module specification

Business projects tend to vary greatly in size and scope depending on their objectives, allocated resources and the industry for which they are developed. In the context of the aviation, events and tourism industries, competent and confident business project managers are required to tend the needs of the different stages of designing, managing and delivering successful projects. To this end, students need to be provided with a solid grounding on time management applied to projects, budgeting, and human talent management within specific project settings. Therefore, a variety of resources intending to provide methods and tools to manage projects successfully should be drawn from to engrain a comprehensive understanding of the different requirements needed to structure a viable and effective project. This module introduces students to the role of the project manager, the nature of projects and how to manage them successfully through active engagement with these resources. As a result, students will be equipped with a solid and confident grounding to develop realistic, effective and attractive project proposals, manage and organise their delivery.

The module aims to enable students to:
1. Assess project proposals and ascertain the most viable approach to achieve its objectives
2. Recognise the characteristics of project organisations that provide governance, assurance, support and direction to the project planning and delivery team
3. Understand the difference between linear and agile project management methods
4. Develop project plans assisted by relevant software, including the use of Gantt charts and Work Breakdown Structures
5. Communicate project proposals in detail and effectively, including their risks and other issues

No pre-requisites.
Available for Study Abroad? YES

The module contents cover all areas as described in the module description and a detailed outlined of these contents is as follows:
 
1. Introduction to projects and project management - LO1
•    Types of project – highly predictive to highly adaptive
•    Lifecycles and methods – linear, incremental, iterative and evolutionary
•    The Iron Triangle
•    Traditional and Agile projects compared

2.    Project Lifecycle - LO1
•    Project Stages and Activities
•    Project documentation
•    Project Management processes and systems
•    The role of the business case

3. Projects as Temporary Organisations - LO1, LO2
•    Project Sponsors, Boards and Committees
•    Stakeholders
•    Assurance and Governance
•    PMO

4. Quality Management - LO2, LO3
•    Managing quality
•    Acceptance
•    Assurance
•    Quality management for sustainability

5. Project Requirements and Deliverables – LO1, LO2, LO3
•    Project Requirements
•    Work Breakdown Structure
•    Product Descriptions
•    Agile approach - MOSCOW

6.    Project Design and Planning – LO1, LO2, LO3
•    Estimating activity durations
•    Network Diagrams
•    Gantt Chart

7.    Resource Scheduling and Time Scheduling – LO1, LO2, LO3
•    Resource management
•    Adding resources to the Gantt Chart
•    Working time and resource availability
•    Agile Timeboxing

8.  Risk Management - LO3
•    Assessing risk
•    Risk management
•    Contingency Planning

9. Managing Projects - Progress Tracking and Reporting – LO1, LO2, LO3
•    Project information
•    Reporting
•    Earned Value

10. Project team management LO1, LO2, LO3
•    Motivation 
•    Monitoring
•    Conflict management
•    Communication

The module will be delivered over a 12-week period consisting of 3 hours of face-to-face contact each week. The key theories, models and concepts of project management applied to aviation, tourism and events will be covered during the weekly sessions through the use of seminars, tutorials, case study analyses, question and answer sessions, discussions, presentations, student-led group activities, etc. Teaching materials will be available via the Virtual Learning Environment (WebLearn).
The module draws on a wide range of academic frameworks and professional experience. It introduces core concepts and encourages students to develop a critical and analytical approach to issues related to project management. Students will develop an awareness of different theoretical and practical perspectives, so that the complexity of project management issues and practice is explored as thoroughly as possible. To ensure a positive and productive student learning experience the programme is designed to be a combination of class-based sessions, seminars, tutorials and case-study group work, as well as self-directed learning, VLE activities (including reflective commentary) and presentations.

On successful completion of this module students will be able to:
1. Analyse different types of projects and determine appropriate approaches to their design, management and delivery
2. Recognise appropriate tools to plan, manage and execute a project in aviation, events or tourism
3. Incorporate effective quality and risk management approaches in the planning and management of a project

Books
Project Management | London Metropolitan University

https://rl.talis.com/3/londonmet/lists/614DFCC9-F939-FD74-3BFB-734529DD99F1.html?lang=en-GB&login=1

Journals
Project Management Journal
International Journal of Project Management
International Journal of Managing Projects in Business
Journal of Modern Project Management

Websites
Project Management Institute: https://www.pmi.org/
Association for Project Management (APM): https://www.apm.org.uk/
Project Management Today: http://www.pmtoday.co.uk
Project Management: www.projectmanagement.com
The Chartered Quality Institute (CQI): https://www.quality.org/