BUS353: What is a Project Portfolio Management System Appraise How it can Help WST to Eliminate: Project Management Assignment, NUS, Singapore

Case Background

Semiconductor Industry: Today’s semiconductor technology allows billions of transistors to be packed into a thumb-sized microprocessor to provide advanced computing functions that improve many aspects of our life. The making of a microprocessor goes through several stages, and each can function as a business:

i. Integrated Circuit (IC) design: An IC designer develops an electronic circuit and uses software to convert the circuit into layers of overlapping path patterns of different semiconductor materials.

ii. Fabrication of the IC: A fabrication company uses a machine to project the IC patterns with ultra-violate (UV) light onto a silicon disc. This is followed by several chemical processes to deposit different semiconductor materials onto the disc to form the IC.

The tiny patterns are measured in nanometer (nm). Smaller width permits more powerful IC. Other stages are IC packaging and testing. Traditionally, semiconductor companies operate all stages in-house. However, due to the increased complexities of technologies, specialized companies emerged to focus on each stage. These companies include:

Traditionally, semiconductor companies operate all stages in-house. However, due to the increased complexities of technologies, specialized companies emerged to focus on each stage. These companies include:

i. IC Designers: These companies are innovative at designing IC for various applications. Some of them are located at Science Park in Singapore. They do not want to or are unable to invest in expensive IC fabrication plants. Hence, they subcontract the fabrication to semiconductor plants.

ii. Semiconductor fabrication plants: This industry is capital and knowledge-intensive. Currently, the world’s leading semiconductor fabrication company is CMST which is the only company capable of fabricating ICs with the 7nm process. CMST’s closest competitor can only work on the 14nm process. CMST is currently developing the 5nm process for the next generation of advanced IC.

Mobile Communication Industry

Human life has been immensely transformed by the development of Telecommunication Technology through the wide-spread deployments of 4G mobile technology that enables ubiquitous eCommerce and online conferencing.

However, newer applications, such as Driverless Car System need a faster and more advanced 5G mobile technology. Although there is no official 5G standard being adopted, there are several variants of 5G mobile technology trials being conducted in different countries.

We Sing Technology (WST)

WeSing Technologies (WST) was founded in Singapore in 1990. WST’s vision is to bring fast digital connectivity to every person, home, and organization so as to achieve an interconnected and intelligent society. With thirty years of hard work, WST has become a world-leading ICT company. It has three main aims:

i. WST Telecom arm which develops and deploys mobile base stations for telecommunication service providers.
ii. WST Corporate arm which provides network equipment to large corporations, and
iii. WST Consumer arm which provides terminal devices, such as smartphones and computers, to consumers.

WST has invested heavily in the development of ICT technology and has successfully filed many patents based on 5G technology. Its Telecom arm is working with several telecommunication service providers to conduct local 5G mobile trials.

WST has formed an IC Design Department to design its own microprocessors. One of the designs is named the Lion 9X0 chip. WST’s Consumer arm has launched a series of MX0 high-end smartphones. Its M20 smartphone, based on the Lion 920 chip, launched three months ago was well received in Asia.

WST plans to launch the M20 smartphone in Europe soon and hopes to replicate the success of the previous M10 smartphone there. The Lion 920 chip is fabricated by CMST using the 7nm processes WST has also newly developed the M30 smartphone, based on an advanced Lion 930 chip with 5G mobile capability, which is targeted to be launched in December 2021. Ideally, the Lion 930 chip shall use a 5nm fabrication process

The Trade Sanction

The world’s superpower, ASU Company did not prepare well for the emergence of 5G mobile technology. It’s once-flourishing telecommunications companies that led the 1G and 2G mobile technology had been split up or sold off in the past ten years.

ASU has accused WST of imposing a security threat to the world in its 5G mobile technology. It has rallied its allied countries not to adopt WST’s 5G mobile system. It has also demanded ASU’s leading mobile phone Operating System designer, Toggle, not to license the world’s most popular Toggle Mobile Services (TMS) Apps System to WST’s future smartphone models.

However, the sanction does not apply to WST’s products that have been licensed, e.g. the WST M20 phone. ASU also demanded CMST to stop fabricating microprocessors for WST’s products, after a grace period of 120 days. In this grace period, CMST can supply WST with ICs for its one-year’s needs

WST is in crisis. The management needs to deploy projects to survive through the crisis and possible growth in the future.

Question 1
(a) Organisation Strategy:
What is a Project Portfolio Management System? Appraise how it can help WST to eliminate or minimize the impact of three (3) problems that may affect WST’s survival.

(b) Project Classifications:
WST’s management team has gathered a list of potential projects for evaluation:
Project A: Contract CMST to fabricate Lion 920 microprocessors for 120 days.
Project B: File patents for its 6G Mobile Technology.
Project C: Develop the WST Mobile Services (WMS) Apps System.
Project D: Apply to European Union (EU) Electromagnetic Immunity Certification for its M20 Smartphone.
Project E: Implement Six Sigma Quality Management System.
Project F: Build an IC Fabrication Plant. Classify each of Project A to F into one (1) of Compliance, Strategic or Operational categories and differentiate how the project can help WST to meet its business objectives and social functions

(c) Project Evaluation:
Assuming after the prioritization of the projects, WST management has decided on the project to build an IC Fabrication Plant and named it the IFP Project. It is considering one of the three sites for the plant: Science Park at Ayer Rajah, Central Business District at Shenton Way, or an industrial estate at Tuas, in the outskirts of Singapore. Rate three (3) criteria WST shall use to evaluate the sites, your relative ranking on the criteria, and the highest rated site for each criterion. Your criteria must be a mix of financial and non-financial considerations.