CIS 1513C - Project Management: Syllabus

Updated August 2015

CIS 1513

Project Management

Ref#529813

Table of Contents

Faculty Contact Information	Methods of Instruction
Course Description	Traditional Pace Chart and Assignments
General Course Outcomes	Grading and Exam Policy
Course Prerequisites	Communication Policy
Course Attendance & Participation Policy	Other Policies and Procedures
Computer Requirements	Student Success Tips and Resources
Required Course Materials

Faculty Contact Information

Course Instructor:		Susan Molina
Office Phone:		954-201-6749
Department Phone:		954-201-4923
Email:		All communication should be through the course email tool. Use my BC email ONLY if you are unable to access the course email:smolina@broward.edu
Virtual Office Hours:		I will be available live as needed.  Please email me to schedule a day / time to meet "Real Time".
BC Safety Office Phone#:		954-201-HELP (4357)

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Course Description

This course examines the organization, planning, and controlling of projects and provides practical knowledge on managing project scope, schedule and resources. Topics include project life cycle, work breakdown structure and Gantt charts, network diagrams, scheduling techniques, and resource allocation decisions. Concepts are applied through team projects and tutorials using project management software.

This course covers the general aspects of project management and emphasizes the important special considerations which apply to technology projects. Introduces the principles distinctive to managing information technology (IT) projects. The course weaves today's theory with successful practices for an understandable, integrated presentation that focus on the concepts, tools, and techniques that are most effective today. Students master skills in project integration , scope, time, cost, quality, human resource, communications, risk, procurement, and stakeholder management as well as all five process groups- initiating, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing. Intriguing examples and business cases featured in today's news, to further ensure the students have the foundation to manage IT projects with success.

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General Course Outcomes

1. The student shall understand Project Integration Management.
2. The students should gain an understanding of Project Scope Management.
3. The students should gain an understanding of Project Time Management.
4. The students should gain an understanding of the importance of Project Cost Management.
5. The students should gain an understanding of Project Quality Management.
6. The students should have an understanding of Human Resources Management.
7. The students should be able to manage Project Communications.
8. The students should gain an understanding of Project Risk Management.
9. The students should gain knowledge of Project Resource Procurement.

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Course Prerequisites

To maximize your chances for success in this course, make sure that you meet the following course prerequisites:

• Course Prerequisites and Co-requisites: CGS 1060C (with a grade of C, or higher) or Placement
• Computer Knowledge and Skills:
  • Students in this course should be familiar with the following computer skills.
    • File Management - You should be familiar with finding and saving files on your computer.
    • The Internet - You should be familiar with connecting to the Internet through an Internet Service Provider or Network Connection.
    • Web Browser Software - You should be familiar with using web browser software to navigate the Internet and locate information.
    • Email - You should be familiar with sending and receiving email messages.
    • Discussions - You should be familiar with posting and reading discussion messages in a threaded format.
    • Attachments - You should be familiar with sending email messages with attached files.
    • Word Processing - You should be familiar with creating, editing, saving, and printing documents using Microsoft Word.

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Course Attendance and Participation Policy

Attendance/Withdrawal Policy:

Participation:

Regular, active, and meaningful participation is a critically important component of this course and is essential to your success. It is recommended that you log into the course several times during the week. Frequency and quality of participation may affect your success in the program.

• Active participation is expected of all students in this course.
• Check your email and course discussions regularly. Ask questions.
• Weekly communication with your Academic Coach.

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Computer Requirements

To complete this course, you must have access to computer hardware and software that meets the standards listed below.

• Assignments that require word processing must be submitted in Microsoft Word format. Documents created using Microsoft Works, or files that have ".txt", ".pdf", or ".asci" extensions will not meet course requirements. If you do not have proper software on your computer, you can use the Microsoft Word program on any of the "open lab" computers at any BC Learning Resource Center or in public libraries. Please virus check documents before sending them. AVG offers a free online virus check.

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Required Course Materials

Required Text:

Title: Information Technology Project Management
Author(s): Kathy Schwalbe
Publisher: Cengage Learning Edition:7e
ISBN 13: 978-1-285-84709-2

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Methods of Instruction

This is a 3-credit hour fully online course. Normally, a 3-credit hour on-campus course would meet two times each week (during a 16 week term) for a total of three hours per week or 48 hours per term. This is an accelerated online course so students will have to guide themselves accordingly. There is a pace chart included below that will show you how to successfully complete this course in a four week period.

