closure phase. These phases will always lead to

a successful project when well followed by the project's management team. These four phases represent the

project path that should be followed when handling the project from the very beginning to end. This is what

is called the project life cycle.

As the project manager of this company, I will assume the company has identified an opportunity in another

country and therefore it has to take it up. Since Tesco plc is a company that has many branches in different

countries, the project manager should always see and analyze which country could best fit the idea of setting

up another branch in that country. So, in this, I as the project manager have identified that if the company

sets up a branch in another country say, South Africa, it should be my work to understand how the whole

process should be handled to make this a success. Some stages must be analyzed well to come up with a

successful project.

Briefly, as the projects manager of this company, I will make sure all these stages are followed during the

process of bidding for the project and accomplishing the project. This won't be managed only by me as the

projects manager, but together with the projects team which least but not the least includes the projects

supervisors and the projects coordinator, shall always be active in making sure all the stages are followed

appropriately. This won't only be of benefit to the projects team, it will also create a good name for the

company and make money for the company hence making the company progress in profits hence expansion.

The four phases can be described and explained below (Barron., 2022).

The initiation phase.

This is the first phase of the project. This phase kick starts at the beginning of the project. The most important

agenda in this phase is identifying and understanding the objectives of the project that the company is to

handle (Rossini et al., 2019). This can probably be an opportunity or a business problem. The exact response

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here has to be well documented in a business case. This business case should document including the

solutions or the options which should be adopted. Then still, the feasibility study has to be conducted by the

project team together with the projects manager and under his or her supervision. This feasibility study is

conducted to determine whether all the objectives of the project are addressed, thus the final

recommendation is then determined thereafter. It is during the initiation stage the two major questions

should be addressed. These questions are "can we do the project?" which is called feasibility and also "should

we do the project?" which is the justification (Rossini et al., 2019). These two are very important steps as they

give the company that has contracted the project the limelight to accept the project and do it to meet its

objectives.

Now having attained the approval from the recommended solution, the project is initiated so that the

approved solution is delivered, and thereafter, the person to head the project is appointed, and that is the

projects manager, projects coordinator, or the projects supervisor. At this stage, what is taken as the major

deliverables for the project and the groups which are to participate in the project are identified and then the

project takes shape. After all, these have been reached, it is the duty of the projects manager that he has to

another phase which is the planning phase. This will therefore mean that the project has kick-started and it is

in progress. Thus, it's the projects manager that has to spearhead the initiation process, hence it will be me to

initiate the process of setting up a branch of Tesco in South Africa.

The project initiation process has to take some steps. Four steps make the process of project initiation kick

start. These processes are well described below;

1. Creating the business case or the project charter.

Having come up with the project idea, the initiations step which is the first step in accomplishing the project

should be started. This step starts with creating the business case/ the project charter. This process entails

the necessity of the project and how the project shall benefit the company or the organization. This is done
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by the project manager and the business case or the project charter can be presented in the process. Both

documents have the same fundamental idea that they follow since they are used for outlining the major

details of the project and hence pitch the incitive to the stakeholders. No matter what exactly is used, this is

always the chance for the project management team to demonstrate how important the project will be to

the company or the organization that intends to have it done.

The difference between the project charter and the business case can be well understood in the differences

seen in their details. The two documents typically contain the following details:

Project Charter: The project charter is always used to indicate the importance of the project, what the

project entails, and also who will be the persons responsible for working on the project, all through are the

elements which are why, what and who.

The why implies the goal and purpose of the project?

What implies the project scope?

And who implies project team members, the project sponsors, and the key stakeholders.

Business Case: The business case contains the components of the project charter plus some additional

components. The additional components are (Russel Darnall, 2020);

i. The plan for the project risk and the risk management.

ii. A financial analysis. This includes the return on investment estimate the project is to bring in the

company

iii. Also, the action plan should be included. This helps to indicate how the decision-making shall be done

while doing the project.

2. Identify the key stakeholders of the project and pitch your project.

The next stage is always the process of identifying who is to be the main funders/ stakeholders of the project

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to be done. In this stage, the process should include knowing who should sign off the business case or the

project charter. The process includes the key or the main stakeholders who have to be in the project at all

costs like the project sponsors, the executive leaders, and the functional teams that have to give out the

budget. The main stakeholders in the projects have to ask the following questions;

i. Who is to provide the project resources?

ii. Who are my project influencers?

iii. Who should approve my project?

3. Running the feasibility study.

Now it is at this point that the project has been patched and the company very well understands that it can fit

the strategic plan of the company that suits the project. The feasibility study at that point has to be run to

confirm the possibility of having the project done with the resources that the company has. The importance

of the feasibility study is to let the personnel who is to handle the project know whether the project is to be

successful or not. This process answers the following questionnaire.

i. Do we as the projects team have the required resources to accomplish the project?

ii. Is there a possibility there shall be enough return on investments to keep the project running?

