CDT505 Project Management: Concepts and Tools
The Complete Study & Assessment Guide · Term 1, 2026-27CDT505 Overview
- Lingnan University
- Term 1, 2026-27
- Postgraduate course
- Project Management
- Three credits
What this course asks you to do
CDT505 is a practical project management course built around using concepts and tools rather than reciting them. The published course aim is to bridge research-based solutions and practice through current project management standards.
- Largest component The in-class mid-term test carries forty per cent of the course grade.
- Planning deliverables The individual report integrates a SMART objective, WBS, schedule logic, critical path and risk register.
- Group work The presentation and report apply narrative, scope, budget, schedule and risk analysis to one project.
What you get in the full CDT505 Study & Assessment Guide
- 10 chapters, 43 pages — every assessed topic, week by week
- 29 original practice questions, each with a model answer
- 10 worked examples, solved the way CDT505 marks
- 11 computed figures, redrawn from the course’s own numbers
- Before-you-submit checklist for the Mid-term Test (40%) — what markers reward, what costs marks
Free on this page: assessment table, chapter map, one worked example, key terms, FAQ. The rest is in the full study & assessment guide.
How CDT505 is assessed
| Component | Weight | Format |
|---|---|---|
| Attendance and class participation | 10% | Participation across classes and class activities |
| Group Project Presentation | 20% | In-class presentation lasting 15 to 20 minutes including questions |
| Group Project Report | 10% | Project narrative, WBS, budget, schedule and risk analysis |
| Mid-term Test | 40% | In-class test scheduled for week 9 or 10, with the exact date to be confirmed |
| Final Individual Assignment Report | 20% | Mini-project planning brief submitted as a single PDF |
The five published weights total 100%. The current outline labels the schedule tentative, and Moodle controls current dates, submission settings, hurdle rules and detailed mid-term instructions. The invited oral examination is selective and can support a one-band upgrade under the published no-downgrade policy.
What other students are asking about CDT505
- Where can I find lecture notes or study guides for CDT505 at Lingnan?
- The CDT505 study guide in AskSia Library covers Project Management: Concepts and Tools in 10 chapters, with the assessment table, a chapter-by-chapter topic map, key terms and a worked example, free to read on this page.
- Is there a final exam in CDT505?
- No final exam is listed in the offering this AskSia Library guide is built from; CDT505 is assessed by Attendance and class participation 10%, Group Project Presentation 20%, Group Project Report 10%, Mid-term Test 40%, Final Individual Assignment Report 20%.
- What does CDT505 cover on strategy, structure and project culture?
- In AskSia Library's CDT505 guide, the Strategy, Structure and Project Culture chapter explains strategic alignment, stakeholder power, functional, matrix and project structures, PMO and behavioural culture.
- What does CDT505 cover on scope definition and work breakdown?
- In AskSia Library's CDT505 guide, the Scope Definition and Work Breakdown chapter explains requirements, scope boundaries, WBS decomposition, the one-hundred-per-cent rule and acceptance criteria.
- What does CDT505 cover on network scheduling and critical paths?
- In AskSia Library's CDT505 guide, the Network Scheduling and Critical Paths chapter explains three-point estimates, forward and backward passes, total float, critical paths and completion probability.
Current CDT505 dates
| Date | Item | Control |
|---|---|---|
| 15 November 2026 | Group Project Report | Published deadline in the current course outline and group brief. |
| 15 November 2026 | Final Individual Assignment Report | Published deadline in the current course outline and individual brief. |
Dates are as published in the current course materials. Confirm exact deadlines and submission settings in the live LMS.
What CDT505 covers
Ten chapters move from project foundations and organisational context through scope, networks, cost, risk, portfolio and resource decisions to adaptive planning, earned value and closure.
Projects, Lifecycles and Success
temporary work against operations, lifecycle decisions, efficiency, effectiveness and stakeholder valueClassify the work before choosing controls
A project is temporary work directed toward a distinct result, while operations sustain a recurring service.
- Projects against continuing operations
- Need, definition, planning, delivery, control and closure
- Temporary governance and operational handover
- Time, cost and scope baselines
- Efficiency, effectiveness and stakeholder value
- Benefits ownership after closure
Strategy, Structure and Project Culture
strategic alignment, stakeholder power, functional, matrix and project structures, PMO and behavioural cultureRead authority before assigning responsibility
Strategy explains why resources should be committed, structure distributes decision rights and culture influences how people use those rights under pressure.
