Universitat Internacional de Catalunya - Barcelona

Project Management

• code 11235
• course 1
• term Semester 1
• type OB
• credits 6

Main language of instruction: Spanish

Other languages of instruction: Catalan

Head instructor

Dra. Jasmina BERBEGAL - jberbegal@uic.es

Office hours

An appointment must be made in advance by email 

• jberbegal@uic.es
• amanresa@uic.es

A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service or result. It is temporary in that it has a defined beginning and end in time, and therefore defined scope and resources. Delivering complex projects on time and under budget constraints is a daily challenge.

Increasingly organizations are using project-based methods to accomplish tasks. Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to project activities to meet the project requirements.

The main objective of this course is to provide the student with the knowledge, tools and skills for managing projects in an efficient and organized way. In order to test students’ understanding of the basics of project management, students will work in groups and prepare a project proposal given a real/simulated situation. This is a highly practical course that promotes teamwork in a collaborative way, with the goal of learning to raise and choose the best solution for a project.

There are no previous requirements.

Students will gain a strong working knowledge of the basics of project management. Particularly, after the course they will be able to:

• Define what a project is and its key characteristics.
• Differentiate the different stages in the project lifecycle.
• Define the project scope, elaborate the project planning, estimate the budget, define and allocate resources, identify risks, and assess the impact of the project.

• CB10 - To have the learning skills that allow them to continue studying in a way that will mostly need to be self-managed or autonomous.
• CG1 - Capacidad de organización y planificación del trabajo, teniendo en cuenta posibles adversidades que requieran de la adaptación a nuevas situaciones.
• CG2 - Capacidad de trabajo e integración en equipos humanos de trabajo multidisciplinares y multiculturales, y si procede, asumir el liderazgo.
• CT4 - Aplicar los conocimientos adquiridos para la resolución de problemas en entornos nuevos o poco conocidos dentro de contextos multidisciplinares relacionados con el área de estudio.
• CT5 - Manifestar sensibilidad por los valores éticos, personales y sociales, en la relación con los otros y en las propias decisiones.
• CE5 - Diseñar y planificar los procesos productivos de la empresa según el marco normativo aplicable a cada organización.
• CE7 - Gestionar óptimamente los recursos materiales, económicos y humanos de las organizaciones para asegurar una gestión adecuada de los sistemas de producción empresariales.

• Students will be equipped with the language and mind-set for planning and managing projects.
• Working in collaboration.

The course is organized in seven main modules as follows:

1. What is a project?
2. Stakeholder management
3. Agile
4. Teamwork & leadership
5. Project canvas
6. User research
7. Project management tools
8. Project scheduling
9. Cost estimation and project budgeting
10. Risk & impact management

Given the practical character of this course and consistent with its managerial perspective, the teaching method combines theoretical and practical readings, simulations exercises and case studies. This way, the course strives to provide a balance between a qualitative and an analytical-oriented approach.

Points will be assigned to various activities as follows:

• Given a real situation for which the development of a project is needed, students will be asked to work in groups of 5 and develop a project plan.
• This project is designed to develop student’s skills in actual applications requiring the use of different quantitative methods and tools in interpreting data for decision-making.
• All group members are expected to discuss regularly about the project, and must have equal participation in completing the group work. To foster a productive learning environment, it is important that everyone come to class prepared and willing to contribute.
• The grade of the project is divided as follows:
• Forum (10%): after finishing each class, the group should report the progress made during the week and detail the work to be done for the next days.
• In-class activities (30%): activities conducted in class that refer to the project (e.g. golden circle, concept sheet, survey, focus group, user research presentation, empathy map, persona, project canvas). All these exercises will be normalized, so that they each count equally towards the overall grade.
• Poster (10%): each group should prepare a DIN-A2 poster summarising the main purpose of the project.
• Final report (20%): report of the project.
• Final presentation (15%): oral presentation in front of a committee.

• This case study will be held on 20th November and covers the module on Project Scheduling. You will be using the computer (excel) for solving it.
• The case study can be done individually, or in groups of 2 or 3 students.

• On October 30th, we will attend the Barcelona Industry week.
• Students are required to elaborate an individual report detailing which solutions from the ones shown in the exhibitions like the most, why they have chosen them, the developed, their use and the potential impact on society.

• Please come to every class prepared and with the required material.
• Leaving the classroom before the end of class is disruptive. If a student absolutely needs to do so, he/she should obtain permission before or at the beginning of class.
• Cell phones disrupt the class. All such devices must be turned off or put in a silent mode and cannot be taken out during class.
• In testing situations, the use of cell phones or similar communication devices may lead to academic dishonesty. Consequently, the student will be expelled from exam and exam result will be evaluated as 0. The same penalty will be applied if a student is caught cheating.

Main references:

• Domingo, A. (2005). Dirección y gestión de proyectos. Ed. Rama.
• Goleman, D.; Boyatzis, R.; Mc Kee, A. (2008). El líder resonante crea más. El poder de la inteligencia emocional. Buenos Aires: Ed. Paidós.
• Horine, G.M. (2010). Manual imprescindible de gestión de proyectos. Madrid: Anaya Multimedia.
• Klastorin, T. (2010). Gestión de proyectos. Con casos prácticos, ejercicios resueltos Microsoft Project, Risk y hojas de cálculo. Barcelona: Profit.
• Nokes, S.; Greenwood, A. (2007). La Guía definitiva de la gestión de proyectos: La vía rápida de todo ejecutivo para cumplir a tiempo y dentro del presupuesto. Madrid: Prentice Hall Financial Times.
• Project Management Institute (2013). A guide to the project management body of knowledge (PMBOK guide), 5th ed. Newton Square, PA: Project Management Institute.
• Serer, M. (2001). Gestión integrada de proyectos. Barcelona: Edicions UPC. Available online: http://upcommons.upc.edu/handle/2099.3/36666
• Williams, M. (2009). Introducción a la gestión de proyectos. Madrid: Anaya Multimedia.

Recommended websites:

• Why do projects fail: http://calleam.com/WTPF/
• All about project management: http://managementhelp.org/projectmanagement/