Outline

Overview

This unit develops skills in critically evaluating different project management methods and tools in relation to the complex systems environments that they are required to manage. Students will work on project case studies and be given the opportunity to consider different contemporary project delivery approaches and the relationship with both benefits and organisational change management. Lean Six Sigma, PRINCE2, PMBoK, agile methods and others will be examined in addition to hybrid models that blend more than one framework or method. The unit targets the higher analytical capabilities required at Practitioner to Manager levels (Levels 3 to 4) on the Project Management Learning Progression Table, addressing the critical thinking and systems thinking dimensions of Project Methods, Project Development, Project Communication and Project Delivery. The distinguishing quality of thinking at this level is its systematic character, working from a broad-based theoretical and practical understanding of the project delivery environment. The unit will go beyond what the approaches are and critically explore how to select the most suitable delivery method for your project. The aim at this level is not only to formulate reasonable and critical responses to a given problem, but also to articulate thorough and conclusive assessments for the development of tailored project delivery approaches that combine elements from different project delivery systems and methodologies. You need to identify key elements of the project and organise them into a coherent and persuasive argument about the recommended project delivery approach, encompassing consideration of the various risks, benefits, costs and processes involved. The unit builds upon the skills of complex problem analysis developed at a more basic level in Critical and Systems Thinking and together with this unit forms a two-part sequence dealing with the analytical abilities required in determining specific project delivery approaches for complex projects with different characteristics. Students enrolling in this unit are expected to have already developed a basic level of ability in forming and communicating critical judgments regarding complex problem situations through completion of the Critical and Systems Thinking unit or equivalent.

Unit details and rules

Unit code	ENGG5812
Academic unit	Project Management
Credit points	6
Prohibitions ?	None
Prerequisites ?	None
Corequisites ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Mehdi Rajabi Asadabadi, mehdi.rajabiasadabadi@sydney.edu.au
Lecturer(s)	Chris Lawler, chris.lawler@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Presentation	Lightning Talk and Peer Reviews Presentation and peer review during workshops - Weeks 5 to 7	30%	Multiple weeks Closing date: 15 Sep 2022	n/a
Outcomes assessed:
Creative assessment / demonstration	Stakeholder Pitch & Panels Present a solution to a problem, plus undertake panel and audience roles.	30%	Multiple weeks Closing date: 20 Oct 2022	30 minutes per component Weeks 9 to 11
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Summary report Summary report analysing workshop activities and evaluating presentations.	40%	Week 12 Due date: 30 Oct 2022 at 23:59	2000 minimum up to 5000 word maximum
Outcomes assessed:

Assessment summary

A1. Lightning Talk and Peer Reviews (30%) You will be provided with a set of questions that form the basis of a brief talk (3 minutes) delivered during your usual workshop time. You also complete Peer Review mark with brief feedback for other students. There will be a mandatory practice run from Weeks 2 to 4 and then the assessed version during Weeks 5 to 7.

A2. Stakeholder Pitch & Panels (30%) You will be provided with a project problem and context. You develop a solution for this and ‘pitch’ your solution to a panel and audience. All class members are to be part of a pitch team, a panel and in the audience. Some aspects of this activity form part of the final Summary Report assignment (A3). The Stakeholder Pitch & Panels will run during usual workshop times from Weeks 9 to 11 and depending on scheduling constraints, some may run in Week 12. Students may work in small teams but will be assessed individually.

A3. Summary report (40%) Prepare a summary report analysing workshop activities and evaluating Stakeholder Pitches. This report will include your workshop activity outputs. Full details for what is to be included in this report will be provided during your workshop time in Week 8 when you will also be provided with a template to guide your structure for this final report.

Special Consideration: Students unable to attend their schedule presentation times will be provided with an alternative date to present to the class or at least 2 of the teaching team and may be asked to evaluate peers based on session recordings.