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Traditional Pace Chart - 4 week completion goal

Read and refer to this document regularly. It will tell you what assignments you should complete, and how to complete them.

• Instructions for Assignments/Practice/Labs: Some modules contain instructional videos and interactive labs. These resources will help demonstrate the hands-on part of the course. You can watch the videos and do the labs as many times as you want using them as guides for you to practice the hands-on components of the course.
• Instructions for Quizzes: Quizzes can be accessed from within each module or directly from the Assessment tool in the navigation bar. Quizzes are a measure of your progress in each module and will help you prepare for the Unit evaluation. Each quiz can be taken twice.
• Instructions for Challenge and Evaluation Exams: Instructions are provided in each unit based on the unit requirements for the Challenge and Evaluation Exams. The Evaluation Exam for each unit must be taken at a Broward College eTesting Center.

Week/Section/Learning Outcomes	Learning Materials	Assignments & Assessments
Week 1/Section 1
Course challenge
Student shall be able to: Understand the growing need for better project management, especially for information technology (IT) projects Explain what a project is, provide examples of IT projects, list various attributes of projects, and describe the triple constraint of project management Describe project management and discuss key elements of the project management framework, including project stakeholders, the project management knowledge areas, common tools and techniques, and project success Discuss the relationship between project, program, and portfolio management and the contributions each makes to enterprise success Understand the role of project managers by describing what they do, what skills they need, and career opportunities for IT project managers Describe the project management profession, including its history, the role of professional organizations like the Project Management Institute (PMI), the importance of certification and ethics, and the advancement of project management software Describe the systems view of project management and how it applies to information technology (IT) projects Understand organizations, including the four frames, organizational structures, and organizational culture Explain why stakeholder management and top management commitment are critical for a project’s success Understand the concept of a project phase and the project life cycle, and distinguish between project development and product development Discuss the unique attributes and diverse nature of IT projects Describe recent trends affecting I T project management, including globalization, outsourcing, virtual teams and agile project management Describe the live project management process groups, the typical level of activity for each, and the interactions among them Understand how the project management process groups relate to the project management knowledge areas Discuss how organizations develop information technology (IT) project management methodologies to meet their needs Review a case study of an organization applying the project management process groups to manage an IT project, describe outputs of each process group and understand the contribution that effective initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and controlling, and closing make to project success Review the same case study of a project managed with an agile focus to illustrate the key differences in approaches Describe several templates for creating documents for each process group	Read Chapter 1-3 from textbook	Chapter 1-3 Assignments & Assessments
Week 2/Section 1
Student shall be able to: Describe an overall framework for project integration management as it relates to the other project selection methods Explain the importance of creating a project charter to formally initiate projects Describe project management plan development, understand the content of these plans, and review approaches for creating them Explain project execution, its relationship to project planning, the factors related to successful results, and tools and techniques to assist in directing and managing project work Describe the process of monitoring and controlling a project Understand the integrated change control process, planning for and managing changes on information technology (IT) projects, and developing and using a change control system Explain the importance of developing and following good procedures for closing projects Describe how software can assist in project integration management Understand the importance of good project scope management Describe the process of planning scope management Discuss methods of collecting and documenting requirements to meet stakeholder needs and expectations Explain the scope definition process and describe the contents of a project scope management Discuss the process of creating a work breakdown structure using the analogy, top-down, bottom-up and mind-mapping approaches Explain the importance of validating scope and how it relates to defining and controlling scope Understand the importance of controlling scope and approaches for preventing scope-related problems on information technology (IT) projects Describe how software can assist in project scope management Understand the importance of project schedules and good project time management Discuss the process of planning schedule management Define activities as the basis for developing project schedules Describe how project management use network diagrams and dependencies to assist in activity sequencing Understand the relationship between estimating resources and project schedules Explain how various tools and techniques help project managers perform activity duration estimates Use a Gantt chart for planning and tracking schedule information, find the critical path for a project, and describe how critical chain scheduling and the Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) affect schedule development Discuss how reality checks and discipline are involved in controlling and managing changes to the project schedule Describe how project management software can assist in project time management and review words of caution before using this software	Read Chapter 4-6 from textbook	Chapter 4-6 Assignments & Assessments
