Dr. Tyson R. Browning

Strategic Project Management

An interactive course with industry examples, exercises, and discussion...

for executives, managers, and project participants

A project is any work where the goal is to accomplish something unique by a deadline. In today’s organizations, more and more work fits this description (even when the term “project” is not used), and many projects are large, complex, novel, dynamic, and ambitious. Strategic initiatives, marketing studies, consulting jobs, audits, mergers and acquisitions, information technology implementations, improvements and change initiatives, and product development efforts are all examples of projects. However, most projects actually fail to achieve all of their objectives in terms of duration, budget, performance, and stakeholder satisfaction. Because the work is novel and unique, projects are fraught with uncertainty and risk. They cannot be managed with only the same techniques used to manage the more repetitive operations in an organization.

This course addresses some of the key challenges in managing projects, programs, and project portfolios. We will engage at both (1) the higher levels of project selection, planning, and control where executive oversight is needed to properly launch and sustain successful projects and (2) the level of project management methods and skills. You will learn to think critically about alternative approaches to projects, such as agile and waterfall, and when (and when not) to plan projects in detail. And you will learn some foundational skills for project planning and scheduling. We will explore sources of uncertainty, risk, and opportunity for projects, and how to tell if a project is making real progress.

Main Topics

  • What makes projects different from other work in an organization?

  • Why do projects fail? The top reasons and what to do about them

  • What should we look for in a project manager? The skills for success

  • What is the right amount of “planning” versus “doing” in a project?

  • Understanding project stakeholders, objectives, and priorities

  • Planning a project: specifying activities, resourcing, scheduling

  • Resource contention—why “enough” resources often aren’t really enough

  • The implications of uncertainty, risk, and opportunity for project value and success

  • How to tell if a project is making real progress (metrics, key performance indicators)

  • Project control—get back on plan, or replan?

  • Project adaptability, agility, and flexibility—does planning help or hinder these?

  • And more!

Who should attend?

  • Executives, upper-level managers, and professionals responsible for meeting high-level goals and objectives by executing strategic initiatives and other large, complex, novel, dynamic projects

  • Current and aspiring project, program, and portfolio managers; anyone working in a Project Management Office (PMO)

  • Individuals from all departments in an organization that do project work, including, but not limited to: Strategy, Operations, Finance, Human Resources, Research and Development, Information Technology, Engineering, Marketing, Sales, and Supply Chain Management

What will you gain?

  • Insights into the unique nature and challenges of project work

  • An understanding of what makes a project valuable, and whether it is likely to be worth the investment

  • Key questions to ask project selectors, planners, and managers about their projects—ways to dig into the heart of the issues most likely to derail projects

  • Foundational skills in project planning and scheduling

  • An understanding of why many project management methods and techniques fail to signal or prevent upcoming surprises

  • Leading-edge techniques and best practices

  • The capability to improve the leadership of projects in your organization

  • Become a thought leader on strategic project management in your organization

  • An opportunity to network with industry colleagues