Course Outline – Information for Students

Faculty of Engineering, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

PART A

Alphanumeric Course Code: ENGGEN 731

Course Title: Agile and Lean Project Management

Year and Semester: 2019, Semester 1

Points value: 15

Prerequisites and Restrictions

 Restricted to postgraduate students only

Course coordinator / teaching staff

 Steven Briggs
 021 242 3690

Class contact hours

 Mondays 2pm-5pm

PART B

Course Prescription
The culture, structures, roles, tools and techniques required for effective management of projects in
uncertain, volatile and ambiguous environments (VUCA) where the project scope evolves or the
timescale is the primary driver. Students will learn advanced techniques and apply them to reinforce
their learning.

Course Content
This course aims to deliver for the prospective student a broad understanding of the agile and lean
approaches to project management, how they differ from the waterfall model, where they are used,
case studies and how to implement the approach. The coursework is designed to allow students to
demonstrate their ability to apply the course content in practice.

The paper will have a total of 11 lectures, delivered weekly, followed by a 2 hour tutorial / practical
workshop. In week 12 the students will present their products from the group assignment.

The weekly topics covered in the lectures are as follows (note that the order in which topics are delivered
may change):
1. Introduction to Agile and Lean Project Management
2. Conventional PM overview
3. Interactions and Individuals: Teams
4. Interactions and Individuals: Leadership & Roles
5. Customer Collaboration
6. Scrum
7. Lean and XP
8. Scale, DSDM and SAFe
9. Working Product
10. Change
11. Agile in practice / application / evaluation
12. Final presentation & summary development process highlights

The weekly tutorial is a participatory workshop in which students are expected to contribute to case
studies and actively participate in the application of theories to problems and workshop scenarios.

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The course delivery adopts a flexible learning approach in which materials are delivered via a mix of
face-to-face and online methods. As such attendance at lectures and tutorials is not mandatory, (but
is still encouraged). NB it is essential that everyone attends tutorials in weeks 10 and 11 to present
their team assignment, and week 12 lecture time for the final presentation. Failure to attend /
contribute will be reflected in their mark for assignment 4.

Students are expected to undertake considerable additional work per week reading and completing
assignments. Note that one of the major assignments is team-based and as such students are
expected to make time to meet with their team members.

Learning Objectives/Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course, students should be able to:
 Explain the origin and development of agile practices and their origins in lean thinking, and
the principles and philosophies underpinning the practices
 Cite evidence of success from around the world; explain and critically assess the practical
limitations and factors necessary for successful delivery
 Critically analyse an organisation’s cultural readiness to adopt agile/lean practices; how to
implement these practices; and identify reasons why they may not be working.
 Synthesise the concepts/artefacts of various alternative agile methodologies and determine
the best fit for a particular situation.
 Apply agile and lean principles to a team project in an VUCA project environment and make
innovative decisions with integrity to solve complex problems
 Apply agile and lean principles to maximise value delivery to the customer
 Apply and develop interpersonal/influencing skills in the execution of a project involving
students from a range of backgrounds, cultures and ethnicities
 Communicate / present project information, deliverables and reports to stakeholders
 Critically reflect on their own and a team’s performance, and develop/execute improvement
plans

Learning resources
There are no prescribed texts. Students may find a number of texts that cover the course material well,
and should refer to several where possible. The following texts are suggested:

PMI, (2017) A guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBoK Guide), 6th Edition
(available as free electronic resource for student members of PMI)
Stellman, A., & Greene, J. (2014). Learning Agile. Sebastapol, California: O'Reilly.
Cline, A. (2015). Agile Development In The Real World. New York: Apress.
Goodpasture, J. C. (2010). Project Management the Agile Way - Making it Work in the Enterprise .
Fort Lauderdale, Fl: J. Ross Publishing Inc.
Sutherland, J. (2014). Scrum. New York: Random House.

The following are referred to on the course and will prove useful

Adams, R. (2010). If you build it will they come? : three steps to test and validate any market
opportunity. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley.
Adkins, L. (2010). Coaching agile teams : a companion for ScrumMasters, agile coaches, and project
managers in transition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Addison-Wesley.
Carroll, J. (2012). Agile project management in easy steps. Warwickshire, UK: In Easy Steps.
Crowder, J. A., & Friess, S. (2015). Agile Project Management: Managing for Success. Switzerland:
Springer.
Gladwell, M. (2005). Blink. New York: Time Warner.
Highsmith, J. (2004). Agile Project Management. Boston, MA: Addison-Wesley.
Kennedy, M. N. (2003). Product Development for the Lean Enterprise. Richmond, Virginia: Oaklea
Press.
Layton, M. (2012). Agile project management for dummies. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley.
Lencioni, P. (2005). Overcoming the five dysfunctions of a team : a field guide for leaders, managers,
and facilitators. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Oosterwal, D. P. (2010). The lean machine : how Harley-Davidson drove top-line growth and
profitability with revolutionary lean product development. New York: American Management
Association.