- Strategic alignment and project categories
- Functional, matrix and project structures
- Scope, budget, staffing and appraisal rights
- Stakeholder power and implementation knowledge
- Project management office mandates
- Culture through incentives and escalation behaviour
Scope Definition and Work Breakdown
requirements, scope boundaries, WBS decomposition, the one-hundred-per-cent rule and acceptance criteriaTurn needs into accepted deliverables
Requirements describe stakeholder needs and conditions, while the scope statement defines authorised boundaries, deliverables, assumptions and exclusions.
- Requirements and scope boundaries
- Deliverables against activity lists
- Hierarchical WBS decomposition
- The one-hundred-per-cent rule
- Work packages and accountable owners
- Acceptance, validation and change control
Network Scheduling and Critical Paths
three-point estimates, forward and backward passes, total float, critical paths and completion probabilityCompute dates from dependency logic
An activity-on-node network turns work packages into activities and dependencies. Three-point estimates provide expected durations through the PERT formula.
- Activity-on-node dependency logic
- Optimistic, most likely and pessimistic estimates
- PERT expected duration
- Forward pass and merge maximums
- Backward pass and burst minimums
- Float, critical paths and completion probability
Budgets, Gantt Charts and Crashing
cost estimates, time-phased baselines, lag relationships, Gantt views, crash slopes and total-cost decisionsControl cost and time on one baseline
Estimates predict resource needs, budgets authorise expenditure and a time-phased baseline places approved cost against scheduled work.
- Cost estimates and approved budgets
- Time-phased cost baselines
- Gantt charts against network logic
- Lead and lag relationships
- Normal and crash limits
- Crash slopes, critical paths and total cost
Project Risk Analysis and Response
risk breakdown, probability and impact, quantitative exposure, response strategies, ownership and reservesWrite exposure precisely enough to act
A useful risk statement connects a cause, an uncertain event and an effect on a project objective. Risk breakdown structures widen identification before probability and impact analysis prioritises attention.
- Cause, uncertain event and consequence
- Risk breakdown structures
- Probability-impact matrices
- Quantitative exposure and expected cost
- Avoid, transfer, mitigate and accept
- Owners, triggers, residual risk and reserves
Project Selection and Portfolio Balance
weighted screening, payback, discounted cash flow, NPV, IRR and portfolio risk-return balanceUse models as evidence for a governed choice
Weighted screening makes strategic priorities explicit, while payback, net present value and internal rate of return examine financial attractiveness from different angles.
- Strategic screening criteria
- Weighted scoring and sensitivity
- Payback and discounted payback
- Net present value
- Internal rate of return
- Portfolio risk, value and resource balance
Resource Loading and Levelling
capacity constraints, loading charts, levelling priorities, multiproject scheduling and time-phased budgetsMake the schedule feasible under capacity
Dependency logic shows when work could occur if resources were available. Resource loading compares scheduled demand with actual capacity by period.
- Resource demand by activity and period
- Loading charts and capacity lines
- Float as scheduling flexibility
- Resource levelling priorities
- Multitasking and switching cost
- Multiproject bottlenecks and portfolio authority
Agile Planning and Critical Chain
iterations, backlog and feedback, Theory of Constraints, resource-feasible chains and pooled buffersMatch the method to the source of uncertainty
Agile planning uses short iterations, ordered backlog work and frequent feedback when requirements become clearer through delivery.
- Agile origins and use conditions
- Product backlog and sprint cycles
- Reviews, retrospectives and feedback
- Theory of Constraints
- Critical path against critical chain
- Feeder, project and capacity buffers
Earned Value, Control and Closure
planned, earned and actual values, SPI, CPI, forecasts, termination choices and formal closeoutMeasure performance on a common basis
Earned value management compares planned value, earned value and actual cost at one status date.
- The control cycle and baseline integrity
- Planned value, earned value and actual cost
- Schedule and cost variances
- SPI and CPI interpretation
- Forecast assumptions and authorised change
- Termination, acceptance and formal closeout
Its teaching materials move from the definition and lifecycle of a project into organisational authority, scope, scheduling, cost, risk, selection, resources, adaptive planning, control and closure.
