LFH Overview
LFH eLearning Courses
LFH eLearning is an ambitious project to create a series of contemporary management course based on a collection of historical case studies. It involves the integration of existing materials from LFH "live" management training workshops (scenario based) with further historical case studies into a comprehensive series of elearning courses. This requires the transfer of IP and creation of a series of modules.
The Giza Pyramid project case study has rarely been associated with project management and this is what makes this course so unique. More often this project case study is associated with other disciplines like engineering and architecture. This course highlights the importance of project management which has been often overlooked and undervalued in this case study. Yet, the core principles of project management were used extensively in this project, and without them the project could not have been delivered. The course allows you the learner to take on the role of project manager and deliver the most notable early mega project in history.
As the project manager you will examine the human side of the project and the significance of organization, team work, welfare, healthy competition and creating a conducive work environment on managing a large workforce. You will also see the importance of innovation and how it was used to manage the project scope by developing unique solutions. This project was about managing the available project resources and making intelligent decisions about their deployment, and where investments needed to be made in quality to achieve the high levels required. The course summarizes all this into a set of best practices that you can carry forward into your current projects.
Innovation is not always associated with project management but projects are one-time opportunities and unique endeavors. Sometimes for organizations they may be the only time to innovate as the opportunities may simply not exist after the project. This course is unique as it examines how to take a proactive approach to incorporating innovation into projects. Many project managers avoid this because it can create uncertainty and increase costs. They minimize the risks by relying on tried-and-tested techniques, established routines, and proven technologies. They select the lowest cost approach, transfer risks to contractors, freeze the design early, and stick rigidly to the plan.
This course is based on several case studies in project innovation from the First Industrial Revolution primarily the Transcontinental Railroad but also the Ironbridge, and Stockton & Darlington Railway. These case studies have rarely been associated with innovation (and projects) and this is what makes this course so unique. Through these case studies the course highlights the importance of innovation and why it needs to be considered in projects. You will also see how it was used to create unique solutions that would resolve difficult problems, and that were transformational beyond the expectations of the stakeholders. The course follows the project event timelines to better understand the opportunities and decisions made that led to innovation, both in product and process.
Finally, the course examines some of the organizational aspects that encourage innovation in projects like values, culture, and practices. The course summarizes all this into a set of best practices that you can carry forward into your current projects and use.
Entrepreneurs naturally tend to gravitate to product development and in the process can overlook the benefits and minimize the challenges of consistent and comprehensive customer management. In this e-learning course we look to apply to the discipline of customer management the same elements of entrepreneurial thinking that are commonly applied to product innovation.
This course examines the benefits of comprehensive customer management through the use of five case studies involving ancient Roman entrepreneurs that reaped great success by focusing their talents for innovation on the customer more so than their products. Each case study presented will analyze the ancient businessperson’s approach to dealing with their customers and insights gained will be extrapolated to the modern business world. At the conclusion of every module the student will be tasked with applying the lessons learned to a modern market situation.
The Five Ancient Roman Case Studies:
- Marcus Vegilius Eurysaces (referred to here simply as Eurysaces) is thought to have operated his bread making business in the last few decades before the birth of Christ. Eurysaces, whose grand tomb still stands in Rome today, demonstrated innovative marketing and promotional practices in his business.
- Eumachia was a wealthy widow, thought to have conducted her business very late in the last century before the birth of Christ, possessed significant business interests in sheep herding and the woolen trade. Eumachia demonstrated what we would call innovative stakeholder management techniques in support of her business interests.
- Aulus Umbricius Scaurus (referred to here simply as Scaurus), operated his fish sauce production and distribution business in the city of Pompeii, and is thought to have been alive when Mt. Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD. Scaurus demonstrated innovative customer communications about his products.
- Pliny the Younger (referred to here simply as Pliny) was a wealthy Roman Senator as well as an imperial advisor, lawyer, financial administrator, author and Tuscan vineyard owner. Pliny demonstrated an innovative approach to customer management during a grape price collapse in 107 AD.
- Marcus Crassus (referred to here simply as Crassus) was the wealthiest Senator in the Roman Republic with assets estimated today at $11 Billion dollars. Crassus helped to finance a young Julius Caesar's political career and shared power with Caesar (as well as with Pompey the Great as part of the Roman Republic’s First Triumvirate) until he was killed in battle in ancient Parthia in 53 BC at the age of 61 or 62. Though Crassus is chronologically the earliest of the entrepreneurs, since he represents the lessons from the negative, his case is the fifth and final case to be studied in this course.
The ability to diffuse knowledge across and within organizations is today recognized as a major strategic capability for gaining competitive advantage. In a project context knowledge management contributes to the attainment of value from projects, and this is the focus of this course. In this course you will understand what knowledge management is in the context of projects, and how it covers knowledge transfer and knowledge sharing between projects and why it is challenge in different types organization, specifically in those that are project based. You will also examine not only the subject of knowledge but how to set up a conducive environment for knowledge sharing and that outlines the role of the PMO as a knowledge broker in support of the project community.
This course is based on several case studies in knowledge management from the Medieval Era, and the Industrial Revolution primarily the Panama Railroad and Canal. These case studies have rarely been associated with knowledge management (and projects) and this is what makes this course so unique. Through these case studies the course highlights the importance of knowledge management and why it needs to be considered in projects. You will also see how knowledge was created, transferred or shared between projects and used to create unique solutions that would resolve difficult problems. The course follows the project event timelines to better understand the knowledge processes that led to breakthroughs in project solutions. Finally, the course examines some of the organizational aspects that encourage knowledge management in projects like the values, culture, and practices. The course summarizes all this into a set of best practices that you can carry forward into your current projects and use.
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