The Course

The accomplishment of most projects involves the use of contracts to ensure that both parties understand their respective roles in project delivery. This course brings these elements together in a two part format to gain a synergistic understanding of the processes involved. Contractual relationships are an important aspect of Project Management. It is important to have an understanding of how they are used to achieve the desired goals and objectives of a project, how they are created and structured, and some of the various methods available to negotiate contracts, and to resolve disputes.

The Contract portion of the course will also examine some of the main clauses that appear in contracts, together with a number of alternative contracting strategies and structures. It will then consider methods to be used in negotiating contracts, including techniques relating to negotiating on variations and claims. The various methods and techniques of dealing with commercial disputes arising from contracts will be reviewed, and there application to both local and international settings.

The Structure

Module 1 - The Complete Course on Contracts Management

Module 2 - The Complete Course on Project Management

The Goals

This programme will give you:

• a solid grounding in project management planning and control methods with this comprehensive course using proven project management techniques
• the foundation, tools and proven techniques to plan, manage and control each stage of the project life cycle
• skills to work within organizational and cost constraints
• ability to establish and accomplish goals that are linked directly to stakeholder needs
• skills to get the best out of your project team
• tried and proven project management tools to get the job done on time, within budget and accordance with requirements
• a proactive approach to risk; both threats and opportunities, which will give you a clear understanding of both a qualitative & quantitative view of risk analysis

Contracts and Project Management knowledge, skills, tools and techniques are taught through case studies, experiential exercises and practical examples that can used immediately to improve your contracting and project results.

The Process

The course is not industry specific so representatives of all functional disciplines would benefit from learning the methodologies, and mastering the tools, presented in this course. Individuals from all industries, government bodies, non-profit organizations and any one who are interested in learning techniques for contacts and managing projects will find this course valuable.

The Delegates

This programme will be of especial interest to:

• Programme and Project Professionals
• Project Team Members
• People responsible for managing projects and contracts
• Technical Professionals and Engineers moving into project leadership roles
• Procurement and Purchasing Professionals

The Benefits

• Exposure to world class practices from other regions and industries
• Develop and use work breakdown structures
• Estimate project time and costs using proven techniques
• Use a practical, step-by-step process to manage project risk

The Results

• Establish a project control system and monitor progress
• Learn how to establish project goals and objectives that are directly linked to stakeholders’ needs
• Develop realistic and measurable objectives to ensure positive results
• Identify threats and opportunities to your project, and weigh their relative value
• Identify and overturn the psychological barriers to risk in stakeholders

The Core Competencies

• Contract Structuring & Formation
• Choice of Contract Type
• Contract Terms and Conditions
• Negotiation of Contracts & Disputes
• Cost Estimating & Cost Management
• Critical Path Management
• Detailed Estimating
• Project Planning (WBS, network, etc.)
• Project Closeout
• Lean Project Management

Programme Outline

Module 1:

The Complete Course on Contracts Management

What are contracts and how are they created?

• The need for contractual relationships
• What is needed to create a valid contract?
  • Offer and acceptance
  • Intention to create a legal relationship
  • Written or oral?
  • Other legal formalities in different countries
    • Signing and sealing
    • Witnesses
  • Authority to sign
  • How to prove authority
  • The tender process
  • Involvement of agents
  • What happens if there is no contract, but work is carried out anyway?
  • Making contracts enforceable – with particular emphasis on the international context

Structure of Contracts

• Form of Agreement
• General Terms and Conditions
• Special Terms and Conditions
• Schedules or Appendices
• Title (ownership) and risk of damage
  • When does it transfer?
  • Use of ICC INCOTERMS
• Notices and other formalities
• Which law and which courts?
• Different contractual structures
• Traditional
• New structures used in the Middle East
• New structures not widely used in the Middle East

Collateral Documents

• Bonds and guarantees
  • Tender Bonds
  • Advance Payment Bonds
  • Performance Bonds
  • Warranty Bonds
  • Parent Company Guarantees
• Retention/Withholding
• Retention Bonds
• Letters of intent
• Letters of award
• Letters of comfort or awareness
• Types
• Who should carry the cover?
• How should you manage claims?
• Are banks or insurance companies good enough security?
• Insurance policies
• Assessing the need for financial security in the current economic climate

• Changes to the Contract Documents
  • Need for consent
  • Assignment/Novation explained and distinguished
  • Waiver
• Changes to the scope
• Variation clauses
• Notice provisions
• Valuation of variations and changes
• Claims – what they are, and how they arise
• Delay caused by client
• Delay caused by contractor/supplier
• Force majeure
• Delay and disruption

Resolving Disputes

• Negotiation
• Staged dispute resolution clauses
• Litigation
• Arbitration
• New best practices in dispute resolution
  • Mediation
  • Conciliation
  • Early neutral evaluation
  • Expert determination
  • Mini-arbitration
  • Pendulum arbitration
  • Final questions and review of course

Module 2:
The Complete Course on Project Management

The World of Project Management

• Project lifecycle model
• Classic and modern project constraints and parameters
• The concept of project management maturity
• Selecting projects to meet organizational goals
• Aggregating projects into programmes and portfolios
• Establishing a project support office
• Considering and confronting uncertainty in project selection decisions
• Project data, information and knowledge management
• The art, science and practice of project management
• Case Studies and Group Exercises

Project Planning, Scheduling and Budgeting

• Project plan vs. Project planning
• Strategic, tactical and operational planning
• The contents of a project plan
• Level of detail in scheduling
• Network logic and dependency analysis
• Project uncertainty and risk management
• Introducing uncertainty in planning
• Fundamentals of budgeting & cost control
• Methods of budgeting
• Improving cost estimates
• Best practices of project planning, scheduling and budgeting
• Case Studies and Group Exercises

Project Resourcing, Monitoring and Control

• Resource allocation
• Expediting a project
• Allocating scarce resources to projects
• The Critical Chain approach
• Designing the monitoring cycle
• Performance indicators and feedback mechanisms
• Earned value management
• Designing the change-control system
• Proactive management and plan updating
• Case Studies and Group Exercises

The Project Manager’s Roles and Responsibilities

• Selection of the Project Manager
• Project Team-building and empowerment
• Team management challenges
• Delegating with confidence
• Communication within the project team
• Project team leadership
• Multidisciplinary teams
• Conflict handling
• Best practices of people-based project management
• Case Studies and Group Exercises

Project Evaluation, Reporting, Closure and Hand-over

• Evaluation criteria
• Project auditing
• Project review meetings
• Analysing project performance
• Progress reports and records
• Determinants of project success
• Successful project hand-over
• Lessons learned and creating learning culture
• Best practices of project evaluation, reporting and closure