PMGT 540 SYLLABUS

Planning and Executing Projects

C OURSE I NFORMATION
Course Description: This course will focus on the production of core project management deliverables
necessary to successfully navigate today's complex projects with an introduction to current project
management best practices. In this learning forum you will use industry proven templates and tools to
develop a project from the ground up. This is a comprehensive, semester-long project scoping, budgeting,
scheduling and control course where practiced theory is the platform for learning.

Course Prerequisites: Successful completion of PMGT 510 – Principles of Project Management

C OURSE G OALS AND L EARNING O BJECTIVES

Course Goal:

The course objective is to provide a practical hands-on learning experience that builds on the fundamentals
established in PMGT 510 – Managing Projects. The focus of this course is to demonstrate the applied use of
the traditional PMBOK Process Groups and Knowledge Areas for a single project with industry standard
artifacts in the execution of projects to meet stakeholder needs within the triple constraints of scope,
schedule and cost.

Course Learning Objectives:

A student who completes this course will be able to demonstrate a working knowledge of:

1) The fundamentals of scoping, planning, executing and monitoring & controlling project scope, schedule
and cost.
2) The use of project management best practices, methodologies, tools, techniques and templates.
3) Project scope through the creation of the project Charter and elicitation of requirements.
4) Best practices to employ to create a project schedule using a work breakdown schedule (WBS), estimation
and sequencing. Students will also be introduced to MS Project 2016, a ubiquitous planning software
designed to assist project managers in developing a dynamic schedule, assigning resources to tasks, tracking
progress, managing the budget, and analyzing workloads.
5) Creating the project budget using work, material and cost resources.
6) Application of project scheduling techniques to optimize the schedule in order to meet deadlines and
budget restrictions while managing resource availability.
7) Application of earned value management analysis to control a project.
8) Effective communication of the project schedule to executive management, functional management and
project team members including regular management status updates.
9) The Change Management process including analysis of how changes impact the triple constraints as well as
quality, resources and risk.

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C OURSE M ATERIALS
1. Project Management A Systems Approach To Planning, Scheduling, And Controlling
Twelfth Edition
Author: Harold Kerzner
ISBN 978-1-119-16535-4

2. A Guide to the Project Management Body Of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide) Sixth Edition Project
Management Institute, 2017
Author: Project Management Institute
ISBN 978-1-62825-184-5

3. Dynamic Scheduling with Microsoft Office Project 2013: The Book by and for Professionals
(Paperback)
Author: Rodolfo Ambriz
ISBN 978-1-60427-112-6

In addition to the textbooks, the Lynda.com video series are used extensively throughout the course and are
required materials as are all supplemental readings offered in the Additional Resources sections of the
individual lessons. The supplement to the PMBOK Guide, The Agile Practice Guide is also recommended
reading.

MS Project software will be provided for your use throughout the course under the standard University
offering of the MS Office Suite. MS Project software must be run on a Windows Operating system. Please see
additional information below in Computer and Software Requirements.

C OURSE G RADES & G RADING P OLICIES

Overall course grade will be determined from the following grade distribution.

At the discretion of the instructor, a Major Assignment may be included into the overall Assignment grade
(40%). If a Major Assignment is included it will be valued at 20% with the rest of Unit Level assignments
valued at 20%.

GRADING % of Total Grade

Forum Posts/Replies 25%
Assignments 40%
Team Assignment 15%
Attendance: 20%
TOTAL 100%

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Grading Policies and Range of Grades:

GRADE RANGE
A 90-100
B 80-89
C 70-79
F 69 or lower

Review the designated Grading Criteria before beginning work on a graded item so that you start on the
right track. Additionally, review the Grading Criteria before submitting a graded item to make sure you
have fulfilled the expectations. Finally, review the Grading Criteria when you receive the scores to see in
what areas you did well and in what areas you need to improve. Your work will be evaluated according
to the following general PMGT guidelines:

Above Average: Good effort. Individual was often prepared to discuss, present, and provide feedback.
Work reflects consistent participation and engagement in a manner that reflects an advanced interest in
and understanding of the course content. The majority of contributions are consistently thoughtful,
constructive, and beneficial to all involved in the course. Assignments and projects are thoroughly and
thoughtfully completed, often showing some additional work, insight, or integration of ideas.
Assignments and projects are completed on time, according to requirements, and with an
understanding of how individual pieces of the course build upon and integrate with each other. (Range
of grade A: 90 to 100)

