Project Management Certificate Program

Course Description

This foundational course is aligned with A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK^® Guide) — Seventh Edition, by the Project Management Institute (PMI^®). It begins with an overview of the practice of project management and covers the people, processes, and business environment particular to project management. Participants will learn how projects and their life cycles fit within the goals, structure, and culture of an organization and how to ensure projects deliver value. Both agile and predictive approaches are addressed throughout the course and used in activities. Through case studies and hands-on activities, participants will experience running a project from initiation to closure. The case studies used include planning a fundraiser race event and completing an environmentally friendly seaside resort hotel.

Target Audience

The course is designed for participants who have at least 1-2 years of project work experience, including:

• Project team members, project managers, and managers of project managers who are looking to establish a solid command of project management concepts and techniques
• Experienced project managers who are looking to formalize their project management knowledge and sharpen their current skill sets
• Individuals interested in entering the field of project management

Course Objectives

• Utilize project management terminology and concepts effectively.
• Develop a business case for a project.
• Initiate a project with a vision statement and a project charter.
• Select a project life cycle and development approach.
• Create a project roadmap.
• Organize scope with a WBS and a backlog.
• Create a network diagram to show the flow of work.
• Estimate effort, duration, and cost using multiple techniques.
• Identify the critical path on a project.
• Compress a project schedule.
• Describe how critical thinking, stewardship, and emotional intelligence are used in projects.
• Allocate resources to project work.
• Identify and analyze project stakeholders.
• Develop a communications plan.
• Identify, analyze, prioritize, and respond to threats.
• Calculate the expected monetary value in an uncertain environment.
• Calculate risk-adjusted cost estimates.
• Identify methods to verify and validate deliverables.
• Apply alternatives analysis to make decisions.
• Practice resolving conflicts.
• Analyze project performance using earned value measurements.
• Develop a project dashboard.