Project Management Fundamentals

Course Overview

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, create project plans, choose the most appropriate scheduling method, select and organize a team to perform project tasks, monitor and control ongoing project performance, and close the project upon its completion. Students will also learn how to minimize risk throughout the project life cycle by using contingency planning techniques. This course will provide students with an introduction to Microsoft Project and teach basic principles in how to enter tasks, durations, and apply resources.

Intended Audience

Students should have a basic understanding of the Windows operating system. For example, students should know how to launch an application, and create and save files.

At Course Completion

• Differentiate between projects and non-projects, understand and define the Project Life Cycle, and understand the role of the Project Manager
• Define project goals and objectives and scope and scale, define a reporting plan, and put elements together
• Select the right people for the team, evaluate team rules and procedures, and set up internal reporting procedures
• How to control risk, and understand the work breakdown structure
• Identify the elements of the Work Breakdown structure and its role in project planning, learn techniques for sequencing project tasks, and identify major subprojects
• Include team members in scheduling, understand and read the Gantt chart, understand and read the network diagram, understanding the critical path, define dependencies, identify the critical path, and calculate float
• List elements of a budget, discuss estimating techniques, balance budget and schedule, discuss bringing budgets and schedules into line with reality
• Keep the project on target, monitor project progress, understand earned value analysis, check for deviation from schedules and budgets, discussing ways to manage trade-offs
• Identify elements of a reporting system, discuss a project status report template, discuss a change request template
• Learn elements of close-out, discuss the close-out punch list, help the team deal with change, and discuss criteria for team member evaluation

Students should have a basic understanding of the windows operating system. For example, students should know how to launch an application and create and save files. Students will receive a basic overview in Microsoft Project; no prior experience with the software is necessary.

Course Outline

Lesson 1: The Project Management Life Cycle

What is a project, differentiating between projects and non-projects, understand and define the Project Life Cycle, list the steps and deliverables in a project, understand the role of the Project Manager

Lesson 2: Setting Up for Success

Project definition and scope, defining project purpose, defining project goals and objectives, defining project scope and scale, defining project deliverables, identifying stakeholders, defining sign-off and review hierarchies, defining a reporting plan, creating the statement of work, putting the elements together

Lesson 3: The Project Team

How do you select the right people for your team?, evaluating criteria for team member selection, creating a team skills roster, evaluating team rules and procedures, defining elements of a team charter, setting up internal reporting procedures

Lesson 4: Risk Management

Risk and how to control it, identifying sources of risk and approaches for controlling it, the deliverables breakdown structure (DBS), creating the DBS, understanding the work breakdown structure (WBS), creating the WBS

Lesson 5: Project Plans

Identifying the elements of the Work Breakdown Structure and its role in project planning, using the WBS for budget and resource planning, techniques for sequencing project tasks, identify major subprojects

Lesson 6: The Project Schedule

Including team members in scheduling, discussing the reasons for including team members in scheduling, understanding the Gantt chart, reading a Gantt chart, understanding the network diagram, reading a network diagram, understanding the critical path, defining dependencies, identifying the critical path, float, calculating float

Lesson 7: The Project Budget

What is a budget?, listing elements of a budget, the draft budget, discussing estimating techniques, budget and schedule balancing, discussing bringing budgets and schedules into line with reality

Lesson 8: Project Tracking and Control

Is the project moving forward?, discussing issues in maintaining project momentum, is the project on target?, monitoring project progress, understanding earned value analysis, checking for deviation from schedules and budgets, getting back on track, discussing ways to manage trade-offs

Lesson 9: Project Reports

Types of reports, identifying elements of a reporting system, the project status report, discussing a project status report template, the change request, discussing a change request template

Lesson 10: Project Close-out

Elements of close-out, discussing the close-out punch list, project hand-off, discussing the hand-off checklist, evaluation of success, learning from project experiences, discussing reporting criteria for project outcomes, the people side of project close-out, helping the team to deal with change, discussing criteria for team member evaluation