In Order To Familiarize New International Students Of Charle ✓ Solved

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In order to familiarise new international students of Charles Darwin University (CDU) with the culture of Australian Aboriginal people, the College of Indigenous Futures, Arts & Society asks you to hold a workshop (which can be considered as a project). The project is expected to be completed within 3 weeks and this workshop should be held in CDU (Casuarina) campus and cater for about 100 internal students and 50 external students. The budget allocated for this project is AUD 3,000.00. Answer the following questions (you can make assumptions in answering the questions). Question1 i) Explain why holding this workshop can be considered as a project. ii) Identify the stakeholders for the project. iii) Identify the constraints of the project. Question 2 i) Divide the project into project stages and explain the factors you have considered to split the project into these stages. ii) Explain how you can control a project by splitting it into stages. Question 3 i) Develop a Product Breakdown Structure (PBS). Question 4 i) Identify the potential risks and the corresponding responses (identify at least 2 risks). ii) Identify the risk response types. iii) Assess the risks. iv) Outline the risk tolerances.

Paper For Above Instructions

Introduction

This paper outlines a project plan for a three-week workshop to familiarise new international students at Charles Darwin University (Casuarina campus) with Australian Aboriginal culture. It addresses why the activity qualifies as a project, identifies stakeholders and constraints, divides the work into stages and explains stage control, provides a Product Breakdown Structure (PBS), and identifies, assesses and plans responses for key risks. The plan assumes AUD 3,000 budget, attendance of 150 participants (100 internal, 50 external) and use of campus facilities.

Question 1: Project Definition, Stakeholders and Constraints

1.i Why this workshop is a project

The workshop meets core characteristics of a project: it is a temporary endeavour with a defined start and finish (three weeks), a specific objective (familiarise international students with Aboriginal culture), defined resources (AUD 3,000), and a one-off deliverable (a delivered workshop event and supporting materials). It requires planning, coordination of people, procurement of materials and evaluation — all classic project activities (PMI, 2017).

1.ii Stakeholders

  • Project sponsor: College of Indigenous Futures, Arts & Society (CDU).
  • Project manager/coordinator and organising team (CDU staff, student volunteers).
  • Indigenous cultural facilitators/elders and community representatives (content providers) (AIATSIS, 2012).
  • Participants: new international students (internal) and external students/guests.
  • Facilities management (Casuarina campus) and catering vendors.
  • Finance office (budget control), communications/marketing unit.
  • Health & safety and accessibility officers.
  • Local Indigenous community organisations and stakeholders who lend cultural authority.

1.iii Constraints

Key constraints include:

  • Time: strict three-week programme window for planning and delivery.
  • Budget: fixed AUD 3,000 limit for all costs (facilities, facilitation fees, materials, catering, promotion).
  • Scope: one workshop event designed for 150 attendees; content must be culturally appropriate and respectful.
  • Resources: limited staff time, availability of Indigenous facilitators, campus venue availability.
  • Compliance: cultural protocols, university policies, health & safety and COVID-related guidelines.

Question 2: Project Stages and Stage Control

2.i Project stages and rationale

The project is split into five stages to allow logical sequencing, stakeholder engagement and risk control (PRINCE2; PMI, 2017):

  1. Initiation (Days 1–2): confirm objectives, sponsor approval, appoint project lead, initial stakeholder engagement, scope/budget sign-off. Rationale: define boundaries early to prevent scope creep.
  2. Planning (Days 3–7): detailed schedule, venue booking, facilitator contracts, budget breakdown, communications plan, risk register and safety plan. Rationale: centralise procurement and logistics tasks and enable resource allocation within the short timeframe.
  3. Preparation & Promotion (Days 8–14): prepare materials, run participant registration, deliver marketing/communications, arrange catering and AV setup. Rationale: concentrate all participant-facing preparation so attendees are informed and content is ready.
  4. Delivery (Day 15 or scheduled workshop date within week 3): conduct the workshop, manage onsite logistics, record attendance, collect immediate feedback. Rationale: focus resources and stakeholders on execution day for quality delivery.
  5. Closure & Evaluation (Days 16–21): debrief, finalise accounts, collate evaluation data, lessons learned, handover to sponsor. Rationale: formal closure and knowledge capture for improvement (PMI, 2017).

2.ii How stage splitting controls the project

Splitting the project into stages provides control points for decision-making (stage gates), allows regular review of scope, budget and risks before committing further resources, and enables early detection of issues (PRINCE2; PMI, 2017). Each stage delivers measurable outputs (e.g., signed facilitator contracts, completed registration) allowing corrective action and reforecasting of costs and schedule. It also clarifies responsibilities and timelines for team members and stakeholders, improving accountability and traceability.

