National Jazz Hall of Fame

1. What is the project Mr. Rutland is trying to manage? Has it stayed the same?

Mr. Rutland's project is to establish a National Jazz Hall of Fame that will include a museum, archives, and concert center in Charlottesville, VA. The project initially started out as a means to save the Paramount Theatre in Charlottesville, VA, however the NJHF soon became the predominant project. While the overall goal has remained consistent since the inception of the NJHF project, several major changes have occurred in the project's short life. Soon after the project had begun, Mr. Rutland and the NJHF Board of Directors found the Paramount piece of the project was unattainable. With the establishment of a Jazz Hall of Fame in Harlem came other changes. The pressure of having to compete with the Harlem Jazz Hall of Fame forced Mr. Rutland to focus his efforts on developing a strategic plan. After hiring a consultant to perform in-depth market research and provide recommendations, Mr. Rutland was able to devise a more focused strategy for his project. While he is still managing the project of establishing the National Jazz Hall of Fame, his methods for accomplishing his project have been modified and are now much more focused.

2. Identify the various stakeholders in the project, including the competition.

Stakeholders in this project include the following:

- Mr. Robert Rutland, the founder of the National Jazz Hall of Fame

- The Board of Directors of the National Jazz Hall of Fame

- Founding Sponsors of the National Jazz Hall of Fame

- The Consultant Hired by Mr. Rutland

- The City of Charlottesville, VA

- Virginia Office of Tourism

- Virginia/Charlottesville Tourists

- Western Virginia Visitors Center

- Jazz Hall of Fame in Harlem, including members of its committee

- Other American Hall of Fames

- Other Tourist Attractions in/near Charlottesville, VA

- National Association of Jazz Educators

- The Jazz Community (Jazz Composers, Artists, Fans, etc.)

3. Of the skills mentioned in the chapter that a project manager needs, which are most important here? Why?

The most important project manager skills in this case appear to be problem finding, goal-setting and planning, and motivating. As there have been several failed attempts to create a jazz hall of fame by other parties in the past, I believe problem finding is crucial to this project in order to ensure that similar or new problems do not creep up on the NJHF. By recognizing and anticipating potential problem areas before they become major issues, NJHF will avoid being sidetracked.

Goal-setting and planning is another PM skill that I believe is important in this case. There are a lot of very different pieces to this project. The NJHF has an educational aspect, a tourism aspect, a musical aspect, etc. In order to successfully put all of these pieces together, the team must remain extremely focused, and be given clear goals and a clear process for attaining those goals. The PM must be able to set firm goals and plans, prioritize, and remain on track.

Motivating is another important skill for the PM of the NJHF project. With all of the different pieces to this project, there is a high risk of