Project Management Fundamentals
Course Description Overview
Successfully managing a project requires effective planning and adherence to the industry's best practices in every step of the process. By understanding the fundamentals of project management, you will be better prepared to initiate a project in your organization and position it for success. In this course, you will identify effective project management practices and their related processes.
At this point in your professional development, you are ready to take on the responsibility for managing projects. You can manage a project by developing a solid understanding of the fundamentals of project management and its underlying structure and elements, including project phases, project life cycles, stakeholders, and areas of expertise. These, coupled with the ability to identify the project management processes that are recognized industry-wide as good practice, will help you to apply effective project management techniques to improve the efficiency of your projects and ensure their success.
In this course, you will examine the elements of sound project management and apply the generally recognized practices to successfully manage projects.
You will:
- Identify the key processes and requirements of project management.
- Initiate a project.
- Plan for time and cost.
- Plan for project risks, communication, and change control.
- Execute, manage, and control a project.
- Close a project.
To ensure your success, you will need to take the following United States Career Campus courses or have equivalent knowledge:
- Microsoft® Office Word 2016: Part 1
Some on-the-job experience in participating in managed projects would be preferable.
- Microsoft® Windows® 8 or higher
- Microsoft® Word 2010 or later for accessing student data files.
- If necessary, software for viewing the course slides. (Instructor machine only.)
Hardware
For this course, you will need one computer for each student and one for the instructor. Each computer will need the following minimum hardware configurations:
- 1 GHz or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
- 1 gigabyte (GB) RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-bit)
- 16 GB available hard disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)
- CD-ROM drive (if installing any software from a CD-ROM)
- Keyboard and mouse (or other pointing device)
- 1024 x 768 resolution monitor recommended
- Network cards and cabling for local network access
- Internet access (contact your local network administrator)
- Projection system to display the instructor's computer screen
Lesson 1: Getting Started with Project Management
Topic A: Identify the Characteristics of a Project
Topic B: Identify the Project Management Life Cycle
Topic C: Identify the Role of a Project Manager
Lesson 2: Initiating a Project
Topic A: Determine the Scope of a Project
Topic B: Identify the Skills for a Project Team
Topic C: Identify the Risks to a Project
Lesson 3: Planning for Time and Cost
Topic A: Create a WBS
Topic B: Sequence the Activities
Topic C: Create a Project Schedule
Topic D: Determine Project Costs
Lesson 4: Planning for Project Risks, Communication, and Change Control
Topic A: Analyze the Risks to a Project
Topic B: Create a Communication Plan
Topic C: Plan for Change Control
Lesson 5: Managing a Project
Topic A: Begin Project Work
Topic B: Execute the Project Plan
Topic C: Track Project Progress
Topic D: Report Performance
Topic E: Implement Change Control
Lesson 6: Closing the Project
Topic A: Close a Project
Topic B: Create a Final Report