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BMGT45540

Academic Year 2026/2027

Managing Innovative Projects (BMGT45540)

Subject:
Business Management
College:
Business
School:
Business
Level:
4 (Masters)
Credits:
7.5
Module Coordinator:
Dr Kostas Stouras
Trimester:
Summer
Mode of Delivery:
On Campus
Internship Module:
No
How will I be graded?
Letter grades

Curricular information is subject to change.

The world is undergoing a massive series of disruptions. From the sustainability movement going mainstream to the COVID-19 pandemic to the rise of artificial intelligence, tectonic shifts are reshaping businesses, societies, and the way we work. Projects are now the most important method for turning these challenges into positive change, and their pivotal role has never been more visible.

This narrative shifted dramatically in 2020, when the global pandemic thrust projects into the spotlight, exemplified by the remarkable development of COVID-19 vaccines in under a year, a process that usually takes more than a decade. Suddenly, projects were ubiquitous, highlighting that we all engage in project management as the driving force behind change.

Yet despite this prominence, project management remains underutilized as a strategic tool. This module develops your ability to use the project management toolkit to implement organizational change, exploring how project and process methodologies complement each other and how you can apply both to improve the effectiveness of your wider organization.

About this Module

Learning Outcomes:

On completion of this module students will be able to:

1. Apply core project management tools and techniques, including estimation, scheduling, and network analysis, to plan and implement organisational change.

2. Identify and manage project risks using structured risk management frameworks to maintain control across the project lifecycle.

3. Manage project stakeholders effectively, evaluate project performance, and apply structured approaches to project closure and organisational learning.

4. Leverage GenAI tools to support project analysis, research, and high-quality work production, while critically evaluating their limitations.

5. Synthesize module concepts to produce an original, evidence-based analysis of how a real organization is responding to a global megatrend.

Indicative Module Content:

This module introduces students from any discipline to the project management life-cycle, with a focus on innovation- and technology-driven industries. By the end of this module you will understand and be able to execute the key activities required to ensure that a project is initiated, planned, managed and implemented successfully. You will be also become familiar with various project management tools and techniques that are relevant to commercial projects and their applications.

Indicative content will include the following:

1. What is Project Management
2. Project Teams and Leadership
3. Project Ethics
4. Project Feasibility & Stakeholder Management
5. Risk Management & Testing
6. Closing projects and why they might fail

The United Nations identified seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as core to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and UCD contributes in general to SDG 4 Quality Education. Further SDGs explored within this module if relevant are listed below. A scale of 1 - 5 indicates the extent to which the SDG is covered.


 

Student Effort Hours:
Student Effort Type Hours
Specified Learning Activities

62
Autonomous Student Learning

64
Lectures

24
Total

150

Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
Module approaches to teaching and learning include: lectures, industry expert guest speakers, individual and group work, reflective learning, case-based learning, critical writing, blog posting, critical review of peers work, simulation.

Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 

Assessment Strategy
Description Timing Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade Component repeat (in-module) Offered
Assignment(Including Essay): Exercises in PM Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7 Graded No
20
 No
Individual Project: Blog post Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7, Week 8, Week 9, Week 10, Week 11, Week 12 Graded No
30
 No
Individual Project: Others Blog Assessment Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7, Week 8, Week 9, Week 10, Week 11, Week 12 Graded No
10
 No
Participation in Learning Activities: Class contributions and participation Week 4, Week 5 Graded No
10
 No
Practical Skills Assessment: Simulation Week 4, Week 5 Graded No
30
 No

As part of UCD's student support, under the Additional Consideration policy, extensions may be available for the following assessments in the module: Assignment (including essay/poster), Portfolio, Reflective Assignment, Report(s), and Individual Project.


Carry forward of passed components
No
 

Resit In Terminal Exam
Autumn Yes - 2 Hour
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 

Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, on an activity or draft prior to summative assessment
• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment
• Online automated feedback
• Peer review activities
• Self-assessment activities

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Not yet recorded.

Project Management: The Managerial Process by Clifford F. Gray & Erik W. Larson, 7th Edition, 2017, McGraw Hill, 978-1259666094
Project Management: The Managerial Process by Clifford F. Gray & Erik W. Larson, 8th Edition, 2020, McGraw Hill, 978-1260238860
Project Management: A Socio-Technical Approach by Clifford F. Gray, Erik W. Larson and P. Sirisomboonsuk, 9th Edition, 2024, McGraw Hill, 9781265060886, https://www.mheducation.com/highered/product/project-management-socio-technical-approach-2024-release-larson-gray/M9781265060886.htm

Other Recommended Books:
Critical Chain: A Business Novel by Eli Goldratt. Publisher: The North River Press, 1997.
Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In, by Roger Fisher and William
Ury.
Influence Without Authority (3rd Edition), by Allan Cohen and David Bradford.
Never Eat Alone: And Other Secrets to Success, by Keith Ferrazzi.
Scrum: The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time, by Jeff Sutherland
PMBOK Guide 7th Edition (2021), by Project Management Institute.
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