Contract Management and Dispute Prevention Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Contract Managers, Project Managers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 16 Nov 2026 Course code SD-CM-137

Before you join: Participants should have basic experience working with commercial, procurement, service, construction or project contracts after award.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Contracts fail operationally long before they fail legally. Unclear scope, missed notices, informal instructions, weak records, unmanaged changes and poorly handled supplier disagreements can turn manageable delivery issues into claims, cost overruns, service failures or damaged commercial relationships. Contract managers and project leaders need practical control over obligations, performance evidence, change decisions and escalation routes from award through closeout.

This course develops the methods used to administer commercial, procurement, construction, service and project contracts with discipline. Participants learn to translate contract clauses into obligations registers, governance structures, compliance calendars and performance controls. They examine risk allocation, scope definition, notices, variations, delay, claims, negotiation and dispute-resolution mechanisms. The course addresses both prevention and response: identifying early warning signs, protecting contractual positions, maintaining workable supplier relationships and preparing evidence when disagreement cannot be resolved informally.

Teaching combines focused instructor briefings with contract clauses, project records and realistic cases drawn from infrastructure, outsourced services, procurement and capital projects. Participants work through change requests, performance failures, notice decisions, claim chronologies and settlement choices in facilitated groups. They leave with a reusable contract management toolkit containing an obligations register, risk and compliance controls, change log, claim chronology, negotiation preparation sheet and contract improvement plan.

The course suits professionals responsible for administering contracts after signature, managing suppliers or contractors, controlling project delivery, supporting procurement, or preventing disputes before they reach formal proceedings.

What you will be able to do

  • Build an obligations register that assigns clause-based actions, owners, dates and evidence
  • Apply RACI and delegated-authority controls to contract governance decisions
  • Assess contractual risk allocation using a probability-impact risk matrix
  • Administer notices, correspondence and records that preserve contractual rights
  • Evaluate change requests through scope, time, cost, risk and authority analysis
  • Prepare claim chronologies linking entitlement, causation, quantum and evidence
  • Conduct interest-based negotiations using BATNA, WATNA and concession planning
  • Create a contract management improvement plan for an active contract portfolio

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Recognise missed-notice and scope risks before they become formal claims
  • Write clearer contractual correspondence with defensible reservations of rights
  • Assess variation requests before agreeing time, price or scope changes
  • Prepare structured evidence for internal escalation, negotiation or claim response
  • Lead supplier discussions using defined settlement boundaries and escalation routes

For your organisation

  • Fewer avoidable claims caused by late notices, weak records and informal instructions
  • Stronger control of contract changes, delegated authority and payment exposure
  • Earlier recovery action on underperforming suppliers and contractors
  • More consistent handover between procurement, project, operations and legal teams
  • Better evidence quality for negotiations, audits, adjudication and dispute resolution

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can establish governance, ownership and lifecycle controls for contract administration.

  • Contract lifecycle map from sourcing strategy through closeout and records retention
  • Roles, authority limits, and RACI assignments for contract administration
  • Distinguishing contract management, contract administration, and supplier relationship management
  • Obligations register linking clauses, owners, dates, and evidence requirements
  • Three lines model applied to contract governance and assurance
  • Document hierarchy, order of precedence, and controlled contract repositories

Participants can identify and control scope ambiguity, acceptance requirements and delivery interfaces.

  • Scope baseline defined through specifications, drawings, assumptions, and exclusions
  • SMART acceptance criteria tied to inspection, testing, and handover evidence
  • WBS traceability between deliverables, milestones, payment schedules, and obligations
  • Interface matrix identifying dependencies, handoffs, and boundary responsibilities
  • Ambiguity review using plain-language tests and scenario-based interpretation
  • Change control thresholds established before operational work begins

Participants can assess risk allocation and maintain appropriate commercial protections.

  • Risk allocation matched to control, insurability, pricing, and consequence
  • Risk register distinguishing contractual, delivery, commercial, and legal exposures
  • Risk matrix scoring probability, impact, proximity, ownership, and treatment
  • Force majeure, hardship, and change-in-law clauses compared
  • Indemnities, limitations of liability, warranties, and insurance aligned
  • Flow-down obligations managed across subcontractors and critical suppliers

Participants can administer obligations and preserve evidence needed for effective contract control.

  • Obligation extraction methods convert clauses into accountable administration actions
  • Compliance calendar tracks notices, renewals, milestones, certificates, and audits
  • Notice provisions applied to timing, delivery method, recipients, and content
  • Contract correspondence separates facts, reservations, requests, and commitments
  • Evidence files preserve contemporaneous records, approvals, instructions, and communications
  • Meeting minutes converted into actions without unintended contractual admissions

Participants can monitor contract performance and intervene before delivery failures escalate.

  • Baseline schedule reviews identify critical path, float, logic, and constraints
  • Earned value metrics connect progress evidence with contractual payment milestones
  • Service levels, KPIs, and service credits administered from performance data
  • Quality nonconformance process links inspection results, correction, and acceptance
  • Early warning indicators trigger intervention before milestone or service failure
  • Supplier performance reviews use scorecards, root-cause analysis, and recovery plans

Participants can evaluate, document and approve contract changes through controlled processes.