Question 3: Product Breakdown Structure (PBS)

The PBS decomposes the workshop deliverables into tangible products. A concise PBS for this workshop:

  • Workshop Event Package
    • 1.0 Program Design
      • 1.1 Learning objectives and agenda
      • 1.2 Cultural content & facilitator briefs
    • 2.0 Logistics & Venue
      • 2.1 Venue booking (Casuarina campus)
      • 2.2 AV equipment and setup
      • 2.3 Seating and signage
    • 3.0 Materials & Resources
      • 3.1 Printed handouts & resource packs
      • 3.2 Name badges and registration lists
      • 3.3 Cultural artifacts or visual displays (loaned/approved)
    • 4.0 People & Facilitation
      • 4.1 Facilitator contracts and honoraria
      • 4.2 Volunteer and staff assignments
    • 5.0 Communications & Registration
      • 5.1 Promotional material (email, posters)
      • 5.2 RSVP/registration system
    • 6.0 Catering & Comfort
      • 6.1 Light catering (within budget)
      • 6.2 Accessibility adjustments
    • 7.0 Evaluation & Reporting
      • 7.1 Participant evaluation forms
      • 7.2 Final report and lessons learned

Question 4: Risk Identification, Response, Assessment and Tolerances

4.i Potential risks and responses (at least two)

Two high-priority risks with responses:

  • Risk A — Facilitator unavailability or cancellation (likelihood: medium; impact: high).
    • Response: maintain a standby list of vetted local Indigenous facilitators; include cancellation clauses and short-notice replacement terms in contracts; prepare pre-recorded approved cultural content as contingency (Hillson, 2009).
  • Risk B — Budget overrun (likelihood: medium; impact: high) due to unexpected costs (e.g., higher facilitator fees, catering).
    • Response: develop a detailed budget with contingency (e.g., 10% reserve within AUD 3,000), prioritize critical expenditures (facilitator honoraria and venue) and seek in-kind support from the university or community partners to reduce cash outlays (PMI, 2017).
  • Risk C — Cultural insensitivity or breach of protocol (likelihood: low; impact: very high).
    • Response: co-design content with Indigenous elders, follow AIATSIS guidelines, deliver cultural-briefings to presenters, and obtain approvals for any cultural material to ensure respect and authenticity (AIATSIS, 2012).
  • Risk D — Low attendance or registration shortfall (likelihood: medium; impact: medium).
    • Response: targeted communications, partner with student services and external networks, offer incentives (certificates of participation) and flexible attendance options (limited online attendance) to boost numbers (Bowdin et al., 2011).

4.ii Risk response types

Response types used are: mitigation (actions to reduce likelihood/impact), contingency planning (standby resources and budgets), transfer (where appropriate, e.g., contractual clauses shifting risk to vendors), acceptance (for low-impact risks) and avoidance (eliminate activities that create unacceptable risk) (ISO, 2018; Hillson, 2009).

4.iii Risk assessment

Each risk is assessed using a simple qualitative matrix (Likelihood: Low/Medium/High; Impact: Low/Medium/High). Example assessments:

  • Facilitator cancellation — Likelihood: Medium; Impact: High; Priority: High.
  • Budget overrun — Likelihood: Medium; Impact: High; Priority: High.
  • Cultural protocol breach — Likelihood: Low; Impact: Very High; Priority: High (because of reputational damage).
  • Low attendance — Likelihood: Medium; Impact: Medium; Priority: Medium.

4.iv Risk tolerances

Risk tolerances are defined to guide escalation and response:

  • Financial tolerance: up to 10% of total budget (AUD 300) may be used as contingency without sponsor escalation; overruns beyond this require sponsor approval.
  • Schedule tolerance: workshop delivery date may shift by a maximum of 2 working days within the three-week window; any postponement beyond this requires sponsor sign-off.
  • Cultural/tolerability tolerance: zero tolerance for breaches of cultural protocol or disrespect; any such incident triggers immediate incident response and notification to Indigenous partners and the sponsor.
  • Quality tolerance: minimum participant satisfaction target is 80% positive feedback; below this threshold requires corrective action and documented remediation in the closure report.

Conclusion

By structuring the three-week familiarisation workshop as a staged project with a clear PBS, defined stakeholders, and carefully considered risk management, the College can deliver a culturally respectful, cost-effective, and evaluated event for international students. Applying project management best practices (PMI, PRINCE2) and Indigenous engagement guidelines (AIATSIS, CDU) will reduce risk and increase the likelihood of achieving learning outcomes within the AUD 3,000 constraint.

References

  • Project Management Institute. (2017). A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) — Sixth Edition. Project Management Institute.
  • AXELOS. (2017). Managing Successful Projects with PRINCE2. The Stationery Office (TSO).
  • International Organization for Standardization. (2018). ISO 31000:2018 Risk management — Guidelines. ISO.
  • Hillson, D. (2009). Managing Risk in Projects. Gower Publishing.
  • Bowdin, G., Allen, J., O’Toole, W., Harris, R., & McDonnell, I. (2011). Events Management (3rd ed.). Routledge.
  • Goldblatt, J. (2011). Special Events: A New Generation and the Next Frontier (6th ed.). Wiley.
  • Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS). (2012). Guidelines for Ethical Research in Australian Indigenous Studies. AIATSIS.
  • Charles Darwin University. (2019). Indigenous Futures, Arts & Society — Engagement and Cultural Protocols. Charles Darwin University website.
  • Australian Government, Department of Education, Skills and Employment. (2019). International student orientation and support guidelines. Commonwealth of Australia.
  • Kerzner, H. (2013). Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling (11th ed.). Wiley.

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