MGMT 418: Project Planning and Resource Management

Advanced course in project management focusing on a more in-depth approach to project planning and scheduling and resource management. MGMT 418 Project Planning and Resource Management (3) Project Planning and Resource Management is a more in-depth look at some of the most important aspects of project management; the ability to accurately plan and schedule projects using the latest and most accurate methods. Further, the course addresses resource management within the context of planning, noting the important linkage between these two elements. Accurate planning can be done through a variety of techniques, including CPM, PERT, simulation, linear programming and other optimization methods. Students will learn when each of these methods are most useful, benefits and drawbacks of various planning and resource management techniques, and how to apply these techniques to their projects. In addition, students will learn about different types of project risks, and techniques for analyzing and managing these risks. Because the focus is hand-on and problem-based, the role of the instructor in this course is to demonstrate these analytical techniques through classroom exercises and assignments and software packages, including MS Project, simulation, and Analytic Hierarchical Process (AHP).

Course Overview Video

Course Prerequisite: SCM 301 and (MGMT 409 or MGMT 410 or BA 421)

Course Topics: Major subjects in this course include:

1. Advanced project scheduling using Microsoft (MS) Project;
2. Project performance monitoring and evaluation;
3. Advanced earned value management (EVM) analytics; and
4. Resource-constrained project scheduling problems.

Objectives

Project Management is, simply put, about working smarter, rather than harder or longer, and getting the right things done to meet strategic objectives. MGMT 418 Project Planning and Resource Management is an “Advanced course in project management focusing on a more in-depth approach to project planning and scheduling and resource management” (Course Catalog).

Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:

1. Explain the importance, challenges, processes, and decisions of realistic project planning and resource management.
2. Apply advanced scheduling techniques using MS Project.
3. Employ advanced tools and techniques to optimize resource management for project scheduling.
4. Conduct advanced EVM analysis in practical project environments.

Structure

This course is built on class discussions, software applications, and case-based/scenario-based problem-solving. In addition to understanding what is discussed in the lesson and the cases/scenarios, you need to read the assigned textbook chapters and reading materials. Doing so will help reinforce the concepts and build your knowledge and skills of the material. Various aspects of this course have been designed to help you with the learning process. Recommended guidelines should help you get the maximum benefit out of this course. Of course, the learning process is highly individualistic, and hence you may explore and find out what works best for you.

Course topics are divided as follows:

Part 1 Creating informative and realistic schedules using MS Project

• Calendars and four precedence relationships
• Resource-loaded schedule
• Resource leveling and resource optimization
• Cost-loaded schedule and budget baseline
• Time-cost tradeoffs

Part 2 Schedule updating and EVM

• Project performance metrics
• Earned Value Management
• Project reporting

Part 3 Advanced Topics

• Estimating under uncertainty
• Linear programming for project planning
• Advanced topics in planning and scheduling
• MS Project Advanced

Course Assignments

The course contains the following assignments:

Discussion Board Assignments

Six lessons in this course include a discussion. Normally discussions occur asynchronously; however, for some discussions, students will be given the option to choose between an asynchronous or synchronous format. Your instructor will inform you in which lessons this option will be offered. Students are expected to participate in online discussions. Because of the importance of discussion to meeting the objectives of the course, students also will be evaluated on the frequency and quality of their participation. This evaluation will be based on the level of preparation for class discussion and student analysis and integration of the lesson materials. Students are expected to communicate their ideas clearly and persuasively.

For the lessons where there is a choice of formats, students must select one option. Regardless of format, students will be graded on the quality of their contributions. Merely offering an opinion or agreeing with someone else’s comment/post does not equal quality! Students should strive to apply the information from the text and the lessons and connect the theoretical concepts and frameworks to their life or work experiences that support their positions.

Discussion Board Assignments will be graded by the instructor using Rubrics. When computing the total grade on discussion board assignments, the lowest grade will be dropped. In other words, your final assignment score will be the sum of your best 5 scores (with each assignment having equal weight). However, you are strongly encouraged to submit all 6 assignments as they constitute the best preparation for the exams.

Exercises

There will be 11 exercises throughout the semester. Exercises are to be completed individually. You will have an exercise for topics covered in the week. The exercises will allow you to practice your knowledge and skills of learning in each session. It is the student’s responsibility to complete the exercise by following the instructions. Though exercises are not graded, they constitute the best preparation for students to work on corresponding assignments.  

Assignments

There will be 11 assignments throughout the semester. Assignments are to be submitted individually online via Canvas by the end of the day when it is due. You will have an assignment for topics covered in the week. The assignment will test your knowledge and skills of learning in each session. It is the student’s responsibility to check that they upload the correct version of their work and that the file is readable. Unreadable files will lead to a zero grade. Incorrect or incomplete versions will be graded as such.

Assignments will be graded by the instructor. Points will be given for effort, presentation, and correctness of your work. When computing the total grade on homework assignments, the lowest grade will be dropped. In other words, your final assignment score will be the sum of your best 10 scores (with each assignment having equal weight). However, you are strongly encouraged to submit all 11 assignments as they constitute the best preparation for the exams.

Exams

There are three exams in this course. They will be given as project-based take-home exams. Exams are to be submitted individually via Canvas by the end of the day when it is due. If you have a legitimate reason for missing the deadline for an exam, you need to get in touch with me 24 hours before the due date (through e-mail). There will be no make-up exams without a legitimate reason and appropriate proof and documentation.

Course Grading

The following table summarizes assignments and their associated weights.

You are responsible to check your grades on Canvas and report in the case of any discrepancy. Any concern regarding the grading should be addressed directly to the instructor, no later than one week after the grade was released on Canvas.

Letter grades will be based on the following scale:

Your final grade will not be rounded up and there will be no exceptions to this policy. For example, if your final grade is 92.8%, you will have earned an “A-.”

The instructor reserves the right to modify the total course points by adding or eliminating assignments based on the class progress.

Late Submissions

Submissions after the due date will not be accepted. All assignments are set to be due by midnight (11:59 pm) (Eastern Time) on Sunday of that week. Please do not wait until the last minute to start your homework.