Gregory Balestrero spends more than 200 days a year traveling around the world as the chief ambassador for advancing the profession of project management on behalf of PMI. A featured speaker at international CEO events such as Economist, Business Week and Forbes forums and the Bo’Ao economic summit, Mr. Balestrero delivers powerful messages about the importance of project management in achieving success in today’s global business environment. Mr. Balestrero has represented PMI at special events in more than 30 countries throughout the world. He is quoted frequently in national and international media and has appeared as a guest on news and business television, including CNBC, BBC World and Sky News.
Mr. Balestrero joined PMI in 2002 with nearly 30 years experience in executive-level association management. An industrial engineer by training, Mr. Balestrero has extensive experience overseeing administrative, financial and internal affairs for and more professional associations. Under his leadership, PMI membership has tripled, and holders of project management credentials has increased from 50,000 to more than 370,000.
From 1994-2002, he served as executive director of the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI), an organization or construction professionals in non-residential building construction, based in Alexandria, Virginia, USA. He previously held the position of executive director at the Institute of Industrial Engineers (IIE) in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Mr. Balestrero served as the 2003-2004 Board Chairman of the Greater Washington (District of Columbia, USA) Society of Association Executives (GWSAE) and an active member and former president of the Council of Engineering and Scientific Society Executives (CESSE). Mr. Balestrero also is a member of the Committee of 100 of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He is a current member of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), where he served on the Board of Directors for ASAE’s Center for Association Leadership (CAL) through 2006; the Institute of Industrial Engineers (IIE); and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). He is also a member of The Thought Leadership Advisory Council for the CAL.
Mr. Balestrero was honored with a fellowship in the World Academy of Productivity Scientists and was inducted into Alpha Pi Mu, an industrial engineering honor society, as an honorary member. He earned a bachelor's degree in industrial engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia, and he is a U. S. Army veteran.
His recreational interests include sailing, motorcycling and backpacking. Mr. Balestrero has been married to his wife, Frances Higgins, for 30 years.
About Project Management Institute (PMI)
The world’s leading project management organization, PMI shares knowledge with nearly 500,000 members and credential holders in 185+ countries. Since its founding 40 years ago, PMI has impacted more than one million practitioners, businesses, governments, students and training organizations. Today, PMI’s products and services range from world-class standards for project, program and portfolio management to five professional credentials, including the gold standard Project Management Professional (PMP®). PMI’s exclusive Global Corporate Council and European Corporate Networking Group engage large multinationals and government organizations in endorsing the value of project management. The only project management association with an established academic research program, PMI has invested more than US$14 million in support of dozens of research projects since 1997. Learn more at PMI.org.
