Advanced Project Scheduling

Workshop Overview

The schedule is the "essence" of a project.  Being able to develop and manage a quality schedule is an acquired skill.

If you are serious about your schedules then you will want to attend this workshop.  Learn scheduling best practices and how to use a project scheduling tool to do more than just "draw pretty bar charts", including how to:

• Establish site scheduling standards and templates and what these should contain
• Develop, monitor and control estimates, baselines and achievements
• Develop a PBS, a PFD, a WBS, an OBS, a RASCI chart, a RAM and a schedule
• Make conscious trade-offs between task granularity, resource assignment and project manageability
• Manage generic and specific resources and their assignments
• Manage resource conflicts
• Manage delays
• Manage changes and variations
• Manage schedule and cost risks as well as contingency and slack/float
• Identify what Microsoft® Project features NOT to use (and why)
• Create a:
  • Work Products (Deliverables) Register
  • Milestones Register
  • Outcomes Register
  • Payments Register
• Link multiple project schedules into an overall programme, portfolio or master schedule
• Debug your schedules
• Develop schedules that are compliant with the PMI's® Practice Standard for Scheduling
• Develop schedules that really can be used to communicate project status
• Create quality reports suitable for different types of project stakeholders

Due to its overwhelming presence in the marketplace, Microsoft® Project is used as the vehicle to demonstrate these techniques.

Take the opportunity to not only increase your professional knowledge, but also learn practical, field-proven procedures and techniques which will improve the likelihood of success for the projects on which you are currently working.

This has been our most in-demand and successful workshop for the past 10 years.  We have delivered this course to Department of Employment and Workplace Relations, E-Card, KPMG, NSW Department of Primary Industry, Oxon Data Systems, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Project Management Institute, StayinFront, Sydney Water Corporation, Unisys and others.

Places fill quickly, so book early!

Participants

This workshop is suitable for all Programme Directors, Project Managers and Project Leaders who have some experience in project scheduling and in using Microsoft® Project, and who want to improve their project time management skills.

This workshop is NOT suitable for people who have not managed projects and/or have NOT used Microsoft® Project previously.  This is NOT a basic, how to use Microsoft® Project training course.

Learning Outcomes

After attending this workshop each participant will be able to:

• Use Microsoft® Project to address most common project time management scenarios
• Understand the limitations of Microsoft® Project

Handout Materials

Each participant will receive:

1. A complete copy of all of the Microsoft® PowerPoint® slides
2. A 135+ page book titled "Advanced Project Scheduling Using Microsoft® Project"
3. A template Schedule Management Plan
4. A template Site Standards Schedule Usage Guide
5. A template Systems Integration project Work Breakdown Structure
6. A number of Microsoft® Project add-in tools that can immediately be put to use
7. A number of Microsoft® Project example schedules that demonstrate specific techniques

Facilities

Each participant is required to bring a notebook Personal Computer configured with a CD-ROM drive and previously loaded with a copy of Microsoft® Project 2000, 2003, 2007 or 2010 so that they can perform class exercises on an individual basis.

Up to 14 participants can be accommodated per course.  This allows for the right amount of hands-on use and discussion as well as questions and answers to take place among the participants.

The training room must be able to accommodate participants and their computers (ie, sufficient table space as well as power points/extension cables with multiple adaptor boards).

Learning Methods

This workshop takes a very different approach to teaching participants how to use a scheduling tool.  Rather than just teach participants to "click here and it will do this" as many software training courses do, it encourages participants to discuss solutions to various scheduling scenarios faced by Project Managers and then shows participants how to use Microsoft® Project to assist in managing each of the solutions.

The workshop is instructor-led, based on a series of Microsoft® PowerPoint® slides and Microsoft® Project example exercises.

Spend an entertaining day thinking deeply about and debating advanced project time management concepts, issues and the solutions to common problems.

PMI PDU Details

PDU Hours: 16

Provider Number: C115

Programme Number: 00030303

Comments from Previous Participants

"Excellent material."

"I came to the course expecting only to gain PDUs.  I ended up taking away much more."

"Rob is extremely knowledgeable and open, shares his views and opinions strongly, which is great given his experience."

"Probably the most useful course I have attended on any subject.  Will improve my day-to-day job performance significantly."

"Awesome course.  Should be mandatory in more companies for Project Managers to attend.  So many valuable tips to take away that we can use on Day 1.  I've never been to a course where the handouts and resources have been so useful.  Thank you Rob for sharing your knowledge and experience with us!"

"Thank you very much!  I have already recommended this course to 2 people."

"Great course.  Thanks for a pragmatic, real-world course in scheduling and how to use Microsoft Project.  A good use of 2 days."

"Excellent value for money.  A must-attend course for all PM who are serious about their careers and the health of their projects."

"This was a great course.  It taught me so many things that I can use and how I could improve not only my skills but also good disciplines for my company's PMO."

"Excellent course.  I expected a course on Microsoft Project.  Instead I learned a lot about how to be a better Project Manager in schedule management."

"Thank you for the excellent Advanced Project Scheduling course you held several weeks ago.  What I have learnt from you will certainly make a better project manager of me."

Facilitator

Robert Posener whose entertaining style as well as thought-provoking observations will keep you participating, facilitates this workshop.

Robert has been a project manager for over 35 years.  As well as establishing Project Management Offices, Robert has also managed information technology and business projects and programmes for computer hardware, software and consulting vendors as well as Clients in a variety of industries in Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Hong Kong and USA.  Projects have spanned the full spectrum of systems integration, software development, infrastructure deployment and package acquisition, including some that have been the most high-profile IT projects in Australia.

He has been actively using Microsoft® Project since the MS-DOS version 1.0 was released in 1986.

Robert passed the Project Management Institute's (PMI®) Project Management Professional (PMP®) exam in 1998.

He has been an active member of the PMI® Sydney Chapter since 1997.  Robert is also a member of the PMI® Scheduling Community of Practice.

Robert has facilitated the following workshops on behalf of the PMI® Sydney Chapter for over 9 years:

• Advanced Project Scheduling (using Microsoft® Project)
• Setting Up Projects for Success
• Management of Third Parties (Clients, vendors and subcontractors)

He has also facilitated training for Clients of The Learning Lab, Dimension Data Learning Solutions (DDLS), Tonkin Corporation, Chartered Secretaries Australia (CSA) and Australian Institute of Management (AIM) as well as in-house courses for many organisations.

Robert manages projects for organisations, mentors individual Project Managers and assists organisations to improve their project, programme and practice management processes.