PPMP20007 - Project Management Concepts

General Information

Unit Synopsis

This unit is aimed at providing you with a general introduction to the key features of modern project management practices within organisations. In undertaking this unit you will gain an understanding of the factors required to successfully manage projects by investigating how project success is related to the concept of value held by key stakeholders, alignment with organizational strategy, and benefit realization through the application of project management specific knowledge, skills, tools and techniques.

Details

Level Postgraduate
Unit Level 8
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 4
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

Anti-requisites: COIS20008, MGMT22166, or PPMP20002 then they cannot take this unit.

Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).

Class Timetable View Unit Timetable
Residential School No Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2023

Term 1 - 2023 Profile
Brisbane
Melbourne
Online
Rockhampton
Sydney
Term 2 - 2023 Profile
Brisbane
Melbourne
Online
Rockhampton
Sydney
Term 3 - 2023 Profile
Brisbane
Melbourne
Online
Sydney

Attendance Requirements

All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).

Assessment Overview

Recommended Student Time Commitment

Each 6-credit Postgraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. Practical Assessment 30%
2. Written Assessment 50%
3. Online Quiz(zes) 20%

This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%).

Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 1 - 2022 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 86.57% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 23.26% response rate.

Feedback, Recommendations and Responses

Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.

Source: Student feedback. New edition of PMBOK.
Feedback
Unit content: The current content is relevant and useful. It is at an appropriate level for the student cohort. However, there is now a new edition of PMBOK that needs to be incorporated into the unit.
Recommendation
Where relevant, update the materials to reflect the new edition of PMBOK.
Action Taken
The release of PMBOK 7th Ed. was delayed and inclusion in term 1 materials was not practicable.
Source: Student evaluations, feedback from the students and the teaching team.
Feedback
Assessment items: Positive feedback was received about assessment items. Students enjoyed researching and learning more about a topic of their choice in project management (assessment item 3). They also appreciated the practical aspects of the assessment items where they were able to apply the theory they were learning in class.
Recommendation
Continue with the same assessment regime.
Action Taken
The assessment regime was retained for Term 1.
Source: Student evaluations, feedback from the students and the teaching team.
Feedback
Tutorial classes: Due to COVID-19 constraints and the reduced time now available for the tutorial/workshop classes, there is less time to complete all the exercises and Microsoft Practicals in the class. There was also much less time for case studies that illustrate the theory and provide an excellent learning experience. Students indicated they would like longer tutorial classes to have more time for practical work and case study discussions. Although offshore students appreciate the opportunity to have zoom tutorial classes, feedback indicated that students would still prefer face-to-face classes.
Recommendation
The tutorial/workshop activities will be redesigned to incorporate the new edition of PMBOK and to accommodate within the allocated tutorial time.
Action Taken
Workshop activities were reduced to fit the 2-hour tutorial duration, and focused more on assessment submission items.
Source: Student Unit and Teaching Evaluation (SUTE) survey
Feedback
Students complimented teaching staff and methods and the learning opportunity that the unit provides, and lauded the interactive nature of the learning experience.
Recommendation
To maintain a high level of student-facilitator interaction, especially in the tutorials. Encourage students to ask questions and complete their assessments in the tutorial class where practicable.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: Student Unit and Teaching Evaluation (SUTE) survey
Feedback
Students expressed concern about the complicated nature of assessment descriptions and the dispersed information locations in Moodle.
Recommendation
To review and streamline the assessment specifications, and relocate all information about an assessment in one Moodle location.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: Unit Coordinator observation, staff feedback
Feedback
The different assessment submission deadlines for onshore and offshore students created confusion and dissatisfaction among some students.
Recommendation
To impose and enforce a single submission deadline for each assessment item. However onshore students should still be encouraged to submit by the end of their class, instilling a sense of urgency and enhancing planning and personal time management skills.
Action Taken
Nil.
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Discuss the importance of project management to create value in the context of various organisational cultures and strategies.
  2. Explain how internal and external project settings influence the selection of adaptive, predictive or hybrid project delivery methods.
  3. Apply and critique scheduling, budgeting, risk management, and other project management techniques for achieving project success.
  4. Critically analyse how project management principles and ethics guide people’s behaviour on the project.

This unit will satisfy one of the core requirements for the Australian Computer Society (ACS) accreditation in the postgraduate Information and Communication Technology (ICT) courses. This unit is also part of an accreditation package granted by the ACS. The unit contributes to the required number of academic study units for students wishing to undertake professional certification with the Project Management Institute's (PMI) professional qualifications, such as CAPM or PMP.

The Australian Computer Society (ACS) recognises the Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA). SFIA is adopted by organisations, governments and individuals in many countries and provides a widely used and consistent definition of ICT skills. SFIA is increasingly being used when developing job descriptions and role profiles. ACS members can use the tool MySFIA to build a skills profile.

This unit contributes to the following workplace skills as defined by SFIA 8 (the SFIA code is included)

  • Project Management (PRMG)
  • Change Control (CHMG)
  • Requirements definition and management (REQM)
  • Stakeholder relationship management (RLMT)
  • Risk management (BURM)
  • Systems development management (DLMG)

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
1 - Practical Assessment • •
2 - Written Assessment • • • •
3 - Online Quiz(zes) • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Advanced Level
• Professional Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
1 - Knowledge • • • •
2 - Communication • • • •
3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills •
4 - Research •
5 - Self-management •
6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Advanced Level
• Professional Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8