Project management training - multimedia cd-rom & candidate workbook

Module 1 - Organizing Projects
‘Organizing Projects’ is the first 5-hour module of this Project Management course. Here candidates will discover how project based working differs from the normal organizational style and learn proven methods for introducing it without tears. They will find out how to: tailor the framework to suit the needs of each project; apply effective matrix management principles; recognize and address the conflicting demands placed on project team members and how to schedule their involvement throughout the project life-cycle. The approach is infinitely scaleable – from the smallest of projects to the largest and includes detailed explanations of how to utilize both full and part-time resources within a matrix management environment.
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Study Area 1 - Introduction
	Introduction - Describes how the communication paths within traditional organizations are often complex and inefficient and how project based working can be used to introduce flexible and adaptive working practices.
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Study Area 2 - The Project Environment
	Project Management - Describes the key factors that contribute to the creation of successful project management environments, how the needs of each individual project should shape the management structure put in place and why even the most high profile and well funded projects often under-perform.
	Matrix Management - Describes the problems and opportunities that appear when a traditional vertical management structure is complemented by temporary horizontal structures (projects) and the key components that are required to create an effective matrix management environment.
	Line Management Issues - Answers the problems raised when, in addition to having their own individual workload, line managers are obliged to spend time addressing project related issues.
	Sources of Conflict - In a project environment, conflict is an inevitable consequence of the flexible working ethos. This section describes how to identify sources of conflict and take action to pre-empt it, or resolve it if it should arise.
	Management Structures - This section details the types of management organization that are appropriate to projects of different sizes and how the theoretical organizational structure of each individual project should be tempered by real world requirements.
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Study Area 3 - Management Framework
	Commissioning of the Project - Explains the duties of the body responsible for commissioning and funding the project, which may either be an entity within the organization or an external agent.
	Ownership of the Project - Describes the appointment of a senior management body to take 'ownership' of the project, undertaking high level monitoring of the projects overall direction and achievements.
	Senior Management Roles - Describes in detail the responsibilities of senior management with regard to ensuring that the project is clearly defined and specified, properly managed throughout its life cycle and brought to a controlled end.
	The Project Manager - Explains the role of the project manager including: planning at the project and sub-project level, exercising control, ensuring product delivery and effective people management.
	The Sub-project Manager - Explains how the use of sub-project managers can add a great deal of flexibility to the management of the project, exploiting skills best suited to each sub-project.
	The Task Leader - Details the appointment of task leaders on the basis of an appropriate skills profile, the role of the task leader and their effect on the overall performance of the project.
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Study Area 4 - Managing the Life Cycle
	Project Life-Cycles - Describes project life-cycles, which divide the project into a series of phases, the five phase life-cycle model and how this can be simplified for the purpose of applying formal organizational processes.
	Managing Project Initiation - Introduces and explains the key components of the project initiation phase and shows how senior management can ensure that the project is clearly defined and specified.
	Managing Project Activities - Explains the importance of the project owner and project manager continually monitoring the project against its business case and plans to ensure that it remains viable and on-schedule.
	Managing Project Closure - Describes the project closure processes, ensuring that the outcome is checked against the objectives detailed in the project initiation document and the importance of scheduling a post-implementation review.
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Study Area 5 - Motivating the Team
	Project Team Fundamentals - Describes the importance of recruiting team members who are willing to function effectively in the project environment, recognizing the common sources of anxiety among new team members and tackling this as early as possible.
	Personnel Issues - It is human nature to resist change and this section explains how staff concerns should be discussed and addressed at the start of each project initiative.
	Motivating Team Members - Discusses the importance of developing a climate of open and frank communication to produce a more effective and efficient project environment and a series of factors that can be used to encourage staff to join a new project team.
