Project Controls: Foundation Level (CPD- Accredited) 

Project Controls

Staying in control is a vital part of project management. If you take a step back from your project, choosing a ‘hands-off’ approach, quality control and cost control can both fall apart. You need to keep your hands on the wheel if you want to hit your targets, delivering the project on time, meeting the schedule budget, and everything in between!

Whether you're managing a small project or overseeing a large-scale programme, understanding project controls is essential for keeping projects on track, within budget, and to the required quality.

Our course provides an introduction to project controls, offering an overview of key concepts. We will explore the role of control in project management, its importance in ensuring project success, and how it is applied in practice. You will be introduced to core principles, including financial control, schedule management, risk mitigation, and project performance tracking.
Write your awesome label here.

What are Project Controls?

Project controls are practices you use to manage and report how much time and money is spent on a project.

It’s often confused with project management, and admittedly they do go hand in hand. Both aim to keep a project on track, they involve strategic planning, costs and time are always considered, and you have set goals to work towards. However, project controls are more focused on the project budget and making sure that it is completed within the right time frame. You, as a project control manager, will still be keeping other aspects in mind, but these are the main things you’ll be monitoring.

The Importance of Project Controls

Project controls ensure maximum efficiency. They help you to assign people with the best skillsets to roles that suit them, keep everything running smoothly, and guarantee that the final result will be the highest quality.

One of the most important project controls are Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). These can be used to measure the overall progress of the project, or for each employee. The latter is often more useful as you can reassign anyone who is either ahead or behind, all to keep things on track going forward.

At certain points during your project, you will likely be asked about the project status. If you have the right project controls in place, you’ll know where your team is up to at all times, and how close you are to hitting your targets. If you are falling behind or are low on budget, you’ll see this earlier and can adapt your management process accordingly.

About the course

Project Controls: Foundation Level : A Beginner-Friendly Overview

Our Introduction to Project Controls course offers a clear and accessible overview of what project controls are and why they are critical to project success.

Whether you're preparing to manage your first project or starting a new role in project control or project support, this course equips you with essential knowledge and confidence.

You'll gain a solid understanding of the key components of project controls—such as cost management, scheduling, risk, and performance tracking—enabling you to communicate effectively with experienced project controls professionals and contribute meaningfully to your team.

Our Project Controls Course is perfect for:

  • University Students
  • Graduates
  • Consultants
  • Project Delivery Professionals
  • Considering a Change of Career

Testimonials

Great introduction to the topic, loved the 'drivers dashboard' analogy.

Alex, Project Support Officer, Civil Service

I found the course really informative and it gave me a great understanding of the fundamentals of risk management in a really approachable way. Great graphics and animations too.

Suzanne, Civil Service
A great introduction to data and data in project, would highly recommend the course
Shola A, Civil Service
A really fun and interesting course on the impacts of bias, loved it!
Ben B, Met Police
I would often hear the project term "Front-end-loading" and wanted to find out more, and this course was a great introduction to the topic
Eric, GSK
Brilliant course, the approach and learning style was much clearer than the current PM courses I’m doing in LinkedIn
John, Raytheon
Good to see key concepts and principles explained in a really digestible way
Simon, Senior Consultant
We completed the bias exercise in our team,  and it helped us to better understand the impacts of our biases and was a real eye opener, would recommend
Toby, PMO Lead
I would recommend the courses to anyone new in project delivery consultancy role, affordable, useful and dives into key basics which are often missed!
Sarah, Senior Manager

Course Lessons

Course Contents

Meet the instructor

Professor Yakubu A. Olawale, PhD, MBA, FRICS


Introducing Professor Yakubu A. Olawale, a recognised leader in project controls and commercial management with more than 20 years of experience in UK infrastructure and capital project delivery.

Professor Olawale is the Chief Commercial Officer at M.A.C Group UK, where he leads the organisation’s commercial functions, improves commercial performance, strengthens governance, and oversees the controls and risk management needed to support a portfolio of multimillion pound projects.

Before joining M.A.C Group, he spent seven years at KPMG UK delivering strategic advisory services to public and private sector clients. His work helped shape capital delivery models, enhance project controls, and strengthen assurance frameworks on major programmes including Crossrail, the NHS New Hospital Programme, and the Lower Thames Crossing.

He is chartered across multiple disciplines, including Chartered Accountant (ACMA, CGMA), Chartered Fellow of RICS (FRICS), and Chartered Project Manager (MAPM, MCIOB). He also serves as a Visiting Professor in Infrastructure Engineering at Aston University and is the author of Project Control Methods and Best Practices: Achieving Project Success.

With academic and professional qualifications spanning engineering, management, finance and law, Professor Olawale brings a strong interdisciplinary perspective, and his research is widely cited in leading project management journals..

The Best Project Controls Course

Implementing project controls is easier said than done. It takes dedication and an in-depth understanding of what controls to use if you want them to benefit your project.

In our online course we will cover the practical steps of project control, including setting baselines, monitoring progress, and taking corrective action. While this course serves as a foundation, it will equip you with a clear understanding of why project controls matter and how they contribute to better project outcomes.

Project Controls: Foundation Level 

Join this course to master project controls
Not for you? See all Our Courses
Created with