6 APMG courses in Watford

Running a successful project requires skills in planning, budgeting, tracking deliverables and stakeholder management. An area that can be neglected by project managers is the 'people side' - not the project team themselves but the end-users, those who will be affected by the project. Too often there is a single line at the end of the project plan that says 'Comms and Training'. If people are going to have to work differently and learn some new processes, then there is work to be done by the project team to help them through the emotional side of the change. This session explores why it's important to bring people along when a change is being made. It will provide project teams with the skills and knowledge either to manage the people change plan themselves or to secure the right resources for their project. * Understand the importance of the 'people side' of change * 8 'Golden Rules' of change management - overview * How to create a simple but effective change plan * Adoption * Benefits of good change management 1 INTRODUCTION * Objectives and agenda * People and projects - why is it important? * The Change Curve - the emotional side of change 2 8 'GOLDEN RULES' OF CHANGE MANAGEMENT - INCLUDING... * Role of the sponsor * Communication * Resistance to change 3 CHANGE PLAN * Elements of a change plan * Change impact assessment * Alignment with the project plan 4 ADOPTION * Who owns the change? * The vital role of the manager * Feedback and action loops 5 BENEFITS * Estimating the costs / benefits 6 NEXT STEPS * Summary of key learning points * Reflection on next steps 7 CLOSE

All organisations today operate in an environment of constant and rapid change. Managing this change effectively is often achieved through a portfolio of formal projects. Many organisations today have qualified and experienced project management staff to run their projects. Some organisations today have dedicated functions, staff or processes to support their project management teams. The very largest organisations have in-house Enterprise Programme Offices, or project management specialists in corporate audit or risk functions; or organise 'Red Team Reviews' of a project by other staff with project management experience who are not participating in the reviewed project. But for many mid-size businesses and SMEs - and even some larger organisations - these resources are simply not available. For them, having access to external expertise to assure project management disciplines and to coach project managers can be a major contributor to project success. Such reviews can take place at project initiation; at major stage-gates (especially if significant capital is to be committed at the stage-gate); or at any other time if concerns arise concerning project quality, cost or timescales. And it is for those organisations that we offer the necessary expertise, on an ad hoc basis, in reviewing projects and coaching senior project management staff. A document review and workshop led by one of our consultants can help you assess whether: * The strategic goals and priorities for the project are clear and being addressed * Governance of the project within the business is defined and being effectively executed * Project roles and responsibilities are clear and effective * The credibility and robustness of the project plan can be enhanced * Performance measures and reporting procedures are effective * Critical risks are identified and being managed and contingencies are agreed * The roles, responsibilities and capabilities of the key players in the project team are fit for purpose * Budgets are realistic and costs being managed effectively * Communication and change management activities are effectively planned and being executed At your discretion, you can capture the outcomes from the workshop for yourselves, in terms of identifying opportunities for improvement, or you can have our consultant write a report and make recommendations to you.

The aim of this programme is to provide current / prospective senior project managers with an in-depth review of the role and importance of project management in the organisation. It focuses on the strategic role of the project manager and aims to draw out the full scope of the role and how it impacts on project performance. The five key objectives of this programme are to enable the participants to: * Identify the characteristics and attributes needed by project managers in ensuring the organisation is recognised as an industry leader in delivering successful projects * Understand the full scope and impact of the project manager / leader's role in managing projects or programmes to maximise benefit to the business * Define the hallmarks and skills required to manage significant business projects or project portfolios * Develop an understanding of the skills required and their impact on the project through case study work and syndicate exercises * Benefit from an effective forum for exchanging experience and fostering a sense of team spirit and mutual support between senior project managers DAY ONE 1 INTRODUCTION (COURSE SPONSOR) * A vision of future opportunities and challenges * The impact of project managers / leaders on future success 2 THE DETERMINANTS OF SUCCESS * The contractor's perspective * The client's perspective * Success and failure: factors that determine the project outcome * The impact of the project manager 3 CASE STUDY: PROJECT GIOTTO * How successful was this project? * What were the primary factors that influenced the outcome? * How relevant are these factors to current projects? * Feedback and review 4 PROJECT TEAM EXERCISE * A practical exercise demonstrating the role of the project manager in managing the interfaces between the client, the project team and suppliers * Review - what skills are required to be a 'world class' project manager? 5 THE ROLE OF THE PROJECT MANAGER * The role and skills of the 'world class' project manager * The three key dimensions of effective project leadership * Managing influential stakeholders * Managing project performance * Managing the project team * Project leadership skills appraisal (individual review) DAY TWO 6 MANAGING INFLUENTIAL STAKEHOLDERS * Project management and the art of leadership * Who are the influential stakeholders and how do they affect the project? * What we need to do / not do, to build successful working relationships 7 CASE STUDY: UNDERSTANDING THE CUSTOMER * What are the likely problems the project manager will encounter? * What should the project manager do to ensure an effective partnership? 8 MANAGING PROJECT PERFORMANCE * Issues affecting commercial performance * Joining up the project life-cycle: getting performance from inception to closure * The roles of project manager, line manager and project sponsor 9 PROJECT TEAM EXERCISE: MAKING THE PROMISE / DELIVERING THE PROMISE * An exercise demonstrating the commercial and team leadership skills needed by the project manager * Review - what must the project manager do to optimise project performance? 10 MANAGING MULTI-FUNCTIONAL PROJECT TEAMS * The challenges of building effective, multi-functional project teams * Co-ordinating work across functional and organisational boundaries * Maintaining strategic focus and balancing priorities 11 MAKING IT HAPPEN * Individual action planning * Syndicate discussion 12 COURSE REVIEW AND TRANSFER PLANNING (COURSE SPONSOR PRESENT) * What will we do differently? * How will we make it happen? * Conclusion

