Advanced Project Management

Planning, Risk Management, Stakeholder Engagement, and Control for Experienced Project Managers

Platform:

Online

In-class

Revised and Updated: 08 October 2026

Date	Venue	Duration
12 - 16 October 2026	Sandton, Gauteng	5 Days
02 - 04 December 2026	Sandton, Gauteng	3 Days

Course Introduction

Projects rarely fail because the team lacks effort. They fail because the wrong project was selected, the scope was unclear, risks were missed, stakeholders were not engaged, or progress was not measured until it was too late. This course gives experienced project managers the advanced tools to avoid these failures, from selecting and initiating the right project, through planning, scheduling, and risk management, to control, evaluation, and handover.

Over five days, participants work through the full project life cycle in a hands-on way. They define scope and deliverables, build a work breakdown structure, develop schedules and Gantt charts, estimate costs and set a baseline, analyse and respond to risk, and track performance with earned value management. Alongside the technical tools, the course develops the leadership skills that make project teams productive: building and empowering a team, communicating with stakeholders, negotiating win-win outcomes, and resolving conflict. Participants apply every technique to a project of their own, and leave with a personal action plan.

The course is aligned to the PMI® PMBOK® Guide, Eighth Edition (November 2025), and is not a certification preparation course.

Course Objectives

By the end of the Advanced Project Management course, participants will be able to:

Link projects to organisational strategy, and apply sound criteria to select and initiate them
Define project scope, deliverables, and success criteria, and develop a work breakdown structure
Build schedules and Gantt charts, and estimate and allocate resources
Estimate costs, develop the budget, and set the project baseline
Identify, analyse, and respond to project risks, and manage change effectively
Build, lead, and empower a productive project team
Engage stakeholders, communicate effectively, and use win-win negotiation to reach agreements
Monitor and control performance with earned value management, and take corrective action
Close projects with a clear handover and an evaluation of results against objectives

Who should attend?

Project Managers and Team Leaders
Technical Leads and Project Management Office (PMO) Staff
Project Sponsors and Business Functional Managers
Programme Managers and Project Coordinators who want to move to advanced practice

Training Methodology

Our diverse instructional approaches ensure effective learning:

– Lectures & Presentations: Engage with expert-driven, stimulating content.
– Course Material: Access well-crafted supporting resources.
– Group Work: Collaborate on discussions and case studies for practical insights.
– Workshops & Role-Play: Participate in immersive, scenario-based activities.
– Practical Application: Focus on applying theoretical knowledge in real situations.
– Post-Training Support: Receive extensive support after training for skill implementation.

Training Outline

Day 1 — Project Starting Points

Module 1: Project Starting Points

Organisational vision and strategy, and how projects deliver them
Criteria for project selection: viability, alternatives, and expected outcomes
The project business case, charter, and initiation
Project management roles and stakeholder identification
Predictive, adaptive, and hybrid approaches, and choosing between them
Practical Exercise: evaluate alternative projects against selection criteria and justify the choice

Module 2: Defining Scope and Engaging Stakeholders

Defining objectives, scope, and deliverables
Setting performance and quality criteria
Stakeholder analysis and engagement planning
Practical Exercise: draft a charter and stakeholder engagement plan for your own project

Day 2 — The Project Manager's Role and Team Dynamics

Module 3: The Role of the Project Manager

Criteria for selecting a project manager
Leadership styles, and leading without formal authority
Responsibilities across the project life cycle

Module 4: Building and Leading the Project Team

Forming the team, and clarifying roles and responsibilities
Empowerment and delegation
Team development stages, and keeping a team productive and committed
Practical Exercise: team diagnostic: identify what is limiting your own team's productivity

Module 5: Communication, Negotiation, and Conflict Resolution

Communication strategies and planning for different stakeholders
Win-win negotiation techniques
Managing and resolving conflict within and around the project
Practical Exercise: negotiation role-play on a scope and deadline conflict