The recurring task is to turn a broad intention into an authorised deliverable, decompose it, build a feasible plan, expose uncertainty and make a decision from evidence.
How the methods connect
The tools are not independent templates. Requirements and scope create the deliverables. The work breakdown structure makes packages visible. Activities trace to those packages and enter a dependency network.
Three-point estimates support expected durations, while forward and backward passes reveal the critical path and float. Cost estimates follow the same work and become a time-phased baseline. Risk analysis protects objectives and assigns reserves. Resource levelling tests whether the schedule can actually be staffed.
Earned value then compares planned work, completed work and actual cost.
What the current assessment rewards
The official outline publishes five weighted components that total one hundred per cent. The mid-term test is the largest single component.
The group project combines a presentation and report, while the individual planning brief directly assesses the practical chain from objective through WBS, schedule and risk register.
Its marking guidance is unusually concrete: WBS decomposition follows the one-hundred-per-cent rule; the network explains why its critical path controls duration; risk descriptions state who, when and what; responses name an action and a concrete reserve.
Worked example · free
Build a critical path from a small activity network
- 4Run the forward pass and apply the maximum rule at the merge.
- 3Run the backward pass from the project finish.
- 3State the zero-float path and calculate float on the shorter branch.
Key terms
- Project Lifecycle
- The sequence of decision phases that moves a temporary effort from need and definition through planning, delivery, control and closure.
- Scope Baseline
- The approved scope statement, work breakdown structure and related details used to control what the project will deliver.
- Work Package
- The lowest controlled WBS element that can be estimated, scheduled, assigned and accepted.
- Critical Path
- The longest required route through the current network, whose zero-float activities determine the earliest finish.
- Total Float
- The time an activity can move without delaying the current project completion date.
- Crash Slope
- The additional direct cost required for each unit of activity duration reduced between normal and crash limits.
- Risk Breakdown Structure
- A hierarchical grouping of risk sources used to search systematically for project exposure.
- Contingency Reserve
- Time or money set aside for identified uncertainty remaining after planned responses.
- Net Present Value
- The sum of an initial outlay and future cash flows discounted to their present values.
- Resource Levelling
- Adjusting activity timing to resolve demand that exceeds available resource capacity.
- Product Backlog
- An ordered list of desired work used to guide iterative planning and delivery.
- Project Buffer
- Shared schedule protection placed after the critical chain to protect the promised finish.
- Earned Value
- The budgeted value of work actually completed at the status date.
- Formal Closeout
- The controlled acceptance, transfer, settlement, release and documentation that ends project work.
CDT505 FAQ
How is the course assessed?
The published assessment has five components: attendance and participation, a group presentation, a group report, an in-class mid-term test and a final individual assignment report. Their weights are ten, twenty, ten, forty and twenty per cent respectively, which total one hundred per cent.
What is known about the mid-term test?
The current outline states that it is an in-class test worth forty per cent and schedules it tentatively for week nine or ten. The materials available here do not publish its duration, question types, detailed coverage or permitted materials, so use the current Moodle instructions for those details.
What does the individual report require?
The current brief asks for a mini-project planning package with a SMART objective, a WBS reaching at least the work-package level, a schedule containing at least seven key activities and three-point estimates, a critical path explanation and a risk register with three project-specific risks.
Where are marks won in the risk register?
Specificity and connection win marks. Each risk should state who, when and what, justify probability and impact, name avoid, transfer, mitigate or accept with a concrete action, and state a reserve in money or days. Generic risks such as project failure receive no credit under the brief.
What does the group project combine?
The group work joins a project narrative and goals with a work breakdown structure, personnel and cost estimates, a network and Gantt schedule, and qualitative plus quantitative risk analysis. The presentation is expected to include questions and every group member is required to present.
What is the invited oral examination?
The outline describes a selective, brief interview-style assessment in the final teaching week. Invitations follow review of the mid-term, individual report and group outcomes. Under the published no-downgrade policy, performance may support a one-band upgrade and cannot reduce the provisional grade.
How should I explain a critical path?
State that it is the longest required route through the current dependency network and that its activities have zero total float after the forward and backward passes. Therefore, a delay on that route moves the earliest project finish unless time is recovered on a controlling path or the logic changes.
Which details should I confirm on Moodle?
