Managing Complex Projects: Online Principles of Systems Engineering

 

Use collaborative systems engineering processes to manage the development of complex projects
 

The purpose of a systems engineering approach to project management is to produce systems that satisfy stakeholder needs, increase the probability of success, reduce risk, and reduce total-life-cycle cost. It focuses on defining customer and other stakeholder needs and required functionality early in the development cycle, documenting requirements, then proceeding with design synthesis and system verification and validation.

This course will provide students with the knowledge and skills they need to design, model, analyze, and manage modern complex systems and projects. A focus is placed on understanding the bigger picture and integrating system components (people, technology, and processes) to create a holistic system. A key outcome is that students acquire the characteristic of approaching any problem or project from a systems perspective.

It is intended to advance understanding of the role of collaborative processes used to manage the development of complex systems and projects, and provide a framework linking customer needs, business strategy, and technology. An enterprise view will be discussed, encompassing key philosophies and methods used to achieve customer-valued products that are effective, reliable, and of high quality.

Following this course you will be able to:

• Apply a systems engineering project management process
• Identify systems engineering technical processes, including stakeholder requirements, functional analysis, architectural design, integration, verification, validation, and total life-cycle considerations
• Understand the nature and relevance of system life cycles
• Become familiar with requirements management
• Recognize the basics of design synthesis and verification
• Recognize the importance of modeling and simulation
• Understand reliability, maintainability, and supportability for integration into system design
• Understand systems engineering agreement and organizational processes
Who should attend:

This program benefits all engineers, program managers, project managers, and those in other technical and non-technical disciplines who are involved in any aspects of the system development lifecycle including procurement, definition, implementation, production, and support. Those who are involved with project or enterprise-level process improvement will also benefit from this program.

Course format:

This 10-module course is delivered completely online and led by an experienced instructor. Students complete one module per week for a total of 10 weeks. In addition to viewing downloadable instructor presentations, the class will complete weekly homework assignments, exercises, and a group project. Interaction among the cohort group and instructor will be via e-mail discussion and live chat.

 

If you are interested in taking this course, please contact:

Mike Amidon 
Phone: 612-624-7261
E-mail: amido001@umn.edu