PMA® Project Planning & Control

Who Is This Course For? There is increasing evidence that effective project controls are one of the most important conditions for project success. A practical and pragmatic approach to project controls establishes the foundations on which effective governance and high performing project teams can be built. In many ways it’s about doing the basics well including: planning the work, working the plan, understanding the risks, controlling changes, and establishing a clear structure for reporting, governance and information flow. Without a solid foundation, based on the principles of effective planning and control, project teams face an uphill struggle from the outset.

In this course we explore the vital importance of effective project controls and their role in commercial project success during each phase of the project from bidding to contract close. We will then look at how these principles can be applied in a flexible way to match the level of control to the complexity of the project.

This course is not just about processes but also the behaviours and culture needed to deploy an effective project controls framework. For this reason the course is appropriate for the entire project management team including project managers, planners, quantity surveyors, cost estimators, risk analysts and project controls staff.

This course is based on the widely acclaimed guide “Planning, Scheduling, Monitoring and Control: The Practical Project Management of Time, Cost and Risk” published by The Association for Project Management (APM).

 

What Will You Learn On This Course?

At the end of the course your will be able to:

Describe how to establish a high quality project controls system.

Explain how to establish a robust planning system.

Explain the use of scheduling, cost control and risk management systems.

Describe how to monitor a project that enables proactive project control.

Analyse the effectiveness of a project plan.

Establish a record keeping system that facilitates feedback/learning cycle.

This course is designed to be practical, useful and engaging.

 

What is the course like?

The course consists of three days covering the foundation of project planning and control. At the end of the three days you will take the foundation exam in project planning and control. The last two days are spent on the practical aspects of planning and control and preparing for the practitioner qualification.

What Is The Exam Like?

The BPMA-International Project Planning and Control exam consists of two papers. A foundation paper which is a one-hour multiple choice paper taken part way through the course and then a two and a half hour case study based practitioner exam taken towards the end of the course.

 

What Topics Will The Course Cover?:

  • The role of the business case and the definition of project scope
  • Principles of Project planning
  • Establishing the baseline scope
  • Detailed Scheduling
  • Schedule Analysis
  • Presenting and communicating the schedule in an effective way
  • Schedule reviews, assurance and auditing
  • Schedule, monitoring, control and reporting
  • Baseline Management and Change control
  • Earned Value Management
  • Short term planning
  • Risk Management

What Is Included In The Course?

Parallel Project Training is ‘with you all the way’. We deliver this course using a wide range of learning approaches including buzz groups, practical exercises, project simulations and case studies. As always our focus is on the practical application of effective project controls and how the challenges with key stakeholders can be overcome.

What Pre-work Is Expected Before The Course?

Before attending the course we strongly recommend that you review the contents of the project control book. We don’t expect you to read it in detail but we recommend that you are familiar with the overall project controls framework.
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