	Creating a Project Office - Describes why project oriented organizations may maintain a full-time dedicated project resource, the practical duties of the project office and their role in collecting, analyzing and disseminating project information.
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Module 2 - Planning Projects
‘Planning Projects’ is the second 5-hour module in this Project Management course. It will teach candidates all of the practical techniques needed to carry out the appropriate degree of planning for projects of any size. They will find out how to: involve the relevant team members throughout the planning process; select a planning architecture that ideally suits the needs of each new project; carry out effective scheduling of all of the resources required by the project and develop detailed plans that incorporate PERT charts and critical path analysis. The approach is infinitely scaleable – from the smallest of projects to the largest and includes detailed explanations of how to select and apply precisely the right degree of planning, and set of plans, to each project initiative.
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Study Area 1 - Introduction
	Introduction - Introduces a standard series of diagrams and documents that are essential for effective project planning together with a detailed but flexible planning architecture that can be adapted to suit the needs of projects of any size.
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Study Area 2 - Basic Planning Principles
	Identifying the Products - This section introduces the main processes that comprise an effective approach to project planning, based upon the production of clearly identified and specified deliverables.
	Introducing Planning Diagrams - Demonstrates the application of a series of planning diagrams and documentation to support efficient product based planning.
	Work Breakdown Structures - Highlights the importance of the work breakdown structure in providing the framework on which costs and project performance can be monitored.
	Product Descriptions - Introduces the product description which describes the purpose, form and components of a product and shows how these diagrams and describes how help in the production of accurate estimates of the resources required by the project.
	Product Flow Diagrams - This section explains the product flow diagram, which shows the dependencies, derivation and production sequence of the products required by the project.
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Study Area 3 - Scheduling Project Activities
	Introducing PERT Charts - Describes how the PERT chart, or activity network, is developed by using the information in the product flow diagram in order to devise an accurate, flexible and practical estimate of the resources needed.
	Drawing PERT Charts - This section demonstrates the identification of any slack time within the PERT chart, and how this can be used to introduce flexibility into the production sequence.
	Analyzing PERT Charts - Shows how to identify the critical path; that sequence of activities which will take the longest time, and how to use the PERT chart to calculate the total float and free float available.
	Resource Planning - This section describes the effective scheduling of the skills and resources necessary in order to deliver the required products, and the processes of resource aggregation, leveling and smoothing; which together should ensure that the project makes optimum use of the resources available.
	Presenting to Senior Management - Describes a variety of ways in which project data can be summarized and presented to senior management; including the derivation of Gantt charts and histograms.
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Study Area 4 - Structuring Project Plans
	Selecting a Suitable Framework - Describes the selection of an appropriate planning framework to ensure effective planning and control of each project.
	Project Plans - Highlights the role of the project plans - which provide a high level summary of the project and are used to gain formal approval and funding for the project.
	Sub-project Plans - Where required, these plans are used to highlight the planned activities and production schedules relating to specific sub-divisions of the project; showing a greater level of detail than the high level project plans.
	Understanding Tolerances - How project tolerances define performance limits within which different areas of the project can retain autonomy, and how the tolerance reporting paths should reflect the organizational structure within which the project is operating.
	Remedial Plans - Describes the use of remedial plans to address situations where tolerance violations for the project or sub-project are anticipated.
	Detailed Plans - These low-level plans are used to provide a greater level of detail about a specific activity and create a practical source of reference for project staff working on complex or critical activities.
	Individual Work Plans - This section describes the content and derivation of these lowest level plans, which can be used to define the tasks and responsibilities of a specific team member.
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The Commercial License costs only $595 and enables unlimited use of the multimedia CD-ROM & Candidate Workbook within your organization.

