After completing this course, students will be able to: Project Management Overview - Define the terms project and project management
- Explain the seven components of a management system
- List and describe the five phases of the project life cycle
- Describe how the time devoted to a project affects its cost
- Explain what causes rework on projects
- Describe the factors that contribute to the cost of quality
- Explain how to tailor project management to small projects
- Describe ways to gain your organization`s support of project management
Understanding the Project Manager`s Role - Describe five key traits that a project manager should have
- List the duties and responsibilities of a project manager
- Explain why a project manager should have good people skills
- Explain the importance of leadership
- List the guidelines for running effective meetings
- Explain why a project manager should not assume multiple roles
Defining the Problem - Explain reasons why projects fail
- Explain the importance of having stakeholders participate in defining the problem
- Explain the elements of the Definition Phase
- Describe closed-ended problems and explain the approach to solving them
- Describe open-ended problems and explain the approach to solving them
- Define what a project charter is and explain why it is important
Determining the Strategy - Define project strategy and explain its importance
- List the steps in determining a project`s strategy
- Explain the approach for developing a list of strategies
- Describe the approach for ranking a list of strategies
- Define risk as it relates to project management
- Explain three ways to manage risk
- Explain how to handle resistance from people when developing the project strategy
Developing the Work Breakdown Structure - Define the work breakdown structure and explain its purpose during the implementation phase
- List the components of the work breakdown structure
- List the steps for developing the work breakdown structure
- List the guidelines to follow when developing the work breakdown structure
- Define the network diagram and explain its purpose during the implementation phases
- List the steps in developing a network diagram
- Explain the AOA and AON methods for network diagramming
Estimating and Scheduling Resources - Define estimating
- List the questions you need to answer to begin estimating a project
- Explain the importance of historical data
- List the factors to consider when estimating cost
- List the factors to consider when estimating resources
- Explain the advantages of scheduling methods such as PERT and CPM
- Explain how to take advantage of project management software
Understanding Scheduling Computations - List the variables that affect the project schedule as well as the rules for computing project time
- Define forward pass computations
- Define backward pass computations
- Explain the relationship of float to critical path
- Explain how network calculations are performed
- Describe constrained end date scheduling
- Explain how to reduce activity durations
- Describe the use of bar charts in project scheduling
- Demonstrate how to determine the critical path of project
Tracking Project Activities - List for variables that must be controlled and monitored for a project
- List two guidelines for controlling a project
- Define the BWCP graph analysis technique for tracking projects
- Demonstrate ability to use graphs for tracking projects
- List the advantages of spreadsheet analysis
- List the disadvantages of reporting schedule only
- List three kinds of project reviews
- Describe what to do when a project is off track
Closing Out the Project - Explain ways that a project can end
- List the tasks for closing out a project
- Explain why it is important to verify and approve project deliverables
- Explain how to handle resources at the end of a project
- List what you need to consider when delivering a finished product
- List the components of the project final report
Formalizing Project Management Standards - Define the importance of having a project management methodology and list what a methodology should contain
- List the types of roles and responsibilities that should be specified in a formalized project management standard
- List the stakeholders who must approve each item in the project cycle
- List six pieces of information that a Process Review Report should contain
- Explain why developing a project methodology is important for ISO certification
Developing Project Teams - Define a team
- List ways project teams differ from other types of teams
- Explain the importance of building teams
- List three ways to foster communication on a team
- List and explain four focuses for dealing with issues
- List the team member roles and responsibilities
- Explain the two components that affect every team decision
- List the five levels of psychologist Abraham Maslow`s hierarchy of human needs and explain why this theory is important for good team building
- Explain different styles of thinking that people may demonstrate on a team
Ensuring Your Own Effectiveness - Develop a list of personal values and rank them by priority
- Distinguish between effectiveness and efficiency and explain why each is important
- Use a prioritized list of values to define life goals
- Understand how the 80/20 Principle applies to personal effectiveness
- List guidelines for speaking and writing effectively
- List the requirements for project management certification
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