Winning the Sydney to Hobart: A Case Study in Project Management

BA246 OPM
Group Number 5

Group Leader: Ken Lester Bermudez

Group Members:

Avendano, Christina
Rivera, Mary Joyce
So, Tiffany Mancy

Date and time submitted:

01 August 2017, 8:00 PM

BA246 THQ Group 5

Objectives and Scope
The objectives of this paper can be seen below:
o For the students to gain a deeper appreciation of project management processes, of
how it can greatly aid projects, and hopefully inspire them to apply these in projects of
their own.
o Through the guide questions, to foster discussion and critical thinking among the
group members.
o To reinforce the students ability to work in a group, to let them collaborate and
communicate with each other efficiently and harmoniously.
o To allow the students to apply the project management tools and techniques learned
in class, and see if there is/are any deviations from the PMBOK and discussions.
o Finally, for the students to discuss their learnings from a successful project such as
this case.
The scope of this paper will be limited to what was discussed in class, and based on our textbook
Project Management in Practice 4e, and the PM Body of Knowledge (PMBOK).
Analyses and Discussions
The project in this case is the 1992 Sydney to Hobart Yacht race, and has a specific
objective and success measure, which is to win the race. The project initiator was a retired corporate
project leader who had many experiences of leading successful projects under his belt and who had
a new challengethe need to replace his boat and yacht racing.
The initial risks encountered by the project included:
o Whether there will be changes to IMS rules.
o Time constraints, if they will make it or not.
o Cost constraints.
o Changing his current boat and the process of choosing a new one.
The knowledge areas vis--vis the project management process groups for the case can be seen
below:
Table 1 Knowledge Areas vis--vis the Project Management Process Groups
Initiating Planning Executing Monitoring Closing
and
Controlling
Integration Successfully Project won!
raced the
Kodak Asia
Pacific Ocean
Racing
Championship
Scope Opportunity
seen as
there is a
rapid
developmen
t using IMS
over IOR.
Time The Sydney
to Hobart
race is
conducted

BA246 THQ Group 5

 every year,
the day
after
Christmas,
and strong
risk was
seen that it
might not
make it in
time for Dec
1992.
Cost New Zealand
builders were
chosen to
build the boat
as labor rates
in NZ were
significantly
lower than in
Australia.
Quality
Human Select which A crew of nine Morale was
Resource members of who really high upon
the current liked sailing successfully
boat will be and took it racing the four
involved in the seriously were lead up races
new project. chosen. of the Kodak
Asia Pacific
Racing
Championship
Communication The name
s Assassin was
decided upon
for the boat.
Risk Whether The 40 foot
there will be Gaucho boat
changes in by Farr had
IMS rules. not yet been
built nor
raced.
Procurement The need to The selection The
replace the of the 40 foot agreement for
4 year old Bruce Farr procuring the
Pink Boat Gaucho boat signed in
which was design over August 1992
not the 44 foot and boat was
competitive one. completed at
anymore. the end of
1993.
Stakeholder The project
initiator
decided he
needed a
new boat
BA246 THQ Group 5
 and a need
for a new
challenge.

Answers to the Guide Questions:

1. According to the PMBOK, planning is described as defining and refining objectives and
selecting the best among the alternative courses of action in order to achieve the projects
goal and is an ongoing effort throughout the life of the project. Planning is also very project
dependent and according to section 3.3.2, should be equivalent with project scope and
usefulness of the data gathered. In this case, since the project initiator has vast experience
regarding corporate project management planning but little on the area of the project but is
well connected, it is imperative that planning be done as stakes and the cost for the project is
quite high. The project initiator and Einsteins statements are actually in line with each other.
Einsteins 90 percent perspiration not only includes physical activities but should include
mental preparation as well.

2. The project life cycle as can be seen in Figure 2-3 in the PMBOK is composed of feasibility,
planning and design, construction, and turnover and startup. The creation of a fleet of
championship boats would entail more time and effort be concentrated in the
prototype/model of the boat and the actual testing of the boats performance. This is due to
the fact that we are not only dealing with a boat but actually with multiple fleets now, and
reconstructions due to faulty design will be costly.

3. Due to lack of information given with regards to cost reduction, it is hard to say whether
project results might have changed at all. Other components of the project, including the
experienced crew, the great leadership of the project initiator, or the choice of the boat play a
big part on the project as well.

4. By benchmarking against the Assassin project, possible deficiencies can be identified. As an

example, the time and cost spent on constructing the boat can be measured and compared,
the experience and commitment of the crew can be analyzed and differentiated.

5. Issues need to be identified, assessed, analyzed and taken action against in order to move
the project forward. One tool that can be used is the Risk Probability Chart 1 where you could
prioritize risks and their impact in order to allow project success even in times of restrictions
and regulations.

Findings and Conclusions

The project was a success with the Assassin winning the 48th Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race and the
1992 Kodak Asia Pacific Championship. The group believes it is due to the below factors:
o The planning process made by the project initiator, thanks to his corporate
experience.
o The importance of a good project team, who were experts in their own fields.
o The importance of all the four phases of a project.
o The risk assessments made.
o The fact that the project initiator was prepared to abort the project if quality was
sacrificed, showing he would rather take it slowly but surely instead of being speedy
yet losing in the end, showing some characteristics of a good leaderprincipled,
taking no shortcuts, patient, and having a good vision.

1
Risk Impact Probability Chart. https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newPPM_78.htm
BA246 THQ Group 5
Recommendations
The project at hand, by nature, can be approached both using intuition and project
management frameworks. The project manager assigned to this case has a lot of experience in the
corporate and financial field that makes him a good fit for the project. He was aware of the intuitive
nature of decisions to be made in this project, but instead he still followed frameworks in the project
management field which resulted to a great success.
We can therefore say that whatever the nature of the project at hand, intuition and
experience can guide you in decisions to make in every step. But a good application of project
management frameworks will lead you to rigorous and systematic process of dealing with a project
even if it is outside of your field of expertise or background.

BA246 THQ Group 5