Day 3 — Project Planning and Scheduling

Module 6: Work Breakdown and Sequencing

Creating a work breakdown structure (WBS)
Identifying activities, dependencies, and milestones
Sequencing work using network diagrams
Practical Exercise: build a WBS and network diagram for a sample project

Module 7: Time Estimation and Resource Allocation

Estimating activity durations: analogous, parametric, and three-point
Critical path analysis and float
Resource allocation and levelling, and schedule compression

Module 8: Planning Tools for Effective Communication

Developing Gantt charts and milestone schedules
Using planning software and dashboards to share the plan
Ensuring plan accuracy and compliance
Practical Exercise: build a Gantt chart and identify the critical path

Day 4 — Risk Management and Project Baselining

Module 9: Cost Estimation and Budgeting

Cost estimation techniques: analogous, parametric, and bottom-up
Developing the budget and the time-phased cost baseline
Contingency and management reserves
Practical Exercise: estimate costs and build a project budget

Module 10: Project Risk Management

Identifying risks and building a risk register
Qualitative and quantitative risk analysis
Risk responses for threats and opportunities
Contingency planning, and risk in uncertain and fast-changing environments
Case Study: analyse the risks of a major project and agree the response plan

Module 11: Monitoring and Control Systems, and Change Management

Establishing the baseline, and setting up monitoring and control
Integrated change control: requests, impact assessment, and approval
Structuring effective project meetings

Day 5 — Monitoring, Control, Evaluation, and Closure

Module 12: Tracking Performance with Earned Value Management

Planned value, earned value, and actual cost
Schedule and cost variances, and the SPI and CPI performance indices
Forecasting the estimate at completion (EAC)
Identifying deviations and taking corrective action
Case Study: calculate earned value measures for a project that is off track, and recommend corrective action

Module 13: Review, Reporting, and Evaluation

Reviewing and reporting project progress and achievements
Reporting to sponsors and steering committees
Evaluating results against scope and objectives

Module 14: Project Closure and Handover

Closeout activities and the handover checklist
Capturing and applying lessons learned
Evaluating project success, and benefits follow-up
Practical Exercise: prepare a closeout and handover plan for your own project

Closing Session: Action Planning

Review of key learning
Personal action plan for applying the course to your own projects
Course evaluation

Course Categories

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FAQs – Advanced Project Management

Master advanced project management, learning strategic portfolio alignment, complex project governance, risk mitigation, resource optimization, earned value management, and stakeholder leadership to deliver high-impact business outcomes.

What is covered in the Advanced Project Management Course?

The course covers strategic portfolio alignment, Earned Value Management (EVM), complex stakeholder governance, project risk quantification, governance frameworks, capital budgeting, and advanced multi-project resource optimization.

Who should attend the Advanced Project Management Training?

This training is designed for senior project managers, PMO directors, program managers, portfolio leads, operations executives, and senior engineers overseeing high-impact, complex enterprise projects.

How does this course help control project costs and schedule variance?

Participants master Earned Value Management (EVM) metrics, including Cost Performance Index (CPI) and Schedule Performance Index (SPI), enabling early detection and precise correction of budget and timeline deviations.

Will delegates learn techniques for managing multi-project portfolios?

Yes. The program provides practical tools for resource capacity planning, project prioritization matrices, dependencies mapping across program portfolios, and enterprise-level risk mitigation.

Does the course address strategic stakeholder engagement and leadership?

Yes. Attendees learn advanced negotiation tactics, executive-level reporting frameworks, conflict resolution strategies, and techniques to maintain alignment across diverse sponsor and stakeholder groups.

Why is advanced project management expertise essential for organizations?

As project complexity and financial scale increase, standard methodologies are often insufficient. Advanced project management ensures disciplined governance, optimal resource utilization, and predictable strategic outcome delivery.

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Advanced Project Management

Planning, Risk Management, Stakeholder Engagement, and Control for Experienced Project Managers

Course Objectives

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