4. Assemble the tools to be used and the team itself.

Now at this stage, we assume that the feasibility test has been successful. At this point, the projects manager

has to start assembling his team, tools, and workplace. Some of the pointers that are to let you get moving

are (Moura, 2021);

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 Having a very good team is very important as it makes the project easy to run and manage. This is an

important factor that impacts the successful completion of the project. It is therefore the work of the

project manager to come up with and select a good team that can easily be run.

 As the projects manager, it is necessary to know how the team to work with is to be organized.

 The quality of the work can also be influenced by the place of work. The projects manager should

make sure that all the necessary infrastructures are there and they can make access the site of the

project with a lot ease. Simply here, the project however much its profitable, the location should be of

emphasis.

 Select relevant tools. Taking a scenario where the team has to keep connecting through

communicating, with the others who may not be at the site where the project is taking place. Some of

the relevant tools in this scenario could be google meet, the Microsoft teams, and zoom. These could

be easily accessible by all the members hence everyone on the team could communicate with one

another easily. Also creating groups for charts like the WhatsApp groups involving all the team

members could be of benefit.

Planning phase

The second stage after the initiation is the project is the planning phase. This is where every activity that is to

take place when doing the project is prepared. Thus, it is the phase for the project solution to meet the

objectives of the project. During the planning phase, the project team has to identify all the works that are to

be done when solving the project. The resources and the tasks of the project are identified while making

possible plans for the steps that are to be performed at each step for producing quality work. This phase is

also called project management (Sharmaa et al., 2018). The project plan acts as the framework of the

activities alongside the time scope that each activity is to take towards completion and the money or the

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budget of each task. The budget for the project is planned and organized by the projects manager after

estimating the budgets for labor, the cost of materials, and the equipment.

The budget is important as it is essential in controlling the cost expenditure in the project implementation

phase. The three most important steps of project planning are 9identifying the work, preparing the schedule,

and cost estimations. The project planning phase not only deals with how best to come up with quality work

but also covers the process of preparing for the hazards that can come along with the implementation

process of the project. As the projects manager, I will be able to present this well to the team members and

all the stakeholders of the project. This is what is called risk management in the project. The risks that could

pose any threats to the project are all identified and their solutions posed. Furthermore, the project planning

phase also includes identifying all the potential project stakeholders and coming up with an effective

communication plan which helps in describing the important information which is needed, and also keeps all

of those stakeholders informed. And lastly, as the projects manager, I will have to document the quality plan,

while ensuring the quality target, the assurance, and also the control measure which should be prepared

along with the acceptance plan. At that point, the project will be ready to be executed.

As the projects manager of that company, this stage would mean that I plan together with my project

management team how we can have the best services for the people of South Africa to get embraced by

Tesco and hence to let the company branch gain a customer base. This means that it would be of benefit to

the company since, in the end, it would generate money from the sales. Also, the costs should be well

planned and estimated so that the company doesn't operate beyond the estimated budget.

The Implementation Phase.

Now it is at this point that the project is transferred from writing to the action. This is the action phase of the

project. The real work of the project is seen in this phase. In the implementation process of the project,

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important to always maintain control and communicate when the need arises. The progress should always be

monitored by the project manager and all the necessary and unnecessary adjustments must be recorded

from the start of the project. This is the step where the projects manager together with his team should be

very careful since most time of the project is spent here. During this phase, people are in carrying out the

tasks and the progress should be monitored well and reported regularly in meetings. The information which

is recorded and reported by the project team is useful to the projects manager as he uses it in maintaining

control over the project direction by calculating the performance of the activities taking place at the project

site.

The projects manager should let the main stakeholders and the main sponsors of the project informed about

the progress of the project, following the agreed time and format. The project plan should always be updated

and then published regularly and the status of the report should give limelight about the project end in terms

of the cost, quality, and the schedule. As the projects manager, the project of Tesco plc, setting a branch in

South Africa. This means that the projects team together with the team leaders are on-site, which South

Africa (Nurwidayat et al., 2019). At this stage, constructing the building that will be used for the business and

identifying the potential workers from South Africa should be ongoing. Also, everything which pertains to the

smooth running of business should be learned like the tax policy of South Africa to avoid hindrances from the

government.

The Closing phase.

