UNIT 501: ADVANCED PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Chifley is a registered education provider with the Project Management Institute (PMI), USA, for this project management course [R.E.P. Provider No. 2032]. This course provides 120 professional development units (PDUs) for PMI members.

Australian Institute of Project Management (AIPM)—endorses the Diploma of Project Management and project management units of the Chifley postgraduate programs. This course provides 20 continuous professional development (CPD) points for AIPM members.

Overview

This unit builds on the concepts explored in Unit 303-Project Management, with a particular emphasis on the complexities involved in managing high-risk technology projects. It covers both the technical and the human side of advanced project management. Pre-requisite: Unit 303—Project Management.

Aims

After studying this unit you should be able to:

• identify the high-risk factors in projects and the sources of uncertainty in technology intensive projects and be able to apply a systematic process to manage project risks
• apply 'systems' thinking to the definition of project scope and contract relationships
• determine appropriate strategies to manage risk related to contract scope, work authorisation and authority, progress measurement and product performance for advanced technology systems
• select appropriate techniques to control the scope, design and acceptance of these complex deliverables and specialty effort
• explain why the degree of definition of a project has a direct influence on the accuracy of the forecast of its cost
• explain the processes required and the commercial considerations involved in business case and tender preparation
• outline the roles of portfolio and program managers and describe some of the key processes and tools used by them
• investigate the application of appropriate non-adversarial contractual relationships for the most efficient delivery of a project.

Topics

• Advanced project management
• Definition and authority
• Risk
• Defining and managing scope
• Acquisition strategy and development models
• System definition and configuration management
• Business cases and tenders
• Performance management
• Portfolio and program management
• Relationship contracting

Unit Chair & Study Guide Author

Geoff Barton
BEng(Elec & Mech), MBA

Over a nearly thirty-year career, Geoff has had extensive experience in the management of high-risk projects in the defence, IT, financial and telecommunications industries. Working in government and corporate sectors, Geoff has first-hand experience of the challenges involved in contract acquisition, program and project management and managing operation and organisational change. Projects he has managed have ranged from missiles and remotely piloted vehicles, through to industrial controls and software development, to setting up companies.

Geoff is currently Managing Director of a small project management company located in Melbourne, Australia.

Study Guide Author

Ronald Sulman
BA Hons, Dip. Elec Eng., Grad. Dip. Applied Econ., MIE (Aust)

Ron Sulman is a management consultant who has had a long involvement with the management of advanced technology projects. As a consultant, and during a 22-year career in the Royal Australian Navy, he has worked in many Australian and overseas shipbuilding projects which have been established for the refit, modernisation, and construction of a range of ships and submarines.

During the last six years he has been continually involved in the bidding and management of a number of large defence and telecommunications projects. As a consultant to a research foundation he has participated in the definition and conduct of benchmarking survey of World’s Best Management Practice in Technology projects. He is familiar with management education programs through his involvement as a Visiting Member of Directing Staff at Mt. Eliza Business School.