I have been fortunate to receive a good education in Project Management as part of my professional career in Australia and England. Here are my recommendations for aspiring project officers and coordinators, program officers and project managers.
Anyone working as an Information Technology professional will need to know the fundamentals of project management. Here are some suggested study options to advance your career.
The first place to start might be a Certificate IV In Project Management from your local TAFE, such as TAFE Queensland. Look for an Australian registered training provider. If you discover you enjoy project management then you may like to upgrade your Certificate to a Diploma. You may also consider a Bachelor or Masters in Project Management at a registered Australian University, depending on your personal lifestyle factors.
In addition, you will need to learn the software. The best place to start is with Microsoft Project. This program allows you to create Gantt charts, assign resources, track your milestones, produce custom reports and more.
There are two main frameworks for project management, and these will depend on where you study and your career goals. Both have professional certification, official training courses and manuals. PMBOK originated from America, while PRINCE 2 originate from England. Both are accepted and used in Australia.
There are pros and cons to each project management methodology. In Information Technology, PRINCE 2 is preferred due to the complex, multi-disciplined and ongoing nature of systems development and ICT projects.
There are always different paths to studying project management, and you can specialise in risk management, change communication, programme management, IT service management, portfolio management, quality, testing, business analysis and value management.
I do not recommend studying project management via an app or dodgy short course. You most likely will need to ask specific questions as you learn the terminology and concepts. Your understanding will be enhanced with face-to-face learning, and practical examples.
Good project managers are hard to find, as they back up their education with years of hands-on specialist experience in their particular industry.
PRINCE 2 Australia
PRINCE2 is a process-based method for effective project management, and will give you the fundamental skills you need to become a successful project manager. It stands for PRojects IN Controlled Environments, and is used and recognised all over the world. PRINCE2 is completely scalable, and the most recent update to the framework means it can be more easily tailored to each project you undertake.
PRINCE 2 Australia website: https://www.prince2.com/aus
Project Management Institute
Project Management Institute (PMI) is the world’s leading not-for-profit membership association for project, program and portfolio management profession.
Project Management Institute website: https://www.pmi.org/