PMI Announces 2011 Academic Research Grantees

Megan Maguire Kelly
PMI
+1 610-356-4600 x7030
Megan.Kelly@pmi.org

For Immediate Release

NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. 19 April 2011 - Academic institutions are increasingly tasked with delivering new levels of knowledge in areas that meet the needs of students and hiring organizations - all in an era of shrinking budgets. In order to help them achieve this goal, the Project Management Institute (PMI) announced today that it will fund three academic research projects in 2011. Selected from a pool of more than 100 proposals submitted by scholars from around the world, these research projects will enable educational institutions to provide greater support for the profession that addresses the challenges of the current business and economic environments.

PMI's sponsored research program, which has invested more than US$18 million in academic research since its inception in 1997, supports studies in project management that help businesses, governments and academic institutions execute strategy and drive innovation.

"PMI's strategy is driven in part by research, which is starting to show exactly how much value project management, in all its forms, can deliver to organizations," said Harry Stefanou, PhD, vice president, global alliances and decision support for PMI. "The work of PMI's 2011 research grantees will provide vital knowledge that will help shape the future of the project management profession. We are proud to partner with them in their efforts to help organizations embrace project management as a strategic business driver and core competency."

The following projects have been selected to receive PMI's academic funding:

• Paolo Landoni, PhD, Politecnico di Milano, Italy: International Development Project Management: A Survey of NonGovernmental Organizations
  
  The study will compare, contrast and analyze the guidelines for managing international projects proposed by development agencies. It also seeks to understand how these guidelines are used and evaluated inside non-governmental organizations.
• Janice Thomas, PhD, Athabasca University, Canada and Svetlana Cicmil, PhD, University of Western England: Studying the Implementation of Project Management as an Organizational Innovation
  
  This research draws on 65 existing case studies to identify lessons learned in order to improve the implementation process, value realized and sustainability of organizational project management innovations. In addition, the results of this project will provide guidance to organizations and project managers on how to effectively implement strategic project management change initiatives, thus contributing to the literature on both project management and change management.
• Young Hoon Kwak, George Washington University, USA, Min Liu, PhD, North Carolina State University, USA; Peerasit Patanakul, PhD, Stevens Institute of Technology, USA; Ofer Zwikael, PhD, The Australian National University, Australia: Global Perspectives on Project, Program and Portfolio Management in Government
  
  This research will identify common reasons for poor project performance in government, analyze relationships between the performance of government projects, programs and their characteristics (e.g., budget size, duration, scope and team composition), report key lessons learned and provide recommendations for the improvement of project management performance in government. The researchers will pay particular attention to megaprojects, as many of the government initiated or funded projects are large and complex.

About the PMI^® Research Program

The PMI^® Research Program is an essential part of PMI's mission to make project management indispensable for business results. Formed in 1997, the program works to advance the science and profession of project management. The call for academic research proposals for 2012 funding opened on 1 February 2011. For more information about how to submit a proposal and to learn more about completed and active academic research projects funded by PMI, visit PMI's Research Program.

About The Project Management Institute (PMI)

PMI is the world's largest project management member association, representing more than half a million practitioners in over 185 countries. As a global thought leader and knowledge resource, PMI advances the profession through its global standards and credentials, collaborative chapters and virtual communities and academic research. When organizations invest in project management, supported by PMI, executives have confidence their important initiatives deliver expected results, greater business value and competitive advantage. Learn more at www.pmi.org.