Introduction
Late delivery and cost overruns remain among the most critical challenges in modern project management across both public and private sectors. Many projects fail to achieve their strategic and financial objectives due to weak planning, inaccurate estimating, and insufficient control over time, cost, and resources.
This program is designed to bridge this gap by equipping professionals with practical tools and techniques in project planning, scheduling, and cost estimating. It focuses on enhancing decision-making in early project phases, improving estimate accuracy, and strengthening project control throughout the lifecycle.
The course integrates modern methodologies such as CPM, PERT, earned value management, and advanced cost estimating techniques to enable participants to deliver projects on time, within budget, and to the required quality standards.
Course Objectives
By the end of this program, participants will be able to:
- Develop effective project schedules using modern planning techniques (CPM, PERT, Gantt charts).
- Apply resource planning, allocation, and leveling techniques efficiently.
- Identify, assess, and manage project risks and uncertainties.
- Develop accurate cost estimates from conceptual to detailed stages.
- Understand different types of contracts and their risk implications.
- Apply earned value management for monitoring and controlling project performance.
- Improve decision-making through time–cost trade-off analysis.
- Prepare realistic budgets and project feasibility assessments.
- Develop recovery plans for delayed or over-budget projects.
- Enhance bidding, procurement, and cost control capabilities.
Target Audience
This program is designed for:
- Project Managers and Assistant Project Managers
- Planning and Scheduling Engineers
- Cost Estimators and Quantity Surveyors
- Contract and Procurement Professionals
- Construction and Engineering Professionals
- Consultants and Project Control Specialists
- Professionals preparing for PMP certification or similar qualifications
Course Outline
Day 1: Introduction to Project Planning & Scope Definition
- Project life cycle overview
- Scope planning and Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
- Statement of Work (SOW)
- Triple constraints (Scope, Time, Cost)
Day 2: Project Scheduling Fundamentals
- Network diagrams and precedence relationships
- Critical Path Method (CPM)
- Float analysis and scheduling logic
- Gantt chart development
Day 3: Resource Planning & Allocation
- Resource planning techniques
- Resource leveling and smoothing
- Resource constraints and optimization
- Workforce and productivity planning
Day 4: Project Risk & Contingency Planning
- Risk identification and analysis
- PERT and probability concepts
- Standard deviation and uncertainty in scheduling
- Contingency planning
Day 5: Time–Cost Trade-Off & Schedule Acceleration
- Project crashing techniques
- Direct vs indirect costs
- Acceleration strategies
- Optimal schedule reduction
Day 6: Project Monitoring & Earned Value Management
- Progress tracking systems
- Earned Value Analysis (EVA)
- CPI & SPI indicators
- Variance analysis and forecasting
Day 7: Cost Estimating Fundamentals
- Estimating life cycle
- Types of estimates (ROM, conceptual, detailed)
- Estimating by design phases
- Cost indices and adjustments
Day 8: Advanced Cost Estimating Techniques
- Parametric and factor estimating
- Learning curve effect
- Location, size, and time adjustments
- PERT cost estimating approach
Day 9: Contracting & Procurement Strategies
- Contract types and risk allocation
- Lump sum, unit price, cost-plus contracts
- Procurement methods and bidding process
- Negotiated contracts and GMP
Day 10: Integrated Project Control & Final Review
- Budget development and cost control
- Bid preparation and evaluation
- Project recovery planning
- Integrated case study and final exercise
