Project Management
Project Management for IT Professionals
Today’s technology projects present unique challenges to organizations of all types and sizes. Increasing global competition coupled with shrinking resources, requires project managers to make the utmost of those resources by delivering results that meet stakeholder expectations – and to deliver them on time and within budget.
Designed for the first-line project manager or project leader, this workshop covers those subjects the leader must know in order to plan, schedule, and control a project. These subjects include estimating techniques, PERT and Gantt charts, resource allocation, status reporting, etc. All information presented by a certified Project Management Professional (PMP)® credential holder and is consistent with the Project Management Institute’s (PMI)® PMBOK® Guide.
A portion of the course is spent on managing the project manager’s time, particularly delegating and managing meetings. Most importantly, students will learn how to deliver projects on time and within budget.
At the conclusion of the workshop, participants will complete a Personal Action Plan. This plan will assist participants in applying program content in the workplace. The Personal Action Plan also encourages participants to create self-paced learning projects and determine next steps for personal growth and development.
Prerequisites
2 years work experience.
Audience
This course is well-suited for IT professionals working with clients on implementations and navigating issues within projects. The course is designed to equip participants with essential project management skills, including planning, scheduling, and controlling projects. Topics such as estimating techniques, resource allocation, and managing project timelines and budgets are particularly useful for IT professionals who face the complexities of technology projects. The focus on delivering projects on time and within budget while effectively managing resources and stakeholder expectations aligns well with the needs of IT professionals working on client projects, especially those involving technical implementations.
Day 1: Foundations of Project Management
- Welcome and Course Overview
- Learning styles (Insights Discovery Model: Blue, Red, Green, Yellow energies)
- Ground rules and communication best practices for diverse learners
- Introduction to Project Management
- What is a project? (Temporary, unique, specific time, cost, and performance requirements)
- Project Management Evolution: Moving from traditional PM skills to leadership-oriented approaches.
- Practice Session: Identifying real-life projects vs. ongoing operations.
- The Triple Constraint
- Overview of scope, time, and cost, and the challenges of balancing them
- Practice Session: Real-world reasons for project success and failure.
- Project Management Process Groups
- Initiating, planning, executing, monitoring & controlling, closing
- Importance of the project charter and stakeholder management in Initiating a project
- Practice Session: As a team, create project charters and identify stakeholders for case studies.
Day 2: Planning
- Planning Process Group
- Detailed planning: Scope, WBS, estimation techniques, schedule, and Gantt charts
- Practice Session: Create a WBS, estimate time and create a schedule for a case study
- Cost Management in Agile and Traditional Projects
- Traditional Approach: Cost estimation methods (top-down, bottom-up, PERT) and budgeting
- Practice Session: Estimating costs and budget for a case study
- Resource and Risk Management
- Resource estimation and leveling
- Risk management: Identification and mitigation strategies
- Practice Session: Perform a risk assessment for project scenarios.
Day 3: Executing, Monitoring, Controlling, and Closing
- Monitoring and Controlling Projects
- Traditional Approach: Using schedule and cost performance indices (SPI, CPI), Earned Value Management (EVM)
- Practice Session: Perform EVM analysis of a project scenario
- Agile Mindset
- Agile principles, values and mindset
- Agile vs. traditional approaches: Scope, cost, and time flexibility
- Agile methodologies overview: Scrum, Kanban, XP
- Practice Session: Discussion on how Agile is different from traditional project management.
- Managing Change in Projects
-
- Traditional change control vs. Agile’s adaptability to scope change
- Importance of stakeholder engagement and communication in Agile and traditional projects
- Practice Session: Manage a scope change request in both Agile and traditional contexts.
- Closing Projects
-
- Formal project closure: Deliverables, lessons learned, and post-project evaluations
- Agile retrospectives: Continuous reflection and improvement
- Campfire Session: Participants share their biggest takeaways from the course and discuss how they will apply project management skills.
Is there a discount available for current students?
UMBC students and alumni, as well as students who have previously taken a public training course with UMBC Training Centers are eligible for a 10% discount, capped at $250. Please provide a copy of your UMBC student ID or an unofficial transcript or the name of the UMBC Training Centers course you have completed. Asynchronous courses are excluded from this offer.
What is the cancellation and refund policy?
Student will receive a refund of paid registration fees only if UMBC Training Centers receives a notice of cancellation at least 10 business days prior to the class start date for classes or the exam date for exams.