Turning Ideas into Projects

In Turning Ideas into Projects, you'll learn ...

• The structured process by which ideas are evaluated, approved, and formally initiated as projects within an organization.
• The distinction between portfolios, programs, and projects and their roles in achieving business strategy.
• The evaluation of project value using feasibility, financial, and risk-based decision criteria.
• How to align engineering project initiation decisions with organizational strategy and value delivery systems.

Overview

Preview a portion of this course before purchasing it.

Credit: 2 CPD

Length: 45 pages

Ideas can become projects by confirming they align with business strategy and will provide value for the organization. Common steps for transforming an idea into a project include a feasibility study, economic analysis, risk analysis, go/no-go form, business case, gaining stakeholder approval, and project charter.

These steps apply to the creation of engineering and non-engineering projects. This course explains each of these processes and includes examples for engineering applications. Formulas are provided for return on investment and payback period as part of an economic analysis. A blank go/no-go form and project charter is included.

Specific Knowledge or Skill Obtained

This course teaches the following specific knowledge and skills:

• The defining characteristics of a project and how engineering projects differ from other project types.
• The relationship between business strategy, initiatives, and the generation of project ideas.
• The role of portfolios, programs, PMOs, and PPMOs in governing and prioritizing projects.
• The methods used to generate, capture, and refine ideas into potential project candidates.
• The components and purpose of a comprehensive feasibility study, including technical, economic, operational, schedule, legal, and risk considerations.
• The use of lifecycle cost analysis, return on investment, and payback period to support economic feasibility decisions.
• The process and criteria used in Go/No-Go evaluations for project approval.
• The structure and purpose of a business case in justifying resource investment.
• The role of stakeholder review and approval in authorizing new projects.
• How a project charter formally transitions an approved idea into an active engineering project.

Certificate of Completion

You will be able to immediately print a certificate of completion after passing a multiple-choice quiz consisting of 10 questions. CPD credits are not awarded until the course is completed and quiz is passed.