Average: Basic Effort. Individual was sometimes prepared to discuss, present, and provide feedback.
Work reflects consistent participation and engagement in a manner that reflects some interest in and
understanding of the course content. Some contributions are thoughtful, constructive, and beneficial to
all involved in the course. Assignments and projects are completed, occasionally showing some
additional work, insight, or integration of ideas. Assignments and projects are completed on time,
according to requirements, and with a basic understanding of how individual pieces of the course build
upon and integrate with each other. (Range of grade B: 80 to 89)

Below Average: Lack of Effort. Individual was rarely prepared to discuss, present, and provide feedback.
Work reflects some participation and engagement, but in a manner that reflects little interest in and
understanding of the course content. A few contributions are thoughtful, constructive, and beneficial to
all involved in the course. Assignments and projects are completed, but do not show additional work,
insight, or integration of ideas. Assignments and projects are completed on time, but lack requirements
and indicate little understanding of how individual pieces of the course build upon and integrate with
each other. (Range of grade C: 70 to 79)

Unacceptable: No Effort. Individual was never prepared to discuss, present, and provide feedback. Work
reflects no participation and engagement and there is no interest in and understanding of the course
content. Contributions are nonexistent or contain no thoughtful or constructive elements. Assignments
and projects are not completed on time. (Range of grade F: 69 or lower)

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A SSIGNMENTS
WEEK TOPIC ASSIGNMENTS
1 Course Intro & Orientation Introduce Yourself Forum
Project Initiation Review the LMS course page and reading assignments
2 Defining the Project – the Forum: Working with Executives
Project Charter Project Proposals
3 Defining Requirements Project Charter

4 Quality & Risk Forum: Case Study – Communication Failures

5 Creating the Work Forum: Case Study – Creating a Methodology
Breakdown Structure (WBS)
6 Schedule Development Requirements Matrix, Risk/ Quality Assessment, and
Part I - Estimation WBS
7 Schedule Development Forum: Case Study – The Estimating Problem
Part II - Dependencies
8 Schedule Development Draft Project Schedule
Part III - Resources & Budget
9 Optimize the Project Forum: Problem – Cost Overruns
Schedule & Budget - Set a
Baseline
10 Monitoring & Controlling Baselined Schedule
Updating & Change Control
11 Monitoring & Controlling Forum: Trade-off Analysis
Status Reporting
12 Earned Value Management Change Request and Quarterly Status Report PPT

13 Closing the Project Forum: Project Closure

14 Continuous Improvement TEAM ASSIGNMENT DUE – Earned Value Analysis Paper

A TTENDANCE
Attendance at the Executive Sessions (if you are enrolled in the Executive Format) and Weekly Class
Sessions is very important at Harrisburg University. It affects your learning and it affects the credit you
receive for your courses, for which Harrisburg University is accountable. The total loss of points due to
lack of attendance can be a 20% deduction from your final course grade. There are no “extra points”
because you attended, you can only lose points if you do not attend. Calculation is as follows
(percentages refer to your total course grade):

Not attending an executive session: Minus 5% per session. Executive sessions cannot be made up.
Attendance points will be deducted if you arrive late or leave early.

Missed Online Class Policy: Students are expected to attend the weekly sessions and if absent to watch
the live recording within 7 days of the missed session. An email must be sent to the professor notifying
them of the missed class session. A summary of the session must be posted in the designated area on

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the LMS course page within 7 days to receive full credit for attending the session. It should include the
following:

• Title and date of missed class in topic line

• A 250-word summary of the session
• Up to 4 key learning points noted while watching the session
• At least 1 “take away” or “lessons learned” that you can apply to your professional or personal
life

Excused Absences. F-1 visa Federal Regulations indicate that for an absence to be excused, a student
must provide a note from a US Licensed Medical Doctor stating that you are unable to attend class or
travel for the specific date(s) of absence due to illness. Do not list specific information regarding the
illness. Do not include other medical documents such as patient bills, diagnoses, or after-care. All other
absences will be marked as unexcused. Academic consequences for an absence from an executive
weekend class are decided by each individual professor per Harrisburg University policy and usually
involve significant point loss. Visa/F-1 Student Status will not be impacted by absence from one
unexcused absence of an executive format class but more than one per semester would need to be
reported to a DSO and puts both academic and visa status at risk. If you are experiencing prolonged
illness or other extraordinary circumstances that are preventing you from being successful within your
coursework, reach out to the Office of Student Services, gradstudentservices@harrisburgu.edu, for
support.

