Introduction

In today’s competitive construction and project environment, organizations face pressure to deliver on time, reduce costs, and maintain quality. This program equips participants with advanced skills to manage both contracts and projects effectively, from pre-contract planning through post-contract closeout, emphasizing risk management, dispute avoidance, and operational efficiency. Participants gain practical techniques for planning, execution, and leadership, enabling maximum profitability and performance.

Course Objectives

By the end of this program, participants will be able to:

• Apply contractual and legal knowledge effectively in projects.
• Understand different types of agreements and project delivery systems.
• Increase commercial awareness to minimize risks and disputes.
• Conduct cash flow analysis and manage project budgets.
• Apply advanced scheduling and project control techniques.
• Handle proactive and reactive project management scenarios.
• Negotiate and resolve disputes efficiently.
• Implement best practices for world-class contract and project management.

Target Audience

• Project Managers and Construction Managers
• Contract Managers and Administrators
• Procurement and Commercial Professionals
• Risk Managers in construction and project environments
• Engineers and Supervisors involved in project planning and execution

Course Outline – 10 Days

Day 1 – The Basis of Contracting

• Principles of good contracting
• Purpose and benefits of contracts
• Key steps and essential elements of contracts
• Tendering and contract award overview
• Overview of obligation documents, bonds, guarantees, and letters of intent

Day 2 – Organizing Contract Management

• Defining contract management responsibilities
• Communication and expectation management
• Contract planning and risk assessment
• Selecting types of contracts (traditional, EPC, BOT/BOOT, alliance)

Day 3 – Risk Management in Contracts

• Identifying and apportioning risk
• Incorporating risk strategies into contract structures
• Insurance, indemnities, and warranty management
• Change management within contracts

Day 4 – Contract Performance Management

• Handling major contract terms
• Design, specification, and work ordering processes
• Obligation fulfillment and ownership transfer
• Cost control, recovery clauses, and acceleration

Day 5 – Change Control and Variations

• Understanding contract changes and scope variations
• Managing increases, decreases, and timing changes
• Avoiding uncontrolled changes
• Developing and modifying contract terms and templates

Day 6 – Dispute Resolution Techniques

• Eliminating sources of disputes
• Anticipating conflicts and handling unknowns
• Negotiation, litigation, arbitration, mediation
• Advanced dispute resolution: Med/Arb, Pendulum Arbitration, Expert Determination

Day 7 – Project Fundamentals

• Definition of a project and project management principles
• Project delivery systems and life-cycle models
• Project initiation, selection, and evaluation techniques
• Stakeholder identification, assessment, and management

Day 8 – Planning and Scheduling

• Task characteristics and duration assessment
• Critical Path Method (CPM) vs Critical Chain Scheduling
• Resource allocation and time-cost trade-offs
• Lead/lag scheduling and proactive project risk management

Day 9 – Execution and Monitoring

• Lean construction strategies
• Staff acquisition, team development, and motivation
• Leadership and management styles, conflict handling
• Monitoring using Earned Value Management and risk strategy implementation

Day 10 – Project Closing and Review

• Project closeout processes and lessons learned
• Implementing best practices for operational efficiency
• Contract management review and summary
• Final discussion and action planning for real-world application