The concepts and use of project management tools, techniques and methodologies are becoming all pervasive. This course addresses project management in the context of IT projects, including software projects. Using the framework of project life cycle, the course covers various aspects pertaining to (i) project initiation, (ii) project planning and scheduling, (iii) project monitoring and control, and (iv) project termination. For planning and scheduling of projects, the use of project network and estimation of time and cost are covered in detail. Scheduling of projects with resource limitations is covered next.
Risk assessment methods including simulation and risk reduction approaches are also be covered. The students will be required to use the software @risk to simulate project completion times. The use of Earned Value Analysis for Project Monitoring and Control is emphasized. For Software Project Management, the Waterfall Model and Agile Project Management are covered in detail.
This course is part of the Business Technology Management Specialization
IT Project Management
Offered By
About this Course
4.3
203 ratings
Skills you will gain
Project ManagementRisk ManagementAgile ManagementProgram Evaluation And Review Technique (PERT)
Syllabus - What you will learn from this course
Week
1Introduction and Real Options
The first topic in this module is Introduction and Overview of the course. We first define what a project is and give some examples of IT projects. The three parameters or metrics for project management are presented. The importance of project management is then discussed. The concept of project life cycle and the four phases of project life cycle are presented. The topics to be covered in the four different modules are also given.The second topic in this module is on the Organization Structure for projects. Three different forms of Organization structure and their implications for project management including the project manager are discussed in detail. Communication plan and its importance for project management are then presented.The next topic in this module is about the use of real options for project selection. The material in this topic is well developed for valuation of financial assets but its use for project selection is a relatively new development. We define what options are and give a taxonomy of real options. In future, ‘Options Thinking” and valuation of real options are expected to play an important role in project selection. Next, we discuss six case studies where options thinking played a dominant role in accepting / modifying the projects. Valuation of real options is in its infancy and for the for valuation of real options is easily understand and we present a simple example to illustrate the approach.Towards the end of the module, we present some practical aspects pertaining to the concepts covered. This is done through a Q & A format with Mr. Prashun Dutta, Advisor - Gaiga Smart Cities
7 videos (Total 93 min), 1 reading, 2 quizzes
7 videos
Organisation Structure of Projects10m
Communication Plan3m
Real Options Introduction and Taxonomy13m
Applications for Real Options for IT Projects7m
Valuation of Real Options _Decision Trees12m
(Optional Learning) Interview with Prashun Dutta, Gaiga Smart Cities35m
1 reading
Suggested Readings10m
2 practice exercises
Practice Quiz16m
Graded Questions20m
Week
2Project Network Scheduling and Crashing
This module will cover Project Planning which is the second phase of Project Life Cycle. We first look at what Project Scope is and what scope creep refers to. Work Breakdown structure leading to work packages or activities with the associated precedence relationships are treated in detail. The next topic is about scheduling of the activities which requires the estimation of activity durations. The estimation of duration, cost and resource required for the identified activities are covered later as a separate topic. Here, using the same software development project, assuming that the durations of the activities have been estimated and ignoring the resource requirements for the different activities, we show how a schedule for the activities can be arrived at. The next topic is the estimation of durations, cost and resources required for the activities. Three popular estimating procedures are covered. The next topic covers the various reasons, possible benefits and different alternatives for reducing project duration. We then discuss in detail, one approach to reducing project duration viz. by incurring additional incremental direct cost for reducing activity durations and show how we can arrive at the least incremental direct cost for any specified project completion time. While the approach presented is conceptually sound it is difficult to implement for large projects. So, the next topic covers a linear programming approach to solve the same problem even if the project under consideration is large in terms of the number of activities. As in the previous module, towards the end of this module also, we present some practical aspects pertaining to the concepts covered. This again is done through a Q & A format with Mr. Prashun Dutta, Advisor - Gaiga Smart Cities
7 videos (Total 69 min), 1 reading, 2 quizzes
7 videos
Network Scheduling11m
Laddering, Lags and Gantt chart4m
Estimation of Time, Cost and Resources12m
Reducing Project Duration7m
Reducing Project Duration Linear Programming13m
(Optional Learning) Interview with Prashun Dutta, Gaiga Smart Cities10m
1 reading
Suggested Readings10m
2 practice exercises
Practice Quiz16m
Graded Questions20m
Week
3Resource Scheduling and Risk Management
