mp04

1. Course Description
This course focuses on the development of the project plan. Project planning is one of the core activities in project management. It is not just something done before starting the project but a "living" document. The project plan is a tool for managing the project and used for various tasks (e.g. communication, controlling, accounting). Project planning involves the consideration of time/schedule, cost and resources. Additionally, quality and risks are important topics. The parameters are interdependent and changing during project runtime. Project planning has to reflect these dynamics.

The intention of the course is to guide the students through a project planning process. Used as case studies are the planning framework of IPMA, and the planning of a real project case according to IPMA standards. For each planning step the students are introduced to the relevant theoretical concepts. They apply the concepts to the case study. This guides them into a deep understanding of the different concepts. Based on that experience the students are doing a literature review on recent developments in project management research for the specific planning phases. Based on the theoretical knowledge from the lectures and the practical experience from the case study they are able to do a qualified evaluation of the respective field of research.

The IPMA compliant project manual is developed in group work sessions. This helps the students to understand the different roles in planning and to find a consensus on their view of the project. During this process they learn to see the project plan as a tool for communication and alignment rather than a pure documentation. Relevant aspects of the planning process are compared to the situation in other domains apart from the case study.

The literature review is condensed in individual short papers showing the ability of each student to explore and understand the recent research trends in the evaluated field. From this review, improvements of the planning process ahead of the current IPMA and PMI processes are discussed.

The course is also well integrated within the framework of EuroMPM courses. Project planning is a basic technique and a tool for project management. It is linked to project concepts and project life cycle, since it is important to have a holistic view on the project while developing the plan. Standards structure this view. Project control uses the project plan and helps to refine it. Organization, Risk and Quality are further important factors.

The learning outcomes within the standards of European Qualification Framework (EQF) are defined and documented for the Knowledge, skills and competence levels. The objectives are to enable students to explain concepts of project planning and to consider recent developments (risks, CCPM, large projects). At skills level, they will be able to detect, develop and apply tools and techniques for project planning. The students will also develop competence to analyze and develop new concepts for project planning. They understand the connections to other areas of project management.

2 Course Structure

 * Introduction
 * Project Assignment
 * Objectives/Non Objectives
 * IPMA Standard for Project Manuals => example from semiconductor industry
 * Case Study: construction of a biogas power plant
 * WBS - OBS - PBS
 * Project phases and Milestones
 * Scheduling - Gantt charts
 * Scheduling - Networks, Critical Path, Critical Chain Project Management
 * Resource Planning, Cost Planning, Budget Planning
 * Incorporating risks into project plans (@risk)
 * Planning for Large Projects

3 Case Studies:

 * Building a Biogas Power Plant: Development of an IPMA compliant project manual for the construction project of a (real) biogas power plant in Westphalia

4 Parameters

 * ECTS: 3
 * Hours of study in total: 90
 * Weekly hours per semester: 2
 * Contact hours: 30
 * Self study hours: 60
 * Course characteristics: compulsory
 * Course frequency: every year - winter semester
 * Maximal capacity: 15 students
 * Course admittance prerequisites: no special requirements
 * Skills trained in this course: professional, methodological, and personal skills
 * Assessment of the course:
 * 75% contributions within the course (group work on case study, individual paper on research topic)
 * 25% written or oral examination at the end of the course
 * Teaching staff: Prof. Dr. Carsten Wolff, NN

5 Learning outcomes

 * 5.1 Knowledge**

The students can
 * describe the processes of project planning.
 * explain the concept of a project manual according to IPMA.
 * explain the differences and similarities to other standards, especially PMI.
 * explain the concept of work breakdown structure.
 * explain the concept of a Gantt chart.
 * explain the concept of Critical Path and Critical Chain.
 * explain the concept of a milestone and a milestone checklist.
 * explain the incorporation of risks into project plans.
 * explain consequences of large projects for project planning.


 * 5.2 Skills**

The students are able to
 * develop a project manual according to IPMA
 * align running activities in developing a project manual
 * develop a WBS, a Gantt chart and a resource plan
 * apply tools like MS Project
 * integrate risk estimates into a project plan
 * detect the critical path in a project and assess the sensitivity of the critical path to network changes
 * transfer the information from the case study into a project plan
 * decide about the important and irrelevant parts of a case study
 * handle complexities while working in international teams

in a given context in the course.


 * 5.3 Competence - attitude**

They are able to
 * develop a project manual according to IPMA
 * align running activities in developing a project manual
 * develop a WBS, a Gantt chart and a resource plan
 * apply tools like MS Project
 * integrate risk estimates into a project plan
 * detect the critical path in a project and assess the sensitivity of the critical path to network changes
 * transfer the information from the case study into a project plan

in a project.

5.4 On scaling outcomes
The assessment of learning outcomes is based upon the following core perspectives:
 * Completeness – regarding project planning
 * Analysis - analyse project plans according to CPM and CCPM
 * Analysis - analyse project plans with respect to risks
 * Analysis - analyse the state of the art in certain fields of research on project planning
 * Concept building - develop a project manual according to IPMA
 * Problem solving - transfer the case study into a plan (basic solution - advanced solution)
 * Tools - apply WBS (basic - advanced)
 * Tools - apply MS Project (basic - medium)
 * Tools - apply @risk (basic - medium)
 * Linking – Relating project planning to different areas of project management – standards, competencies, communications, safety and health

6 Teaching and training methods:

 * Lectures introducing concepts, methods and tools
 * Group work to practice concepts and methods, to develop skills and to work on case studies
 * Home work to add individual contributions

7 Course mapping
This course is linked to other courses of the study program in the following way:

Project Planning has guiding standards like ICB, IPMA, PMI, V-Model, etc.
 * MP03: Standards and Mainstreams**

Project planning is based upon resources - their availability and competencies. Resources are assigned to work packages. This is one important input for planning.
 * MP06: Human Resource Management in Projects**

The project organization is one important view on a project and needs to be considered in planning.
 * MP07: Project Organization**

Risks influence project planning and need to be considered at any stage of the project. Especially the simulation of the effect of risk on the project schedule (@risk) is an important part of planning.
 * MP09: Managing Risk**

Other courses (e.g. project control or project quality) have certain links to project planning, too.

8 References:
Most course materials are available in ILIAS and additional web portals - a few books to mention here:


 * 1) PMI: PMBOK® - 4th edition, PMI® 2008.
 * 2) Kerzner, Harold: Project Management, 10th edition, New York 2009.
 * 3) ICB - IPMA Competence Baseline, Version 3, PMA/GPM-Eigenverlag 1999.