This course develops the student’s project management competencies by drawing on lessons learned from a range of case studies of real world projects and helps students learn from the failure of others. It will highlight particular project concepts / critical success factors and show how these impact upon outcomes in real world examples. On successful completion of the course, students will have developed competencies in the following:
- The successful application of project management concepts, tools and techniques in practical situations;
- The common project management pitfalls to be avoided;
- How to incorporate Māori values and thinking into projects via case studies of projects in Aotearoa;
- The moral and ethical principles that govern professional behaviour with reference to the Treaty of Waitangi;
- The way project management concepts are applied around the world and how this impacts project success;
- Trends in the use of tools and techniques in various industries;
- Reporting and presentation skills.
The philosophy adopted is one of critical examination of case studies and development of evidenced based approaches to manage projects drawing lessons learned from a range of projects. The course will be delivered via a series of inter-active workshops and weekly tutorial sessions.
Key components comprise of the following:1. Examination of critical success factors for a project to achieve its agreed objectives 2. Mini case studies (in this workshop module we will analyse a number of short case studies via weekly tutorials on critical issues and practice presentation of findings) 3. Issues of project success regarding moral and ethical considerations, Māori values and thinking, emerging trends (major workshop) 4. Extended case study (in this module we will explore an extended case study with multiple facets in a complex scenario, covered in weekly tutorials) 5. Development of critical analysis and thinking skills (in this module we will extend some of the critical thinking approaches to apply to a case study) 6. Development of organisation and leadership structures to achieve the agreed objectives 7. Project Review methods (in this module we will explore models of project reviews such as peer reviews, and project health checks) 8. An individual case study to further develop reporting and presentation capability 9. Group case study (in this module we will work in groups with extensive information sources, analyse performance and present findings and recommendations back to a panel of experts)
The course delivery adopts a Socratic approach to learning in which students are expects to engage in developing critiques, debate, challenge and defence of views and opinions. A pro-active learning approach in engagement in the workshops is therefore expected. Students are required to prepare for the workshops and failure to do so will diminish the value of the learning experience. Note that one of the major assignments is team-based and as such students are expected to make time to meet with their team members.