Tech Musing #1 - Target Canada

Dylan Mango

1/28/2016

MIS 441

Tech Musing #1 – Project Management

Article name: Target Canada

Article link: http://calleam.com/WTPF/?p=7467

1) Briefly describe the main point or contribution of the article.

This article tells about Target’s project expansion plans into Canada and what ended up happening in the end. Target opened their first store in Canada in March of 2013, and just a year and a half later, they reached a peak of 133 stores. Excitement and expectations were high, but Target could not deliver. The Canadian Targets were never successful because the prices were higher than what consumers were expecting and what they were willing to pay. Canadian consumers could buy the same products offered at Target at other stores. It reached a critical point in January of 2015 when Target Canada did not have enough cash to fund the next company payroll—they filed for bankruptcy shortly thereafter. Total losses from the Target Canada project are estimated to be in excess of $7 billion.

2) Show how it is related to the class and topics we have discussed.

This article relates to some of the project management topics we have covered in class. Target had no problem obtaining approval for the project or funding for the project. Constructing 133 stores in 18 months also shows time was not an issue. One relevant topic that Target missed on was one of the Project Management Body of Knowledge areas, project risk management. Part of risk management is not only identifying risks, but also developing plans for addressing risks and mitigating risks. Target also failed with one of the core principals which is being able to identify a problem. Canadian consumers were very clear that they were unwilling to pay the prices in the Target Canada stores. Target should have either done everything in their power to reduce the prices. Another thing they could have done was perform more thorough research before beginning the project, trying to gauge Canadian consumers’ demand curves to see if opening stores in Canada was economically feasible to begin with.

3) How or why this information is helpful to MIS students and/or professionals.

I think this information is useful because I think the problems that Target faced are facets of project management that may get overlooked easier than others. When I think project management, the first thought that pops in my head is: “Can we do it?” The question of “will this project do what we are set out to do?” is equally important. The main takeaways from this article are to react better to problems and be more thorough with feasibility requirements.