Hi Paul,
Could you have a look at my responses to the whirlwind bike excercises for section 3 and let me know what you think?
Section 3.4
Political Context – The project is funded by the European Union and therefore there shall be a large number of politically motivated stakeholders from different countries within the EU. The competitors of Whirlwind Bikes that are lobbying the EU shall be trying to influence the stakeholders from their country of origin for support to bring the business to them
Economical Context – There is the potential to enjoy significant revenue if the bike is a success, however the exchange rates if using a US contractor are an issue that shall have to be stringently managed.
Sociological Context – EUCHA believe that by getting people on bikes that this shall improve the health of 500,000 potentially, due to the additional exercise. Research shows that a healthy body produces a healthy mind which can only be good for society as a whole.
Technological Context – Whirlwind do not have the technical expertise and their contractor is inexperienced and potentially could do deliver a poor product going on their past performance. They may have to pay more for the level of technical expertise required to deliver a quality product. The fact that the original founder is firmly against new technologies is also a potential issue that shall have to be overcome by the venture capitalist joint owner.
Legal Context – There is a requirement to comply with EU legislation for the bike safety tests and the insurance arrangements for the bike trials in different countries could be problematic.
Environmental Context – A successful projectcould lead to a significant reduction in carbon emissions.
Section 3.4
Who is the sponsor? – The sponsor for the project is the European Union ‘Cycling for Health Agency’ (EUCHA).
Why? – They own the business case, and also they have to agree the design of the twenty prototypes.
Who else could be the sponsor? – EUCHA could assign a steering group to the project and delegate an individual from the steering group as the project sponsor. The project sponsor would then have a pivotal role liaising with and providing guidance from the steering group to the project manager.
I really like the project context analysis, spot on. I think the EUCHA is the programme sponsor as they most likely have several projects in this area, Zac is also a sponsor as he has a more direct project benefit, i.e. the sale of bikes.