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Yorkshire Water – Focused Workshops and Targeted APM Qualifications Training

Supporting improvements to capital programme delivery

Providing support to re-shape the Capital Delivery Model, through focused workshops and targeted APM qualifications training, to help improve the consistency and application of project management skills of those who lead or play a key role in delivering and supporting projects.

The challenge

Yorkshire Water identified a need to improve the cost and timescales for completion of projects within their capital delivery programme. Yorkshire Water had already identified the Association for Project Management (APM) as the professional body it wished to align to, in terms of best practice and qualifications. The initial requirement for Provek was to provide high quality APM aligned project management training at multiple levels, however this remit quickly expanded to include support in shaping the future of capital delivery and development of bespoke training solutions for Yorkshire Water and their capital programme delivery partners.

The solution

Provek initially delivered both Introductory Certificate: The APM Project Fundamentals Qualification (2-day classroom) and APM PMQ: The APM Project Management Qualification (5-day classroom) to Yorkshire Water staff from a broad range of functions and disciplines from across the business. During these first courses, we identified the need to further clarify key roles and accountabilities within the context of the Capital Delivery Model.

This led to Provek facilitating an initial workshop specifically aimed at confirming an agreed and common understanding of accountabilities across key project roles, responsibility for project documentation and processes and alignment of project interfaces with the Capital Delivery Model project lifecycle. We were invited back to run a second workshop specifically aimed at aligning the infrastructure team’s approach and documents with APM best practice, again focusing on consistency and usability.

Provek developed a bespoke online learning package, comprising ten SCORM-compliant training modules covering a range of best practice project management topics. Each module included bespoke videos, slide decks and online quizzes, each using terminology, roles and accountabilities, graphics and structure aligned to the new Capital Delivery Model. This e-learning course has been rolled-out on Yorkshire Water’s own on-line learning platform and is a pre-requisite for participants intending to attend APM qualifications training courses. Yorkshire Water’s delivery partners have also been given access, to promote increased collaboration and awareness in delivering the current capital programme.

Key to the success of the training was delivering the APM course syllabi aligned to Yorkshire Water’s Capital Delivery Model, with our expert trainers mapping the APM principles to the Capital Delivery Model life cycle, roles and processes throughout the training. This was very important in understanding the courses’ content and embedding the understanding for application in the work place thereafter.

The benefits

To date we have trained three cohorts of Yorkshire Water staff with 100% exam pass rates, in APM core qualifications including Project Fundamentals (PFQ), Project Management (PMQ) and Risk Management Level 1, with high levels of participant satisfaction, as assessed post-training. Improved knowledge, understanding and application of best practice project management principles and techniques are becoming increasingly consistent within the organisation. Provek continues to work closely with Yorkshire Water in meeting their ongoing project management training and development needs.