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As the curtains rose on the PMI® Global Congress 2009—North America in Orlando, Florida, USA, it was clear that this was no ordinary event. As a celebration of PMI’s 40th anniversary, the North America congress was a powerful testament not only to the accomplishments of project management, but also to its great future potential. Those themes of past, present and future ran deep through the presentations, ceremonies and educational sessions. How We Got Here The opening general session set the tone for the congress, as attendees were first treated to a video retrospective of some of the important projects completed since PMI’s inception, such as the moon landing, the first flight of the Boeing 747, and the introduction of the mobile phone. The focus on history continued when PMI presented an award to representatives from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), recognizing 40 years of shared project management excellence. The five founders of PMI were also honored, with three of them—James Snyder, J. Gordon Davis and Susan Gallagher—attending congress in person.
Opening keynote speaker T. Boone Pickens, who is an author, advocate and entrepreneur, has attracted attention recently for his efforts to invest in and promote renewable energy sources. Pickens worked a Question & Answer session with PMI CEO Gregory Balestrero and talked about the qualities that made him successful, such as listening and delegation skills, and the ability to choose the right people for the right projects. He also touched humorously on other topics, such as his daily work-out routine. His talk, though, largely focused on his campaign for renewable energy sources, including wind, solar and natural gas. “The United States is the largest in natural gas reserves in the world,” he said. “It is 50% cleaner than diesel and gasoline, and it is cheaper.” He went on to note that if the current U.S. administration prioritizes renewable energy, it will be the country’s first administration to reduce oil imports.
Come for the Weather, Stay for the Education
Congress attendees withstood the temptation of Orlando’s warm weather and attractions to find incredible learning opportunities through the event’s many educational sessions—sessions that focused on tips and techniques to help project management in the present, while still emphasizing the congress’ themes of past and future “The History of PMI” offered a firsthand view into the founding and early days of PMI, including the first project management seminar at Georgia Institute of Technology and the first 28 PMI members—a handful of whom are still with PMI! Elsewhere, interpersonal relationships were a popular presentation topic. “Managing Cross Cultural Differences in Projects,” “People are Central to Project Delivery, so Let’s Understand Them Better,” and “Project Managers are from Saturn and Program Managers are from Jupiter,” all touched on the socializing aspect of project management, among others, and reaffirmed that it is primarily all about people. Global sustainability was another critical topic. A Monday breakfast panel discussion featured representatives from Nokia-Siemens, Starbucks and HP, who identified opportunities for project managers to incorporate sustainability into their project practices—not only as a “fancy environmental ‘nice-to-have,’ but as part of our commitment in terms of global responsibility as professionals and global citizens,” said Céline Janvier, CAPM, of Geneva, Switzerland. The Tuesday breakfast session delivered by Fredrik Härén emphasized innovation and creativity. Mr. Härén, the keynote speaker at PMI Global Congress 2009—Asia Pacific, encouraged project management practitioners to open their minds to see what others have invented, determine what that means for creativity within their own projects and incorporate those changes accordingly. “There’s never been a better time in history to be a creative person,” he said. Get Your Name Out There
The North America congress was also a place for project practitioners to connect with their peers from around the world. While many networking opportunities were found throughout congress, attendees had a dedicated opportunity at an exclusive, after-hours party on the New York backlot set at Universal Studios Orlando. Attractions included the Terminator, Shrek 3D and Revenge of the Mummy rides, as well as the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit rollercoaster and a concert by the Blues Brothers. “Project management professionals experienced action, adventure, conflict resolution, challenges and adrenaline pumping similar to their day-to-day life, but this time they had a lot of fun,” said Conrado Morlan, PMP, PgMP, of Plano, Texas, USA. Where We’re Going
The most tangible sign of project management's future was the new Project Management Circa 2025 book and a book signing session with its co-editors, David I. Cleland, PhD, and Bopaya Bidanda, PhD. Attendees also got a taste of what's to come with the closing session and keynote by Dr. Harold Kerzner, Senior Executive Director with International Institute for Learning, Inc. Dr. Kerzer focused on the soft components of project management, including stakeholder management and leadership skills and competencies. In addition, he covered the evolution of project management to more business and strategic issues, expanding the standard triple constraint to include value—project managers simply cannot deliver projects within the usual constraints; they also need to make sure those projects can deliver consistent value. His words, and the message of the entire congress, made a lasting impression on the attendees. “It was very impressive to see so many people from a variety of countries united to work for the growth of project management in the world,” said Renata Collier, PMP, of Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil.
Theresa Luebecke, PMP, of St. Louis, Missouri, USA, found the Cirque Odyssey performance at the PMI Awards ceremony to be the perfect representation of project management. “As I watched their acts of balance, skill and agility, I thought, ‘How perfect!’” she said. “As project managers, we all perform feats of balance, skill and agility in our daily tasks. From Cirque Odyssey, I learned how to perform with a smile!” Olivier Lazar, PMP, of Geneva, Switzerland, agreed that the congress was a special experience. “No doubt …it was a great opportunity for learning, networking, sharing experiences and also having a lot of fun,” he said.
The Community Post thanks Renata Collier, Céline Janvier, Olivier Lazar, Dr. Ginger Levin, PMP, PgMP, Theresa Luebcke, and Conrado Morlan for contributing to this piece. Please join us in thanking the many congress sponsors who helped to make it all possible. We could not have done it without you!
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Celebrating 40 Years of PMI:
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