Complex IT Project Management

Course Overview

This course is designed for experienced project managers who want to take their skills to the next level. Managing large, complex, and multiple information technology (IT) projects strains the project manager in many ways. Weaknesses in your project management skills can quickly bring a complex project to its knees. Learn from instructors who have experienced firsthand the challenge (and rewards!) of complex project management how to successfully implement large/multiple projects.

The course is highly interactive with challenging IT-based case studies and lectures filled with real-life work scenarios. Participants will team together to apply techniques learned from the lectures. Instructors for this course have over 10 years of project management experience in multiple industries.

Key Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:

• Describe how large, complex, and multiple IT projects need to be managed differently from smaller isolated projects
• Develop techniques to manage and coordinate project managers, subcontractors, customers, team members, and vendors
• Outline methods for handling complex cost constraints
• Describe ways to manage scope in a rapidly changing business environment
• Identify methods for handling multiple resource constraints and keeping resources for their IT project(s)
• Devise control mechanisms to ensure complex IT projects remain on time, within budget, and within predetermined quality metrics
• Identify an IT project that's in trouble and show how to recover it
• Describe methods of identifying, managing and reporting risk
• Apply techniques to manage IT project managers effectively
• Define elements of a successful RFP and methods for writing great contracts
• Describe various IT project implementation techniques

Course Outline

Complex PM – A Definition

• Do you have the basics nailed?
• Managing large/complex and/or multiple IT projects – the differences

All the People!

• Dealing with numerous stakeholders
• The stakeholder values table
• Assessing your sponsor, customer, and end users
• Modes for handling conflict
• Preventing unwarranted conflict
• Refining your negotiation skills

Managing Team Resources

• Handling large teams
• Virtual teams
• Part-time team members
• International teams
• Keeping the focus
• Leveraging your position in a positive way

Project Controls and Change Management

• Change management in a complex IT project
• Impact of change on a complex IT project
• Methods to reduce scope creep
• Measuring the health of a complex IT project
• Simplifying project management oversight            

Risk Management Planning

• Complex IT project risk analysis techniques
• Breaking down complex IT project risk
• Complex risk management – raising awareness
• Complex risk response planning
• A risk checklist for complex IT projects

Contract Management

• Request for proposal (RFP) pre-requisites
• RFP elements
• Evaluating RFP responses
• Contract considerations
• Contract terms and corresponding management approaches
• Communication planning for/with contractors
• Establishing completion criteria and creating statements of work

Surviving Project Audits

• The audit process
• Educating your IT project team
• Assigning roles to manage an audit
• Typical areas of audit investigation
• Collecting and presenting information to auditors
• Audit closeout

Complex Project Implementation

• Implementation business considerations
• Planning the implementation
• Pre-installation verifications
• Activities during product introduction
• Minimizing issues with product turnover
• Project acceptance and closeout