INFM 706 Project Management
Section ML01, Online
Fall 2017
Instructor: Dr. Vikas Sahasrabudhe
Email: [email protected]
Course Description
This course provides a comprehensive overview of project management,
focusing on the needs of information resource (IR) projects. The
course covers the concepts and techniques for planning and execution
of projects including developing work breakdown structure, estimating
costs, managing risks, scheduling, staff and resource allocation, team
building, communication, tracking, control and other aspects of
successful project completion.
Course Objectives
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
*
Plan IR project with work breakdown structure of activities,
costs, schedule, people and other resources, quality, procurement
and communication
*
Identify activities to manage risks to the success of IR projects
*
Apply concepts and technique of Earned Value Management for
monitoring, assessment/evaluation and control for successful
execution of IR projects
*
Recognize the role of project manager
*
Use basic functions of industry standard software tools to support
management of IR projects.
Textbooks
Information Technology Project Management by Kathy Schwalbe; Course
Technology Cengage Learning; 8th edition; 2016; ISBN 9781285452340
CMMI for Development, Version 1.2; available online from Software
Engineering Institute at
http://www.sei.cmu.edu/publications/documents/06.reports/06tr008.html
Recommended Reading
Project Management: A Managerial Approach; by Jack R. Meredith and
Samuel J. Mantel, Jr.; Sixth edition; John Wiley & Sons; 2006
Project Management Book of Knowledge, from Project Management
Institute, 5th edition, 2013
References to additional papers and cases will be provided during the
term. Students will have to search for further relevant information
from academic and professional publications. UMD libraries provide
links to many of the websites for specific trade press journals and
the databases/collections of journals and books that are relevant to
these topics. MIM students should access the website
http://lib.guides.umd.edu/mim.
Instructional Method
The course will be taught primarily asynchronously online using the
Canvas system (ELMS), accessible at elms.umd.edu. (For group
assignments, students in each group can decide how they want to work,
asynchronously or synchronously, using the Canvas system or some other
technology available to them.) The course material will consist of
readings, slides with audio recordings, discussion threads, and other
forms that may be appropriate. The course will also consist of
individual assignments and group assignments that will provide an
opportunity to clarify your understanding of the concepts of project
management and to practice applying them to cases and other problems.
Late submissions will not be accepted.
A weekly plan of activities will consist of readings, viewing slides
while listening to the audio recordings, homework assignments, and
participating in the discussion thread(s) on that week’s topics based
on the reading and slides of that week. Those weekly plans will be
posted in the ELMS as modules before the start of each week. You are
expected to keep up with the pace of activities in the weekly plans.
An important ingredient will be your participation and contribution in
the online discussions. You should question, challenge, argue, and
present different ideas/thoughts to enrich the discussions. Such
participation will take place via the discussion threads in the ELMS.
Your participation in the class discussions also provides your
colleagues with insights drawn from your experience and perspective.
Hence, you are expected to participate actively in all the
discussions.
You (individually or in groups) can ask for synchronous discussions
with the instructor, audio or video, to complement all the
asynchronous activities. Send an email to the instructor to arrange
audio or video conference.
Online Attendance
You will need to access the plan of activities for each week once it
is posted, and follow through on those activities during the week.
Regular and active participation in each assignment and discussion
thread is the best way to grasp the contents of the course, as well as
to accumulate points for class participation. It is your
responsibility to inform the instructor in advance of any intended
absence for religious observance. For absence due to medical reasons,
a reasonable effort should be made to inform the instructor preferably
in advance.
The online learning environment should be professional and respectful.
Discussions should be substantial and based on critical thinking. Your
classmates may have different perspectives and ideas, but they deserve
your respect. Such respectful approach is expected in the postings for
the discussion threads and also in any sidebar exchanges that may
occur during the semester.
Project Management Software
You will be using MSProject software in the lab assignments and in
the group project. The software will be available to you after the
start of the semester from the licenses that iSchool has. You will
have to learn to use the software on your own. Many selflearning
tutorials are available in cyberspace. The course instructor will be
available to assist you as needed. Use of the software during the two
tests will not be required but allowed if you wish to use it.
