Year
2023Credit points
10Campus offering
No unit offerings are currently available for this unit.Prerequisites
NilIncompatible
MGMT627 Project Management , ISYS625 Information Systems Project Management
Teaching organisation
3 hours per week for twelve weeks or equivalent.Unit rationale, description and aim
This unit discusses the processes, methods, techniques and tools that organisations use to manage their information systems projects. It covers a systematic methodology for initiating, planning, executing, controlling, and closing projects. The unit works from the assumption that project management in a modern organisation is a complex team-based activity, where various types of technologies (including project management software as well as software to support group collaboration) are an inherent part of the project management process.
Learning outcomes
To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.
Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.
Explore the graduate capabilities.
On successful completion of this unit, students should be able to:
LO1 - Demonstrate the need for project management in modern organisations, phases of the project management life-cycle, and methods of determining project scope and feasibility. (GA4, GA5)
LO2 - Manage project quality, discover threats to techniques, evaluate and mitigate project risks. (GA5, GA8)
LO3 - Manage project schedules and resources with appropriate techniques and tools to ensure responsible planning and management of resources. (GA5, GA10)
LO4 - Collaborate effectively within a team to produce a coherent and consistent set of project management documents (GA5, GA7)
LO5 - Design a project management plan including project scopes, business process, budget and risk management (GA5, GA8)
Graduate attributes
GA4 - think critically and reflectively
GA5 - demonstrate values, knowledge, skills and attitudes appropriate to the discipline and/or profession
GA7 - work both autonomously and collaboratively
GA8 - locate, organise, analyse, synthesise and evaluate information
GA10 - utilise information and communication and other relevant technologies effectively.
Content
Topics covered:
- Project definition and scoping
- Project failures and successes
- Unique features of IT project management
- Project management life-cycle
- Project scope management
- Project time management
- Project cost management
- Project quality management
- Project human resource management
- Project communications management
- Project risk management
- Project procurement management
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
Mode: Attendance mode
Duration: 12-week semester or equivalent. Students should anticipate undertaking 150 hours of study for this unit, including class attendance, readings, exams, and assessment preparation.
and summative assessments, all of which will be available online, to provide a learning experience beyond the classroom. While there are no formal classroom lectures for this unit, students will be required to attend weekly three-hour workshops, which will include lecture and specific tasks related to achievement of the unit learning outcomes.
Assessment strategy and rationale
The assessment strategy for this unit is based on the need to determine authentic student achievement of the learning outcomes. In the first assessment task, the students will be submitting a report based on the discussion and collaboration in the discussion forum. The aim of the assessment is to investigate and analyse complex concepts through reflection and collaboration. The second assessment includes submitting a comprehensive project management plan that aims to develop professional skills and apply those skills to solve real world problems. The final assessment assesses students’ knowledge, understanding and skills of the studied concepts through a final examination.
Overview of assessments
| Brief Description of Kind and Purpose of Assessment Tasks | Weighting | Learning Outcomes | Graduate Attributes |
|---|---|---|---|
Task1: Written Report based on Discussion Forum The student will participate in online discussion forum to understand complex concepts through reflection and collaboration. The aim is to assess the personalised understanding of complex concepts through reflection and collaboration, to promote learning from each other, to create an online community. | 20% | LO1, LO2 | GA4, GA5, GA8 |
Task2: Develop a Project Management Plan The students have to submit a project report explaining how the various Project Management concepts could be applied to a provided case study; reflecting on the Project Management concepts addressed throughout the semester. The aim of this assessment is to develop professional skills through the application of theoretical knowledge and understanding. | 30% | LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5 | GA5, GA7, GA8, GA10 |
Task 3: Final Exam The final exam will be designed to assess all stated learning outcomes. This is a 2-hour invigilated examination covering all unit contents. The purpose of this assessment is to test the students’ grasp of both theoretical and practical aspects of the unit. | 50% | LO1, LO2, LO3 | GA4, GA5, GA8, GA10 |
Representative texts and references
Schwalbe, K 2018, Information technology project management, 9th edn, Cengage Learning, USA
Haynes E 2012, Project management: get from the idea to implementation successfully, 5th edn, Axzo Press, New York.
McLeod R jnr, Jordan E & McLeod R 2010, Systems development: a project management approach, Wiley, Brisbane.
Pham A & Pham P 2011, Scrum in action, Course Technology PTR, Boston, MA.
Simon P 2010, Why new systems fail: an insider's guide to successful IT projects, Course Technology PTR, Boston, MA.
Winston WL & Albright SC 2011, Practical management science, 4th edn, South-Western College, Mason, OH.