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Monash University

FIT2002 Project management - Semester 1, 2012

This unit provides both a theoretical and practical overview of processes involved in successfully managing medium to large scale projects undertaken by organisations operating within various industry sectors. Even though, this unit makes references to projects common to the information technology industry, the principles are equally applied to non-IT related projects. Examples and mini-cases illustrating project management issues experienced by various sectors (e.g. construction, business, defence) are cited. Typical topics include the project life cycle, problem definition, project evaluation, high and low level planning using such techniques as networking, gantt charts and resource levelling, team building and people management, contract management, ethical and security issues, project monitoring and control, reporting and communication, termination and assessment.

Mode of Delivery

Caulfield (Day)

Contact Hours

2 hrs lectures/wk, 2 hrs laboratories/wk

Workload

Workload commitments per week are:

  • two-hour lecture
  • two-hour tutorial
  • a minimum of 2-3 hours of personal study per one hour of contact time in order to satisfy the reading and assignment expectations.

Unit Relationships

Prohibitions

AFW3043, BEW3640, BUS2176, CIV3205, CPE2006, CSE2203, GCO3807, GEG3104, GSE3003, FIT3086, MGW2700, MMS2203

Prerequisites

Completion of at least 24 points of level one study or equivalent.

Chief Examiner

Dr Dora Constantinidis

Campus Lecturer

Caulfield

Dora Constantinidis

Tutors

Caulfield

Dora Constantinidis

Pamela Spink

Academic Overview

Outcomes

At the completion of this unit students will be able to:
  • describe the characteristics and phases of a project and its life cycle and explain the role played by the project manager;
  • explain the need for and develop specific goals, detailed plans and control strategies in large scale projects and relate this to the major reasons for the failure of projects;
  • develop relevant, achievable and measurable project goals;
  • explain and use standard project management techniques including Project Networks, Critical Path Analysis and Management, Gantt Charts and Time-Phased Budgets for high and low level project planning;
  • explore various alternatives in implementing projects by taking into account of enterprise architecture;
  • discuss the communication, people handling and team management skills required of a project manager and explain some of the techniques that may be employed;
  • identify and critically discuss the impact on a project of external influences, including organisational structure, and stakeholders;
  • explain the processes involved in selecting and initiating a project and prepare various critical documents required for these processes, including financial justification;
  • explain the importance of resource availability on project plans, perform project crashing calculations in order to develop and manage resource constrained project plans;
  • describe the need for Quality Management in projects and explain, compare and use various techniques currently employed by professional project managers;
  • describe the impact of risk on a project managers decision process, explain how that risk may be managed and/or mitigated and develop an appropriate risk management plan;
  • describe the need for developing ethical practices in managing project teams;
  • explain security concerns in project management;
  • decide on the type of contracts that need to be prepared in support of acquiring products/services used within projects;
  • monitor the progress of a project, determine performance against the plan, develop strategies to manage any variation and discuss formal change control processes;
  • produce useful, informative progress reports for various project stakeholders and conduct stage and post project reviews.

Graduate Attributes

Monash prepares its graduates to be:
  1. responsible and effective global citizens who:
    1. engage in an internationalised world
    2. exhibit cross-cultural competence
    3. demonstrate ethical values
  2. critical and creative scholars who:
    1. produce innovative solutions to problems
    2. apply research skills to a range of challenges
    3. communicate perceptively and effectively

Assessment Summary

Examination (3 hours): 60%; In-semester assessment: 40%

Assessment Task Value Due Date
Project Selection, Charter and WBS/Network Development 20% Week 9
Microsoft Project Case Study 20% Week 12
Examination 1 60% To be advised

Teaching Approach

Lecture and tutorials or problem classes
This teaching and learning approach provides facilitated learning, practical exploration and peer learning.

Feedback

Our feedback to You

Types of feedback you can expect to receive in this unit are:
  • Graded assignments with comments
  • Graded assignments without comments
  • Solutions to tutes, labs and assignments

Your feedback to Us

Monash is committed to excellence in education and regularly seeks feedback from students, employers and staff. One of the key formal ways students have to provide feedback is through SETU, Student Evaluation of Teacher and Unit. The University's student evaluation policy requires that every unit is evaluated each year. Students are strongly encouraged to complete the surveys. The feedback is anonymous and provides the Faculty with evidence of aspects that students are satisfied and areas for improvement.

For more information on Monash's educational strategy, and on student evaluations, see:
http://www.monash.edu.au/about/monash-directions/directions.html
http://www.policy.monash.edu/policy-bank/academic/education/quality/student-evaluation-policy.html

Previous Student Evaluations of this unit

If you wish to view how previous students rated this unit, please go to
https://emuapps.monash.edu.au/unitevaluations/index.jsp

Recommended Resources

Microsoft Project 2010.

This software is available in Student Labs - please confirm with your tutor during tutorials.

