Strategy and Growth
Building on 18 months of successful transformation work, we entered 2020 with our eyes firmly fixed on the future. While COVID-19 slowed us down, it didn’t deflect us from our primary goal. We formulated the PMI 4.0 strategy as planned and worked with the Executive Leadership Team to obtain board approval in September.
The plan sets us on a path to radically expand our impact not just among project management professionals, who remain a priority, but among changemakers of all stripes and all ages who want to drive change and turn their ideas into reality.
Within the framework of this new strategy, we laid the foundation for multiple efforts: our youth engagement strategy, an expansion of our social impact plan and collaboration with like-minded organizations whose members will benefit from project management skills. We also doubled down on innovation, creating a pipeline of new products that will benefit our full spectrum of changemakers for many years to come – we piloted Kickoff for those new to our community, and began development of Organizational Transformation Foundation for experienced professionals looking to engage in high-level transformation work.
In all this, we remained focused on two key goals: driving impact among our core community, and expanding the reach and scope of that community by extending an invitation to a wider universe of changemakers anxious to change the world.
Empowering Changemakers
As project skills grow increasingly important in a projectized world, more people than ever before will need the skills and insights necessary to deliver value and get things done; these can include doctors, lawyers, teachers, entrepreneurs, and many others who may not necessarily self-identify as project managers. At PMI, we are broadening our efforts to better serve this expanded pool of the people we call “changemakers.”
PMI has an enormous opportunity - to enable changemakers across sectors, industries, and professionals and in doing so, have a 10x greater impact as an association.
PMI has maintained a leadership position in project management since 1969. We have expanded our scope to include all changemakers, empowering them through a broad range of ways of working and ability to deliver outcomes and influence others.
Through educational tools and training, networking, mentoring, collaboration, resources and more, we help individuals to gain the relevant skills, knowledge and capabilities to work smarter. Our services and solutions upskill people to sense and lead change, enabling the organizations where they work to continuously adapt and thrive.
Enabling Youth
In order to fully tap into the potential of young leaders already reshaping the Project Economy, PMI laid the foundation for a new Youth Initiative, focused on empowering and enabling youth from ages 5-35 around the world to turn ideas into reality through programs like student competitions, hackathons, and new initiatives.
A new generation of project talent has risen around the world and they are altering what it means to leverage The Project Economy. Passionate about inclusion, creativity, and collaboration, these purpose-driven individuals view project work as the foundation for positive impact across their fields.
Make Reality Stories Marcel Furmie
PMI volunteer Marcel Furmie shares successes and challenges from his most inspiring project that helped make a new reality for children in Africa.
Future 50
A new generation of project talent has risen around the world. With Gen Z having entered the workforce in real numbers and more millennials taking on management roles, organizations are being dynamically altered. These project leaders have unprecedented digital fluency, an unflinching readiness for change, a naturally collaborative mindset, a deep commitment to inclusion and environmental issues and very high expectations about what that means for how we all work.
Taiwo Abraham, PMP
For improving how banks operate, from Nigeria to Canada
Taiwo Abraham thinks he and his fellow “change-friendly” millennials have an edge in today’s fast-shifting business environment.
Sevi Rich
For striving to develop more diverse mining teams
Less than one-fifth of workers in the Australian mining industry are female, according to 2018-19 government stats.
Julissa Mateo Abad
For raising the role of woman in tech
Woman make up less than 30 percent of the workforce in three critical tech clusters: data
Meet 2020’s Future 50
PMIEF - Celebration 30 Years of Social Good
The PMI Educational Foundation is grateful for all the support from its donors over the years and thanks them for their contributions!
Thirty years ago, we saw the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the debut of the World Wide Web … and the creation of the PMI Educational Foundation. Throughout 2020, PMI chapters and community members came together to celebrate this milestone in the most appropriate way possible - by donating their skills and knowledge to worthy causes. In 2020, PMI invested US$ 4.5 million to support social good and youth education PMIEF initiatives. The year marked the launch of PMIEF's new strategy to ensure that youth learn and apply project management around the world by working with youth serving nonprofits.
Highlights included:
3 New Partnerships
Sponsored Virtual Competitions
Sponsored a number of unprecedented virtual competitions including F1 in Schools UK National Championship, which brought 34 teams and 500 students together.
F1 in Schools UK National Championship
34 Teams + 500 Students
How the PMI Melbourne Australia Chapter is Preparing Youth for The Project Economy
“Project management isn’t just a career, it’s a way to learn life lessons regardless of your age. The earlier these basic principles can be taught, the more beneficial they can be.”
Vikki Kapoor, PMP
Project Management for Life (PM4L) Founder and Vice President of the PMI Melbourne, Australia Chapter
Since 2014, the PMI Melbourne, Australia Chapter and PM4L have promoted project management as an important life skill, focusing on introducing project management to school-aged youth who can benefit immensely from learning core project management principles and incorporating them into everyday life, then applying this skill in a successful professional career.