Candidates learn how to	... Identify organizational structures suitable for any project initiative Set up and lead a team focused on project based working Create realistic plans that incorporate all aspects - from design to quality review Address the daily requirements of project monitoring & control Identify when a project is failing to deliver and turn it around Become proficient in all aspects of project management within 15 hours of study



Deliver first-class Project Management training NOW! This Project Management self-development program will equip candidates with the knowledge, skills and confidence to set up and manage projects within any working environment. Already in use in many of the Worlds leading organizations, this well proven course is fully accredited by the Association for Project Management and the National Computing Center.

Module 3 - Controlling Projects
‘Controlling Projects’ is the final 5-hour module in this Project Management course. It will teach candidates all of the practical techniques needed to design and implement the optimum monitoring & control mechanisms for projects of any size. They will find out how to: Select and apply a practical and effective series of project controls to each project; integrate appropriate quality assurance procedures into all phases of the project; implement effective reporting and change control regimes for each project initiative; schedule the involvement of project team members at each control point and apply proven techniques, including variance analysis and EVA to accurately monitor progress against the plans. The approach is infinitely scaleable – from the smallest of projects to the largest and includes detailed explanations of which monitoring and control mechanisms should be applied, and to what extent.
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Study Area 1 - Introduction
	Introduction - Explains the importance of applying effective control mechanisms to ensure that project costs are controlled, and how to tailor the control framework to reflect the size and complexity of each project.
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Study Area 2 - Project Control Framework
	Designing Management Controls - Introduces a flexible management control framework that can be tailored to suit the needs of projects of any size, and describes the implementation of each review and report needed to ensure that the project maintains its business integrity.
	Designing Product Controls - This section provides an overview of a series of product controls designed to ensure the accurate and timely delivery of the products required by the project.
	Planning Effective Controls - Illustrates the importance of accurate project estimates, thorough planning and accurate reporting of progress against the plans, and describes the relevance of this to the work breakdown structure.
	Resource Control - Explains why cost data collection and reporting are of fundamental importance to any project control system, and how project control is based on periodic comparison of the actual cost of work performed to that budgeted
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Study Area 3 - Data Collection & Analysis
	Data Collection - Highlights the importance of collecting progress data objectively, so that project management staff have a true picture of the status of the project. It also describes how to specify a cost effective data collection regime that reflects the size and scope of the project.
	Over-Reporting - This section illustrates why it is often difficult for a project team to admit that reported progress has been exaggerated, and how management can act to minimize this problem.
	Calculating Variance - Describes the identification and analysis of the difference between the costs detailed in the plans and the actual costs incurred by the project.
	Earned Value Analysis - Introduces this variance based approach to measuring the progress of a project and explains how this approach overcomes many of the intrinsic delays associated with variance analysis.
	EVA Curves - This section explains the plotting of cumulative cost curves and the use of these curves to establish key project performance parameters.
	EVA Indices - Describes two key performance indicators that can be derived from earned value analysis and three other practical measures for monitoring project performance.
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Study Area 4 - Assuring Project Quality
	Defining Quality - Describes the application of quality assurance procedures to the project via detailed planning of an appropriate quality control regime.
	Quality Planning - This section describes the incorporation of the quality related activities into the PERT chart and the importance of using objective quality criteria.
	Quality Control - Ensuring that the required qualities are built into all of the products and how this can be exercised via change control procedures, quality reviews, project reviews and by the testing of products.
	Quality Reviews - Details a formal three-phase quality review mechanism and describes the key roles and responsibilities of all relevant staff throughout this process.
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Study Area 5 - Project Change Control
	Controlling Change - Describes a proven method for controlling change, from problem identification, to analysis and the taking of appropriate action.
	Change Control Forms - This section describes the use of standard change control forms to raise all project concerns and their subsequent analysis and classification.
	Configuration Management - Explains how configuration management can be applied to control of an evolving set of products and project documentation and verify that actual progress is in line with that being reported.
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GetAhead Multimedia CD-Roms
This multimedia CD-Rom represents approximately 15 hours of interactive study and is equivalent to a 5-day instructor led course. It is made up of self contained sections, each representing approximately 15 minutes of training, giving you the flexibility to either undertake intensive study or to fit your training into a busy work schedule. It clearly describes the underlying concepts which are then illustrated using a variety of real-world examples. It also includes fully interactive exercises, case studies and questions to ensure that you understand and remember all of the key messages.


Stimulating Interactivity Every title in the GetAhead series uses a combination of specially developed 3D graphics, animation and interactivity to create a stimulating one-on-one multimedia learning environment. This course represents 15 hours of intensive training and is equivalent to a 5-day instructor led course. A personal coach (Avatar) will guide each candidate through the course, introducing each section, posing questions and summarizing the key learning points.
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Flexible Study All GetAhead courses are modular and are made up of self-contained sections, each representing approximately 15 minutes of training. Each candidates progress is recorded each time they use the course, giving them the flexibility to either undertake intensive study or to fit their training into a busy work schedule. On subsequent training sessions, each candidate is given the opportunity to recall their personal study history and continue from that point.
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In-Depth Content Each GetAhead title has been designed by experts in that subject area. Each course clearly describes the underlying concepts which are then illustrated using a variety of real-world examples. All of the content is fully narrated and includes interactive exercises, case studies and questions to ensure that candidates understand and remember all of the key messages.
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Course Administration A challenging self test is included with each GetAhead course, to provide each candidate with an accurate appraisal of their performance. Each interactive question includes detailed feedback together with a cumulative score. The commercial licence includes a built in Learning Management System (LMS) enabling a course administrator to review the performance of all candidates that have taken the test. This includes the following criteria: Candidate Name Course Title Date of Test Time of Test Candidates Score Time Taken The course administration is password protected and facilitates the: search for, export & deletion of candidate records.