This programme provides an intensive, one-day overview of the key concepts and techniques of project management. The project management methods presented can be applied to a wide range of projects and the course emphasises both the task and the team-related aspects of project management. The aims of the programme are to: * Present the key concepts of project management * Provide a structured approach for managing projects * Demonstrate tools and techniques for planning and controlling project work * Enable participants to apply the techniques to their own projects At the end of the programme, participants will: * Recognise the benefits of a structured approach to project work * Be able to apply a range of practical tools and techniques to improve their personal effectiveness in project work * Have a means of determining the status of current projects and know what actions are needed to ensure success 1 INTRODUCTION * Why this programme has been developed * Review of participants' needs and objectives 2 KEY CONCEPTS * The characteristics of projects and project work * The four key phases of a project * Essential lessons from past projects * Key success factors * Achieving success through the 'Team-Action Model' * Challenges of the multi-project situation 3 SETTING PROJECT GOALS * Understanding 'customer' requirements * Managing project stakeholders and gaining commitment * Using questioning skills to define goals and success criteria * Defining and documenting the scope of the project 4 PROJECT PLANNING * Defining what has to be done * Creating a work breakdown * Agreeing roles and responsibilities for the work * Developing a programme using networks and bar charts * Estimating timescales, costs and resource requirements * Planning exercise: participants develop a project plan * Identifying and managing project risks * Using project planning software * Managing and updating the plan 5 PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION AND CONTROL * Creating a pro-active monitoring and control process * Techniques for monitoring progress * Using latest estimates * Managing project meetings * Resolving problems effectively * Managing multiple projects * Personal time management 6 COURSE REVIEW AND ACTION PLANNING * Identify actions * Sponsor-led review and discussion of proposals * Conclusion

The aim of this course is to provide an overview of the key principles and techniques for leading and managing project work. It will focus on the core principles and generic methods of project management, showing how these can be applied to typical projects. The scope of the programme includes: The course also emphasises the importance of the leadership and team-working skills needed by project managers and team members in carrying out their roles. The principal training objectives for this programme are to: * Explain and demonstrate the key principles of successful project management * Demonstrate a range of useful project management tools and techniques * Define the role of, and help participants understand the skills required by, the project leader * Illustrate the use of project skills through examples and case studies * Identify ways to improve project management, both individually and corporately DAY ONE 1 INTRODUCTION (COURSE SPONSOR) * Why this programme has been developed * Review of participants' needs and objectives 2 KEY CONCEPTS AND REQUIREMENTS FOR SUCCESS * Projects and project management * Lessons from past projects; the essential requirements for success * Differences between projects; characteristic project life cycles * The challenges of project management; the role of the project manager * Project exercise * A team exercise to demonstrate the challenges of project management 3 DEFINING PROJECT OBJECTIVES AND SCOPE * Identifying the stakeholders; key roles and responsibilities * Getting organised; managing the definition process * Working with the 'customer' to define the project scope 4 PROJECT CASE STUDY: PART 1 * Defining the project objectives: syndicate teams define the objectives and scope for a typical project 5 PROJECT PLANNING * The nature of planning; recognising planning assumptions * Planning the plan; the importance of team involvement * Developing the work breakdown structure * Estimating task resources, timescales and costs * Developing the project schedule * Analysing the plan and identifying the critical path 6 PROJECT CASE STUDY: PART 2 * Creating the project plan * Syndicate teams begin development of their project plans (for completion after session 7) * Team presentations and group discussion (after session 7) DAY TWO 7 MANAGING PROJECT RISKS * Understanding and defining project risks * Classifying risks and adopting an appropriate risk strategy * Identifying, evaluating and managing project risks * Agreeing ownership of project risks; the risk register * Integrating planning and risk management 8 PROJECT CONTROL * Pro-active and re-active control; striking the right balance * Pre-requisites for effective, pro-active project control * Avoiding unnecessary 'scope creep' and controlling change * Selecting the data needed to provide early warning of problems * Monitoring project performance: 'S' curves, slip charts, earned value * Getting good data and assessing project status * Defining the roles and responsibilities for control * Setting up a routine process for keeping up to date * Managing and controlling multiple projects 9 PROJECT CASE STUDY: PART 3 * Controlling the project * Teams control their project as new developments take place 10 COURSE REVIEW AND TRANSFER PLANNING (COURSE SPONSOR PRESENT) * Identify actions to be implemented individually * Identify corporate opportunities for improving project management * Sponsor-led review and discussion of proposals * Conclusion

