Course Description

Have you ever wondered what the difference between an average project manager and a great project manager might be? Is it experience, motivation, education, people skills—or something else? And if you could find out what these differences are and learn to apply them throughout your career as a project manager, would it be worth two days of your time?

Many project managers try to manage projects relying primarily on their soft skills first, then learning the science of project management as they go. But most do not realize that Project Management is both a science AND an art. This course follows that line of thinking by taking you even further, by giving you a chance to acquire the 15 attributes of the most successful project managers in the world.

Imagine a course that benefits from 15 years of research, hundreds of presentations and infinite updates—and you will begin to realize the valuable insights you will receive in this course. What exactly makes the best project managers “the best?” What makes a project manager worth U.S. $500,000 a year? Not for the faint of heart, this 2-day intensive course designed by Rita Mulcahy will answer these questions, and help you acquire the skills of the most successful project managers.

Course Outline

The content offered in this 2-day classroom-based course is divided into the following sections:

• What is Project Success, and How is it Measured?
• What is the Art Side of Project Management?
• What Did We Discover During Our Research, and What Do Most People Believe are the Attributes of the Most Successful Project Managers?
• How Can Using Tools, Techniques and Processes—the "Science" of Project Management—Help Prevent Problems on Projects?
• What Are the Common Misconceptions in Project Management, and How Can Knowing Them Improve Your Chances of Success?

In addition to the above, each of the 15 attributes will be covered in detail—and the following will be discussed for each attribute:

• What is the Attribute?
• Why is the Attribute Important?
• How Does it Tie Into Project Management Tools, Techniques and Processes?
• How Can You Measure Yourself Against these Attributes?
• What Actions Can You Take to Acquire or Improve your Success?

Learning Objectives

At the conclusion of this course, participants will be able to:

• List and describe the attributes possessed by the very best project managers
• Identify project management misconceptions held by many project managers
• Utilize exercises that allow them to gain and reinforce the attributes of the best Project Managers
• Develop an individualized plan for how to improve their efforts in their Real World to become a successful project manager
  

Style of Instruction

This course will consist of individual and group activities and group discussions that allow project managers to identify and develop a plan for improving their skills to become the most successful project managers. Students should expect to learn a great deal from this two day course, and will benefit from interaction with project managers from different industries and different project management environments.

Target Audience

This course is designed for experienced and trained project managers, team members and senior managers with at least 5 years of full-time project management experience, who want to know what it takes to put themselves in a group with the best project managers in the world. If you lack project management training or experience, or are looking for a refresher course in basic project management, please do not enroll in this course. Instead, we invite you to attend our 1-day PM Crash Course™ or our 3-day Project Management Tricks of the Trade® course.