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Late Penalty:

For every calendar day up to and including ten calendar days after the due date, a penalty of 5% of the maximum awardable marks will be applied to late work. The penalty will be calculated by first marking the work, and then subtracting 5% of the maximum awardable mark for each calendar day after the due date. Example: Consider an assignment's maximum awardable mark is 10; the assignment is submitted 2 days late; and the assignment is marked as 7/10. After applying the penalty, marks will be: 7 - (0.5 x 2) = 6/10. For work submitted more than ten calendar days after the due date a mark of zero will be awarded. The marker may elect to, but is not required to, provide feedback on such work. Refer to section 7A of Assessment procedures policy available at: http://sydney.edu.au/policies/showdoc.aspx?recnum=PDOC2012/267&RendNum=0

Study Commitment:

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Text-matching software for Assignment Submission:

As part of the assessment process, text matching software such as Turnitin will be used to identify plagiarism and/or be used for providing feedback.

Confidential Peer Evaluation:

As part of the group contribution assessment process, collaborative & self-peer evaluation tools (e.g. SparkPlus, CATME, etc.) may be used, either on a confidential or non-confidential basis, to understand contributions and interactions amongst group members. Marks may be adjusted for an individual team member, following on from the peer evaluation process.

Mark Moderation:

Mark moderation: There may be statistically defensible moderation when combining the marks from each component to ensure consistency of marking between markers, and alignment of final grades with unit outcomes.

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a high distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

Result name	Mark range	Description
High distinction	85 - 100
Distinction	75 - 84
Credit	65 - 74
Pass	50 - 64
Fail	0 - 49	When you don’t meet the learning outcomes of the unit to a satisfactory standard.

For more information see sydney.edu.au/students/guide-to-grades.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

This unit has an exception to the standard University policy or supplementary information has been provided by the unit coordinator. This information is displayed below:

For every calendar day up to and including ten calendar days after the due date, a penalty of 5% of the maximum awardable marks will be applied to late work. See the Assessments section for full details.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

You may only use artificial intelligence and writing assistance tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator, and if you do use them, you must also acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section.

Studiosity is permitted for postgraduate units unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Ongoing	Independent study guided by the online content & lectures. You are expected to undertake 8 - 10 hours per week of independent study in addition to the workshops.	Independent study (100 hr)
Week 01	1. Introduction to the unit; 2. Learning outcomes for this unit; 3. Overview of project delivery approaches; 4. Definitions of key terms; 5. Cultural context and working in diverse teams.	Workshop (2 hr)
Week 02	1. Strategy and strategic alignment; 2. Introduction to Benefits Management; 3. Introduction to Organisational Change Management; 4. What are Standards and bodies of knowledge (BOKs); 5. Current overview of PMBOK, PRINCE2.	Workshop (2.5 hr)
Week 03	1. Waterfall, agile, hybrid - a more detailed examination; 2. Lean and Six Sigma; 3. Constant innovation of practice; 4. Industry-specific project management: construction, IT, government and In House methods; 5. Contracting and procurement models; 6. Crowdsourcing.	Workshop (2.5 hr)
Week 04	1. Agile: a closer inspection; 2. Methods, tools and principles in action; 3. Benefits management: a closer inspection; 4. Organisational change management: a closer inspection.	Workshop (2.5 hr)
Week 05	1. Project complexity and complication; 2. Challenges and things to consider when tailoring an approach; 3. Project governance; 4. Sustainability and project management;	Workshop (2.5 hr)
Week 06	1. Project, program, PMO and portfolios; 2. Workplace health and safety; 3. Privacy, data security and compliance; 4. Deployment models: big bang, rolling wave & parallel runs. 5. Integration, evaluation and synthesis - unifying the unit themes; 6. Emergent topics and the future.	Workshop (2.5 hr)
Week 07	1. Project people and capability; 2. Professional associations, ethics, certifications and qualifications; 3. Lessons learned, knowledge management and closure.	Workshop (2.5 hr)
Week 08	1. Summary report details.	Workshop (1.5 hr)
Week 09	1. Stakeholder presentations	Practical (2 hr)
Week 10	1. Stakeholder presentations	Workshop (2 hr)
Week 11	1. Stakeholder presentations	Workshop (2 hr)
Week 12	1. Summary Report Guidance session	Workshop (1.5 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

