Project alliancing: Queensland Main Roads

Queensland’s Department of Main Roads has considerable experience with alliancing. The organisation has used the approach for more than a decade under the guidance of the Major Projects Office’s general manager Derek Skinner, who says alliancing is used where appropriate for a major project to provide the potential to progressively wind up the project as the issues are settled and the Total Outturn Cost (TOC) is signed off.

Project: Tugun Bypass, Queensland

To understand what the parties involved in Queensland’s Tugun Bypass set out to achieve for its stakeholders, you need look no further that this quote from the PacificLink Alliance Induction Book:

The Tugun Bypass is more than just an important road for this region. It has brought together friendly, determined people who see this as an opportunity to create a landmark for this region. We are passionate about creating a ‘Journey to Remember’, not only for the people who will use the Tugun Bypass, but also in the hearts of the employees brought together under the banner of PacificLink Alliance.

Maria Skillern, Tasmania’s project manager

For a self-confessed ‘accidental’ project manager, Maria Skillern has more than what it takes to handle big projects. In the beginning she worked in a large organisation on an IT and change project, and since then has shown her skills in the Tasmanian Government in a variety of roles.

Working with virtual project teams

It has become almost impossible to pick up a newspaper or business magazine and not see a reference to the so-called skills shortage. The war for talent, the void to be created by the retirement of baby boomers, and the falling quality of university graduates have occupied both academics and politicians alike.

High on the list of occupations in shortage are engineers, IT professionals, planners, cost controllers, estimators, programmers and business analysts among other team member roles required to deliver projects.

Choosing a PMO toolkit

Theoretically at least, a good project manager should only need a pencil and paper to control his or her project. Anyone with memories of the ‘good old days’, calculating a 1,000-task CPM network by hand, would probably dispute this and remember their joy at discovering project management software.

Managing stakeholders in infrastructure projects

Not so long ago, stakeholder management was merely about dealing with various parties’ issues as they arose. There was a vague understanding of the people involved and if a problem occurred, the project manager would cross that bridge when the time came.

Lately, stakeholder management has become more sophisticated, taking up a greater amount of time and effort up front. Recognising that people are the project is the first step towards stakeholder engagement. Beyond that, it’s a way to ensure that issues are heard at the beginning so that they can be addressed in the project plan and realised as a benefit upon closure.

Danielle Toon, Indigenous community program manager

The story of Danielle Toon, a young corporate worker who built an education program, changed an Indigenous community—and government policy.
To see Aboriginal children pick up a teaching manual and pretend they are the teacher confidently delivering lesson content is fantastic,” says Danielle Toon, who manages the Every Child is Special (ECIS) Education Unit at Cape York Partnerships.

Alliancing benefits and challenges in infrastructure projects

Alliance contracting offers an unprecedented way to create a strong synergy between partners to deliver a project too complex for traditional ‘hard dollar’ procurement and delivery methods. It brings together several organisations including the client, such as a government infrastructure agency or utility; and non-owner participants such as a civil engineering firm and a constructor, as well as technical specialists as required.