The aim of this course is to provide an overview of the principles and practice for leading and managing a portfolio of smaller projects in a multi-project / multi-task environment. It presents a range of practical methods and techniques relevant to the smaller project scenario, using exercises and case studies to show how these can be applied. The scope of the programme includes: The course also emphasises the importance of the leadership and team-working skills needed by project managers and team members in carrying out their roles. The principal training objectives for this programme are to: * Explain and demonstrate the key principles of successful project management * Demonstrate a range of useful project management tools and techniques * Define the role, and help participants understand the skills required by, the project leader * Provide a structured framework to help participants manage multiple projects * Identify opportunities to improve project management within the organisation DAY ONE 1 INTRODUCTION (COURSE SPONSOR) * Why this programme has been developed * Review of participants' needs and objectives 2 MANAGING SMALLER PROJECTS * Projects and project management * Lessons from past projects; the essential requirements for success * Differences between projects; characteristic project life cycles * Key issues and challenges of smaller projects * The multi-project world; project portfolio management 3 PROJECT EXERCISE * Syndicate teams plan and manage a small project * Review of the project exercise: What are the keys to successful management of small projects? 4 SETTING UP THE PROJECT * Getting organised * Managing the definition process * Identifying and managing project stakeholders * Working with the customer to define the scope and agree deliverables 5 CASE STUDY 1 * Defining the project scope and deliverables * Syndicate teams define the scope and deliverables for a typical project 6 PROJECT PLANNING * The importance and cost benefit of effective planning * Planning the plan; deciding how detailed a plan to create * Packaging the work and estimating timescales and costs * Developing project / resource schedules; setting milestones for control v * Identifying and managing critical path activities 7 CASE STUDY 2 * Creating the project plan * Syndicate teams develop and analyse the project plan DAY TWO 8 MANAGING PROJECT RISKS * Identifying risks to the project outcome, timescale and cost * Evaluating risks and adopting an appropriate risk strategy * Defining risk ownership; keeping a simple risk log * Keeping risk management up to date; staying pro-active * Integrating planning and risk management 9 PROJECT CONTROL * Managing change, minimising scope creep * Selecting the data needed to provide early warning of problems * Monitoring performance easily with 'S' curves and slip charts * Using trend forecasting to assess true project status * Running project review meetings 10 MANAGING A MULTI-PROJECT PORTFOLIO * Understanding the world of multiple projects * Establishing ownership of project / programme management * Classifying projects and creating the 'master schedule' * Defining and applying project lifecycle management * Resource management: essential pre-requisites and mechanisms * Project prioritisation criteria and techniques; pain / gain analysis 11 MANAGING THE MULTI-PROJECT TEAM * Characteristics of small project teams / part-time team membership * Clarifying line and project management responsibilities * Implementing effective manpower planning * Establishing professional working practices in the team * Developing project management competences in the team * Establishing team roles and integrating team members 12 COURSE REVIEW AND TRANSFER PLANNING (COURSE SPONSOR PRESENT) * Identify actions to be implemented individually * Identify corporate opportunities for improving project management * Sponsor-led review and discussion of proposals * Conclusion