Detailed Course Outline
Course benefits:
All projects are under increasing time pressure with quality products and schedule reduction the order of the day. But ill-considered attempts to reduce time-scales can lead to reduced quality and even longer project duration. Project and Programme Managers struggle to balance these conflicting demands. The achievement of the best balance and the production of applications on time and budget is the goal.
With the size and complexity of today's projects, assistance through the use of software tools such as MS Project is almost a necessity. Unfortunately this can add an overhead if used inappropriately.
Effective project management requires the application of sound principles, the intelligent use of software support, and the formal and informed involvement of user and IS management staff. A deliverable-oriented approach based on milestone planning provides rigour and visibility of schedules. Formal consideration of deliverables, tasks and duration and the discipline of tracking the project as work proceeds reduce surprises with the project suddenly recognised as running late.
Controlled projects produce quality products for users and allow IS management to make best use of resources.
This course is aimed at anyone recently appointed to the position of Team Leader or Project Manager, preferably with some experience of project-based working. Senior team members representing the business and MIS communities will also benefit from attending.
Some experience of project-based working is expected.
The course focuses on techniques for planning and scheduling projects, and measuring and controlling their progress and quality.
On successful completion of the course, attendees will be able to:
- Distinguish project from non-project work
- Use milestones to partition the work for delivery of interim and final products
- Plan project communications
- Identify work products and tasks
- Estimate resources and time-scales to prepare and manage project plans
- Assign work to members of the team
- Track actual effort compared to planned effort
- Measure, report and control project progress and quality
- Assess how the principles of planning projects can be applied in MS Project
- Introduction to projects; characteristics of projects; project and non-project work; project management functions; the deliverable-driven approach
- Project planning; planning through milestones; defining milestones; products and outcomes; features and qualities
- Project communications; planning the communications that must be established and maintained throughout a project; relevancy of communication; the communication plan
- Scheduling a project; partitioning projects into tasks; use of standard templates; networks; schedules and work assignments
- Top down and bottom up estimating; complexity, skills and knowledge; metrics database
- Risk management; the process; identifying potential risks; assessment of likelihood and severity; types of response to risk; strategies to reduce risk and to minimise the effect
- Progress control and reporting; importance of accurate measurement and recording of actual work performed; measurement mechanisms; status reporting
Lecture sessions are developed as discussion sessions. Supporting notes are provided as part of the course documentation. Exercises and a case study are used to reinforce the principles covered. The case study is a key component in the transfer of learning and introduces the attendee to simulations of the real world, which are challenging and thought provoking.