Section 1 evaluation
Week 3/Section 2
Student shall be able to: Understanding the importance of project cost management Explain basic project cost management principles, concepts, and terms Describe the process of planning cost management Discuss different types of cost estimates and methods of preparing them Understand the process of determining a budget and preparing a cost estimate for an information technology (IT) project Understand the benefits of earned value management and project portfolio management to assist in cost control Describe how project management software can assist in project cost management Understand the importance of project quality management for information technology (IT) products and services Define project quality management and understand how quality relates to various aspects of IT projects Describe quality management planning and how quality and scope management are related Discuss the importance of quality assurance Explain the main outputs of the quality control process Understand the tools and techniques for quality control, such as the Seven Basic Tools of Quality, statistical sampling, Six Sigma, and testing Summarize the contributions of noteworthy quality experts to modern quality management Describe how leadership, the cost of quality, organizational influences, expectations, cultural differences, and maturity models relate to improving quality in IT projects Describe how software can assist in project quality management Explain the importance of good human resources management on projects, including the current state of the global I T workforce and future implications for it Define project human resources management and understand its process Summarize key concepts for managing people by understanding the theories of Abraham Maslow, Frederick Herzberg, David McClelland, and Douglas McGregor on motivation, H.J.Thamhain and D.L. Wilemon on influencing workers, and Stephen Covey on how people and teams can become more effective Discuss human resources management planning and be able to create a human resources plan, project organizational chart, responsibility assignment matrix, and resource histogram Understand important issues involved in project staff acquisition and explain the concepts of resources assignments, resource loading and resources leveling Assist in team development with training, team building activities, and reward systems Explain and apply several tools and techniques to help manage a project team and summarize general advice on managing teams Describe how project management software can assist in project human resources management	Read Chapter 7-9 from textbook	Chapter 7-9 Assignments & Assessments
Week 4/Section 2
Student shall be able to: Understand the importance of good communications on projects and the need to develop soft skills, especially for I T project management and their teams. Review key concepts related to communications Explain the elements of planning project communications and how to create a communications management plan Describe how to manage communications, including communication technologies, media and performance reporting Discuss methods of controlling communications to ensure that information needs are met throughout the life of the project List various methods for improving project communications, such as running effective meetings, using various technologies effectively, and using templates Describe how software can enhance project communication management Understanding risk and the importance of good project risk management Discuss the elements of planning risk management and the contents of a risk management plan List common sources of risk on information technology (IT) projects Describe the process of identifying risk and create a risk register Discuss qualitative risk analysis and explain how to calculate risk factors, create probability/impact matrixes, and apply the Top Ten Risk Item Tracking technique to rank risks Explain quantitative risk analysis and how to apply decision trees, simulation, and sensitivity analysis to quantify risks Provide examples of using different risk response planning strategies to address both negative and positive risks Discuss how to control risks Describe how software can assist in project risk management Understanding the importance of project procurement management, and the increasing use of outsourcing for information technology (IT) projects Describe the work involved in planning procurements for projects, including determining the proper type of contract to use and preparing a procurement management plan, statement of work, source selection criteria, and make-or-buy analysis Discuss how to conduct procurements and strategies for obtaining seller responses, selecting sellers, and awarding contracts Understand the process of controlling procurements by managing procurement relationships and monitoring contract performance Describe the process of closing procurements Discuss types of software that are available to assist in project procurement management Understand the importance of project stakeholder management throughout the life of a project Discuss the process of identifying stakeholders, how to create a stakeholder register, and how to perform a stakeholder analysis Describe the contents of a stakeholder management plan Understand the process of managing stakeholder engagement and how to use an issue log effectively Explain methods for controlling stakeholder engagement Discuss types of software available to assist in project stakeholder management	Read Chapter 10-13 from textbook	Chapter 10-13 Assignments & Assessments
Section 2 evaluation
Course Evaluation

 

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Course Progress and Evaluations Policies

