Project Management

Project Management Certificate Program

• Traditional Classroom: 5-day
• Virtual Instructor-led: Ten 3-hr sessions

This course is aligned with A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) – Eighth Edition. The course begins with an overview of the practice of project management, followed by an introduction to a framework that standardizes project management knowledge and promotes best practices throughout the profession. It then describes how projects and their life cycles fit within the goals, structure, and culture of an organization.

The course is organized by the project domains covered in the PMBOK® Guide: governance, stakeholder, scope, schedule, finance, resources, and risk, and also includes a module on procurement. In each domain, the processes associated with that domain are given individual attention, and tools, techniques, inputs, and outputs to each process are discussed. Participants review and practice creating major deliverables associated with each domain that relate to initiating, planning, monitoring and controlling, and closing a project. There are three case studies used during the course to show real-world application and provide an example for participants to use during exercises.

Target Audience

The course is designed for:

• 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

Learning Objectives

• Apply project management principles, tools, and techniques across the project life cycle.
• Use predictive and agile approaches to deliver project value.
• Explain how projects deliver value to stakeholders.
• Describe key project manager skills and behaviors.
• Differentiate between project approaches and when to use them.
• Explain the role of governance in project success.
• Develop a project charter aligned with organizational objectives.
• Explain how quality is managed within a project.
• Apply root cause analysis to identify project issues.
• Identify and analyze project stakeholders and sources of influence.
• Analyze stakeholder communication requirements.
• Apply effective communication and active listening techniques.
• Develop engagement strategies to support project success.
• Assess and analyze project requirements.
• Conduct product analysis to clarify deliverables.
• Create a clear project scope statement.
• Develop a work breakdown structure (WBS).
• Create activity lists and network diagrams.
• Estimate activity durations using appropriate techniques.
• Develop a project schedule.
• Analyze schedule challenges, dependencies, and tradeoffs.
• Evaluate corrective actions, including schedule crashing decisions.
• Select appropriate cost estimating techniques.
• Analyze earned value measurements to assess project performance.
• Describe agile values and principles.
• Analyze the effects of task switching on productivity.
• Identify common resource management challenges.
• Apply RACI charts to assign roles and responsibilities.
• Analyze and resolve resource conflict scenarios.
• Identify and analyze project risks.
• Prioritize risks based on probability and impact.
• Develop risk responses and contingency reserves.
• Evaluate risk management strategies.
• Select appropriate contract types for project scenarios.
• Develop source selection criteria to support procurement decisions.

Prerequisites

Individuals taking this course should have at least two years’ experience working on project teams.

Course Outline

Module 1: Introduction to Project Management

• Understanding Project Management
• Project Organization
• Project Life Cycle
• The Project Management Framework

Module 2: Governance Performance Domain

• Process: Initiate Project or Phase
  • Exercise: Develop the Project Charter
• Process: Integrate and Align Project Plans
• Process: Plan Sourcing Strategy
• Process: Manage Project Execution
• Process: Manage Quality Assurance
  • Exercise: Conduct a Root Cause Analysis
• Process: Manage Project Knowledge
• Process: Monitor and Control Project Performance
• Process: Assess and Implement Changes
• Process: Close Project or Phase

Module 3: Stakeholder Performance Domain

• Process: Identify Stakeholders
• Process: Plan Stakeholder Engagement
  • Exercise: Analyze Project Stakeholders
• Process: Plan Communications Management
  • Exercise: Communication Requirements Analysis Matrix
• Process: Manage Stakeholder Engagement
• Process: Manage Communications
  • Exercise: 3-Minute Active Listening Workshop
• Process: Monitor Stakeholder Engagement
• Process: Monitor Communications

Module 4: Scope Performance Domain

• Process: Plan Scope Management
  • Exercise: Create a Project Scope Statement
• Process: Elicit and Analyze Requirements
• Process: Define Scope
• Process: Develop Scope Structure
  • Exercise: Create a Work Breakdown Structure
  • Demonstration: Critical Path Method
  • Exercise: Develop a Project Schedule
• Process: Monitor and Control Scope
• Process: Validate Scope

Module 5: Schedule Performance Domain

• Process: Plan Schedule Management
• Process: Develop Schedule
  • Exercise: Create an Activity List
  • Exercise: Create a Project Schedule Network Diagram
  • Exercise: Estimate Durations
• Process: Monitor and Control Schedule

Module 6: Finance Performance Domain

• Process: Estimate Costs
  • Exercise: Choose an Appropriate Estimating Technique
• Process: Develop Budget
• Process: Monitor and Control Finances
  • Instructor Walkthrough: Earned Value Management Calculations
• Process: Plan Financial Management

Module 7: Resources Performance Domain

• Process: Plan Resource Management
• Process: Estimate Resources
• Process: Acquire Resources
  • Exercise: Analyze Resource Conflict Scenarios
• Process: Lead the Team
• Process: Monitor and Control Resourcing

Module 8: Risk Performance Domain

• Process: Identify Risks
  • Exercise: Identify Project Risks
• Process: Perform Risk Analysis
  • Exercise: Perform Risk Analysis
• Process: Plan Risk Responses
  • Exercise: Analyze and Respond to Project Risks
• Process: Implement Risk Responses
• Process: Monitor Risks
• Process: Plan Risk Management

Module 9: Procurement Management

• Planning for Procurement Management
  • Exercise: Identify Which Contract Type to Use
  • Exercise: Source Selection Criteria
• Conducting Procurements
• Controlling Procurements

Course Summary and Next Steps

MDP2020 Course Code