Kellogg

KEL156

MARK JEFFERY

A&D High Tech (A):
Managing Projects for Success
In his twelve years as a technology project manager at A&D High Tech, Chris Johnson had a
strong track record of delivering projects on time and on budget. His techniques for project
planning, estimating, and scheduling had become best practices at the St. Louis-based computer
products company. He had just led aproject team that successfully revamped the supply chain
systems in less than eighteen months. He was especially proud since many observers had doubted
that the project could be completed on time. As part of the strategic initiatives set forth by its
CEO and founder, Ted Walter, A&D was to be second to none in utilizing technology to increase
operational efficiency and reduce costs. The supplychain project therefore received notable
attention in the boardroom and with its competitors. Time and again, Johnson was asked to tackle
difficult assignments that were critical to the company’s growth and profits. He had already been
mentioned as the successor to the vice president of e-business, Chuck Gagler, pending his
retirement. (See Exhibit 1 for the A&D High Tech organizational chart.)In early May 2002 Johnson received an urgent message from the company’s CIO, Matt
Webb. Webb asked Johnson to join him for a meeting with A&D’s senior managers to discuss
taking over the company’s online store project. Johnson realized that up to that point the
company’s top brass had virtually ignored the Internet and its sales potential. But that situation
was about to change. As Webbexplained, A&D’s vice president of sales, Jeff White, had advised
CEO Ted Walter that A&D was losing its competitive advantage by not selling online. As a
result, Walter had made the online store project the company’s highest priority. Walter wanted to
know whether the project could be completed in time for the holiday shopping season, when
A&D’s cyclic business traditionally boomed. The currentproject manager, Eric Robertson, was
taking a one-month leave of absence due to a family emergency, just as he was about to begin
formulating the project plan and make staffing decisions.
Johnson immediately began thinking about the best way to ensure the online store project’s
success. He was concerned that there was too little time to get up to speed on this new project. It
was already May, andthe holiday season would approach soon. Given the urgency put forth by
Webb and Walter, Johnson was already feeling pressure to come up with solid recommendations
in short order.

©2006 by the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University. This case was prepared by Derek Yung ’03 and Alex
Gershbeyn ’03 under the supervision of Professor Mark Jeffery. Cases are developed solely as thebasis for class discussion. Some
facts within the case have been altered for confidentiality reasons. Cases are not intended to serve as endorsements, sources of primary
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A&D HIGH TECH (A)

KEL156

Company History
A&D High Tech sold computer products, accessories, and services toconsumers and small
businesses. The company had its roots in Lincoln, Nebraska, where Ted Walter started its first
store in 1988. A&D’s made-to-order products were very innovative at the time, and were the first
to be introduced in the personal computer industry. Walter emphasized friendly customer service,
a value that was deeply ingrained in the culture of the Midwestern heartland where Walter had...