• Assignment Submissions
  • Assignment suggested deadlines are posted in the Traditional Pace Chart above. Assignments must be submitted through the course learning management system. No assignments will be accepted via email unless requested to do so.
  • If no assignments are submitted for a full week you may be contacted by your course instructor and/or adviser to make sure satisfactory progress is being made in this course.
  • Discussion postings are expected to be posted according to the Traditional Pace Chart.
• Proctored Evaluations
  • This course has ONE required proctored evaluations that must be taken at one of the campus e-Testing Centers or at an alternate pre-approved testing location. The section 1 evaluation must be passed before access to section 2 is granted, etc.
  • BC e-Testing Centers are located on:
  • Central Campus Building 17 (library) Room 220, visit the Central Campus eTesting Center website to view their hours of operation.
  • North Campus Academic Success Center, Bldg. 62, Room 135, visit the North Campus eTesting Center website to view their hours of operation.
  • Proctor U - Online Proctored Testing.  You the opportunity to take your exams at home with online proctoring. Using a webcam and a reliable high-speed internet connection, you can take your exams anywhere. Here you will find information on utilizing this online testing application right from your work or home. YOU MUST COORDINATE THIS TEST WITH YOUR INSTRUCTOR.
  • Allow plenty of time to complete your unit evaluation prior to the scheduled closing time of the eTesting Center. When the eTesting Centers close, tests must be submitted whether they have been completed or not. You will not be able to return to complete the test at a later date. Sundays are the busiest days so you may have to wait for a seat. Nothing is permitted in the eTesting Centers except a pen/pencil unless the instructor has provided a list of approved testing aids (i.e., textbook, calculator, headphones, etc.).  Lockers and scratch paper are provided.  See the testing center websites listed above for a complete list of rules.
  • You will need to show a BC identification card or picture ID in order to be able to take the test in the testing center.
  • Students who live outside Broward County can contact me for instructions on how to take proctored evaluations at an alternate authorized location or in an online proctored environment. There are added costs associated with these optional methods of testing and both must be pre-approved at the start of the term.
• Parking for Proctored Evaluations: Students who take only online courses (no on-campus ones) do not pay parking fees and therefore are not eligible to obtain a parking hang tag.
• Students on North can park for free at the library and make the short walk to Building 46.
• Students on both North and Central can email onlinecompdegree@broward.edu at least three days in advance of the evaluation to receive a temporary parking pass. The parking pass will be emailed to your BC email account, which you can print and place on your dashboard on the day of the evaluation.
• Online Practice Quizzes
  • These quizzes can be taken any time during the course, and may be taken via any computer with an Internet connection.
  • Collaboration between students and discussion of quiz answers is NOT acceptable.
  • You will initially only be able to attempt each quiz twice. Additional attempts will have to be released by the instructor after discussion with student. Make sure you have a solid Internet connection. If your ISP disconnects you during a quiz, that will count as an attempt.
• View your Progress
  • Online quiz and unit evaluation grades will be available after finishing the quiz or unit evaluation. View "Grades" from the course homepage.
  • Feedback for assignments will be posted within four (4) BC working days of the submission date of the assignment.
  • Feedback for discussion postings will be posted within four (4) BC working days after completing posting to the discussion.
  • Final course grades may be obtained through students MyBC portal.
• How your Grade will be Determined

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Communication Policy

Expectations for Course Communication

• Email: Use the email tool only for private, personal, one-to-one communication with a specific individual or groups of individuals. Please do not send course related emails to the instructor's BC email address. Solicitations will not be tolerated. Assignments sent to the instructor's BC email will not be accepted.
  • Alternate Communication: In the event that the course communication tools are unavailable for more than 24 hours, the instructor will communicate with students (if necessary) via their BC email addresses. Access your BC email account at http://www.outlook.com
• Discussions: Use the Course Cafė discussion thread to post questions that might be of general interest to all students such as questions about assignments, lessons, etc. Feel free to respond to other students if you think you can help them. Proofread the content of your posts before making them public; proper grammar and sentence structure are expected. Remember that the discussion tool is public - everyone will be able to view posts and responses. See the Netiquette section below for expectations regarding appropriate behavior in online discussions.
• Faculty Response Policy: Course emails and discussion posts will be answered within 48 hours. Emails sent on Saturday or Sunday may not be answered until Monday. It is recommended that you post course-related questions in the discussion area. If you need info related to a unit evaluation or assignment, plan ahead and submit your questions well ahead of the date you intend to complete them. Your instructor is not online 24 hours per day, so please allow time for responses.
• Chat: Chat allows you to talk with other students in the course in real-time outside of your on-campus class meetings. Students must set up times to meet other students in the chat tool. This is a useful tool for coordinating group projects.
• Netiquette: In all online communication, it is expected that all students will follow rules of online "netiquette". Netiquette is a set of rules for polite online behavior that all members of this class are expected to follow. Read some general netiquette rules here. Basically, these rules say "be respectful and be polite to each other" and "be patient," etc. No one is perfect and we all have different approaches to life, work, and school.
  
