Project management short courses are ideal for existing project managers who wish to become accredited or pursuing certification in recognition of their skills and experience. Best Practices in Project Management will ensure you are equipped to meet the demands of projects in virtually any industry and prepare you for the Project Management Institute (PMI®) certification exam.

You will gain insights into the best practices for strategically and ethically managing projects to reach planned goals and expected outcomes. You will also explore the values underlying ethical decisions and behaviours, study the Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, and learn how to capture, analyse and use the knowledge of the project lessons learned.

Take your CV to the next level with project management methodologies that will impress employers across the globe!

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes achieved by undertaking project management short courses include:

• Exploring ethics standards and core values
• Learning how to define aspirational and mandatory standards
• Studying core values — responsibility, respect, fairness and honesty
• Gaining insights into applying PMI® ethical standards in a project
• Understanding ethics in multicultural environments
• Learning how to manage ethical dilemmas
• Exploring how to deal with ethical dilemmas
• Studying ethics and project management
• Gaining insights into understanding business ethics
• Understanding how to identify ethical dilemmas in projects
• Learning how to recognise the benefits of ethical management
• Exploring the PMI® code of ethics and standards
• Studying the code of ethics and professional conduct
• Gaining insights into identifying ethics values
• Understanding how to introduce responsibility and respect
• Learning how to introduce fairness and honesty
• Exploring governing ethical standards in terms of complaints review and inappropriate behaviour
• Studying how to capture, analyse and use the project lessons learned
• Gaining insights into managing a project’s knowledge base
• Understanding the lessons learned process
• Learning how to gather lessons learned information
• Exploring how to conduct a lessons learned meeting
• Studying how to analyse lessons learned information
• Gaining insights into sharing and adopting lessons learned
• Understanding how to document lessons learned
• Learning about the tools for continuous improvement
• Exploring how to collect and utilise lessons learned
• Studying strategically focused project management
• Gaining insights into managing projects for strategic alignment
• Understanding business strategy overview
• Learning about project strategy and alignment
• Exploring the evolving role of the project manager
• Studying how to maintain strategic alignment
• Gaining insights into business environment analysis
• Understanding project benefits analysis
• Learning about project stakeholder impact
• Exploring how to communicate about the project charter
• Studying how to manage stakeholder expectations
• Gaining insights into managing strategic alignment

 

The History of the Project Management Institute (PMI)

The PMI’s vision drove the early work ethics of project management as an independent profession. In 1981, its Board of Directors formed an Ethics, Standards and Accreditation Group that focused on the need for a professional Code of Ethics. A report was done and submitted to the Board in 1982 and subsequently published in 1983 with the PMI’s Project Management Quarterly.

The Board approved a new Member Code of Ethics in October 1998, and since then many changes have occurred, both within PMI and the business world. Ethics scandals have sparked increased government regulations, and the evolving pace of technologies has introduced new challenges — including new ethical dilemmas.

For these reasons, the PMI Board of Directors called for a re-examination of the Codes of Ethics in 2004 by the Ethics Standards Review Committee [ESRC]. This included developing processes that would encourage active participation by the global project management community. This led to the Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct being approved by the PMI Board of Directors in October 2006.

The Process Used

The first step by the Ethics Standards Development Committee [ESDC] was to understand the ethical issues facing the project management community, and the views and values of practitioners across the globe. This was accomplished by a variety of means including surveys and focus group discussions between members, volunteers, practitioners and those holding PMI certification.

The Committee also analysed the ethics codes of a range of non-profit associations across the world. This encompassed reviewing the terms of best practices in the development of ethics standards, and the ethics-related elements of the PMI’s strategic plan.

An ‘exposure draft’ was then circulated to the global project management community for their feedback.

The rigorous standards development process used by the American National Standards Institute were also followed, as they were deemed to represent the best practices for obtaining and actioning stakeholder feedback of the draft.

The result of these efforts meant that the Code not only mirrors the ethical values to which the global project management community aspires, but also addresses the conduct that is mandatory for everyone bound by the Code. What the ESDC also learned was that the community — as practitioners of project management — takes the commitment to ethics very seriously and hold themselves and their peers accountable in terms of conducting themselves within the provisions of the Code. Something that you will understand all too well after you’ve studied project management short courses!

 

PMI Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct

The four values that support this code were initiated after practitioners from the global project management community identified what guided their actions and formed the basis of their decision-making. Values are based on both mandatory and aspirational standards. Mandatory standards establish firm requirements, while aspirational standards describe the conduct that practitioners should strive for. These form the basis of many project management short courses.

 

#1 – Responsibility

This value involves:

• Taking ownership of decisions and the resulting consequences.
• Making decisions and taking actions based on the best interests of public safety, society and the environment.
• Only accepting assignments that are consistent with skills, experience, background and qualifications.
• Fulfilling the commitments undertaken.
• When errors or omissions are made, taking ownership and making prompt corrections.
• Protecting confidential information that has been entrusted.
• Upholding the rules, regulations, policies and laws that govern work and professional activities.
• Reporting illegal or unethical conduct, and if necessary, to those affected by that conduct.
• Bringing violation of the Code to the attention of the appropriate bodies for resolution.
• Only filing ethics complains that are substantiated by facts.
• Pursuing disciplinary action against individuals who retaliate against a person raising ethics concerns.

 

#2 – Respect

This value involves:

• Showing high regard for self, others, and the entrusted resources including reputation, money, people, the safety of others, and natural resources.
• Encouraging and valuing an environment that engenders trust, confidence, mutual cooperation and diverse perspectives.
• Avoiding engaging in behaviours that might be considered disrespectful.
• Listening to others’ points of view and seeking to understand them.
• Directly approaching those with whom there is a disagreement or conflict.
• Conducting oneself in a professional manner and confronting those who aren’t.
• Negotiating in good faith.
• Not using the power of position or expertise to influence the decisions or actions of others in order to benefit personally at their expense.
• Not acting in an abusive manner towards others.
• Respecting the property rights of others.

 

#3 – Fairness

This value involves:

• Acting objectively and impartially with conduct that is free from prejudice, favouritism and self-interest.
• Demonstrating transparency in the decision-making process.
• Constantly re-examining objectivity and impartiality and taking corrective action as appropriate.
• Providing equal access to information to those authorised to have that information.
• Making opportunities equally available to qualified candidates.
• Fully and proactively disclosing any conflicts of interest to the appropriate stakeholders.
• In the event of a conflict of interest, refraining from engaging in the decision-making process until full disclosure to the affected stakeholders has been made.
• Not firing, hiring, punishing, rewarding, denying or awarding contracts based on personal considerations relating to nepotism, bribery or favouritism.
• Not discriminating against others based on race, gender, religion, disability, nationality, age or sexual orientation.
• Applying the rules of the employer or PMI without prejudice or favouritism.

 

#4 – Honesty

This value involves:

• Understanding the truth and acting in a truthful manner in communications and conduct.
• Earnestly seeking to understand the truth.
• Providing accurate information in a timely manner.
• Making promises, commitments — either implicit or implied — in good faith.
• Striving to create an environment where others feel it’s safe to tell the truth.
• Not condoning or engaging in behaviour that is designed to deceive others, including making false or misleading statements, stating half-truths, withholding information or providing information out of context.
• Not engaging in dishonest behaviour for personal gain or at the expense of another.

Accelerate your PM career with accredited skills and enhanced knowledge with our Best Practices in Project Management course!