This is the last stage in the project life cycle. It can also be called the completion of the final closure. The main

emphasis is put on releasing final deliverables to the clients. It involves handling many documents and

terminating the project from the material suppliers; at that moment, the project resources are released, and

the communication about the project closure is made to all the stakeholders. After all, has been done, the

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last step in the closing phase is conducting the lessons that were studied. Here the team has told what each

one of them learned about themselves. This step helps in sharpening the experience of the team members

that have worked on the project, hence grunting better performance for the next work/ project.

As the projects manager of the company, this will come to closure when the period of setting up the branch

in South Africa has elapsed, and the branch has been set. The branch has to be left working to call this a

success and hence having another branch of Tesco plc set in South Africa, hence being successful together as

a team.

All the above four stages, from initiation to planning to implementation to closure which simplify the project

life cycle, will be implemented during the starting project setting up this branch in South Africa. This will be a

success if all the stages are followed well by a good project team. From the start to closure, it should be

noted that all the participants' efforts were very useful and beneficial towards making a successful project.

TASK 4.

The Project Life Cycle offers a framework for organizing the management of any project inside an

organization. Experts in project management who are regarded to be industry leaders have researched the

most effective way to project management. It has been shown that service-providing businesses must adhere

to a project life cycle. This is because it is essential. The Project Life Cycle is the standard procedure that

groups of people adhere to succeed in their projects.

Due to the fact that the normal project life cycle does not meet everyone's requirements, there is also

something known as the Professional Services Life Cycle, which is not as well-known but is gaining increasing

attention. Certain project managers may accomplish their objectives by sticking to the typical project life

cycle, but the vast majority of professional services need a more comprehensive procedure. In contrast to

other types of companies, when it comes to professional services, the employees themselves are the product

being sold by the firm. To elaborate, professional services act as consultants for other companies in return for
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a portion of the revenues generated by the businesses they help. Professional services are needed to adopt a

unique project life cycle that enables success via the use of a continuous feedback loop due to the continual

engagement of clients. The involvement of consumers on a constant basis is what makes this vital.

Currently, there is not the tiniest shred of doubt about the fact that the service sector is the engine of our

economy. In other words, the degree of complexity of projects will increase as more businesses provide

services in addition to (or instead of) their commodities. Using the typical four-step Project Life Cycle, it may

be challenging to allocate resources across hundreds of customers and projects.

The normal procedure consists of four phases; however, teams do not have adequate time to reflect on their

recent successes or develop strategies for the future within this time frame. Because of how full the

schedules are, there is very little time left over for making adjustments to the way things are presently done.

If a company's life cycle does not contain a phase for feedback and analysis, it will be unable to fulfill the

ever-increasing needs of its customers and will thus be unable to provide quality professional services. To be

competitive in today's economy, which is predominantly driven by the supply of services, professional service

organizations must adopt a new business cycle.

As per the project, the TESCO Project Manager is the client's only point of contact for the whole of the

project, from the initial planning phases through the project's conclusion. Tesco Controls, Inc. has a team of

seasoned project managers, many of whom are certified Project Management Professionals and have

supervised complex projects involving the integration of challenging systems, particularly for water and

wastewater utilities (Sharmaa et al., 2018). In addition to assuring the achievement of project-specific goals

and objectives, a manager who employs the PLC approach is responsible for ensuring the planning,

organization, and management of resources. This is in addition to the manager's duty to assure the planning,

organization, and management of resources.

TESCO's work scope organization is the duty of the project managers, who are also required to engage in the

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overall project collaboration (Nurwidayat et al., 2019). Collaboration with the owner, the consultant, the

general contractor, the subcontractors, the internal team members, and any other suppliers or system

providers is required to guarantee that the integration requirements are met.

The following responsibilities are under the manager in accordance with the PLC, as specified in the

document:

• Managing contractual responsibilities;

• Overseeing the whole project to ensure all deadlines are fulfilled;

• Conducting site inspections at different stages of the project;

• Attending essential project meetings. Providing a project schedule (timelines) with project milestones.

Focused and Holistic critique. The bigger picture of the business or the project alongside the detailed analysis

plan of the project life cycle application. The project is always a big task that, when accomplished physically,

looks amazing and big. It looks all that good and beautiful, but it is because of the stages that it goes through

in the project life cycle that it makes it well planned to look good and well accomplished. The PLC is the key

player in making the project look beautiful and to look like how the company would like the project to be.

After the whole process of the project management team, it comes back to them to see if they have done

what exactly the stakeholders wanted during the initiation process. Therefore, it is out of the focus that the

project manager, together with his project management team, go through to come up with a finished project

which is satisfactory to the customers after it can meet the objectives (Chegg, 2019).

Measurement of the performance. The project life cycle is used for indicating the targets, milestones and

deliverables, performance indicators, and benchmarks of a project. The performance of the project is always

a key obligation that has to be seriously revised before handing over the project to the stakeholders. The

performance of the project comes after the project can meet all its objectives. It's the work of the project's

team to make sure the project matches the objectives it was initially intended to. This implies that the project

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manager and the team should always ensure that the performance of the project is up to expectation before

it can be closed in the final stage of the PLC.

