Project Management: Project Foundations and Initiation

Overview

This course will be useful for anyone whose primary primary responsibility is not project management, but who manages projects on an informal basis; who contributes as members of a project team; or who wishes to incorporate project management practices into their personal work. You will begin by identifying key processes and requirements of project management. You'll then create a project scope/vision statement and identify essentials skills and risks for a project. This is the first course in a multi-course Specialization. All of the courses in this Specialization require that you have a recent version of Microsoft Word and Excel installed in order to open the course data files. The course setup instructions provided in the first module of this course go into more detail about the hardware and software requirements.

Syllabus

Getting Started with Project Management

You actively participated in a project. Now, you want to move from participating in projects to managing projects. In this lesson, you will be introduced to the basic terminology used in project management, examine the various project management approaches, and identify the leadership roles and responsibilities in a project. To successfully lead and manage a project, you need to be able to use your management skills with sound knowledge of the processes to achieve your goals. By identifying the key elements of effective project management, you can enhance your chances of success in managing a wide range of projects across application areas and industries.

Initiating a Project

You have some knowledge of the project life cycle and the skills required to be a project manager. Having understood the basic elements of project management, you are ready to begin the initial stages of a project. In this lesson, you'll discover how to initiate a project and perform the critical steps involved in laying the foundation for your project's success. Starting a project is like starting a new job; the more you know about the company, your team members, and what is expected of you, the more likely you are to hit the ground running and make a good impression. Ensuring that your project starts out right will not only save you time and resources, but will also eliminate the need to backtrack once your project is officially underway.