There are currently three courses that have been developed to train WSDOT personnel on project management.
Project Management Process
Course Code: B71
This course will provide participants the opportunity to learn skills and tools for the application of the WSDOT Project Management process to enhance the effective delivery of projects.
Through lectures, class discussion, and exercises - using an actual project - participants will learn a number of critical project management factors including the following: project initiation, team building, inclusion of customers in the project delivery process, the importance of developing comprehensive, realistic, and deliverable project schedules and project management plans, measuring success, managing, customer expectations, and anticipating, actively recognizing and managing change.
Emphasis is on teamwork, risk, resource and change management all as part of a comprehensive project management process. The class is structured around a simulation of a project team setting and is conducted in a fast paced, real world, format that engages all participants.
Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Initiate & align a project team.
- Build a work breakdown structure.
- Develop a project management plan.
- Assess project risk.
- Obtain endorsement of the project management plan.
- Manage Scope, Schedule, & Budget.
- Manage Change.
- Conduct an effective project closure.
Next Steps: Introduction to Project Scheduling (CB5) and Advanced Project Management (CPH)CB5
Introduction to Project Scheduling
Course Code: CB5
Recommended Prerequisite: Project Management Process (B71)
This course bridges the gap between the agency Project Management executive order and the Project Management system tool. This course provides students with a cursory overview of the Project Management process and utilizes team exercises in which students work together to create project schedules.
These schedules will be developed manually in order to provide students with the basic foundation of critical path method (CPM) scheduling. Students will use the Master Deliverables List (MDL) to build a project Work Breakdown Structure (WBS). Students will use the task planning worksheet to define task durations, identify task relationships, and assign resources. Students will create a simple project network and Gantt chart. This course does not utilize project management software.
Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Define basic scheduling term.
- Develop a network diagram for a simple project.
- Identify and calculate the critical path for a project network.
- Perform task planning and utilize the WSDOT Task Planning Worksheet.
Next Steps: Developing Projects in PS8 (CPB) and Advanced Project Management (CPH)
CPH
Advanced Project Management
Course Code CPH
Prerequisite: Intro to Project Scheduling (CB5)
This course provides participants an introduction to some more advanced project management tools. Upon completion of the course, participants will be able to:
- Identify project team roles and methods of project conflict resolution
- Plan and estimate percent complete for schedule and budget management
- Identify methods for schedule compression and/or recovery
- Develop Risk Management Plans
- Identify methods for budget and scheduling estimates
- Develop a resource histogram and balance resources
- Perform Earned Value analysis on an actively tracked project plan