Activities in a project typically require the use of resources such as people, material, equipment and working capital. The schedule for the activities that we had calculated in the previous module assumes that adequate resources are available as and when required. However, in practice often adequate resources may not be available as required and the schedule may have to be modified. There are two types of problems when resource requirements are considered. One is the Resource Smoothing Problem and the other is the Resource Limitation problem. In the first one, i.e. the Resource Smoothing Problem, although the resources are available as and when required, we would want to find a schedule that “smoothes” the use of resources without delaying the project completion time. Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM) is the next topic dealt with in this module. CCPM has not gained universal acceptance although it is being used by some organizations with positive results. CCPM places a lot of emphasis on aggressive estimation of activity durations and provides for buffers to take care of some delays. With Risk Management, we first define what risk is and then discuss the risk management process including risk identification, risk assessment and various ways of reducing exposure to risk. Risk monitoring and control including change control process are also covered. Finally, the Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) including a simulation approach to finding the distribution of the project completion time is covered as the last topic in this module. As in the previous modules, towards the end of this module, we present some practical aspects pertaining to the concepts covered. This again is done through a Q & A format with Mr. Prashun Dutta, Advisor - Gaiga Smart Cities
5 videos (Total 49 min), 1 reading, 2 quizzes
5 videos
Critical Chain Project Management5m
Risk Management15m
Programme Evalution and Review Technique (PERT) and Simulation9m
(Optional Learning) Interview with Prashun Dutta, Gaiga Smart Cities7m
1 reading
Suggested Readings10m
2 practice exercises
Practice Quiz10m
Graded Questions20m
Week
4Agile Project Management, Monitoring and Control
The first topic in this module is Agile Project Management which is useful in software development projects where the requirements are not well defined and the client is not able to articulate them clearly. The traditional sequential plan driven project is covered first followed by the agile project development cycle. The manifesto and agenda for agile project management are also covered.The next topic in this module is Monitoring and Control. The projects in progress should be reviewed at pre-specified intervals. The process of monitoring and control including the analysis of the status of the project are covered. The last two topics to be covered are Audit and Closure of projects. The audit may be of an ongoing project or of a completed project. The various steps involved in the audit process including the staffing of the audit team, functioning of the team, data collection, analysis and reports are covered in detail.The closure of a project may be a normal closure or a premature closure. The various tasks involved including the delivery of the output of the project, evaluation of the team as well as the project manager are spelt out. Towards the end of this module, we present some practical aspects pertaining to the concepts covered. This is done through a Q & A format with Mr. Prashun Dutta, Advisor - Gaiga Smart Cities
6 videos (Total 75 min), 1 reading, 2 quizzes
6 videos
Monitoring and Control - Part 18m
Monitoring and Control - Part 213m
Audit of Projects9m
Closure of Projects6m
(Optional Learning) Interview with Prashun Dutta, Gaiga Smart Cities29m
1 reading
Suggested Readings10m
2 practice exercises
Practice Quiz10m
Graded Quiz20m
4.3
47 Reviews40%
started a new career after completing these courses
20%
got a tangible career benefit from this course
Top Reviews
By EK•Aug 2nd 2017
For someone from the United States of America, one of the suggested readings was not in English. I guess that's to be expected.
By AG•Apr 9th 2018
It was excellent overall. Helped me to enhance and refresh my project management skills in IT industry. Thank
Instructor
M Rammohan Rao
Professor EmeritusOperations Management
About Indian School of Business
The Indian School of Business has successfully put India on the global map of management education by nurturing young leaders with an understanding of developing economies and the society at large. Through innovations in curricula and pedagogy to reflect the shifting business landscape, the ISB is committed to providing the best venue for management education to meet the growing need to develop young leaders who can manage global challenges.
About the Business Technology Management Specialization
Products and business models in today's competitive environment are increasingly being transformed by technology. This new digital economy places IT at the centre of firm strategy and operations, and requires a new breed of IT managers and leaders who can examine technology through a business lens. The Business Technology Management specialization will empower you with knowledge of the IT domain, management, leadership and team building skills, and functional and analytical skills. These skills are critical to leverage technology to create competitive advantage.
Video: Professor Deepa Mani speaks about the Specialization
Frequently Asked Questions
When will I have access to the lectures and assignments?
Once you enroll for a Certificate, you’ll have access to all videos, quizzes, and programming assignments (if applicable). Peer review assignments can only be submitted and reviewed once your session has begun. If you choose to explore the course without purchasing, you may not be able to access certain assignments.
What will I get if I subscribe to this Specialization?
When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.
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Is financial aid available?
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