Programme overview
Introduction:
Many projects slip not because the plan is wrong but because the records behind it are out of date: documents circulate in several versions, actions agreed in meetings are lost, risks and issues sit in scattered emails and status reports arrive late or inconsistent. This Core Concept course builds the project coordinator skills needed to keep a project's documentation, trackers and logs current and reliable for the project manager. Participants work on a multi-sector case project and produce a Project Coordination Toolkit containing a document register, action tracker, RAID log, change log and status report template.
Course Objectives:
- Maintain a project document register with version control, naming conventions and a review and approval workflow
- Update Gantt schedules, milestone trackers and action logs from team inputs on a fixed weekly routine
- Record and review risks, assumptions, issues, dependencies and decisions in a single RAID log with clear escalation criteria
- Log change requests and record their assessment and decision status in a change log for the project manager
- Prepare progress meeting packs, action-based minutes and weekly status reports with RAG ratings
- Follow up resource availability and supplier deliverables using structured chase logs
Target Audience:
- Staff who maintain project documents, registers and filing on behalf of a project manager
- Team members who keep schedules, action trackers and task boards up to date
- Support staff who compile weekly progress reports and dashboards from team updates
- Administrators who organise project meetings, record minutes and follow up actions
- Staff who track supplier deliverables, purchase orders and resource bookings for projects
- Newly appointed coordinators moving into project support from administrative or technical roles
Course Outline:
Day 1: Project Coordinator Role and Project Structure
- Project Coordinator and Project Support Officer Responsibilities Map
- Project Lifecycle Phases and Coordinator Touchpoints
- Project Roles Overview: Sponsor, Project Manager, Team Members and Suppliers
- RACI Chart for Coordination and Reporting Tasks
- Coordination Health Check Template for a Current Project
Day 2: Project Documentation and Document Control
- Project Document Register and Deliverables List Set-Up
- Version Control Rules, File Naming Conventions and Folder Structure
- Document Review, Approval and Issue Workflow
- Standard Project Templates Library and Project Handbook
- Configuration Records Within the PRINCE2 Project Support Role
Day 3: Schedules, Trackers and Progress Reporting
- Gantt Chart Reading and Weekly Schedule Update Routine
- Milestone Tracker and Action Log Maintenance
- Kanban Board Design: Columns, Work-in-Progress Limits and Card Rules
- Status Report Structure and RAG Rating Criteria
- Spreadsheet Dashboard for Milestones, Actions and Open Items
Day 4: RAID Logs, Change Logging, Meetings and Follow-Up
- RAID Log Structure: Risks, Assumptions, Issues and Dependencies
- Decision Log Entries and Issue Escalation Thresholds
- Change Request Form and Change Log Entry Procedure
- Progress Meeting Agenda Pack and Action-Based Minutes
- Resource Availability Tracker and Supplier Deliverable Chase Log
Day 5: Case Work: Project Coordination Toolkit
- Case Project Kick-Off: Building the Registers and Trackers
- Simulated Weekly Events: Updating RAID and Change Entries
- Drafting the Case Project Progress Report and Dashboard
- Minute-Taking Exercise From a Recorded Project Progress Meeting
- Project Coordination Toolkit Review and Peer Feedback
Skills You Will Gain:
- Project Document Control
- Version Control and Filing
- Schedule and Tracker Upkeep
- RAID Log Management
- Change Request Logging
- Status Reporting and RAG Assessment
- Action-Based Minute Taking
- Supplier and Resource Follow-Up
Why Attend This Course:
- Leave with a Project Coordination Toolkit built on a realistic case project and ready to adapt to current work
- Give the project manager records and reports that can be relied on without rework or checking
- Spot overdue actions, unlogged issues and version conflicts before they delay the project
- Compare coordination routines with peers from construction, technology, government and service projects
Conclusion:
A project manager can only steer a project when its documents, schedules, logs and reports reflect what is actually happening. This course moves from the coordinator's role and project structure, through document control, schedule and tracker upkeep and progress reporting, to RAID logs, change logging, meeting records and supplier follow-up. The final day applies these routines to a case project, producing a Project Coordination Toolkit that participants can put to use in the first week back at work.