Project Management Theory and Practice

Gary Richardson, PhD, PMP is the program coordinator for the University of Houston's College of Technology graduate level project management program. This program serves both the internal and external community in regard to the theory and practice of project management. He comes from a broad professional background including industry, consulting, government, and academia. During the early phase of his career he was an officer in the U.S. Air Force, followed by industry stints at Texas Instruments as a manufacturing engineer, and then by consulting assignments at the Defense Communications Agency, Department of Labor, and the U.S. Air Force (Pentagon) in Washington, D.C. The latter half of his career was spent with Texaco and Service Corporation International in various IT and CIO level management positions. Interspersed through these periods he was a professor at Texas A&M, the University of South Florida, and the University of Houston, and also did other adjunct professor stints at three other universities. Gary has previously published four computer-related textbooks and numerous technical articles. Through his experiences in over 100 significantly sized projects of various types, he has observed frequently encountered issues and has been an active participant in the evolution of management techniques that have occurred over this time. Gary received a BS in mechanical engineering from Louisiana Tech, an AFIT postgraduate program in meteorology at the University of Texas, an MS in engineering management from the University of Alaska, and a PhD in business administration from the University of North Texas. He currently teaches the PMP Prep course and other graduate-level project management courses at the University of Houston plus various continuing education courses.

Conceptual Overview of the Project Environment
Introduction
Evolution of Project Management
Project Management Body of Knowledge
Industry Trends in Project Management
Project Types
Project Organization Concepts
Project Life Cycle Models
Quick Start Example





Projects as State Change Vehicles
Role of Projects in the Organization
Project Initiation

Defining the Triple Constraints
Project Plan Development
Scope Management
Time Management
Cost Management





Advanced Planning Models
Analyzing Variable Time Estimates
Project Simulation
Critical Chain Management Model


Planning Support Processes
Human Resource Management
Project Communications
Procurement Management
Quality Management
Risk Management
Plan Review and Approval


Project Execution—Managing the Plan
Project Execution and Control


Monitoring and Controlling Techniques
Change Management
Project and Enterprise Metrics
Earned Value Management
Tracking Project Progress
Enterprise Reporting Using the Balanced Scorecard


Closing the Project
The Closing Process


Contemporary Topics
Organizational Maturity
Project Portfolio Management
Enterprise Project Management Office
HR Outsourcing
High Productivity Teams
Project Governance


Professional Ethics and Responsibility
Ethical Project Management Practices

Appendix A: Financial Metrics
Appendix B: Templates
Appendix C: Project Repository Architecture


Index