Project Management: an introduction Short Course

What will I learn?

• Understand basic project management terminology, methodology and the role of project manager;
• Understand the fundamentals of Gantt charts, Critical Path Analysis and PERT;
• Appreciate why projects fail and how failure can be avoided;
• Appreciate the effect of project management on third parties;
• Understand how to produce a project plan with effective budgeting;
• Understand project management in terms of its project plan construction, identification of appropriate milestones, budget, and consideration of effective project review;
• Outline basic tools and techniques of risk analysis and management.

Topics covered:

• Project management and terminology, the project lifecycle;
• Effective project teamwork, managing stakeholders;
• Team development, project stages and project planning;
• Budgeting and scheduling, Critical Path methodology;
• Project control and Earned Value;
• Risk management and effective negotiation;
• Causes of project failure and how this can be avoided;
• Effective meeting management and project closure;
• Making use of Microsoft Project, an introduction (computer lab session);
• Project presentations.

Eligibility

English requirements

Applicants must be proficient in written and spoken English.

Teaching & assessment

Informal assessment will take place through group discussion, class room activities, and questions and answers sessions as guided by your tutor.

Recommended reading

• Portney, S. (2001) Project Management for Dummies, John Wiley and Sons
• Lock, D. (2001) Essentials of project management, Gower Publishing Ltd