Course Assessment
Your course grade will be based on a weighted total of scores for the
five components described below:
Group project 30 %
Article reviews (three) 30 %
Lab assignments (two) 10 %
Tests (two) 20 %
Class participation 10%
Total 100%
Your letter grade for the course will be based on the weighted total
score using the following scale:
A 93 and above
A 90 to 92
B+ 87 to 89
B  83 to 86
B 80 to 82
C+ 77 to 79
C 73 to 76
C 70 to 72
F Less than 70
Group project:
This semesterlong project will be carried out in groups. You will be
given a case about an IR project and will be asked to plan the
project, optimize the plan, and carry out earned value analysis given
some data on actual work done in the middle of the project. The
project will require the use of project management software. Detailed
information and instructions for the project will be distributed
later. Three deliverables from the project will be:
1.
Baseline project plan,
2.
Optimized project plan,
3.
Earned value analysis.
Article reviews:
There will be three articles/minicases to be worked on individually.
In each assignment, you will be given an article or a mini case
related to information systems project management, and you will be
asked questions that will require a critical review of the
article/minicase. Your answers, limited to 2 pages (double spaced
with 12 point font size), must clearly include all the major points
made by the author related to the questions and also include your
thoughts on those major points, such as whether your agree or disagree
with the author, giving a logical rationale for your thoughts. You can
also include additional thoughts, not mentioned in the
article/minicase, that are appropriate in answers to the questions.
Lab assignments:
There will be two lab assignments to be worked on individually. In one
assignment, you will be asked to plan a project, create it in MS
Project software and produce useful reports. In the second assignment,
you will be asked to enter data on actual work done in the middle of
that project, and produce useful project monitoring reports including
earned value analysis reports. The specific details of each assignment
will be distributed before each assignment.
Tests:
There will be two tests on the concepts and techniques of project
management covered in the textbook, class notes, and class
discussions. Details about the structure of the tests will be
discussed before each test.
Class participation
As stated earlier in Instructional Method, participation in the class
discussions provides you with the opportunity to clarify your
understanding of the concepts and to practice applying them to the
cases and articles/chapters. The instructor will post two or more
discussion questions for many of the module of the course, and you
will be expected to post your answers on at least one of the questions
initiated by the instructor for each of those modules. Each
posting/contribution must be substantive, incorporate appropriate
course material and provide additional insights based on your own
knowledge and experiences. Requisite quantity of discussion postings
will make you eligible to get points for course participation, but the
points themselves will be based on the quality of postings in the
discussion threads. You should also read postings of other students
and any summaries the instructor may post. You are welcome to post
followon comments/questions for any and all of the discussion
threads.
Students with disabilities
If you have a disability for which you are or may be requesting an
accommodation, you are encouraged to contact the instructor and
Disability Support Services (3147682), as early as possible in the
term, but not later than the second week of class. Disability Support
Services will verify your disability and determine reasonable
accommodations for this course.
Academic Integrity
The University of Maryland, College Park has a nationally recognized
Code of Academic Integrity, administered by the Student Honor Council.
This Code sets standards for academic integrity at Maryland for all
undergraduate and graduate students.  As a student, you are
responsible for upholding these standards for this course.  It is very
important for you to be aware of the consequences of cheating,
fabrication, facilitation, and plagiarism. For more information on the
Code of Academic Integrity or the Student Honor Council, please visit
http://www.shc.umd.edu.
Class Calendar (modify)
The schedule of topics, readings, lectures, homework assignments in
each module given below is subject to change without notice. Detailed
information about each module will be posted in the ELMS. (For this
course, a week will be Monday through Sunday, and homework assignments
will be due by the end of the week mentioned in the schedule below.)
Module/Week Agenda Reading Assignment Project
1.
8/28/17 Course overview
Project Management (in general) 14
2.
9/5/17 Managing IR projects 14 Discussion
3.
9/11/17 Project planning basics CMMI Review 1
4.
9/18/17 Project planning 5 Discussion Assigned
(for scope) CMMI
5.
9/25/17 Project planning 67 Review 2
(for time and cost) CMMI
6.
10/2/17 Project planning 813 Lab 1
(for quality, risks, procurement, CMMI
HR, communications and
Stakeholder relationships)
7.
10/9/17 Optimizing project plan 512 Step 1
8.
10/16/17 Test 1
9.
10/23/17 Project monitoring and control 57 Review 3
(for scope, time, cost, staffing) CMMI
10.
10/30/17 Earned value management 6,7 Step 2
11.
11/6/17 Project monitoring and control 510 Lab 2
(for quality) CMMI
12.
11/13/17 Project monitoring and control 11,12 Discussion
(for procurement and risks) CMMI
Thanks Giving (11/20/2017 – 11/26/2017)
13.
11/27/17 Role of project manager 14, 9,13 Step 3
Project closing
14.
12/4/17 Test 2