Improving inter-unit collaboration during the project sales phase

This thesis, conducted as a case study is aimed at studying the collaboration between three functional units of a supplier project-based management firm. In particular, the main purpose of the case study is to study how the sales unit, sourcing unit and project unit of the firm share information, especially during the sales phase. Therefore, this study explores what collaboration between the sales, project and sourcing units means. Furthermore, this research also explores what are the information generated and shared during the sales phase, and what benefits are achieved when the units collaborate. This thesis highlights the importance of information to units during the project management phase. Furthermore, this thesis shows how important it is to handle information appropriately and ensure information quality. Through literature analysis, the author introduces existing concepts and collects data through questionnaires and interviews for analysis. An assessment of the existing practice functions and processes of the units was also done. After this, the content analysis methodology was used to analyze the data collected. It was found that in the supplier project-based case company, a lot of information generated during the sales phases of every project is critical and useful during the sales phase and after the completion of the sales phase. Also, gathering information is an important part of the project during the sales phase because it helps to understand the project requirements and propose a competitive offer to the customer. In addition, the information enables other units to make proper plans to support effective project execution. Therefore, another important finding was the need to share the information early enough with other stakeholders, and through the right medium that supports the easy access of the information. Based on the case company under study, it was found that the sales, project, and sourcing units of the firm all benefit when they share information with one another. This study tackled an important area of a supplier project-based firm, however, the data gathered and analyzed was only from one case company. Hence, this study can be used as a starting point or guide for similar research in other case companies. Furthermore, the findings of this study may be used by academic institutions, professionals in the field of project management, and organizations