Workshop: Initiating a Successful Project

Duration: Two Days

Description: The foundation for project success is established through key elements which must be in place before project execution begins. This workshop identifies and describes how to achieve those key elements including executive sponsorship, clear business objectives, reasonable expectations, and a well-defined project scope. Workshop participants practice using project initiation tools and techniques that they can apply immediately.

Audience: Project managers, project team leads, functional managers, and project core team members.

Workshop Topics:

1. Project Management Framework

1. What is a project?
2. What is project management?
3. Project and product life cycles
4. Organizational styles (functional, matrix, projectized)
5. Executive sponsor role
6. Project manager role

2. Project Selection

1. Needs analysis
2. Business requirements
3. Defining initial project scope
4. Establishing a clear project objective
5. Order of magnitude cost estimating
6. Preliminary risk analysis
7. Estimating the return on investment
8. Project prioritization and selection techniques

3. Project Initiation

1. Assigning the project manager
2. Selecting the core team members
3. Team roles and responsibilities
4. Identifying and involving key stakeholders
5. Determining the Triple Constraint trade-off
6. Completing the Project Charter

4. Project Supporting Processes

1. Establishing scope change control
2. Defining issue resolution processes
3. Creating a communication plan
4. Procurement planning
5. Quality assurance strategies
6. Automated project management software

5. Initial Cost Estimating

1. The Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
2. Techniques for creating a WBS
3. Defining work packages
4. Estimating task duration
5. Determining resource needs
6. Initial cost estimating