ON AGILE PROJECT MANAGEMENT
FOR REAL-WORLD IT TEAMS
9 FEB 2022 - 23 MAR 2022
Duration:
6 WEEKS
MONDAYS & WEDNESDAYS
5 PM PST / 8 PM EST
Master Agile project management for real IT teams, imperfections and all.
Learn how to apply Agile and Scrum to every unique IT project and accelerate your career in just 6 weeks.
Do you see yourself below?
Then this course is for you.
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IT PROJECT AND PRODUCT PROFESSIONALS
Strengthen your current value with tech-specific PM expertise. You'll build the advanced Agile techniques expected at elite tech enterprises and high-performing startups.
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SOFTWARE DEVELOPERS
Learn how to approach a project from the PM side as you prepare to make the shift from development to IT project management.
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RECENT GRADUATES
Test drive the tech project management role and show employers your motivation with world-class training and PMBOK® practice.
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ENTREPRENEURS & STARTUPPERS
Experience applying Agile PM metrics and tools in a simulated project to better manage your own tech product team.
In the real world, IT projects can be messy.
This live course steps beyond templated approaches to help you solve for success outside of the box. You'll deepen your skills with input and experience-sharing from Brandon and your peers.
Learn how to succeed in an unpredictable world, the Agile way.
Get the full impact of Accenture's 30 years of project management wayfinding, clarified into 12 empowering classes and practical assignments. There's office hours with your instructor, too.
Make Agile and Scrum your second nature. You'll learn how to reliably apply and scale these methods for any software delivery project, with practical assignments after every class.
Trial the experience of managing a project at a top-tier tech company. You'll practice what you learn as you build your roadmap and backlog, set metrics, and pivot to handle unexpected curveballs.
Fast-track your career development with advanced Agile skills for IT projects. Build job-ready skills with hands-on training in advanced PM competencies, managerial techniques, and Agile frameworks.
GARTLEY LinkedIn Profile
- Agile Transformation Lead and Dojo Project Manager at Accenture, voted the world's best IT Services provider in 2020
- Helps teams embrace rapid prototyping for complex business solutions as Project Manager for Accenture's Innovation Dojo
- Leads teams every day implementing new technologies like blockchain, NLP, machine learning, real-time trust scoring, facial recognition, and virtual/augmented reality
- Boasts a portfolio of multimillion dollar integrated projects for finance, consumer, healthcare, corporate and nonprofit clients
- Produces and co-hosts a podcast tackling the PM questions that don't get asked around the watercooler
Find out what makes Agile the go-to model for tech teams and get introduced to the simple concept that forms the core of Project Management: the Software Delivery Lifecycle (SDLC).
- Why Agile?
- Waterfall and the roots of project management
- The project lifecycle: Vision vs. reality
- Typical pitfalls
- Case studies: SDLC hits and misses
PM Simulator: Kick-off
Assignment #01:
- What phases of work do you imagine your project will go through, based on class discussions?
- What problem areas do you think you and your team could run into?
Go deeper: Review Dr. Winston Royce's article that started the Project Management “Waterfall” revolution in the 1970’s.
Brandon picks apart the trending wisdom "Agile good, Waterfall bad," and helps you understand the types of projects that benefit from each model, how to choose the right one for a project, and why the industry is moving more towards Agile.
- Empowering teams: The data behind push vs. pull communication
- Agile vs. Waterfall: Similarities, differences, and why it all matters
- Time vs. value: Delivering projects under constraints
PM Simulator: Jira
Assignment #02
Part 1: Watch the video Brandon will post about cultivating mental flexibility and note down 3 points that stuck out to you.
Part 2: Using Jira, set up an instance to build out your selected project. How is the hierarchy set up? What, if any, differences do you see using this tool versus another tool?
Why is willingness to change your mindset an essential skill of project management? In this class, you'll learn about the Agile mindset and how to cultivate it in your team.
- Behavior as a symptom of mindset
- Why plug-and-play doesn't work
- Harnessing the strength of Agile for your team
PPM Simulator: Roadmapping
Assignment #03
Create a roadmap for your project. Next, answer the following questions:
- Which blocks of work are key for your product to succeed?
- What are the general start and completion dates?
- How much detail do you want to provide for work that is further out in the product development lifecycle?
- Why is it better to use a roadmap over a Gannt chart? What benefits will it bring?
Brandon teaches you his process for prioritizing needs and making every element of a project Agile.
