Course Description:
In order to effectively manage project procurement, a project manager must have a basic understanding of project management, systems engineering, contracts, technology, and stakeholder communication.  This course will focus on understanding and managing all aspects of a project procurement that translates customer requirements into an operational solution.

This course discussion will cover the phases and critical milestones that constitute a project procurement lifecycle.  Phases such as concept development, design, production, operations, and disposal will be presented in detail.  Key milestones such as system requirements review, authority to proceed, preliminary design review, critical design review, and test readiness review, and disposal readiness review will also be discussed in detail.   To illustrate the key phases and milestones of project procurement, current acquisition lifecycles utilized by the Department of Defense and other federal agencies will be utilized as examples.  Throughout the course, best practices in systems engineering, project management, and technology development will be emphasized to ensure a comprehensive understanding of lifecycle management in order to transform operational needs into stable, affordable systems.

Course Objectives:
• Understanding a project procurement lifecycle from concept to disposal
• Developing an acquisition strategy for a project procurement
• Best practices for selecting a contract type, effective documentation, and analyzing stakeholders
• Describing the roles of the project manager, chief system engineer, and integrated product teams
• Summarizing the activities within each sequential acquisition phase such as concept development, design, production, operations, and disposal
• Presenting  detailed descriptions of major milestones such as Systems Requirements Review (SRR), Authority to Proceed (ATP), Preliminary Design Review (PDR), Critical Design Review (CDR), and Test Readiness Review (TRR)
• Developing rigorous entrance and exit criteria for each major milestone
• Developing project metrics to manage and balance the key program drivers of cost, schedule, and performance
• Highlighting best practices for systems engineering, project management, and technology development during a procurement

Continuing Education Units:
The course comprises 6 contact hours or 0.6 CEUs, which is equivalent to 6 Professional Development Units (PDUs) for certified PMP project managers.