Foundations of Project Management

Description

• 📘 Course Title:

  Foundations of Project Management

  📅 Duration:

  4–6 Weeks (flexible for self-paced or instructor-led formats)

  🎯 Target Audience:

  • Aspiring project managers

  • Team leads or supervisors

  • Small business owners

  • Students in business or management

  • Anyone interested in learning project planning and execution basics

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  🔹 Module 1: Introduction to Project Management

  Topics:

  • What is a project? What is project management?

  • The project life cycle (Initiation → Planning → Execution → Closing)

  • Key roles in a project (PM, stakeholders, sponsor, team)

  • Overview of PM frameworks (Waterfall, Agile, Hybrid)

  Outcomes:

  • Understand what makes a project different from operations

  • Learn about common approaches to managing projects

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  🔹 Module 2: Initiating a Project

  Topics:

  • Defining project goals and objectives

  • Identifying stakeholders and setting expectations

  • Creating a project charter

  • Conducting feasibility and risk assessments

  Hands-On Task:

  • Draft a simple project charter for a sample project

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  🔹 Module 3: Project Planning

  Topics:

  • Scope definition and Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

  • Creating timelines and milestones (Gantt charts)

  • Estimating time, cost, and resources

  • Developing a risk management plan

  • Communication and stakeholder engagement planning

  Hands-On Task:

  • Build a basic project plan with tasks, owners, and deadlines

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  🔹 Module 4: Project Execution

  Topics:

  • Assembling the project team

  • Delegation, collaboration, and team communication

  • Using project management tools (Trello, Asana, MS Project, etc.)

  • Managing resources and timelines

  Hands-On Task:

  • Set up a project board in a tool like Trello or Asana

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  🔹 Module 5: Monitoring and Controlling a Project

  Topics:

  • Tracking progress (KPIs, status reports)

  • Managing change requests

  • Identifying and resolving issues and conflicts

  • Keeping the project on scope, time, and budget

  Hands-On Task:

  • Create a sample project status report

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  🔹 Module 6: Closing a Project

  Topics:

  • Completing deliverables and getting client/stakeholder sign-off

  • Conducting a project review or post-mortem

  • Documenting lessons learned

  • Celebrating success and releasing resources

  Hands-On Task:

  • Prepare a final project summary with lessons learned

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  🔹 Module 7: Introduction to Agile and Modern PM Methods (optional/bonus module)

  Topics:

  • Agile basics and Scrum roles

  • Sprint planning and daily stand-ups

  • Differences between Agile and traditional PM

  • When to use Agile vs. Waterfall

  Hands-On Task:

  • Create a simple Agile board for a project

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  🎓 Capstone Project

  Project Idea:
  Plan and present a complete project (e.g., website launch, event, or marketing campaign) including:

  • Project charter

  • Project plan with timeline

  • Risk and communication plans

  • Status report and project closeout

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  📜 Certification & Evaluation

  • Weekly quizzes

  • Hands-on project tasks

  • Capstone presentation or report

  • Certificate of Completion

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  🛠 Tools Suggested:

  • Trello, Asana, or ClickUp

  • Google Sheets or Excel for timelines and budgets

  • Canva or Lucidchart for WBS and visuals

  • MS Word or Docs for documentation