Confirm the exact mid-term date and instructions, current submission settings, group presentation schedule, any hurdle or attendance consequences and later announcements. The outline labels assessment dates tentative, so the operational course site is the place for changes after publication.
Questions students ask in each CDT505 chapter
- How should a lifecycle case be answered under time pressure?
- Classify the work, locate the unresolved lifecycle decision, name the success criterion and cite the evidence before recommending action. Then identify who has authority and who owns the result after handover. This short chain prevents a schedule symptom from hiding an earlier definition failure or a later operational responsibility. Chapter 01 · Projects, Lifecycles and Success
- How can a governance recommendation be tested?
- Introduce a conflict between technical quality and a milestone, then write the decision required, evidence, consequence of delay and authorised decider. A usable structure must resolve that case without relying on vague collaboration. The test also reveals whether culture carries unwelcome evidence early enough for the formal authority to act. Chapter 02 · Strategy, Structure and Project Culture
- How do I test the impact of a scope change?
- Trace the request from requirement to deliverable and work package, then identify affected activities, cost, risk, acceptance evidence and ownership. State who can approve the change and which baseline elements remain untouched. This connected trace prevents one document from being updated while the schedule, budget or risk register silently preserves an obsolete plan. Chapter 03 · Scope Definition and Work Breakdown
- How can I audit a claimed critical path?
- Work backward from the finish, selecting the predecessor that determines every merge, and verify each duration against its source estimate. Reperform the forward and backward passes before accepting the zero-float route. Then alter one dependency and recompute, because a logic change can affect the controlling path differently from a simple duration change. Chapter 04 · Network Scheduling and Critical Paths
- What must be reconciled after crashing a schedule?
- Show the approved shorter duration and added direct cost in the network, Gantt chart, resource assignment and time-phased budget. Recalculate all paths and report any new controlling path. If one representation still shows the normal plan, later variance reporting will compare actual performance with inconsistent baselines and produce a misleading control signal. Chapter 05 · Budgets, Gantt Charts and Crashing
- When should a risk become an issue?
- A risk remains an uncertain event while its trigger and occurrence are still being monitored. Once the event or condition exists, move it into issue control with an immediate owner, action and escalation route. Preserve the original risk record so reviewers can compare the trigger, response effectiveness, residual exposure and any secondary risk created by the action. Chapter 06 · Project Risk Analysis and Response
- Why can the best project differ from the best portfolio choice?
- A project can lead a scoring or financial model yet be infeasible beside another candidate because both consume the same scarce capability or concentrate exposure. Compare the strongest isolated project with the strongest feasible combination, quantify the value sacrificed and name the bottleneck avoided. Governance can then preserve the reason for sequencing, resizing or rejecting work. Chapter 07 · Project Selection and Portfolio Balance
- What evidence proves that a levelled schedule is feasible?
- Provide before-and-after demand, capacity, overload, moved activity, remaining float and revised finish by period, then reconcile those values to the network. Name the constrained capability rather than relying on total headcount. Finally identify who bears the consequence of the move, because resolving an overload is also a governance choice about priorities, benefits and delay. Chapter 08 · Resource Loading and Levelling
- How should Agile work connect to a fixed milestone?
- Map the backlog item and increment to the evidence required by the milestone, identify the scarce resource and relevant feeder or project buffer, and name the acceptance owner. When priority changes, state which delivery date or buffer status changes too. The interface must exchange usable planning evidence rather than merely combine terminology from two methods. Chapter 09 · Agile Planning and Critical Chain
- How does the final status report support closure?
- Reconcile the last planned value, earned value and actual cost figures to accepted scope, then explain remaining variance without rewriting the historical baseline. List every contract, claim, asset, data set and residual action that survives closure, assign each to an operational owner and preserve the acceptance or termination authority in the closeout evidence pack. Chapter 10 · Earned Value, Control and Closure
How to prepare for the assessments
Study CDT505 as one connected planning system. Begin with a small project and carry it through every chapter: define the objective, build the WBS, derive activities, calculate expected durations, run the network, attach costs, write risks, test resources and then create an earned value status point. Keep an error log for merge rules, float, cost signs and index denominators.
Before each assessment, compare the current deliverable against the published marking language. For the individual brief, spend revision time on traceability between sections rather than polishing each section in isolation. For the mid-term, practise explaining what a number changes in the management decision, because formulas without interpretation do not demonstrate control.
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