MGT 609A Project Management Fundamentals


Course Catalog Description

Introduction

The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the world of projects and to the real life struggles and challenges that project managers face. The course focuses on the day-today, hands-on problems of managing a project, which is defined as a temporary organization within a permanent organization set up to achieve a specific objective. It will broadly cover the operational and conceptual issues faced by modern project managers. At the end of this course, students should be able to develop, execute and control a basic project plan capable of supporting business objectives linked to measures of success for a single project.

Campus Fall Spring Summer
On Campus X
Web Campus X

Instructors

Professor Email Office
Panos Repoussis Panos.Repoussis@stevens.com 201-216-3342

More Information

Course Description

A significant portion of the learning will occur through readings in our texts and assigned journal articles; class participation and discussions and use of case studies. Successful students will engage in the following activities:

  • Active participation in the discussions is expected from all students.
  • Read assigned material.
  • Prepare written assignments and complete homework in accordance with the guidelines.
  • Participate in one written mid-term exam, which is based on the readings and the lectures.
  • Complete a final paper that involves the analysis of a real-life project using the frameworks, concepts, and tools presented in this course.


Course Outcomes

After completing this course, students will be able to:

1. Address the role of the project manager in an organization and ways of structuring organizations to manage projects.

2. Understand the range, scope and complexity of modern projects.

3. Develop a strategic system perspective on the management of projects.

4. Apply modern project management tools and techniques.

Additional learning objectives include the development of:

1. Written skills (Mgt898): each students will submit a project paper to the College of Arts and Letters which will be used to assess written skills in terms of logic, grammar, spelling and idea development.

2. Oral skills: the final presentations will be assessed by a professor from the College of Arts and Letters to assess presentation skills.

3. Team skills: The final project for the course will involve student teams.

4. Ethics (Mgt899): all students will complete a quiz after the completion of a module on Ethics.


Course Resources

Textbook

Project Management: A Managerial Approach, 9th Edition, by Jack R. Meredith, Samuel J. Mantel, Jr. and Scott M. Shafer ISBN 9781119071983 ©2015 (M&M).

Additional References

A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, 5th Editionby the Project Management Institute (PMI) 2013. ISBN: 9781935589679.


Grading

Grading Policies

The final grade in the class will be determined in the following manner:

  • 10% Participation
  • 25% Mid-Term Exam
  • 20%Homework Assignments
  • 40% Final Project Plan

Lecture Outline

Topic Reading
Week 1 Orientation - Introduction to Project Management Meredith and Mantel (M&M), Ch. 1 PMBOK, Ch. 1, 2.4, 3
Week 2 Project Selection / Measuring Project Success M&M, Ch. 2 PMBOK Section 4.1
Week 3 The Project Manager / Ethics M&M, Ch. 3 PMBOK, Ch. 3 / PMI Code of Ethics
Week 4 Conflict and Negotiation M&M, Ch. 4 Article: “Conflict in Project Teams”
Week 5 Project Organization M&M, Ch. 5 PMBOK, Ch. 2, 13
Week 6 Project Planning and Risk Management M&M, Ch 6 PMBOK Ch. 4 , a5n,d 1 51
Week 7 Mid-term exam MGT 898 Written Assessment Assignment
Week 8 No Class – Spring break
Week 9 Scheduling M&M, Ch. 8 PMBOK, Ch. 6
Week 10 Risk Management (cont.), Budgeting and Cost Estimation M&M, Ch 7 PMBOK Ch. 7
Week 11 Resource Allocation and Resource Leveling M&M, Ch. 9 PMBOK Ch. 9
Week 12 Project Monitoring M&M, Ch. 10 PMBOK Ch. 10
Week 13 Project Controlling M&M, Ch. 11 PMBOK Ch. 8
Week 14 Final Project Presentations