Beyond boundaries: a project manager's 70-day journey in agile entrepreneurship : creating a business from ground zero to first sale

Abstract

This thesis explores the dynamic and complicated path of starting a business, narrated through the eyes of a project manager who is responsible for over-seeing and guiding their team towards their shared objective. The thesis aims to showcase teams’ efforts to launch a lava lamp business from ground zero all the way to its first sale within a time frame of 70 days. This story provides valuable insights to the field and demonstrates the connection between theo-retical and practical aspects of entrepreneurship and project management. It achieves this by applying project management frameworks, such as the Pro-ject Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) and employing autonomous Laissez-Faire leadership strategies on a daily basis in the projects. The thesis is broken up into two independent but related parts: an in-depth investigation of theoretical principles and a series of diary entries that document the day-to-day implementation of these concepts from the project manager’s (PM) per-spective. Both parts are interconnected. This dual approach offers an in-depth understanding of the crucial role played by project management frameworks and autonomous leadership strategies in navigating the complicated process-es of starting a new business venture and leading a project team. It aims to act as a handbook that can be used as a manual for aspiring business owners and project managers, providing a substantial academic contribution to the fields of project management and entrepreneurship.