Effective project scheduling and cost planning are fundamental to successful project management. This course equips participants with essential skills to design realistic project schedules, plan budgets, and manage costs efficiently. By mastering these techniques, participants will be able to improve their project delivery outcomes, minimize delays, and prevent cost overruns. The course covers key scheduling methods, cost estimation techniques, and strategies for controlling and monitoring project timelines and budgets. Practical sessions with project management tools (e.g., Microsoft Project, Primavera) provide hands-on experience in creating and managing schedules and budgets.

Who should attend?

• ·       Project managers and coordinators
• ·       Project planners and schedulers
• ·       Cost estimators and budget managers
• ·       Anyone involved in managing or executing projects with a focus on time and cost management

Knowledge and Benefits:

After completing the program, participants will be able to master the following:

• ·       Understand the importance of scheduling and cost planning in project management.
• ·       Develop accurate project schedules using industry-standard techniques.
• ·       Create detailed cost estimates and project budgets.
• ·       Monitor and control project schedules and costs during the project lifecycle.
• ·       Use project management software tools (e.g., Microsoft Project, Primavera) to create schedules and manage costs.
• Apply techniques for identifying, analyzing, and mitigating scheduling and cost risks.

·       Introduction to Project Scheduling & Cost Planning:

o   Key Concepts in Project Management.

o   What is project scheduling and why is it important?

o   The relationship between scheduling, cost, and scope.

o   Key terms and definitions (e.g., milestones, tasks, dependencies, critical path, float, etc.).

o   Overview of Project Scheduling.

o   Types of schedules (e.g., milestone schedule, detailed schedule, baseline schedule).

o   Schedule management process.

o   The role of the Project Manager in scheduling.

o   The importance of accurate cost planning.

o   Cost estimation techniques (e.g., analogous estimating, parametric estimating, bottom-up estimating).

o   Creating a cost management plan.

·       Scheduling Techniques:

o   Work Breakdown Structure (WBS).

o   How to break down the project into manageable tasks.

o   Critical Path Method (CPM).

o   Understanding critical path and float.

o   Calculating the earliest start, latest start, and total float for tasks.

o   Identifying project bottlenecks and optimizing schedules.

o   Gantt Charts & Milestone Charts.

o   How to create and interpret Gantt charts.

o   Setting milestones to track progress.

o   Types of task dependencies (finish-to-start, start-to-start, finish-to-finish, start-to-finish).

o   Resource constraints and how to manage them.

·       Cost Planning & Budgeting:

o   Overview of estimating methods (analogous, parametric, bottom-up).

o   How to create a detailed project budget using these methods.

o   Developing a Project Budget.

o   Direct and indirect costs.

o   Fixed vs. variable costs.

o   Contingency reserves and management reserves.

o   Tracking project costs against the baseline.

o   Earned Value Management (EVM) and its role in cost control.

o   Analyzing cost variances and taking corrective actions.

·       Tools for Scheduling & Cost Management:

o   Introduction to Microsoft Project, Primavera, and other scheduling tools.

o   Hands-on session: Creating schedules using a project management tool.

o   How to allocate resources to tasks.

o   Resource leveling to prevent overallocation.

o   Updating project schedules based on progress.

o   Techniques for managing schedule changes and delays.

·       Risk Management, Monitoring, and Reporting:

o   Identifying schedule and cost risks.

o   Qualitative and quantitative risk analysis techniques.

o   Developing risk response plans for schedule and cost risks.

o   How to monitor progress using tracking tools.

o   Techniques for controlling schedule delays and cost overruns.

o   Preparing and presenting project status reports.

o   Communicating schedule and cost updates to stakeholders.