course | Project Planning and Control Excellence

Integrated Project Planning and Baseline Development

Module 1: Project Planning and Control Framework

• Project planning versus project controls. 
• The project lifecycle from initiation through closeout. 
• Integrating scope, schedule, cost, resources, risk, and quality. 
• Governance and responsibilities within project controls. 
• Role of the project manager, planner, scheduler, cost controller, and PMO. 
• Moving from activity tracking to performance-based project control. 

Module 2: Scope Definition and Work Breakdown Structure

• Translating project objectives into measurable deliverables. 
• Developing the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS). 
• WBS dictionaries and work packages. 
• Organizational Breakdown Structure (OBS). 
• Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RAM). 
• Establishing control accounts. 
• Preventing scope gaps and uncontrolled scope growth. 

Module 3: Developing the Integrated Project Management Plan

• Planning assumptions and constraints. 
• Project milestones and stage gates. 
• Integrating subsidiary plans. 
• Establishing the Scope Baseline. 
• Schedule and Cost Baselines. 
• Understanding the Performance Measurement Baseline (PMB). 

Practical Workshop: Develop a WBS, responsibility matrix, key milestones, and initial control structure for a case-study project.

Advanced Scheduling and Critical Path Management

Module 4: Building a Logic-Driven Project Schedule

• Activity definition and sequencing. 
• Dependencies and network logic. 
• Finish-to-Start, Start-to-Start, Finish-to-Finish, and Start-to-Finish relationships. 
• Leads, lags, and constraints. 
• Developing realistic activity durations. 
• Milestone planning. 
• Schedule levels and schedule hierarchy. 

Module 5: Critical Path Method and Schedule Analysis

• Forward and backward pass calculations. 
• Early and late dates. 
• Total Float and Free Float. 
• Identifying the Critical Path. 
• Near-critical activities and schedule sensitivity. 
• Multiple critical paths. 
• Understanding schedule drivers. 
• Avoiding excessive constraints and distorted logic. 

Module 6: Resource Planning and Schedule Optimization

• Resource estimation and allocation. 
• Resource loading. 
• Identifying resource conflicts. 
• Resource leveling and smoothing. 
• Schedule compression. 
• Fast tracking versus crashing. 
• Evaluating schedule acceleration options. 

Practical Workshop: Build and analyze a project network, calculate the Critical Path and float, and evaluate schedule-compression alternatives.

Cost Planning, Earned Value and Performance Measurement

Module 7: Project Cost Planning and Budget Control

• Developing project cost estimates. 
• Cost Breakdown Structure (CBS). 
• Time-phased project budgets. 
• Cost loading the project schedule. 
• Establishing the Cost Baseline. 
• Commitments, actual costs, accruals, and forecasts. 
• Contingency versus management reserve. 

Module 8: Earned Value Management (EVM)

• Planned Value (PV). 
• Earned Value (EV). 
• Actual Cost (AC). 
• Schedule Variance (SV). 
• Cost Variance (CV). 
• Schedule Performance Index (SPI). 
• Cost Performance Index (CPI). 
• Interpreting EVM results for management decisions. 

Module 9: Forecasting Project Outcomes

• Budget at Completion (BAC). 
• Estimate at Completion (EAC). 
• Estimate to Complete (ETC). 
• Variance at Completion (VAC). 
• Different EAC forecasting methodologies. 
• To-Complete Performance Index (TCPI). 
• Forecasting final project cost and completion performance. 
• Identifying deteriorating performance trends early. 

Practical Workshop: Calculate EVM indicators for a live project scenario and develop an updated cost forecast and management recommendation.

Monitoring, Change, Risk and Integrated Project Control

Module 10: Progress Measurement and Schedule Updating

• Establishing the project status date. 
• Collecting reliable progress information. 
• Physical progress versus duration progress. 
• Rules of credit and weighted milestones. 
• Updating actual starts and finishes. 
• Remaining duration and revised forecasts. 
• Identifying slippage and emerging delays. 
• Maintaining baseline integrity. 

Module 11: Variance and Trend Analysis

• Baseline versus actual performance. 
• Schedule variance analysis. 
• Cost variance analysis. 
• Milestone trend analysis. 
• Root-cause analysis. 
• Trend identification and early-warning indicators. 
• Distinguishing symptoms from underlying causes. 
• Developing actionable project-control insights. 

Module 12: Integrated Change and Risk Control

• Identifying and documenting project changes. 
• Change requests and impact assessment. 
• Evaluating schedule and cost implications. 
• Change Control Board governance. 
• Approved versus unapproved changes. 
• Baseline revisions and maintaining audit trails. 
• Integrating project risks with schedule and cost controls. 
• Risk response monitoring. 
• Contingency drawdown and control. 

Practical Workshop: Assess a major project change, quantify its schedule/cost impact, and prepare a recommendation for management approval.

Forecasting, Recovery Planning and Executive Project Reporting

Module 13: Advanced Forecasting and Recovery Planning

• Forecasting project completion. 
• Identifying schedule and cost deterioration. 
• Delay and slippage analysis. 
• Prioritizing corrective actions. 
• Developing schedule recovery plans. 
• Re-sequencing activities. 
• Resource optimization and acceleration. 
• Assessing the cost of recovery. 
• Establishing realistic revised targets. 

Module 14: Project Controls Dashboards and Management Reporting

• Designing meaningful project KPIs. 
• Schedule and cost performance dashboards. 
• Milestone status and trend reporting. 
• S-curves and progress curves. 
• Cash-flow and expenditure profiles. 
• Risk and change dashboards. 
• RAG status reporting. 
• Exception-based reporting. 
• Turning project data into management insight. 
• Developing concise executive project reports. 

Module 15: Project Control Excellence and Governance

• Establishing an effective project-control cycle. 
• Data quality and reporting discipline. 
• Project-control calendars and cut-off dates. 
• Lessons learned and continuous improvement. 
• Integrating planning, controls, risk, and governance. 
• Building organizational project-control maturity. 
• Developing a project-controls improvement roadmap. 

Final Integrated Case Study

Participants manage an underperforming project using an integrated case study. They will:

• Review the approved baseline. 
• Analyze current schedule and cost performance. 
• Calculate key EVM indicators. 
• Identify critical delays and performance trends. 
• Assess risks and changes. 
• Forecast final cost and completion. 
• Develop a recovery strategy. 
• Prepare an executive project-control dashboard. 
• Present recommendations to a simulated project steering committee.