  • Change requests distinguish variation, clarification, waiver, and constructive change
  • Impact assessments quantify time, cost, risk, scope, and resource effects
  • Change log records instruction source, valuation status, and approval route
  • Pricing methods compare lump sum, rates, cost reimbursement, and target cost
  • Time impact analysis tests delay effects against the accepted baseline
  • Authority checks prevent informal commitments and unauthorized scope expansion

Participants can prepare and assess claims using structured entitlement and evidence analysis.

  • Claim anatomy connects entitlement, causation, notice, quantum, and evidence
  • Claim chronology organizes events, correspondence, records, and contractual deadlines
  • Concurrent delay analysis distinguishes critical delay, concurrency, and mitigation
  • Quantum substantiation uses cost records, productivity data, and pricing evidence
  • Without-prejudice communications distinguished from ordinary contractual correspondence and admissions
  • Reservation of rights language protects positions while maintaining performance

Participants can conduct structured negotiations and use escalation before disputes harden.

  • Interest-based negotiation separates positions, interests, options, and objective criteria
  • BATNA and WATNA analysis establishes settlement authority and bargaining limits
  • Negotiation preparation sheets identify issues, trades, priorities, and concessions
  • Escalation ladders define operational, executive, mediation, and adjudication routes
  • Joint fact-finding resolves technical disagreement before commercial positions harden
  • Conflict conversations use active listening, reframing, and documented agreements

Participants can select suitable dispute-resolution routes and prepare for formal escalation.

  • Dispute avoidance boards, mediation, adjudication, arbitration, and litigation compared
  • Dispute clause design addresses forum, rules, language, seat, and timelines
  • FIDIC dispute avoidance procedures linked to notices and contemporaneous records
  • NEC4 early warning and compensation event mechanisms applied
  • Settlement evaluation compares legal merits, cost, time, relationships, and enforceability
  • Privilege, confidentiality, and document preservation managed during dispute preparation

Participants can close contracts properly and implement targeted improvements for future work.

  • Contract closeout checklist covers deliverables, releases, warranties, and final accounts
  • Lessons learned separates systemic causes from isolated delivery incidents
  • Supplier exit plans address transition, data return, asset transfer, and continuity
  • Post-award governance dashboards present risks, decisions, obligations, and performance
  • Contract management improvement plan prioritizes controls, owners, dates, and measures
  • Personal application plan commits immediate actions for active contracts

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Clause-based obligations register template
  2. Contract compliance calendar
  3. Variation impact assessment template
  4. Claim chronology and evidence matrix
  5. Negotiation preparation sheet
  6. Contract management improvement plan

Who should attend

  • Contract Managers — responsible for post-award obligations, changes and supplier performance
  • Project Managers — need to control scope, notices, delays and contractor interfaces
  • Procurement Managers — require stronger handover from sourcing to contract administration
  • Commercial Managers — manage variations, claims, payment mechanisms and contract risk
  • Operations Managers — oversee outsourced services against service levels and remedies
  • Legal and Compliance Advisers — support operational teams with records, governance and escalation

Skills and tools covered

Contract administrationChange controlClaims preparationDispute preventionSupplier performance managementCommercial negotiation

Tools and standards

FIDIC Conditions of Contract, NEC4 Engineering and Construction Contract, ISO 44001 Collaborative business relationship management, Kraljic Portfolio Matrix

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings to introduce control methods, followed by facilitated case analysis, group exercises and contract-document reviews. Participants assess realistic scope gaps, late notices, service failures, variations and claim records. Negotiation and escalation simulations develop confidence in handling difficult supplier conversations while protecting contractual positions. The instructor links each method to common contract documents and operational records. Application planning helps participants adapt templates and controls to their own contract portfolio after the course.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have basic experience working with commercial, procurement, service, construction or project contracts after award. They should be comfortable reading contract clauses, specifications, purchase orders, schedules and supplier correspondence. Familiarity with their organisation's approval process and contract templates is useful. No law degree, dispute-resolution qualification, FIDIC or NEC4 experience is required. The course does not assume advanced financial modelling or formal project controls training. Participants may bring anonymised contract issues, provided organisational confidentiality requirements are respected.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

You should have some exposure to working with contracts, suppliers, contractors or project delivery after contract award. You do not need a law degree, formal claims experience or prior knowledge of FIDIC or NEC4.

Bring examples of recurring contract-management issues, such as changes, late delivery, service failures or unclear responsibilities. You may also bring anonymised clauses or templates if permitted by your organisation's confidentiality rules.

It is designed for contract, commercial, procurement, project and operations professionals who administer contracts after signature. Legal and compliance advisers supporting these teams will also benefit from the operational focus.

This course concentrates on post-award management: obligations, records, performance, changes, claims and dispute prevention. It does not teach contract drafting in depth or the full procurement sourcing cycle.

Participants can use the obligations register, compliance calendar, change log and claim chronology on live contracts. The course also provides a practical improvement plan for strengthening current controls and escalation routes.

Each training day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides about 6.5 contact hours. Time is divided across ten modules covering governance, scope, risk, administration, performance, changes, claims, negotiation, dispute routes and closeout.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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