Unit Schedule

Week Activities Assessment
0   No formal assessment or activities are undertaken in week 0
1 Unit overview and Introduction to project management Tutorials start this week
2 Project selection  
3 Project initiation  
4 Project planning & WBS  
5 Project activity planning and project networks  
6 Project network calculations and project crashing  
7 Project crashing calculations and resource levelling  
8 Project cost management  
9 Project quality and risk management Assessment task 1 due
10 Project HR and communication management  
11 Project procurement and closure management  
12 Project management key issues and exam preparation Assessment task 2 due
  SWOT VAC No formal assessment is undertaken in SWOT VAC
  Examination period LINK to Assessment Policy: http://policy.monash.edu.au/policy-bank/
academic/education/assessment/
assessment-in-coursework-policy.html

*Unit Schedule details will be maintained and communicated to you via your MUSO (Blackboard or Moodle) learning system.

Assessment Requirements

Assessment Policy

Faculty Policy - Unit Assessment Hurdles (http://www.infotech.monash.edu.au/resources/staff/edgov/policies/assessment-examinations/unit-assessment-hurdles.html)

Assessment Tasks

Participation

  • Assessment task 1
    Title:
    Project Selection, Charter and WBS/Network Development
    Description:
    This assignment is designed to demonstrate your understanding of project initiation, in particular the preparation of a project charter, ability to apply techniques to evaluate financial attractiveness of a project, and ability to perform network crashing techniques.
    Weighting:
    20%
    Criteria for assessment:
    1. Correct method shown.
    2. Correct answers given.
    Due date:
    Week 9
  • Assessment task 2
    Title:
    Microsoft Project Case Study
    Description:
    This assignment is designed to demonstrate familiarity with project management software (MS Project) calendars and formatting options through a submitted report.
    Weighting:
    20%
    Criteria for assessment:
    1. Understanding of project planning, in particular the methods and techniques used in planning and controlling a project.
    2. Understanding of risk, communications, team management, and quality management aspects of a project.
    3. Ability to appropriately document aspects of project management using project management software tools.
    Due date:
    Week 12

Examinations

  • Examination 1
    Weighting:
    60%
    Length:
    3 hours
    Type (open/closed book):
    closed book
    Electronic devices allowed in the exam:
    None

Assignment submission

It is a University requirement (http://www.policy.monash.edu/policy-bank/academic/education/conduct/plagiarism-procedures.html) for students to submit an assignment coversheet for each assessment item. Faculty Assignment coversheets can be found at http://www.infotech.monash.edu.au/resources/student/forms/. Please check with your Lecturer on the submission method for your assignment coversheet (e.g. attach a file to the online assignment submission, hand-in a hard copy, or use an online quiz).

Online submission

If Electronic Submission has been approved for your unit, please submit your work via the VLE site for this unit, which you can access via links in the my.monash portal.

Extensions and penalties

Submission must be made by the due date otherwise penalties will be enforced.

You must negotiate any extensions formally with your campus unit leader via the in-semester special consideration process: http://www.infotech.monash.edu.au/resources/student/equity/special-consideration.html.

Returning assignments

Students can expect assignments to be returned within two weeks of the submission date or after receipt, whichever is later.

Other Information

Policies

Monash has educational policies, procedures and guidelines, which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University's academic standards, and to provide advice on how they might uphold them. You can find Monash's Education Policies at:
http://policy.monash.edu.au/policy-bank/academic/education/index.html

Key educational policies include:

Student services

The University provides many different kinds of support services for you. Contact your tutor if you need advice and see the range of services available at www.monash.edu.au/students. For Sunway see http://www.monash.edu.my/Student-services, and for South Africa see http://www.monash.ac.za/current/

The Monash University Library provides a range of services and resources that enable you to save time and be more effective in your learning and research. Go to http://www.lib.monash.edu.au or the library tab in my.monash portal for more information. At Sunway, visit the Library and Learning Commons at http://www.lib.monash.edu.my/. At South Africa visit http://www.lib.monash.ac.za/.

Academic support services may be available for students who have a disability or medical condition. Registration with the Disability Liaison Unit is required. Further information is available as follows:

  • Website: http://monash.edu/equity-diversity/disability/index.html;
  • Email: dlu@monash.edu
  • Drop In: Equity and Diversity Centre, Level 1 Gallery Building (Building 55), Monash University, Clayton Campus, or Student Community Services Department, Level 2, Building 2, Monash University, Sunway Campus
  • Telephone: 03 9905 5704, or contact the Student Advisor, Student Commuity Services at 03 55146018 at Sunway

Reading list

Schwalbe K (2009) Introduction to Project Management, 2nd Edition, Thomson Course Technology

Schwalbe K (2010) Information Technology Project Management, Kathy Schwalbe, 6th Edition, Thomson Course Technology

Bunin R & Biheller (2010) New Perspectives on Microsoft Project 2010 Introductory, 2010 Edition, Cengage Learning

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