Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to project activities in order to meet project requirements (PMBOK Guide, 2008). Using this definition, it is evident that the parties involved in the Denver International Airport (DIA) baggage system project in the 1990s failed to apply basic organizational practices to manage the triple constraint. scope, time and cost objectives. The combination of inherent risks, uncertainty and dysfunctional decision-making set the project up for disappointment while marking it as a classic example of what not to do when taking on a complex project. By examining the key strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, we can develop a basic action plan that would have made the DIA baggage handling system a marvelous model of rapid automation. Challenged by an old and outdated airport, the city of Denver decided to not only expand, but also build a fully dedicated facility in an entirely new location. Twice the size of Manhattan, the airport was to be the largest in the United States and was specifically designed to handle concentrated traffic (Montealgre et al, 1996, p. 4). The master plan included an accelerated build-design program that demanded maximum operational efficiency, which would consequently attract major airlines to choose DIA as their primary southwest hub (Nice, nd). DIA's dominance would fuel an economic boom in Denver, but for that to take place there would need to be a rapid turnover of passengers, making it seem like they needed to implement an automated baggage handling system at the airport. airport scale despite the known risks. . This article critical of the airport would...... middle of paper ....../us_news/Browning, E. (2005, October 15). Exorcising the ghosts of Octobers past - WSJ.com.Business News & Financial News - The Wall Street Journal - Wsj.com. Retrieved May 1, 2011, from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119239926667758592.html?mod=mkts_main_news_hs_hDenver International Airport construction and operating costs. (July 5, 1997).University of Colorado at Boulder. Accessed April 28, 2011, from http://www.colorado.edu/libraries/govpubs/dia.htmMontealgre, Ramiro, HJ Nelson, Carin I. Knoop, and Lynda M. Applegate. BAE Automated Systems (A): Denver International Airport baggage handling system. Representative number 9-396-311. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School, 1996. Print. Nice, K. (nd). HowStuffWorks “How Baggage Handling Works”. How "Science" works. Retrieved May 1, 2011 from http://science.howstuffworks.com/transport/flight/modern/baggage-handling.htm