Dr. NICHOLAS WATSON

COURSE OUTLINE

                                                                                                                          

COURSE TITLE:                   Programme and Portfolio Management

CODE:                                                PDM 423              

CREDITS:                              3

CREDIT HOURS:                  45

YEAR/SEMESTER:               Year 4/Semester 2

PRE-REQUISITES:               Introduction to Project Development & Management or Project

                                                Development & Management I 

 

RATIONALE:

Whether with private business enterprises, public organisations or local community based organisations projects are usually not done in a vacuum. Invariably there are overarching needs, goals or outcomes that the organisation is seeking to achieve in doing the project or projects. As a modern professional discipline, programme management has established rationale and systematic methodologies for the management of projects designed to achieve desired outcomes or benefits not available from managing them individually.

 

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

The course is designed to equip participants with knowledge of the programme management discipline. Participants will identify methods, tools and techniques required for initiating, planning and implementing programmes and for monitoring and controlling their performance. Use of realistic and interactive case studies and examples will allow simulation of the methods. It provides the requirements and process for successfully preparing for certification as a Programme Management Professional (PMP). The course is based on the Project Management Institute’ Practice Standard for Programme Management.

 

GENERAL OBJECTIVES:

After completing this course, students should be able to:

• Contrast between projects, programmes and portfolios.

• Describe the five(5) programme management process groups.

• Define the 12 programme management knowledge areas.

• Outline the phases for the programme management life cycle and relate them to the 47 program management processes.

• Explain why programme objectives should be aligned with those of the organisation or community within which the programme operates.

• Examine use of benefits management, stakeholder management and program governance.

• Justify use of a Benefit Realization Plan to build, manage, communicate, monitor and control expected benefits.

• Identify essential skills of the effective programme manager.

• List requirements and process for certification as a Programme Management Professional.

• Describe what project portfolio management is and why it is used.

• Define the project portfolio management office and its responsibilities.

• Determine how to assess whether a project in a portfolio is delivering on its intended benefits.

• Discuss various models for managing successful programmes.

 

SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:

Unit 1: Introduction & Background                                                                          9 hours

Unit 2: Programme/Portfolio Management                                                               12 hours

Unit 3: Programme Management Process & Programme Manager Skills              9 hours

Unit 4: Managing Successful Programmes                                                                9 hours

Unit 5: Presentations                                                                                                  3 hours

Unit 6: Revision                                                                                                          3 hours

 

COURSE ACTIVITIES:

Unit 1: Introduction & Background                                                                          9 hours

Content:

• Introduction, background & history of programmes and projects

• PM context and concepts: PMI PMBOK Guide overview; coursework (individual and group assignments)

• PMI Programme Management practice standard overview and other standards

• Coursework: In Class exam

 

Learning Outcomes:

At the end of this unit, students should be able to:

• Review the nature, scope and history of the management of programmes and projects.

• Review the PMI PMBOK Guide.

• Review PM best practices based on internationally established standards.

 

Unit 2: Programme/Portfolio Management                                                               12 hours

Content:

 

Unit 3: Programme Management Process & Programme Manager Skills              9 hours

Content:

 

 

Learning Outcomes:

At the end of this unit, students should be able to:

 

Unit 4: Managing Successful Programmes                                                                9 hours

Content:

 

 

 

Learning Outcomes:

At the end of this unit, students should be able to:

 

Unit 5: Presentations                                                                                                  3 hours

 

Unit 6: Revision                                                                                                          3 hours

 

TEACHING STRATEGIES:

Lectures

Project-based Learning (class and group discussion/ activity, case studies, simulations)

Research-based Learning (case studies, tutorials, individual and group presentations)

Active Learning (handouts, visual aids, peer evaluation and in-class tests)

 

ASSESSMENT:

Course Work                                                  60%

Class Exams                            10%

Case Studies                            20%

Group/Individual Assignment  30%

Examination                                                   40%

 

 

PRESCRIBED TEXTS:

WEBSITES:

• Portfolio Management vs. Programme Management

• Programme Management “Standard”

• Programme Management and Programme Managers

• Types of Programmes/Portfolios: Financial, Economic, Social, Infrastructural; Entertainment

• Benefit Management

• Stakeholder Management

• Governance: Programme Management Office; Programme Management Boards

• Programme Management Life Cycle: 5 phases

• Life Cycle vs. process; Life cycle characteristics

• Life cycle and benefits management

• Life cycle and governance

• Project portfolio management – the Why?

• The project portfolio management office and its responsibilities

• Coursework: Assignment 1

• < >

  Differentiate between portfolio and programme management.

• Discuss the internationally accepted programme management standards.

• Discuss the nature and scope of project management and the characteristics of project managers.

• Describe the different types of programmes/portfolios.

• Describe nature and scope of benefit management.

• Describe the nature and scope of stakeholder management.

• Evaluate the different project management governance bodies.

• Discuss the project management life cycle, including its characteristics and difference between life cycle and process.

• Discuss the importance of and relationship between life cycle and benefits management.

• Discuss the importance of and relationship between life cycle and governance.

