Project Management on World Trade Organization ministerial Conference of 2005

Executive SummaryThe aim of this report is to investigate the excogitate solicitude aspects relating to the humans Trade Organisations (WTO) ministerial assemblage in 2005. This report expound the issues relating to pop out prudence and the impact of the project management practices on the outcome of the event. It identifies the detect stakeholders in the project and the office they had in determining the success/ calamity of the project. This report further discusses the region of the leadership and the efficacious aggroup building and management skills and how much of an impact these had in the successful project deli very.IntroductionThe World Trade Organisation (WTO) Sixth ministerial Conference which is abbreviated as MC6 and popularly known as the Hong Kong Ministerial Conference was held between the 13th and 18th December, 2005 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. The total minute around expected for the crowd was representatives from around 148 cou ntries across the globe. The Hong Kong Peoples Alliance led a protest on the WTO which mainly consisted of farmers from South Korea. The tierce main designated protest zones included Wan Chai Sports scope and the region around Wan Chai Cargo Handling Basin. The total budget for the ministerial conference was Hong Kong $250 million (WTO, 2005).BackgroundThe toweringest finish devising body of the World Trade Organisation is the Ministerial Conference that meets a stripped-down of once every two years. This ministerial conference provides the organisation with the direction and helps in the decision do process (HKPA, 2006). The conference held from 13th 18th December 2005 is the sixth ministerial conference and was aimed at do a decision about the liberalisation of farm plenty and reaching an agreement relating to farm subsidies . It similarly aimed at successfully concluding the 2006 Doha Round (Target WTO, 2005).The division of the project managerThe project manager of the WTO conference 2005 is responsible for the success of the project and excessively ensuring that the stakeholders proportionships atomic number 18 well maintained and that all in all the stakeholders atomic number 18 fitted to effectively communicate and shargon their ideas about agricultural issues (Heydon, 2006).Given that the WTO ministerial conferences play a study role in the decision making process and ensuring that multilateral trade agreements are smoothly implemented, the role of the project manager cannot be underestimated (Alam, 2008). This report discusses the role of the project manager in establishing wide-cut stakeholder relationships and his role in the success of the project.Project Objectives and ScopeThe objectives and scope of the 2005 HK WTO conference was to establishMarket access reduction in the tax of goods Domestic support direct payments to be made to the farmers and local producers Export Subsidies Services remove restrictions international ly in various service sectors and Singapore Issues demand for transparency in laws, fair competition etcetera (UN, 2005)The scope of the project management planning activities included arrangement of venue, security and emergency, organisation of logistics, managing media, budgeting and risk and mishap planning (Alam, 2008).Stakeholder AnalysisThis section of the report discusses the key stakeholders in the HK WWTO 2005 meeting, stakeholder analysis methods to effectively communicate with these stakeholders in order to ensure smooth communication. Stakeholder Analysis is defined as the activity which analyses in depth the attitudes of all the key stakeholders towards a project (Goodpaster, 1991).Other definitions by researchers (Freeman, 1984) include a group of individuals who can shanghai or be change by the graspment of the organization objectives.Key StakeholdersThe key stakeholders of the WTO include the member nations, the vendors, tradesmen, farmers and some other cate gories of trade associations, the media, the public, governing bodies, the international trade community. It also includes the general population and public that are affected directly or indirectly as a result of the agreements and arrangements made by the WTO Ministerial conference committee (Alam, 2008).High Power , High InterestOne of the member nations that holds high power as well as high pass-to doe with in the World Trade Organisation. There are a total of 153 nations in the WTO and the the States engages with various other nations and takes a leadership role in the WTO ministerial. For instance, USA played a key role in the Doha Conference and was blamed both directly and indirectly for holding up the talks and the progress of the sessions. Given the high power and interest it holds in the WTO, USA aims to boost its exports. It plays a major role in the WTO negotiations to enhance its stance in the WTO as a leader and also to use the opportunity to initiate talks with its trading partners like Japan and India. Given its power, most decisions of the trade-rounds are highly entranced by the United States (BBC, 2013).High Power, Low InterestHong Kong as one of the key members of the WTO was the host to the fifth ministerial conference in the year 2005. Though being a key member, Hong Kong has not shown much interest in the activities of the WTO and has not taken any proactive steps in issue resolution of the current issues of the WTO. Be it agriculture or environmental issues,Hong Kong remains to be a silent spectator in most cases which clearly indicates the lack of interest in influencing the member states or steering them to decision making on specific issues (BBC, 2013).Low Power, High InterestThe farmers and the agriculture community worldwide have high interest in the activities of the WTO as the trade agreements that are negotiated and agreed upon have a serious bearing on their financial support and concerns. There is a growing concern rela ting to fairer trade markets, food security and farming subsidies. Though on that point is a lot of interest shown by the farming community, they do not have the power to turn to and hence do not have the influencing capability. The increase in the suicide rates of farmers is also attributed to the failure of WTO to understand their concerns and the lack of transparency and inequality