  • Individuals who violate the netiquette policy or engage in disruptive online behaviors such as flaming (posting disrespectful or hostile comments), posting inappropriate comments, or shouting (posting messages using all capitals) may have their course access privileges revoked and/or they may be referred to the Student Dean. Students who continue to engage in unacceptable online behavior after being warned, may be permanently denied access to the course and/or may receive a U for the course.
  • Please don't use email shorthand like ROTFL (rolling on the floor laughing) or BTW (by the way) - not everyone knows what these abbreviations mean. If you want to use emoticons (smileys) to convey feelings, please stick with the basics happy :-) sad :-( or wink ;-). Others are less well known and are subject to different interpretations. The idea is to be clear in your communications.
• Privacy Notice: Course access records, email postings, discussion postings, and chat room conversations will be stored. This is one more reason to make sure that your communications adhere to the netiquette policy.

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Other Policies and Procedures

Special Needs - Students having special needs as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act should:

• Notify the Office of Disability Services as early in the term as possible. It is the student's responsibility to contact the Disability Support Office prior to document disability prior to receiving services.
• Notify the instructor after you have contacted the Office of Disability Services so that the instructor can consult with the Office of Disability Services to discuss what reasonable accommodations would be appropriate for your situation.

Academic Honesty

• When you are given access to D2L you are expected to keep confidential your username and password and to never allow anyone else to log-in to your account. Sharing access or passwords to D2L is considered a breach of the academic honesty policy and could result in you being removed from your class. When you log-in to D2L, you do so with the understanding and agreement that you will produce your own work, complete course assignments and discussions yourself, and to take course exams, tests or quizzes without the assistance of others.

• Each student's academic work must be the result of his or her own thought, research, or self-expression. Academic misconduct includes, but is not limited to the following: cheating, plagiarism, unacceptable collaboration, falsification of data, aiding and abetting dishonesty, unauthorized or malicious interference, hacking computer property or software, and online disturbances. Please refer to the Student Code of Conduct Policy and the Student Code of Conduct section located in the Student Handbook for more information.

• Academic honesty violations will be considered a breach of policy and may result in academic penalties (zero points on the assignment/test in question, a failing grade for the course), disciplinary action, and/or referral to the Dean of Student Affairs.

Logging Off

• Security Warning: If you don't close your browser or log off, a person using that machine after you will have access to your course materials, could send e-mail to me in your name, and view your confidential student record. Protect your password. Click "Logout."

Changes to the Syllabus

• The instructor reserves the right to make changes to this syllabus. In the event that changes become necessary, students will be notified through course email.

Lab Safety (if applicable)

• Students must follow approved safety procedures when completing lab work.

24/7 Helpdesk Information

• For year-round, 24 hour technical assistance use the information below to reach the BConline Helpdesk.
  • Phone number: 1 866 468-0009
  • Chat: https://chat.perceptis.com/c/broward
  • You can also open your own ticket online and can track any of your open help desk tickets at the BConline Support Center.

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Student Success Tips

In order to be successful in this course, you need to be organized and manage your time well so that you can complete all assignments and assessments in a timely manner. Make sure that you do not allow yourself to procrastinate, and that you communicate with the instructor or your classmates via the Course Cafe if you have any questions on any course materials or need assistance completing any assignments.

Online Resources for Students

• Click here to access a wide variety of support resources for students enrolled in online courses, such as library services, advising and counseling, tutorials, tutoring services, disability services and more.

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U.S. Department of Labor Disclaimer

This product was funded by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration. This product  was created by the grantee and does not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of labor. The Department of Labor makes no guarantees, warranties, or assurances of any kind, express or implied, with respect to such information, including any information on linked sites and including, but not limited to, accuracy of the information or its completeness, timeliness, usefulness, adequacy, continued availability, or ownership

Except where otherwise noted, this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

The Academic Use of Textbook Material Disclaimer

The material contained in this course uses direct excerpts from the required textbook for this course:Information Technology Project Management, Kathy Schwalbe, Cengage Learning Edition:7e , ISBN 13: 978-1-285-84709-2

The use of this material is authorized under the publisher's academic use license which requires the user to purchase the required textbook.