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Pichler, R. (2010). Agile Product Management With Scrum - Creating Products that Customers Love.
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Addison-Wesley.
Poppendiek, M., & Poppendiek, T. (2003). LeanSoftware Development An Agile Toolkit. Upper Sadle
River, NJ: Addison-Wesley.
Ries, E. (2011). The lean startup : how today's entrepreneurs use continuous innovation to create
radically successful business. New York: Crown Business.
Schwaber, K. (2004). Agile project management with Scrum. Redmond, Wash.: Microsoft Press.
Scott, S. (2004). Fierce conversations : achieving success at work & in life, one conversation at a
time. New York: Berkley Books.
Tan, C.-M. (2012). Search inside yourself : the unexpected path to achieving success, happines, (and
world peace). New York: HarperOne

Lecture notes and lecture voice recordings are available on Canvas and a course related website.

Inclusive learning
Students are urged to discuss privately any impairment-related requirements face-to-face and/or in
written form with the course convenor/lecturer and/or tutor.

Other information
The team assignment requires that students work in small-medium sized teams on a major
assignment. Participation in the team assignment is required (there is no alternative assignment
option for students who prefer not to work in teams). The expectation is that the team is a self-
managing autonomous unit, and is used as a learning environment on the basis that projects are
typically delivered in teams in the workplace.

A group mark will be given for the team assignment deliverables. Each team member will also be
required to complete a peer assessment of the work attitudes and contributions of all other members
of their team The individual student’s mark will then be determined based on the group mark, adjusted
up or down in accordance with the results of the peer assessment by all other members of the team.
Note also that your team assignment mark may be reduced substantially if there is evidence that you
have not contributed to the team assignment, and zero participation in the team assignment will result
in a zero mark.

PART C

Assessment
There are 5 assignments totalling 100% of the course assessment:
 Individual research-based essay (10%)
 Individual assignment (25%)
 Individual research based essay (15%)
 Team assignment (40%)
 Individual learning journal / critical reflection on learning (10%)

There is no exam.

A provisional schedule of deadlines is as follows (subject to confirmation in week 1):

 Individual research-based essay (10%) – week 3
 Individual assignment (25%) – week 6
 Individual research-based essay (15%) – week 8
 Team assignment (40%) – presentation week 12 (reports due end week 12)
 Individual critical reflection on learning (10%) – week 12

Penalties will apply to late submissions as follows:

Time After the Due Date Penalty

<=24 hours (1 day) -10%
>24 hours but <=48 hours (2 days) -20%
>48 hours but <=72 hours (3 days) -30%
>72 hours but <=96 hours (4 days) -40%
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 >96 hours but <=168 hours (7 days) -50%
>168 hours (7 days) -100%
Extensions will only be granted in exceptional circumstances. If you want to apply for an extension
you should discuss your circumstances with the Course Coordinator before the assignment due date.
For medical circumstances, you should provide a copy (or original) of a medical certificate.

Academic Integrity
The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views
cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for
grading must be the student's own work, reflecting his or her learning. Where work from other
sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also
applies to sources on the world-wide web. A student's assessed work may be reviewed against
electronic source material using computerised detection mechanisms. Upon reasonable request,
students may be required to provide an electronic version of their work for computerised review.

In the event of an unexpected disruption

We undertake to maintain the continuity and standard of teaching and learning in all your courses
throughout the year. If there are unexpected disruptions the University has contingency plans to
ensure that access to your course continues and your assessment is fair, and not compromised.
Some adjustments may need to be made in emergencies. You will be kept fully informed by your
course co-ordinator, and if disruption occurs you should refer to the University Website for
information about how to proceed.

PART D

Student feedback
Student feedback is welcomed in order to help with continuous improvement of the course. In the past
feedback has been obtained from students to help develop the course website and to modify delivery
methods to a more flexible mode. To help in future you may be asked to complete course evaluations
and / or formative mid-course evaluations/ fast feedback.