About this Course

This course is a primer on the basics of Project Management. It will provide students with the big picture of how Project Management tools and techniques are used to establish a firm foundation for a project. The student will learn the standard components to a project including key terminology. The class will allow students to create the supporting project artifacts, and manage them through the project lifecycle to its completion. Students will also understand key components of a successful project team including effective communications, behaviors and some advanced project processes including Risk Management.

Audience Profile

Anyone performing work on a project that follows a project lifecycle methodology.

At Course Completion

• Differentiate between projects and non-projects, understand and define the Project Life Cycle, and understand the role of the Project Manager
• Speak to the importance of a Project Charter and its components
• Define project goals and objectives and scope and scale, define a reporting plan, and put elements together
• Learn of the Triple Constraint term and what its purpose is in projects
• Learn of project constraints and assumptions from the project sponsor or stakeholder and how to use these within the project
• Identify common root causes for project issues
• Understand what a work breakdown structure is and how it helps with planning a project
• Learn techniques for sequencing project tasks, and identify subproject relationships
• Understand and read the network diagram and critical path
• List elements of a budget, discuss estimating techniques, balance budget and schedule, discuss bringing budgets and schedules into line with reality
• Learn of project quality, what it means to have quality on a project and how to manage and report this
• Learning what a stakeholder is, who are they for a project and how to identify their needs and manage their expectations through the project
• Learn of environmental factors and organizational assets that are available to the project manager or team member(s) and how they can use these to assist them on the project
• Learn elements of project closure including the updating of project files, saving historical information and performing lessons-learned reviews
• Identify what it means to manage the project as a project manager versus being managed by the project
• Use training scenarios to create project artifacts including the Project Charter, Risk Registers.

Outline

INTRODUCTION

1. COURSE OVERVIEW
2. PROJECT MANAGEMENT FACTS
3. SOURCES OF PROBLEMS ON FAILING PROJECTS

FUNDAMENTAL TERMS AND CONCEPTS

1. TOPIC A – PROJECT INFORMATION
   • Projects
   • The Project Manager
   • Project Management
   • Project Process Groups
   • The Project Management Life Cycle
   • Process Group Interactions
   • Stakeholders
2. TOPIC B – ADDITIONAL TERMS AND CONCEPTS
   • Phase – Project – Program – Portfolio
   • The Triple Constraint
   • Risk, uncertainty and cost of change
3. Activity(s) & Review

INITIATING

1. OVERVIEW
2. KEY DELIVERABLES
3. TOPIC A – STARTING A PROJECT WITH A CHARTER
   • Project Charter
   • Constraints and Assumptions
4. TOPIC B – CAPTURING PROJECT STAKEHOLDERS
   • Identify Stakeholders
   • Stakeholder Analysis
5. Activity(s) & Review

PLANNING

1. OVERVIEW
2. KEY DELIVERABLES
3. TOPIC A – THE PROJECT MANAGEMENT PLAN
   • The Project Management Plan
   • Subordinate Plan Examples
   • The Human Resources Plan
   • The Communications Management Plan
4. TOPIC B – SCOPE MANAGEMENT
   • Know what you will build
   • Requirements
   • Requirements vs. Scope
   • Project Scope
5. TOPIC C – SCHEDULE AND COST MANAGEMENT
   • Estimates
   • Sequencing Tasks
   • Verifying Sequence Logic – The Schedule Network Diagram
   • Critical Path
   • The Project Schedule
   • The Project Budget
6. TOPIC D – RISK AND ISSUE MANAGEMENT
   • Risk Management
   • Issue Management
   • Project Success Criteria
   • Why all this planning?
7. Activity(s) & Review

EXECUTING

1. TOPIC A – EXECUTE THE PROJECT PLAN
   • Overview
   • Key Components
   • Acquiring the Project Team
   • Distributing Information
   • Managing Stakeholder Expectations
2. Activity(s) & Review

MONITORING AND CONTROLLING

1. OVERVIEW
   • Key Deliverables
2. TOPIC A – MONITORING PROJECT QUALITY
   • Project Quality Management
   • Quality Assurance
   • Quality Control
   • Tools and Techniques
   • Control Chart
   • Other Quality Tools
3. TOPIC B – MONITORING PROJECT SCHEDULE PERFORMANCE
   • Schedule Variance
   • Fast Tracking and Crashing
4. TOPIC C – CHANGES TO A PROJECT
   • The Change Control Process
5. TOPIC D – MONITORING THE PROJECT TEAM
   • Managing the Team
   • Conflict Management
6. Activity(s) & Review

CLOSING

1. OVERVIEW
   • Key Deliverables
2. TOPIC A – FINISHING THE PROJECT
   • Closing the Project or Phase
   • Lessons Learned
3. Activity(s) & Review

SOLUTIONS

Prerequisites

Students should have a basic understanding of projects; how they are started, planned, staffed and managed; students should already have experience as a member on a project.