S TUDENT E NGAGEMENT
Student Engagement. Students are expected to spend a minimum of 126 hours of student engagement
(for a three-credit course) led by a faculty member. These hours are delivered through a variety of
instructor-led activities, and may include: Adobe Connect sessions, audio and/or video lecture with
Q & A, online discussion boards, one-on-one dialogue, problem-solving scenarios, projects, research
papers, and so on to ensure all course outcomes are met. For a graduate-level course, this averages to 9
hours of individual work per each 3-credit class.

Class Participation. Students must have a working laptop for all meetings along with a working
microphone to participate in group discussions. Cell phones and other electronic devices must be turned
off or silenced during all course meetings. Students unable to fully participate in class may be considered
absent at the professor’s discretion.

STANDARDS OF ACADEMIC INTEGRITY

Academic Code of Conduct: All students are required to abide by the Code of Conduct and Academic
Code of Conduct as described in the Student Handbook, which includes academic integrity and
expectations of originality. Students are responsible for understanding the requirements for each
course, for complying with the rules, and for reading, understanding, and complying with the Code of
Conduct and Academic Code of Conduct. The Student Handbook is located on MyHU under the home
tab.

APA Format. All students are required to quote or paraphrase borrowed material correctly and to cite
the source of such borrowed material completely following current American Psychological
Association (APA) guidelines for style, format, and content, or another style of citation approved by the
course instructor. Students may seek writing and citation assistance from Student Services:
gradstudentservices@harrisburgu.edu or Smarthinking® on the Learning Management System (LMS),
the University Librarian library@harrisburgu.edu, or online resources such as the Purdue OWL:
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/10/.

S TUDENT S UPPORT S ERVICES

As a student, you should always ask for any help that you need to be successful! HU offers many support
services for our students. Additional information can be found on the student services SharePoint site,
which can be accessed through your learning management software.

Academic Support

• Help with study skills, time management - email tutoring@harrisburgu.edu

• Research, resources, and library questions - email Library@HarrisburgU.edu
• Reading & writing assistance - email tutoring@HarrisburgU.edu
• Tutoring - email Tutoring@HarrisburgU.edu or gradstudentservices@harrisburgu.edu
• Access online tutoring 24 hours a day, 7 days a week through SMARTHINKING® (via link on the
Learning Management System [LMS])
• General questions not related to visa status-gradsstudentservices@harrisburgu.edu
• Academic Calendar-located on the “Quick Links” on MyHU-this includes important dates such as
holidays, withdrawal deadlines, tuition refund schedule, etc.
• Registering for courses, request a transcript or enrollment verification-email
registrar@harrisburgu.edu

Writing Resources

• Submit your writing for feedback on SMARTHINKING® (online tutoring service) - Access via link
on the Learning Management System (LMS)
• Writing Lab, Towson University http://www.towson.edu/owls/index,htm
• English Writing, Really Learn English http://www.really-learn-english.com/parts-of-a-
sentence.html
• Guide to Grammar and Writing, Capital Community College
Foundation http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/index.htm
• Purdue Online Writing Lab https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/561/2/
• APA Style, Purdue Online Writing Lab https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/10/
• HU Library APA Guide: http://library.harrisburgu.edu/apa

IT Support. For help with computer, software, or printer problems, visit https://ithelp.harrisburgu.edu.

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ADA Accommodations. For documented disability accommodations at HU,
email ada@harrisburgu.edu

International Student Services. For questions regarding the CPT requirements or anything about your
Visa, submit an inquiry via the Student Support Network: https://harrisburgu-
advocate.symplicity.com/care_report/

C OMPUTER AND S OFTWARE R EQUIREMENTS

Students must have a laptop. Students at Harrisburg University must have a working wireless network
connection and the ability to print documents. It is the responsibility of every student to have a working
computer and printer access. Information about minimum requirements for your computer and
connecting to the HU wireless network can be found at https://ithelp.harrisburgu.edu