The process of reviewing and critiquing the process.

Using the process of project monitoring and the monitoring tools in informing evaluation. Monitoring ensures

that the project team that is involved in the hands-on work of the project is making positive progress. Thus,

the project manager should ensure constant supervision of the project through monitoring and noting the

progress of the project.

The importance of reliability and validity in the evaluation process. The project team should do it reliably. All

these should be ascertained in the PLC process. During the meetings and evaluations, the team should be

available to give the relevant information needed.

The review should be supported by the help of logic models and program theory. This should be planned

before starting the implementation process of the project. This helps the project team to provide information

that is understood by all the project team, the stakeholders, the main sponsors, and the customers.

Even though the project life cycle may not seem to be very exciting at first look, it is extremely significant

since it is our role as project managers to lead and assist in its completion.

In the majority of cases, the processes required to complete a project are identical: first, the project's

objectives must be identified, then a project plan must be created to guarantee that the objectives are

satisfied, and lastly, the project must be executed to accomplish its objectives. It is possible that various

project managers or organizations may use somewhat different terminology to describe the phases of the

project life cycle for distinct projects; nonetheless, the phases are essentially the same.

Any project must eventually get off to a strong start, and part of that is identifying the issue that has to be

addressed. Also, it is necessary to devise both a strategy for resolving the issue and a solution to the issue

itself. The plan must then be carried out, and after it has been implemented, it must be evaluated to ensure
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that it is producing the desired results. After that, the project is put into operation, its results are reviewed,

and eventually, the project is concluded.

The project life cycle provides project managers with a road map to follow throughout the duration of the

project. It specifies where one should begin the project and where one should proceed with each following

stage. There will always be a reliable structure upon which you can depend to restore your composure and

gather your thoughts, regardless of how chaotic the situation may get.

Outcomes and Conclusions

As Tesco stays relevant in the retail business, the people in charge of running the company make it their top

priority to make sure that customers' needs are met. To be good at their job, the operations manager needs

to be able to communicate well, understand business, and be able to predict what resources the company

will need to reach its goals. Auditing is an important part of Tesco's operations management because it helps

the company keep track of its progress toward the goals it has set. Auditing is a very important part of

operations management, and a retail business can't run well without it (Webster, 2022). The audit is a

common business term that is used in both large and small businesses, as well as in the public and private

sectors. It is also used in both private and public businesses. First, an auditor will physically check the

inventory. Then, he or she will check or look over the different books of accounts. This is done to make sure

that all of the departments are using the right channel, which is a well-documented system for distributing

funds and to make sure that all transactions are recorded. This is also done to make sure that all the

transactions that happen are written down. An auditor will also look at the inventory and the books of

accounts to see if there are any mistakes in either. Auditing is done to make sure that money is being spent

correctly in an organization and that the financial statements show how much money was really spent. This is

done by making sure that money is given out correctly within the organization. This is done to make sure

there won't be any cases of fraud. There are three types of financial audits: those that are done inside the

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company, those that are done outside the company, and those that are done by the Internal Revenue Service

(IRS). All three are responsible for making sure that there is no financial discrepancy in the company by

making sure that the financial records are correct and show the amount of money that was actually used.

This is done by making sure that the financial records of the company are correct. This way, there is no way

that a financial mismatch could happen within the organization. Certified Public Accountants are the ones

who do our external audits, and the audit report is always where the results of these audits are written down

after they have been put together. During an outside audit of a company, both its internal controls and its

financial statements are checked to make sure they are correct.

Because Tesco is a multinational company, it needs to hire an outside auditor to help it get better, especially

when it comes to making sure it follows the rules set by governments all over the world. Because an external

auditor's job is to find places where government rules aren't being followed so that corrective actions can be

taken, this is what has happened.

After the time for opening the branch in South Africa has passed and the branch has been built, it is my job as

the company's projects manager to bring this project to a successful and satisfying end. If we want to count

this as a success, we need this department to keep doing what it normally does. Because of this, Tesco plc will

be able to open a second site in South Africa. This shows that we can reach our goals if we work together.

In order to make the project life cycle run more smoothly, each of the four steps listed above, starting with

"initiation" and going through "planning," "implementation," and "closing," will be done when the project

opens this new branch in South Africa gets started. This is the first step in getting this new branch set up in

South Africa. If all of the steps in this process are done right, and a team of skilled project workers is put

together, then this project will be a success. Everyone's work, from the first step to the end of the project,

was useful and worth it.

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