A major national insurer decided to evolve new business development  practices. The project to implement this idea started in 2000 and was  led by a succession of key senior vice presidents (VPs) as part of their  executive growth. Twelve years later, the organization had still not  finished with its stated purpose due to changing requirements, new  ideas, a succession of leaders, and executive ambivalence. This effort  had all the appearance of a major strategic initiative—three hundred  people, a “war room” with a great storyboard, and lots of spokespersons.  Key staff members were quick to extol the great progress made. However,  when the new CEO asked, “Why are we doing this?” there was no coherent  answer.

Result: Within days, the entire program was  scrapped. In less than a week, the project offices were vacant and phone  calls went unanswered. When the project died, no one noticed except the  executives who had been the project advocates. They were out of a job.

For the first part of your post, address the following question:

• Analyze the root cause of this situation. There was a huge  disconnect between project management and the organizational strategy  and strategic direction in this scenario. How could this gap have been  bridged?

Then, address one of the following bullets.

• Analyze the triple-constraints relationship among a project scope,  cost, schedule, and quality. If quality is held constant and the scope  is widened, what will happen to the cost and schedule?
• Explain a WBS created for a project you have worked on. Did the team  refer to the WBS while sequencing work and creating a risk plan? What  was the outcome? If not, describe how the team determined tasks and  sequencing. Evaluate the outcome. Cite additional challenges to a  project that might result from poor work breakdown practices.

The final paragraph (three or four sentences) of  your initial post should summarize the one or two key points that you  are making in your initial response.

Justify your answers with examples and reasoning. Posting should be the equivalent of 1 to 2 pages (500–1000 words) in length.