Project Management

Curriculum

• Introduction to projects and Project Management

  8 Lessons 40 Min

  This section welcomes you to the world of project management. It starts with the definition and purpose of projects. Next, we define the role of a project manager and the skills needed to succeed on the job. Finally, we cover the key project management terminology.

  What does the course cover

  What is a project?

  Why do companies execute projects?

  What creates the demand for projects? Prioritization and selection of projects.

  Who is a Project Manager? What is their commitment in a project?

  What are the skills and the knowledge a Project Manager must have?

  Projects - a History lesson

  Project management terminology
• The project phases

  1 Lesson 5 Min

  In this chapter of the Project Management course, we introduce the project lifecycle – initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and control, and closure.

  How does a project start and how does it evolve?
• The initiation phase

  7 Lessons 32 Min

  What is the initiation phase? What is involved in a business case? What does the scope cover? How to create a project charter? These are some of the questions we answer in the third section of the Project Management course. The chapter concludes with a case study.

  What is the Initiation phase about - Define the project goals?

  What is involved in a business case?

  What does scope cover?

  Who performs the feasibility study and what does it involve?

  What goes into risk assessment? What are expectations?

  How to create a Project Charter

  Case Study 1
• The planning phase

  7 Lessons 30 Min

  Planning is a critical stage in project management. In this section, you will learn why it is important, what the cost of change in projects is, what to do before you start, and how to perform scope planning.

  What is Planning? Why is it important? What happens if it is not done correctly?

  Why is Planning so critical in Project management?

  What is the cost of Change in projects?

  What to do before you start

  Project management insights

  Scope Planning

  Scope Planning (continued)
• The planning phase - timelines and schedules

  8 Lessons 38 Min

  By this point, you should have outlined everything you need to do in the scope statement and prepared a high-level work breakdown structure and activity list. And this is just the beginning of the planning phase. This section of the Project Management course focuses on another key aspect timelines and schedules.

  How to estimate when planning

  The planning fallacy, optimism bias, illusion of control

  How much to buffer

  Identifying dependencies

  Identifying the critical path

  Using the Gantt chart to plan the project work streams

  Building the project schedule (+ MS Project tutorial)

  How to build a milestone table and its uses
• The planning phase - cost

  7 Lessons 25 Min

  Budgeting is one of the most important parts of the planning phase. We discuss the budgeting process, procurement contract types, how to approach procuring non-financial resources, HR planning, and how to use a RACI matrix to assign roles.

  The process of budgeting

  The process of budgeting (continued)

  Procurement contract types

  Procuring non-financial resources

  Planning HR

  RACI matrix - assigning roles

  Quality requirements
• The planning phase - Expectations, Assumptions and Risks

  4 Lessons 13 Min

  In every well-managed project, it is imperative to plan expectations and risk management and control assumptions. In this part of the course, we go into more detail about these processes.

  Planning expectations management

  How to control assumptions

  Planning Risk management

  Building a Risk log
• The planning phase - Change process

  1 Lesson 6 Min

  Every good project manager and business leader needs to learn how to deal with change requests. This is the topic of this section of the Project Management course.

  Planning - Change process
• The execution phase - Meetings

  3 Lessons 11 Min

  Next, we explain how to organize meetings and manage them effectively and what to include in a kick-off meeting.

  Introduction to Execution and KO Meetings

  What is involved in a kick-off meeting

  Tips to handle meetings
• The execution phase - Project Diary

  2 Lessons 5 Min

  In this section, we explain the action-owner due date concept. A project diary is a document which keeps track of actions throughout the execution. The three dimensions to record are: what must be done, by whom, and until when.

  What is action-owner due date

  Filling in the project diary
• The execution phase - Managing the team and work

  2 Lessons 10 Min

  A key part of project management is supervising the critical path. If it is delayed, then the whole project is delayed. This section covers what the manager must do to keep the ball rolling.

  How the Project Manager manages tasks

  How the Project Manager manages the team
• The monitoring and control phase

  7 Lessons 25 Min

  In this lesson of the Project Management course, we talk about defining a metric, setting a target, measuring performance, and taking action when the target is missed.

  What is monitoring and control

  Controling in a PM environment

  How to check if a project is on schedule

  How to see if a project is on budget

  How to perform quality control

  Keeping the risk log updated

  Dealing with change proposals
• The execution phase - Issue management

  2 Lessons 10 Min

  There are two main reasons for regular status reporting: 1) keep sponsors and senior stakeholders informed about the progress highlighting key issues, 2) keep work in order. To avoid inefficiencies, the project manager must keep up structured communication and coordination.

  How to record and build project report updates

  How to deal with any issues that occur during execution
• The closure phase

  2 Lessons 6 Min

  By this point in the Project Management course, you should have made it all the way to your goal. Now, all you need to do is go through the closure phase. This serves several purposes: 1) obtain formal acceptance of the deliverables; 2) communicate the project completion; 3) reflect on the lessons learnt; 4) celebrate success.

  Why do we close a project?

  What steps to take to close a project?