“When I received the PMI Educational Foundation (PMIEF) scholarship, it completely transformed my life because what it did was provide me with the impetus and the resources to obtain a master's certificate, and that has equipped me with specific skills... All of life is a series of projects so it is of utmost importance to acquire the skills needed to navigate as early as possible. The earlier youth acquire project management skills, the better they will be able to apply those skills to the decisions they make in their personal and professional lives.”
– Akierah Binns shares the impact of project management on her life
“Project management is as critical to life as any of the STEM skills that are taught today. You can ask the same question and say, ‘Why teach science or mathematics?’ Project management is just as important.”
– Jim Snyder, Founder, PMI
PMI Thought Leadership
Throughout the year, PMI conducts extensive research and publishes thought leadership to keep our members informed of the latest trends in the profession - including notable projects and programs, and the people who drive them to success. PMI also launched a new Knowledge Initiative program focused on formalizing and giving voice to the collective intelligence of the PMI community.
The Diversity Dividend: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the PMI Community
“At the heart of the Project Management Institute is our volunteers; we call them our secret sauce. They reached out and asked, ‘what can we do?’ Our CEO, Sunil Prashara said, ‘we can do more.’ A group formed, our steering committee, and we decided ‘what does doing more mean to us?’ I knew as a black woman and a mother, I needed to raise my hand to lead that group. In leading this group we wanted to create spaces to have these conversations, but most importantly, we wanted to give youth opportunities.”
Otema Yirenkyi
Vice President Global Engagement & Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Steering Committee
In 2020, PMI launched a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I) committee to fulfill our pledge to do more as a global community to ensure justice and equality.
“In light of the recent incidents & otherwise, DE&I has become imperative for any global organization to thrive. PMI is in a unique position as a professional association to contribute to the cause. And it has, indeed, risen to the occasion through its prompt response and commitment. I really believe that the initiatives like building a DE&I group, a microsite, discussion forums, and more will help foster a more positive & truly inclusive work environment”
Sambhavi Ganguly
DE&I Champion, India Market Intel Analyst
Giving back to organizations focused on driving racial equality
Facilitating conversations on race
Expanded commitment to volunteering and mentoring
“Throughout 2020, I was very proud of PMI’s community of members, chapters, volunteers, organizations, employees and more. They were honest about what they were experiencing. They shared their highs and lows with us. A highlight has been our ongoing chapter leader chats, whereby chapter leaders shared how they were supporting their local communities during the pandemic, including ongoing professional development opportunities that helped practitioners obtain and maintain their PMI certifications, as well as support their mental and physical wellbeing through conversations and workshops.”
– Brantlee Underhill, Managing Director, North America
“I am proud of phenomenal work done by our teams for The New Work Ecosystem, a global and cross-functional campaign focused on new ways of working. It has put PMI’s leadership at the forefront amongst professionals and organizations during the pandemic period. The campaign was launched under the premises that our workplace was already in the middle of rapid, disruptive changes that Covid-19 was simply accelerating, and in parallel, the reskilling and upskilling for employees required in light of shifting customer demands, the technological evolution, and global socioeconomic volatility.”
– Kerman Kasad, Vice President, Global Communications & Brand
Make Reality
To bring the new PMI brand to life and demonstrate the critical role PMI and our members play in driving change in The Project Economy, PMI developed a new global brand building campaign called ‘Make Reality.’ This storytelling platform and multi-year campaign was created with the objective of raising brand awareness and shaping perception – positioning PMI as the organization that enables all change-makers to make ideas a reality.
Make Reality Stories: Anca Sluşanschi
Anca Sluşanschi, Practice Manager, Ministry of Education, New Zealand, shares information about the most inspiring project she has worked on for the New Zealand government.
PMI Recognized for Excellence
PMI was recognized with three Stevie Awards for excellence in communications and public relations in recognition of PMI's cross-functional New Work Ecosystem campaign. The campaign won gold for Communications/PR Campaign of the Year for Brand/Reputation Management, gold for Business to Business, and bronze for Most Valuable Corporate Response.
The campaign was designed to help professionals cultivate the skills and insights necessary to thrive amidst the upheaval of COVID-19 and other disruptive business trends.
Awards Won by PMI
PMI is shaping the world of project management — and being recognized for it! We are honored to share the awards that we've achieved throughout various channels within project management.
Awards and Recognition Granted to PMI, 2019-2020
PMI Dallas Chapter Surgical Masks Donation Collin County Schools
PMI chapters around the globe this year mobilized to help their communities respond to the challenges of the pandemic. As one example among many, the PMI Dallas Chapter partnered with Collin County Black Young Professionals to donate 4,000 surgical masks for the back-to-school season.