• Students enrolled in Harrisburg University of Science and Technology’s degree program are
required to have a laptop computer to complete specific course requirements.
• Students are required to have a working external microphone to use in online sessions.
• Students should use the Microsoft Office suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) to ensure compatibility
of their files with university and instructors’ computers. Open Office files (or other programs)
are acceptable only if files submitted are compatible with and can be opened by university
software. Students are eligible for Office 365 ProPlus; instructions for downloading and
using Office 365 ProPlus are available at https://ithelp.harrisburgu.edu
• This course requires Microsoft Project 2016. HU provides Microsoft Project 2016 to students at no
cost provided you use the Microsoft Office Suite on Office 365 mentioned above. If you do no use
the Microsoft Office Suite on Office 365, you will need to provide your own copy of Microsoft
Project 2016.
• Microsoft Project software will run only under a Windows Operating System. While the university
fully supplies the Microsoft Project software to you, you are responsible for ensuring your access
to the Windows OS. You may accomplish that access by using a Windows PC for your Microsoft
Project work. If you would find that option cumbersome and wish to use your Mac computer, you
must, at your own expense, obtain and install the Windows OS on your Mac and dual-boot.
• If an assignment allows for electronic submission of a file, an unreadable file will be deemed
“unsubmitted,” ungraded, and the assignment will be penalized as a late assignment when it is
submitted.
• It is the policy of Harrisburg University that university business be conducted using a
HarrisburgU.edu or my.HarrisburgU.edu email account. Emails to staff or faculty should be
written clearly, respectfully, and concisely. It is a requirement that each student check their
my.harrisburgu.edu email account regularly.
• Students and faculty are required to use the designated course Learning Management System
(LMS) for HU. This may be required both during and outside of class. Instructors regularly post
information such as assignments, due dates, readings, and outlines on the LMS. Students are
responsible for reading any course announcements that are posted on the LMS. In addition,
students may have to complete assignments or upload documents to the LMS.

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 • Students must be familiar with basic file management, word processing, the Internet, browsers,
uploading files, and opening attachments sent in emails. Students are encouraged to back up all
files to a flash drive and/or to Microsoft OneDrive.

Access to your courses will open prior to the first day of the semester and you are expected to log onto
your courses when the semester starts even if this is prior to your executive weekends on the actual
campus.

Responsibility for resolving any computer/software problems is the responsibility of the individual
student. Students should visit the OIS support page at https://ithelp.harrisburgu.edu. This page allows
you to search a knowledge base for answers to your technology-related questions at Harrisburg
University. If you are unable to find a solution by searching the knowledge base, you can submit a ticket
to get assistance from one of our support staff. You can also call 717.901.5177 with questions.

HU C ORE C OMPETENCIES
Critical Thinking Critical thinkers will demonstrate the competency to:
The use of deliberative thought, Work with context, evidence, opinions, and error
characterized by the comprehensive Analyze connections and draw conclusions
exploration of topics, ideas, artifacts, or Problem Solving
events before accepting or formulating an Quantitative literacy: Interpretation
opinion or conclusion. Quantitative literacy: Representation
Quantitative literacy: Calculation
Quantitative literacy: Assumptions
Quantitative literacy: Communication
Communication Those demonstrating communication skills will exhibit the
The development and expression of ideas in competency to:
involving a variety of styles, genres, and Write within context and for purpose
technologies through repeated written and Develop Content
oral communication experiences. Adhere to genre and disciplinary conventions
Use sources and evidence
Control use of grammar and mechanics
Organize and deliver Presentations
Select appropriate language
Provide supporting material
Convey a central message
Teamwork and Collaboration Those showing effective collaboration skills will demonstrate the
The ability to work effectively with others in competency to:
a concerted effort toward a common goal. Recognize how to maximize group efficiency
Contribute to group tasks as an individual
Facilitate the contributions of team members
Contribute to team function
Be a valued contributing member
Entrepreneurship The successful entrepreneur will demonstrate the competency to:
The process of organizing tangible and Understand relationships between costs and benefits
intangible resources to pursue opportunities Evaluate stakeholders, needs, and markets
that generate value, meet an identified Practice innovative thinking
need, or satisfy an organizational or societal Understand leadership and organization roles
market.

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Information Literacy An information literate person will demonstrate the competency to:
The knowledge and familiarity with different Determine the extent of information needed
media types, efficient data storage, retrieval Collect and retrieve the needed information
methods, and research techniques. Evaluate information and its sources
Use information sources to accomplish a specific purpose
Use communication and information technologies
Access the use of information ethically and legally
Ethical Decision Making An ethical citizen will demonstrate the competency to:
The realization and inclusion of the moral Recognize ethical issues and consequences
dimension for personal decision-making. Understand ethical philosophies
Exhibit ethical self-awareness
Process and apply ethical considerations
Global Awareness A globally aware citizen will show an understanding of:
The knowledge of the world citizenry’s Global context
interests, appreciation and respect, and the Action in global context
interaction and impacts of individuals, global Global solutions
systems, and cultures. Worldview frameworks
Global interactions
Civic Engagement An engaged citizen will demonstrate the competency to:
Working to make a difference through the Connect knowledge to civic engagements
participation in personal and public activities Express civic identity and commitment
that are life-enriching and socially beneficial. Adapt civic communication strategies
Initiate civic action and collaboration