Project Management Foundations

This in person program is designed for mid-level and senior managers and is available as part of our Executive Certificate in Management and Leadership.

Program Dates: Future dates to be announced
Delivery: Two Days In-Person at Lehigh University
(Participants need to complete both sessions to meet the program requirements).
Program Cost: $2,195 (Includes meals)

Private Delivery Available: If you have a group of 15 or more, please contact us at execed@lehigh.edu to arrange for a private offering of this program! This program is available in 2 formats: live online (3 sessions) or in-person (2 days). 

Program Overview

Today’s unprecedented work environment and future uncertainties have put a premium on project management. But at a time when profitable outcomes are more important for your business than ever before, those results are harder to achieve. Whether you are a seasoned project manager facing new and difficult challenges or are dealing with the complexity of getting your own projects done at a distance, Project Management Foundations will help you sharpen your skills and improve your efficiency and effectiveness.  It also includes exercises and case studies that will provide you with concrete tools you can implement immediately.

Based on decades of research (and experience working through previous crises), the program uses a two-pronged approach to help you succeed. First, you will explore the most common reasons why projects fail, and how to spot potential pitfalls before they derail your project. Second, you will gain proven tools and powerful techniques that will guide you through the project management process.

Project Management Institute has accepted this program toward the education requirement (PDUs) for Project Management Professionals (PMPs) and toward the technical education hours for aspiring PMPs.

Program Topics

• The project management process, work breakdown structure, network diagrams, and the critical path
• Schedule development
• Risk management introduction
• Resource allocation
• Communication planning
• Stakeholder analysis
• Risk planning and management
• Risk identification techniques
• Project Execution, delivery, and control
• Project close
• Project Management Care Studies

Impact & Benefits

• Define a project upfront by writing a project charter that clearly outlines its goals
• Develop a project communication plan (lack of this plan is one of the most common reasons projects fail)
• Create a stakeholder analysis and engagement plan that involves key executives in a project 
• Break down a project into manageable activities and sequence those activities to use resources most effectively
• Establish project schedules and spending plans
• Learn and apply specific techniques for project risk management, including premortems 

Who Should Attend?

Existing and new project managers who want to explore fundamentals, avoid common mistakes, and significantly improve their success rates. 

Instructor

John Juzbasich, D.Ed.(c), MLD, PMP, partner at Merit Career Development. John has been managing projects and teaching project management for over a decade. His business experience includes a successful career at IBM and a variety of high technology firms.

Testimonials 

"I have been involved in corporate-wide project management initiatives and found that the Foundations of Project Management program to be very helpful. We did some live case management in an online simulation. In real time, you see the importance of how all the pieces of the project align and the importance of communication throughout the management process. Just one minor issue can cause major impacts in terms of delays and other problems. I am using some of the layouts and spreadsheets that we used in the program. They have helped me to structure information for some of my projects before I put it out on share point sites for everyone to see. In this way the program helped to provide a structure around what we are currently doing." -Nadine Santana, AVP Global Risk Solutions North American Programs, Liberty Mutual Insurance

"Lehigh’s Foundations of Project Management provided a simulation that brought everything full circle and helped apply what we learned in the first half of the program.  The class had a business slant, which allowed it to apply to multiple scenarios and industries." -Jami Neary, Senior Manager, Mazars USA