August Book Club

 

August Book Club

We are excited to announce the ProjectManagement.com August book club! The book club provides an opportunity to participate in webinars and discussions around selected books relevant to the overall practice of project management. The book club occurs in three parts:

1. Opening pre-recorded webinar which will be used to introduce the book. During this 30 minute pre-recorded webinar, the author will provide a high level overview of the concepts in his/her book, familiarizing participants with the information.
2. Discussion thread on ProjectManagement.com with input from the book club host and author. During the last week of the discussion, questions will be collected to present to the author in the closing webinar.
3. Closing Q&A live webinar with the author responding to questions submitted both through the online book club discussion thread and during the webinar. The webinar will be a panel style discussion with open dialogue between the moderator and the author.

The first 25 PMI members registered for the closing book club webinar will receive a complimentary copy of the book and will be notified via email. Additional participants will have the opportunity to purchase a copy of the book at their own expense. 

All community members will be able to view the book club opening webinar and participate in the discussion forum. We will evaluate the content of each opening and closing book club webinar to determine the eligibility and breakdown for PDUs.   

Our book club book for August is Project Risk Management: A Practical Implementation Approach by Michael M. Bissonette

Mike Bissonette is a seasoned business executive, entrepreneur, adjunct professor, training consultant and author.  He has over 37 years of research and development experience within several industries (i.e., Aerospace, Commercial Electronics, Industrial Equipment and Services, Clean Technology, IT and SaaS), and has led the development of a myriad of products and services.  Mike began his professional career as a radar system engineer and progressed into several technical and project/program/portfolio manager roles.  His experience spans Fortune 500 companies and small start-up companies.  He has held executive level positions over many functional disciplines, including: Project Management Offices, Engineering, Operations, Procurement, Product Management, and Quality Assurance.  He has also held the position of division General Manager (SVP and Officer) of a public company.

Mike co-founded RTConfidence, Inc. (a company that is developing and innovative cloud-based management system which contains specialized IP, including Machine Learning technology), and Build2Scale, Inc. (a company that works with start-ups and young companies seeking investment and accelerated growth).

Mike is a certified PfMP® (Portfolio Management Professional), an EIR (Expert in Residence) at UC Irvine’s Applied Innovation Center, and currently teaches a blended (both in-person and on-line) class in Clarkson University’s MS in Engineering Management curriculum, entitled “Strategic Project Management.”

Mike is considered a thought leader in certain industries, has spoken at numerous events, and has taught many project management and product development related courses.  His unique professional experience has afforded Mike a broad and diverse perspective of project management and what it takes to be a successful project manager, not to mention, what it takes to be a successful company in this ever-changing, highly competitive, global marketplace.  He published a text book “Project Risk Management: A Practical Implementation Approach” through the Project Management Institute (PMI®) and has contributed to PMI’s recently released PMBOK® (Project Management Body of Knowledge) Guide, Sixth Edition, and The Standard for Portfolio Management, Fourth Edition. 

Mike holds a BSEE degree from Clarkson University, a MSEE from CSU, Long Beach, and an MBA from UC, Irvine.   

Mike is a volunteer in probation at juvenile detention facilities (in Orange County, CA), is a sports enthusiast, enjoys oil-painting, is married, has four children, and lives in Southern California.

About the book:

It’s not exactly news that putting the concepts of risk management into action can help make a project more successful. In fact, a solid understanding of risk management is a vital component of any project management professional’s training, regardless of the industry in which he or she might work. In today’s fast-paced, constantly changing, and extremely competitive environment, risk management is more important than ever for businesses hoping to find their footing in the global market.

In Project Risk Management: A Practical Implementation Approach, author Michael M. Bissonette not only provides insights into the best ways to implement the traditional techniques of risk management, but also explores innovative new methods that can help modern organizations build their culture, improve financial performance, and ultimately achieve greater success in all of their projects.

Our August book club host is David Maynard, PMP. Dave is a native New Yorker who after graduation from engineering school from the State University of New York, traveled to Houston to work for NASA at the Johnson Spacecraft Center for many years.

He gradually gained responsibilities and participated in the Shuttle avionics architecture design, the “glass cockpit” development and in crew training. Incrementally David’s level of responsibility increased, and he became a Senior Engineer, Project Engineer, a Project Manager and Program Manager. David then moved to the Space Operations and Planning Complex (SOPC) where he again participating in overall technical design efforts.

After leaving NASA, Mr. Maynard was asked to become the General Manager of Systems Management Inc. (SMI) in Orlando whose mission was to turn-around troubled projects, programs or operations. Mr. Maynard left SMI for another attempt at retirement.

David now teaches at Purdue University in Indiana, is active the PMI-Northeast Indiana Chapter and volunteers for PMI in various capacities.

To register for the closing live book club webinar, please visit the webinar page on ProjectManagement.com, find the book club closing webinar and click on the “Register for this webinar” link.

Please visit the book club information and discussion on the Project Management.com books page. 

For additional questions, please visit the ProjectManagement.com Book Club FAQ page.