- Why Agile planning is winning the popularity contest
- How Agile has reinvented the PM "iron triangle"
- The changing project management role in an Agile world
PM Simulator: Backlogs
Assignment #04
Create the backlog for your project using Jira. Based on your roadmap and what you’ve learned so far, answer the following questions:
- What are the highest priority pieces of work?
- How are they connected to your roadmap?
- What changes could you imagine in these pieces, and how would you reflect that in the backlog?
Learn how to apply Agile Scrum to real-world projects, including metrics and terms to use with your team.
- Why choose Scrum and how to plan
- Product backlog, sprint backlog, product increment
- Velocity, burnout, and other key metrics
PM Simulator: Scheduling
Assignment #05
Part 1: Watch the video shared on resource allocation and prepare a few points to discuss in class.
Part 2: Outline your Scrum product team schedule. Project agendas for each Scrum meeting and identify any issues you anticipate in your team's adjustment from a traditional Waterfall approach.
Get absolute clarity about the roles and responsibilities in Scrum methodology.
- Why do we have product owners?
- Scrum master vs. project manager
- Bringing in the development team: Creating solutions and owning quality
PM Simulator: Roles Matrix
Assignment #06
Part 1: Watch the video Brandon will post about the different roles that exist as part of an Agile team and prepare a few points to discuss in class.
Part 2: Fill in the responsibility matrix based off of some common situations that arise at different stages of a team’s Agile journey.
A lot of organizations try to convert to Kanban as a natural transition from Waterfall, only to find that this framework is more complex below the surface. In this class, you'll learn an adaptable process for applying Kanban to project workflows.
- Core practices and differences from Scrum
- Mapping WIP limits and Prioritizing tasks
- Setting Kanban metrics
PM Simulator: Boards
Assignment #07
In Jira, set up your board columns based on your team and the product you are developing. Can you use some of the theories behind Kanban and for a Scrum team? Analyze how you see your team benefiting from using Scrum over Kanban, or vice versa.
Brandon shares his communication practices to keep everyone aligned on the workflow from the strategic level through delivery.
- Workflow for the whole organization: Top to bottom
- Getting value from user stories and epics
- Features: The backbone of delivery
- Why OKRs and themes matter to all levels of an organization
PM Simulator: Sprints
Assignment #08
In Jira, begin importing work into your board based on your backlog. As you do, answer the following questions:
- How does the work you're mapping on the board align with the work that you have on your roadmap?
- Are there any potential roadblocks you see in completing your work?
- What does your board look like at the end of Sprint 1 and Sprint 2?
This class takes you into more advanced concepts that help successful Project Managers adeptly assign resources and priorities to lean portfolios at scale.
- Common methods for prioritization
- Measuring improvement of workflow
- Moving from educated guesses to financially sound decisions
- Case study: How much does it cost to make a sausage?
PM Simulator: Pivoting
Assignment #09
Your product manager has come to your team with a higher priority feature to be completed as part of your product. For this scenario, please prepare:
- Questions you want to ask to ensure that you're focusing on the right work
- Examples of types of data you can provide your product manager to help make better decisions for your team
- A "Why" statement and Cost of Delay table and graph
Ensure total quality control by learning DevOps priorities and how to communicate effectively with these peers.
- Why does DevOps matter to a PM?
- Iterative testing versus testing plans
- CI, CD, and that other CD
- Speeding delivery with pipelines
PM Simulator: DevOps
Assignment #10
Based on the DevOps discussion and a pipeline template you'll receive, build out a DevOps toolset recommendation that would work with your intended product. Then, answer these questions:
- What are the positives and negatives of the solutions you selected? ​
- What sort of skills does your team need to add in order to successfully implement DevOps as part of your everyday process?​
Brandon coaches you on effective communication in all of the roles you'll fill as a project manager.
- Giving and receiving feedback
- Effective remote communication and motivation
- Pitching ideas and projects to stakeholders
- Paying attention to context and other communication-busters
PM Simulator: Visualizing the Journey
Assignment #11
Create a visualization of your product progress given the changes you made during the course. Explain how you and your "team" adjusted, including improvements you made.
Get an inside look at hiring for PM in the Silicon Valley and beyond, from the other side of the interview table.
- Course review and wrap-up
- Pathways within an Agile team
- Getting hired: Resumé and interview tips
Assignment #12: Final Learning Check
Complete the take-home test.