Typical main learning outcomes and assessment

The PPM is a practical project management training course to equip project managers and aspiring project managers with appropriate project management skills. The list below gives merely some indication of typical skills taught. Please note that the outcomes and assessment methods vary from year to year, from intake to intake and depending on the lecturers presenting the training modules. The University reserves the right to make any significant changes to the content of the PPM training course without any notification. This document therefore does not imply any commitment on the side of the University or any of its agents.

As the objective is the development of project management skills, several interactive group events take place during the course but the assessments indicated below excludes work done in groups that do not contribute to the final grade. Although contact time on the Weekend course offering is less than on courses presented during the week, the outcomes are nominally the same.

When tailoring is required for on an in-house training course, the outcomes are negotiable.

Module

Typical Outcomes & Assessments

Project Management: Principles, Practices and  Scheduling

Familiarity with project management principles, processes and project scheduling.

Each delegate develops a basic project plan for a real project in his/her work environment.

Familiarity with basic monitoring and control.

Practical individual assignment:

The plan includes:

  • Background of project
  • Identification of stakeholders
  • Analysis of stakeholders
  • List of project phases & deliverable per phase
  • Project Scope Statement
  • WBS
  • Responsibility matrix
  • Table of activity predecessors & durations
  • Network diagram with critical path, etc.
  • Gantt Chart
  • Resource loading on one resource.

Project Risk Management

Practical individual assignment:

Each student selects a work related project and performs a basic risk assessment and controls for the project. This includes the following steps:

  • Identify 15 to 20 risk events for the project
  • Perform semi-quantitative or full quantitative risk analysis for the 15 to 20 events.
  • Plot the risk events on a risk map
  • Plot a suitable threshold line on risk map
  • Name the critical risks for the project
  • Define controls/responses for critical events
  • Explain how the risk management process is monitored during execution.

Project Procurement and

Contract Management

 

Written test and/or an individual assignment:

Each delegate develops a basic project procurement plan for a real project.  The plan includes:

  • The procurement strategy
  • The price determination method
  • The procurement method
  • The standard contract type
  • Procurement documentation
  • Tender evaluation procedures

 

The delegates also relate the real project to the PMBOK procurement phases.

 

Project Quality Management

Practical individual assignment:

The final outcome and deliverable of the module is a quality plan or quality review for a company project.

 

The qualitative and quantitative aspects of quality management are addressed. Apart from reviewing the approach to quality in general and organisational terms, the specific aspects of quality in the project environment are addressed. Specific aspects include:

  • The role of Total Quality Management
  • Continuous improvement
  • Quality deliverables across the project life-cycle
  • Gate criteria
  • Reviews and audits
  • Data capturing and analysis
  • Pareto diagrams
  • Histograms
  • Mean, standard deviations and control charts.

 

The People-side of Project Management

Outcomes:

  • The ability to reflect on one's own role as a manager and a leader;
  • The ability to diagnose a project team in terms of its human dimensions and consider interventions;
  • The ability to use a team's creative resources to solve complex problems.

 

Practical individual assignment and normally a group assignment as well:

Individual improvement plan: Each delegate has to submit a personal development plan with reference to:

  • Leadership and team development skills
  • Conflict handling skills
  • Informal role understanding
  • Other areas of development and improvement as a project manager.

 

Team improvement plan: A real life team is analysed and recommendations are made on how to improve components of the team including the:

  • Structure
  • Patterns
  • Performance

Legal Aspects for Project Managers

The module focuses on the law of contract and labour law. These topics are applied in the context of project management and specifically aimed at teaching project managers the relevant legal principles.

 

  1. Upon completion of the module on law of contract the student will be required to:

 

  1. Answer questions based on a brief case study on:
  • the conclusion of a procurement contract;
  • the transfer of ownership in goods; and
  • passing of the risk due to force majeure, in the context of a brief case study.

 

  1. Identify forms of breach of contract that occur in a specific factual situation.

 

  1. Practical assignment:

The student must draft a construction / engineering / building contract wherein all the relevant legal principles must be applied. These will include:

identification and citation of the parties

  • identification and specification of the essential elements required for the specific type of contract
  • suspensive and resolutive conditions to manage contingencies and eventualities
  • remedies for the aggrieved parties upon breach of contract
  • a clause on the consequences of a force majeure event on project performances
  • a clause on a formal process to amend the contract.

 

  1. On Labour law, the student will also have to critically assess a labour law case study and examine the possible disputes and problems and make recommendations on possible remedies and dispute resolution routes.

 

  1. The student should have a basic understanding of South African legislation that relate to occupational safety and health.

Financial Principles and Project Cost Management

Practical assignment:

Each delegate selects a real project from the work environment and

  • analyses its profitability;
  • identifies risks and challenges to profitability.

 

The delegate could also be required to identify possible corrective measures, by reporting inter alia on how the total cost management system was implemented (illustrating the following with actual figures):

Before implementation/production:

  • Resource planning and allocation (in conjunction with WBS and scheduling)
  • Cost estimation and project/product pricing
  • Budgeting and cash-flow projections

During implementation/production on a monthly basis:

  • Cost recording (“booking” of actual costs against appropriate control accounts)
  • Cost reporting and analysis (variance reporting/budget recons…)
  • Cost control – taking corrective action where required

In the above they must:

  • Show the make-up of the total price,
  • Explain briefly what information (type and source) would have been (or actually was) used to determine each of the price elements above
  • For a current or recent profitability forecast for the project (Cost Value Comparison, Variance Report or similar), analyse profit/loss situation for: current month, year to date, and projection for total project at completion.

A brief outline description is given of what could go wrong between estimate or budget and actual final completed cost, and how they would control the costs and maximize the revenue to ensure the desired profit is realized at the end.

 

Project Management in the Business Context

This is the final module that integrates the work done in the prior modules.

 

Practical individual and group assignments:

Project Execution Plan (PEP)

The plan is developed – for a real project – by a group (syndicate) and/or individually.

The plan includes:

  • Overview, Life-cycle definition & project setup
  • Scope statement & WBS
  • Schedule, including critical path
  • Budget & expenditure flow
  • Risk analysis & risk management
  • Quality control & reporting
  • Responsibility matrix & resource management
  • Communication, information management & project organization.

 

For assessment Group assignments can be presented to a panel comprising of managers appointed by the Client and one or two academics.