APM Project Fundamentals Qualification
(APM PFQ)

WHAT TOPICS WILL THE APM PFQ COURSE COVER?

Project Management And The Operating Environment

We differentiate projects from non-projects, explore programme and portfolio management, the influence of the business and political context on project success

Project Lifecycles

Projects may be managed via a range of lifecycles including linear, iterative (such as Agile) and hybrid lifecycles. We will be exploring the different phases of the different lifecycles and their use

Project Roles

Here we will explore the various roles and responsibilities of the Project manager, Project Governance, Sponsor, Product Owner, and the Users. Working closely together these roles will be a powerful force towards the achievement of project success

Project Management Planning

This will include understanding the role of a project schedule, planning and managing key resources and budgeting and cost management. The role and purpose of the business case and the development of options will be explored

Project Planning

This is a significant section of the course. It includes several key areas including:

1. The development of an overall plan for both linear and iterative lifecycles.
2. The role of stakeholders in developing this plan and the delivery of the project.
3. The role of a project schedule, the project baselines, planning and managing key resources and budgeting and cost management.
4. The purpose of the case, the development of options and definition success criteria and benefits. In this section we discuss the roles of the sponsor and project manager.
5. Different techniques to develop a robust cost estimate including analytical, analogous and parametric estimating. In this section we also discuss how the accuracy of the estimate is improves during the project lifecycle.
6. The purpose and benefits of project progress reporting.

Scope Management

During this session we will be clearly defining how the scope for a project is derived, planned, and managed using a number of different techniques. We will cover the topic of change control as an essential part of preventing ‘scope creep’

Understand Scheduling and Resource Management

Scheduling it a key skill of all project managers. In this section we look at a number of different approaches to scheduling including, critical path, milestone planning, time boxing. For each we discuss how both internal and external resources can be planned, including external procurement

Risk and Issue Management

During this session we will look at systematic ways to understand, catalogue and deal with risks and issues. Using appropriate theory, we will explore the topic and provide useful tools to deal with them including the use of a risk and issue register. Importantly in this section we discuss the processes for issue resolution

Quality Management

Discussing and concluding adequate mechanisms for the management of quality on a project,including the use of various quality control techniques. The session will also cover the role of gate reviews

Understanding Communication

How to get the best from the team and how to undertake a suitable and focused level of project communications

Leadership and Teamwork

Working in teams is a natural and necessary undertaking in most job roles, in a project it is even more profound and the need to ‘get up and running’ quickly is paramount. Understanding some basic theory in this respect is valuable for new project managers.

What is the exam like? One-hour with 60 questions and a pass mark of 60%. The vast majority of people do well in this exam.

The APM PFQ exam can be sat in a classroom environment, or online via an online proctoring service. We will arrange your exam for both options, so please contact us for more details.

2 Day Live Virtual Classroom Self Paced Online Learning Dedicated virtual In House Training

What isThe APM PFQ Classroom Course and Exam Like?

We have professional trainers who make courses engaging and fun. All of our trainers are experienced project leaders who will help you acquire the skills and capabilities needed to be more successful in a project environment.

Our training solutions don’t mean sitting in a classroom (real or virtual) and simply listening to a trainer talking from the front of the room. They involve active participation in real-world tasks and collaborating with others using realistic case studies. Courses include watching webinars and listening to podcasts; getting involved in buzz groups, discussions, practical demonstrations, role-play and simulations. All intended to support your study goals and personal career development.

The PFQ is a 1-hour multiple-choice examination with 60 questions. The results are published in 10 to 12 weeks.

The APM PFQ examination can be sat in a classroom environment, or online via an Online Proctoring service. You can book your examination at a time to suit you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 360 days a year. We can arrange your exam for both of these options, so please contact us for more details.