in dealings of the WTO (Long, 2007 Shiva, 2014). Researchers also suggest that there is a lack of understanding from the WTO committee members on the needs of the farmers and the decisions made are not in extraction with their demands (Anderson and Martin, 2005).Low Power, Low InterestThe last type of stakeholders have the least power and are also not very much interested in the activities of the WTO. The citizens of Hong Kong for example, belong to this stakeholder group. Given that the multilateral agreements are abundant and complex, the authorities do not have the cleverness and capability to scrutinise the details of all contracts. Also, the authorities of a domain are not held accountable for the negotiations and agreements signed. This makes them lose interest given that they neither have the power nor the capacity to influence the decision making. Also there are restrictions that prohibit them from questioning the authority (Keohane and Nye, 2001 Scharpf, 2000).Stakeholder ManagementStakeholder management is essential for the smooth communication and functioning of an organisation and also to ensure that the objectives of the organisation are extend tod. Stakeholder management should be in line with the strategic management objectives of the organisation and the type of the stakeholder that needs to be meet should be taken into account depending on the organisation type in order to ensure that these expectations are met. It is essential to first identify the various stakeholders, their role in the organisation, the decision making authority they have in the organ isation and how much their ideas or ideals would affect the success of the organisation. Once these are identified, it is essential to mount a stakeholder management strategy that is aimed at not only satisfying these stakeholders but also helps achieve the overall objective of the organisation (Freeman, 2001).In a multicultural organisation or where the organisation is huge and spans across different continents and cultures, the stakeholder management strategy becomes inevitable. It defines the communication methods and helps understanding the dos and donts in each geographic location. It also helps achieve transparency in operations and facilitates better participation of the stakeholders in the decision making process. Stronger business decisions that are sustainable, long term and ethical are facilitated by a good stakeholder management approach (Carroll and Buchholtz, 2014).Communication ManagementResearchers believe that not all stakeholders of an organisation have equal impo rtance. For example, in a non-governmental organisation which is aimed at helping people, the pubic might be the key stakeholder as contrary to a business organisation which aims at satisfying the primary needs of the shareholders. Hence, in a several(a) world where the needs of the organisations differ, it is essential to understand the primary stakeholders who needs to be satisfied and devise a communication management plan to ensure that the communication to these stakeholders are made in near real-time and in an effective manner (Podnar and Jancic, 2006 Jacobson et al, 2009).Tuckmans Communication ModelBruce Tuckman devised a five step communication pattern in the year 1975.These five steps includesForming Storming Norming Performing and AdjourningForming This is where the leader gives the instruction to the team and the initial coiffe in the communication process. This is a stage where the roles and responsibilities are unclearStorming Brainstorming activities take place, compromises happen, clarity increases and the team members get a basic understanding of what is required of themNorming The team members agree by consensus. The leader facilitates the decision making but the team members are now in a position to agree. The roles and responsibilities defined by the leader in the forming stage are now very clear and evident.Performing The team members are strategically aware and are able to execute their responsibilities and perform better in order to achieve the goals. They work on their own and there is very little interference from the leader. The leader is called for when there is guidance required both in terms of personal and interpersonal developmentAdjourning Also known as Deforming or Mourning, refers to the breaking up of the group after the successful completion of the task. This stage involves identification of good performers, the well-being of the team and also measuring the performance. (Tuckman, 1977)ConclusionThis report gave a brief about the role of the project manager in the HK 2005 WTO ministerial conference and the various stakeholders, the level of interest and the power to influence the decision making of the WTO. Furthermore, this report also discussed effective stakeholder management techniques and methods, communication strategy in relation to the WTO.ReferencesFreeman (1984) Strategic Management, A Stakeholder Approach, Pitman, BostonPodnar, K., & Jancic, Z. (2006). Towards a categorization of stakeholder groups An empirical verification of a three?level model. Journal of Marketing Communications, 12(4), 297-308.Jacobson, S. K., & McDuff, M. D. (2009). Communication as an effective management strategy in a different world. Wildlife and Society The Science of Human Dimensions.Tuckman, B. W., & Jensen, M. A. C. (1977). Stages of small-group development revisited. Group & Organization Management, 2(4), 419-427.Carroll, A., & Buchholtz, A. (2014). Business and society Ethics, sustainability, and stakeho lder management. Cengage Learning.Freeman, R. E., & McVea, J. (2001). A stakeholder approach to strategic management.Scharpf, F. W., & Schmidt, V. A. (Eds.). (2000). Welfare and work in the open economy volume ii diverse responses to common challenges in twelve countries (Vol. 2). Oxford University Press.Keohane, R. O., & Nye, J. S. (2001). Power and interdependence (Vol. 3). New York Longman.Shiva, Vandana (2014) Of food, farmers and WTOs doublespeak, addressable at http//www.asianage.com/columnists/food-farmers-and-wto-s-doublespeak-972 accessed on 06/12/14Long, Jessica (2007)WTO Kills Farmers India Free Market unsnarls Trigger Farmers Suicides, Global ResearchAnderson, K. and Martin, W. (2005), Agricultural Trade Reform and the Doha Development Agenda. 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