Project Management

Project Leadership Simulation

• Traditional Classroom: TBD
• Virtual Instructor-led: TBD

Next to mentored live practice, performance simulations are the most powerful way to equip learners when real change is needed.

An effective project leader has to be able to think systematically and act in multiple time frames. This intensive workshop starts with an introduction to the new project environment and the changing role of the project manager, who must become an adaptive leader in dealing with today's more complex issues. The simulation exercise takes participants through the experience of planning and executing a complex project, providing exposure to all the major issues faced by project managers in their daily work: balancing cost, schedule, and quality while interfacing with stakeholders and managing crisis events. The focus is on integrating critical management tasks, such as planning, implementing and using tools, with the key leadership behaviors necessary for building working relationships and teams.

Target Audience

Individuals who will benefit from this interactive experience include project managers, team leaders, and other technical professionals. Our simulations are complex and challenging and are principally designed for middle management. The average number of participants is 20-30, though our learning designs can accommodate larger or smaller groups.

Learning Objectives

Participants will learn the core competencies of team and task leadership, decision making, and communications that managers need to achieve the goal of making their projects more successful.

• Improve team performance by recognizing when to focus on task and when to focus on relationship issues.
• Practice and improve systems thinking by developing defensible project plans and identifying complex trade-offs in project decisions.
• Discover new strategies for maximizing results by understanding the short and long term consequences of project decisions.
• Improve interpersonal effectiveness with stakeholders.
• Make better decisions in a timely manner by analyzing critical project information.
• Change mindsets by understanding major factors influencing project results.

The Workshop: Our Training Methodology

This simulation is a highly interactive, intensive, and experiential workshop, integrating short classroom lectures, a robust computer simulation of a single project, small- and large-group discussions, and team assessments. We create a highly charged, hands-on learning environment, which immerses participants in the world of managerial decision-making.

As part of a five-person team, participants plan and implement a simulated project over several days. They confront and resolve an array of problems associated with tasks, vendors, contractors, quality requirements, schedule commitments, customer interactions, a staff of varying personalities, skills, and experience, and other typical project elements. The risks of completing on time and on budget are high and are not just random events but consequences created by prior decisions made in previous simulation rounds. There is a need to be concerned about all project objectives and constraints and not just sub-optimizing one project objective. Participants must look outside their immediate area of responsibility and focus on building organizational capability.

MDI6002 Course Code