APM Project Fundamentals Qualification (PFQ)

Online APM Project Fundamentals Qualification (PFQ) Training

Description

APM Project Fundamentals Qualification (APM PFQ) Topics Covered

Project Management in Context; during which we differentiate projects from non-projects, explore programme and portfolio management, the influence of the business and political context on project success, the critical role of the sponsor in project success and support that can be provided by a project office.

Planning and Strategy; including being clear how success will be measured from the outset, the influence of stakeholders on requirements, how that can (or cannot) be managed. Also in this section:

• Preparing the project management plan
• Understanding and managing risk
• Planning, assuring and controlling quality
• Managing health and safety

Executing the Strategy; including driving the project forward to a successful conclusion.

• Defining and managing the delivery of benefits and achieving success criteria
• Understanding how to analyse and manage stakeholders
• Producing a project management plan
• Carrying out project risk analysis
• Defining and managing quality
• Defining project scope and ways of understanding it including WBS, PBS
• Producing a viable plan
• Planning and managing key resources
• Controlling change to the project
• Managing project information and reporting
• Managing and escalating project issues

Project Management Techniques; to make sure the project is fully understood and estimated fully including:

• Estimating cost for completing the project using a number of methods
• Configuration management to control changes to the design

Business and Commercial; to ensure the business case is robust and the supply chain is delivering value by including:

• The purpose, role and ownership of the business case
• Working with suppliers through the procurement cycle

Organisation and Governance; to ensure the business remains in control of the project including

• Completing effective project handover and learning lessons from the project
• Clearly defining roles and responsibilities for the project and business deliverables

People and the profession; to encourage effective and strong leadership.

• Managing effective communications
• Building a project team
• Leading projects to success

Prerequisites

The APM PFQ is designed for people who are new to project management or working in a project role. As such is has no pre-requisites. If you are new to project management we recommend you read the study guide and sample the e-learning before the course. In particular, the study guide includes a sample exam which will give you a feel for your knowledge gaps.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course delegates will be able to:

• Describe a project’s context and the relationship of this to the way in which the project is managed
• Write usable project documentation including business cases and project plans
• Describe the key components of a team and how a project manager might seek to manage them
• Carry out a work breakdown of a project as the first component of planning
• Produce a project plan
• Carry out a risk analysis of a project
• Describe ways in which projects can be monitored and controlled
• Carry out a stakeholder analysis and describe ways in which they can be managed
• Have sufficient knowledge to sit the APM Project Fundamentals Qualification

What is Included in the Course?

This course includes a comprehensive pre-course study package including:

• Pre-course study guide
• Online APM PFQ Exam
• Full suite of PFQ podcasts
• Online e-learning

What is the Course Like?

You will be working in a mixture of teams during the course, in both small and larger groups, undertaking interactive quizzes, buzz groups, exercises and engaging in debate. The course combines the principles of project management theory with practical exercises and realistic case studies. The class is not ‘death by PowerPoint’ you will be encouraged and expected to join in and contribute.

Various topics will be covered in the workshop with the intention of preparing you to be a better project manager in your organisation but also to sit the exam. You will find that you will be able to easily apply many of your new skills to your projects as soon as you return to work. In our follow up research (3 to 6 months after the course) 91% of respondents say that they learned new skills that they use in their current projects.

What will I need?

All of our virtual courses will run via Adobe Connect, which is free for you to use and is often accepted through firewalls onto computers as Adobe is a widely accepted piece of software. If you work in a company with high security settings, you might need to use your personal PC or mobile phone.

Please note: As of 1st September, all courses will be delivered using Zoom

Therefore, you will need:

• A laptop/ PC/ MAC/ iPad/ or Phone, which enables sound
• Internet – a good internet connection (preferably wired) will ensure you don’t miss anything!
• Headphones – you may wish to use a headset/ headphones to listen, but you won’t be asked to connect via webcam, so feel free to sit in your pjs!
• Your attention!

How will I access Adobe Connect?

Your course tutor will send you a link to the Abode Connect session – you can go into this virtual room any time to check it works. We’ve also created a YouTube video on how to setup Adobe Connect– its worth a watch before your planned session.

Who will teach the session?

You will be told who your tutor is prior to the session, you can find out more about them by dropping us an e-mail. All of our trainers are highly experienced in virtual delivery and will make sure you get online and get engaged as quickly as possible.

How long will the session be?

The PFQ will run as a 2-day course, with 8 x 1-hour webinars spread across the days. The webinars will be highly interactive, using PowerPoint slides, quizzes and discussion boards to engage you throughout. But don’t worry, you won’t be asked to sit at a desk for the whole day – there will be lots of breaks in which you will be asked to go away and complete some activities, like you would in a classroom, including feedback from the tutor in the next session. Adobe Connect allows you to type questions as a group, or email them privately to the tutor, so you will be able to see what thoughts other delegates have throughout the sessions.

The exam will be run online as a time convenient to you; more information will be provided on this in the last webinar.

Timetable for the 2-day PFQ

DAY 1

9.00 – 10.30 WEBINAR 1: UNDERSTAND PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND THE OPERATING ENVIRONMENT

10.30 – 11.30 WEBINAR 1 ACTIVITIES & E-LEARNING

11.30 – 12.30 WEBINAR 2: UNDERSTAND THE PROJECT ROLES & LIFECYCLE

12.30 – 13.30 LUNCH

13.30 – 14.30 WEBINAR 3: UNDERSTAND THE BUSINESS CASE

14.30 – 15.30 WEBINAR 3 ACTIVITIES & E-LEARNING

15.30 – 16.30 WEBINAR 4: UNDERSTAND PROJECT MANAGEMENT PLANNING

DAY 2

9.00 – 10.30 WEBINAR 5: UNDERSTAND SCOPE MANAGEMENT

10.30 – 11.00 WEBINAR 5 ACTIVITIES & E-LEARNING

11.00 – 12.30 WEBINAR 6: UNDERSTAND SCHEDULING AND RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

12.30 – 13.30 LUNCH

13.30 – 14.30 WEBINAR 7: UNDERSTAND RISK MANAGEMENT, ISSUE MANAGEMENT & QUALITY MANAGEMENT

14.30 – 15.30 WEBINAR 7 ACTIVITIES & E-LEARNING

15.30 – 16.30 WEBINAR 8: UNDERSTAND COMMUNICATIONS IN THE PROJECT ENVIRONMENT & THE PRINCIPLES OF LEADERSHIP AND TEAMWORK

EXAM TECHNIQUE & EXAM SETUP

What if I get distracted, miss a point, or have to miss a session?

Fear not! Adobe allows us to record sessions which will be sent to you afterwards – these obviously won’t give you the opportunity to ask questions but do mean you won’t miss anything if your food box arrives/ work phone call comes in.

As always, any questions drop us a line, because we’re with you all the way!

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