Project Management Principles

Whether you are managing a small, low-risk project or a multi-million-dollar initiative, project management tools, techniques, and practices enable you to get the job done—at budget and within deadline. You will gain an understanding of how to apply project management skills to successfully manage projects of various sizes and scope using the project management lifecycle. You will learn foundational content aligned with A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) and apply that knowledge to exercises based around a threaded case study.

Learning Objectives

• Explain fundamental project management concepts
• Develop a project charter
• Develop components of a project management plan
• Create a communications management plan
• Develop a work breakdown structure (WBS)
• Create a realistic schedule
• Complete project activities given a project budget
• Prepare for change to a project baseline
• Develop a risk plan
• Develop a performance measurement baseline (PMB)
• Monitor and report project status
• Close out a project and capture lessons learned
• Create an on-the-job action plan

Course Topics

Introduction to Project Management

• What Is a Project?
• Exercise: Examples of Projects
• What Is Project Management?
• Programs, Portfolios, and Operations
• Fundamental Concepts in Project Management
• Project Manager Roles and Responsibilities

Project Origination

• Sources of Projects
• Strategic Alignment
• Project Sponsor
• Project Charter
• Exercise: Create a Project Charter
• Team Charter
• Exercise: Create a Team Charter

Project Planning Overview

• Project Planning Introduction
• The Project Management Plan
• Project Documents
• Planning Process Progression
• The Project Life Cycle
• Development Approaches
• Exercise: Tailoring the PM Plan and Project Documents

Stakeholder Engagement and Communication Management

• Identifying Project Stakeholders
• Stakeholder Analysis
• Stakeholder Register
• Exercise: Develop a Stakeholder Register
• The Communication Process
• Planning Communication
• Exercise: Develop a Communications Management Plan

Defining Project Scope

• Progressively Elaborating Scope
• Overview of the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
• WBS Approaches
• Developing a WBS

Developing the Initial Project Schedule

• The Purpose of Scheduling
• Developing an Initial Project Schedule
• Determining Activities
• Sequencing the Activities
• Activity Duration Estimates
• Calculating Duration
• Portraying the Schedule
• Analyze and Adjust the Schedule
• Exercise: Review a Project Schedule

Assigning Project Resources

• Types of Resources
• Assigning Resources
• Planning and Organizing Team Resources
• Exercise: Develop a Responsibility Assignment Matrix

Working with the Project Budget

• Estimating Project Costs
• Attributing Costs to the Project
• Developing the Project Budget
• Managing to a Project Budget
• Exercise: Developing a Project Budget

Planning for Risk

• Key Risk Terminology
• Project Risk Overview
• Risk Management Processes

Change Management and Project Baselines

• Project Change
• Change Management Process
• Change Management Plan
• Project Baselines
• Performance Measurement Baseline (PMB)
• Exercise: Knowledge Cafe: Performance Measurement Baseline (PMB)

Managing, Monitoring, and Controlling the Project

• Performance Monitoring and Controlling
• Managing and Reporting Project Progress
• Managing Scope and Quality
• Determining Corrective Action
• Reporting Project Status

Closing the Project

• Closing Projects and Phases