• Describe the nature and importance of project portfolio management.

• Describe the nature, scope and responsibilities of theproject portfolio management office.

  • Programme Management Process Groups:

  • Initiation

  • Planning

  • Execution

  • Monitoring & control

  • Closure

  • Essential Skills of the Programme Manager:

  • < >

    Conflict resolution

  • Stakeholder management

  • Authority & Accountability

  • Business management

  • Software skills: MS Project; Enterprise Project Management (EPM)

     

  • Coursework: Class Exam 2

  Demonstrate an understanding of the project management process.

  Demonstrate an understanding of the required project management skills for managing programmes successfully.

  • Review and discuss various models for best practice to

  • Plan projects to support the programme

  • Define responsibilities and lines of communication

  • Break down initiatives into clearly defined projects and offer a framework for handling them

  • Involve interested stakeholders

  • Manage risk and ensure the programme responds to change

  • Audit and maintain quality

  • Deliver on time and on budget

  • Use case studies, templates, models, examples from various sectors and types of programmes to show how to:

  • Develop a clear view of the programme's aims and identify its benefits

  • Define the programme and show how it will affect and change the organisation

  • Create a strong framework for monitoring and coordinating the various projects within the programme

  • Ensure the programme moves forward

  • Manage the impact of the programme on the organisation

  • Close the programme, ensuring it has achieved its ends and its successes are acknowledged

  • Use case studies, templates, models, examples from various sectors and types of programmes to show how to:

  • Develop a clear view of the programme's aims and identify its benefits

  • Define the programme and show how it will affect and change the organisation

  Review and discuss various models for best practice when managing programmes/portfolios from initiation through to completion.

  Use case studies, templates, models and examples from various projects to develop critical skills for managing programmes at different stages of the process.

  • Bible, Michael and Susan Bivins (2011). . Florida, USA: J. Ross Publishing.

  • Reiss, Geoff and Paul Raynor (2012). . London: Routledge.

     

    REQUIRED READINGS:

  • Levine, Harvey A. (2005). Project Portfolio Management: A Practical Guide to Selecting Projects, Managing Portfolios and Maximising Benefits. Cailfornia: Jossey-Bass.

  • Kor, Rudy and Gert Wijnen (2007). . Hampshire, United Kingdom: Gower Publishing Company.

  • Moore, Simon (2009). . New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.

  • Pellergrinelli, Sergio (2008). . Basingstoke, England: Palgrave Macmillan.

  • Project Management Institute (2013). Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute.

     

  • < >  < >  < >  < >  www.hyperthot.com/pm_meth10.htm  < >  < >  < >  < >  < >  < > < > IMPORTANT NOTE ON CLASS ATTENDANCE

     

    You are required to attend all days of classes. If you are unable to attend class due to an emergency, the appropriate documentation must be submitted, for example, a medical certificate. However, if you are absent for more than 20% of the total class time you are required to do the sections of the class missed when it is next offered. Please note that you are expected to be on time for classes. Lateness will result in a reduction of your participation grade.

     

     

     

    IMPORTANT NOTE ON PLAGIARISM

     

    Plagiarism is a form of intellectual theft. If you fail to acknowledge your sources or make it appear that someone else’s work is your own, you are guilty of plagiarism. The scholarly world operates by exchanging information and crediting the sources of that information. If you violate that process, you have committed a crime in the academic community. If you are having difficulty completing a paper on time, or need some additional help, or are unsure of how or where to document a source, please contact your lecturer or go to the librarian for help so you can avoid inadvertently or intentionally plagiarizing a source.

     

    You will be charged with plagiarism if you:

     

    • Copy from published sources without adequate documentation.

    • Intentionally or unintentionally appropriate the ideas, language, key terms, or findings of another without sufficient acknowledgement that such material is not your own and without acknowledging the source.

    • Purchase a pre-written paper (either by mail or electronically).

    • Let someone else write a paper for you.

    • Reproduce someone else’s project.

    • Submit as your own someone else’s unpublished work, either with or without permission.

    • Incorrectly cite or neglect to cite borrowed materials.

       

      Consequences of Plagiarism

       

    • If the final work you submit – all of it – is not yours, it does not matter how you came by it. Charges of plagiarism are brought to the attention of Academic Affairs, which initiates an investigation that may lead to formal charges.

    • The process for the investigation and adjudication of charges may be accessed at the Dean of Faculty’s Office.

    • Plagiarism is a serious offense that can result in a variety of sanctions.

       

      Appropriate Uses of Sources

       

      A mark of strong academic writing is demonstrated when one appropriately identifies sources in his/her arguments and analyses. This practice is called documentation. Guidelines for how to correctly cite materials used within your writing and assembling the list of works that you cite in your paper are available on a PowerPoint Presentation and can be accessed in the Library.

       

      Avoiding Plagiarism

       

    • Contact your lecturer and honestly discuss a strategy for completing an assignment rather than risk humiliation and legal charges.

    • Become thoroughly acquainted both with the various ways in which plagiarism is construed, and with sources of proper documentation.

       

      (See the Undergraduate Student Handbook for additional information).