SPECIAL NOTES:

Tapering

The workshops are timetabled for 2.5 hour duration however in a number of weeks we reduce this, especially during the weeks following the break week and we conclude by Week 12. The number of workshop hours remains at 26 total. The compressed mode with a lighter load around busier periods of the semester is to facilitate students managing heavy assessment loads during peak periods.

A substantial part of this unit is based on the experiences and outputs from the weekly workshops. This makes regular attendance of high importance. Two of the 3 assessments are undertaken during the workshops.

Zoom Workshops

While many of our international and interstate students are unable to travel to Syndey, we continue to provide sessions to cater to both remote (RE) and on-campus (CC) students. If you are an On-Campus student you are expected to attend physically however you may join via Zoom in rare circumstances (eg if unwell, public transport strike, extreme weather events).

Study commitment

Required readings

All readings for this unit can be accessed through the Library eReserve, available on Canvas.

Agile Practice Guide (PMI 2017) is the set text.

Readings and lectures are integrated within the material on Canvas. You are expected to study these as part of your independent study time each week.

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. critically evaluate the different contemporary project delivery frameworks and methodologies including Lean Six Sigma, the PMBoK Project Lifecycle, Agile methods and others
LO2. provide due consideration to project characteristics and contexts in selecting and adapting different project delivery frameworks and methodologies
LO3. critically evaluate differing project delivery approaches and their impact on benefits, change, strategy implementation, risk, governance and the triple constraint
LO4. provide due consideration to stakeholder characteristics and contexts in selecting and adapting different change, benefits, governance and risk management approaches
LO5. provide recommendations and provide thorough and convincing rationale for choice of project delivery approaches for different projects
LO6. adapt and combine differing project delivery methodologies for application to projects in different contexts in order to deliver specific project outputs and outcomes (benefits)
LO7. apply critical thinking skills and complex decision making frameworks within a project management context in order to prepare and deliver presentations to senior stakeholders
LO8. provide due consideration to contributing to PM knowledge and promoting PM best practice within the project team
LO9. critically evaluate developments in PM knowledge and professional practice across a broad range of sources, and advises on operational implications
LO10. critically evaluate project contracting and procurement approaches with due regard for overall project goals, dependencies and business value.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

Following feedback from students, we have retained the compression of most of the learning into the first part of the semester to ensure key content is covered prior to the break week. This unit will taper with the final set of workshops being slightly shorter and the assessment design allows for students to complete their final assignment early. We have also removed the assessment item that was due at the end of Week 8 as this appeared to be another busy period for students. Many students have a preference to work individually and feel that division of effort in teams is not equitable. Team assessment has been removed and there is a reduction of assessment items. Past students did appreciate and benefit from reviewing the efforts of others so this has been retained. This will be introduced from Week 2 as part of the practice sessions and supported by increasingly more complex tools across the semester. We have noticed an increasing pattern of students not undertaking analysis and critical thinking as they engage in their studies. This fully revised assessment design places an emphasis on supporting students to develop these real-world critical skills.

Additional information

All sessions include some element of both remote and on-campus students joining together in Zoom. Webcams are a mandatory requirement for this.

Remote students must present assessment items in person utilising a microphone and camera.

If you do not have access to these items, please discuss this with your lecturer at the start of the unit as you may need to submit a special consideration request for an alternative assessment.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Additional information

Additional information

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect

Current students

ENGG5812: Project Delivery Approaches

Semester 2, 2022 [Normal day] - Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Additional information

Additional information

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect