This assignment requires you to create a personal learning portfolio (PLP). The purpose of this
Portfolio is to help you in the role as a project or program manager to envision yourself conducting
The required activities for Program Management. The key activities that will help you build the
Portfolio are:
1. Reflection – thinking about the questions in regard to your own experience, capabilities and
Desires.
2. Collaboration – exchanging ideas with your colleagues, friends and mentors and testing out
the solutions and directions you have arrived at.
3. Information – researching further, using your existing knowledge, using ECU library, using
academic journals and industry publications, the internet, business and the materials
presented in this course.
Additional instructions: There are 5 portfolio exercises for you to do.
You should write 500 words for each exercise.
The PLP is worth up to 50% of your final unit grade.
The marking guide is shown on p.7 of the Unit Plan (available on Blackboard).
eBook Reference: The ebook you will require to complete your PLP . It is Milosě vic,́ D.,Patanakul, P., Srivannaboon, S. (2010). Case studies in project, program, and organizational project management. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley.
Portfolio Entry 1 – Project vs. Program
Read the case study entitled ‘The Bounding Box Boxes You’ (p. 261 of the ebook listed above). Using the concepts from the unit and your research, please answer the 2 questions below (you can ignore the ‘discussion questions’ at the end of the case study on p. 267):
1. Explain, with reasons, whether you agree or not with the approach set out by Mike Fritz, the director of program / project management at Megatronic.
2. What advice (if any) would you give to the company regarding the way they differentiate between projects and programs?
Portfolio Entry 2 – Program Initiation
Read the Case Study ‘Mega Security’ (p.273 of the ebook listed above). Using the concepts from the unit and your research, please answer the 2 questions below (you can ignore the ‘discussion questions’ at the end of the case study on p. 276):
1. Explain, with reasons, what solution you would suggest to James
2. What advice (if any) would you give to the company from a program perspective regarding the way this issue has been managed?
Portfolio Entry 3 – Program Stakeholder Engagement
Read the Case Study ‘General Public Hospital’ (p.331 of the ebook listed above). Using the concepts from the unit and your research, please answer the question below (you can ignore the ‘discussion
questions’ at the end of the case study on p. 340):
1. With reference to current program management stakeholder concepts, explain, with reasons, what you think the ‘ideal’ decision of the Executive Team should be
Portfolio Entry 4 – Program Governance
Read the Case Study ‘The Program Strike Zone’ (p.229 of the ebook listed above). Using the concepts from the unit and your research, please answer the question below (you can ignore the ‘discussion questions’ at the end of the case study on p. 301):
1. What are the advantages, disadvantages and major benefits of the program strike zone concept?
2. Are there any challenges from a program governance perspective in implementing the program strike zone concept? Provide reasons to support your answer.
Portfolio Entry 5 – Program Theory
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Discuss, with reasons, whether you agree with the following statement: “Although it is in practice difficult to make a clear distinction between a program and a project, program management is more than a scaled-up version of project management, because programs include elements that are outside the scope of individual projects within a program”