The Critical Path

Hello my fellow community members! I don’t know about you, but I had to pinch myself to accept the fact that it’s already October 2020! I still remember posting the March 2020 blog in which I encouraged you to “March On” and Remain Strong! Wow, it’s now been seven months since that blog posting, and my plea remains the same. We have come this far and I implore you to keep the faith and not lose hope in continuing our journey while we live in this “new normal.” I’ve been reminiscing a lot during these times, mainly upon our live in-person PMI events that I so dearly miss. Can you believe it’s been one year since we celebrated PMI’s 50^th Anniversary during the North American Conference right here in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, revealing the new PMI logo?  What a great three days we shared! I truly miss getting together with our fellow PMI volunteers and community members (all of you!) during these isolated times. Our memories; however, from past events can offer so much for us to cling hold to – creating even more great memories for years to come!  So, what was your most favorite memory while attending any PMI sponsored event? Please enter your answers in the comments section below. As you ponder this question, take a moment to read the exciting activities happening here at PMI. I can’t wait to read your responses!

Join us virtually for our 2020 Annual Membership Meeting on Tuesday, 27 October 2020 at 9:30am ET. PMI Board of Directors Chair Tony Appleby, will preside. Come and hear about our work over the past year and help us welcome new and returning Directors and Committee members. Click here for more information and registration details.

Listen to PMI CEO, Sunil Prashara’s latest Unplugged Episode 22: Join us for Brightline Initiative’s Strategy@Work Conference. In this episode, executives and senior leaders are at the forefront of leading their organizations into the unknown future. Join us for Brightline Initiative’s Strategy@Work conference to unlock the truth about transformation.

Did you know that the PMI Project Management Ready is our newest certification that introduces high school and post-secondary students to the concepts and skillsets of project management? What a great initiative!! The PMI Project Management Ready certification presents the tools needed to apply this knowledge to a wide range of career paths, and to the student’s day to day activities. Click here to read more about this exciting offering.

Join us on 28 October at 12PM EDT for the inaugural Center Stage Podcast Club webinar, “Projects Disrupted: Innovation=Knowledge + Unlearning.” Thought leaders Larry Prusak, Barry O’Reilly, and Peter Temes will engage in a provocative exchange around the value of knowledge, the importance of learning continuously, and whether we sometimes need to unlearn existing mindsets or behaviors that may be limiting our ability to move forward through innovation. This webinar will challenge attendees to

• Further explore the concepts of knowledge, unlearning and innovation through a “future of work” lens.
• Explore the implications of these concepts for project work, project teams and project leaders.
• Consider how these concepts apply to how you will make reality through projects in the future.

Register now for the webinar, available at no cost and open to faculty and students. Prior to the event, attendees can listen to the Center Stage podcast episodes featuring Larry Prusak, Barry O’Reilly, and Peter Temes.

Our next “Discover PMI - Ask Us Anything!” webinar, Agile Insights: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Agile is scheduled for 30 October 2020 - 12:00 PM EDT. This series includes guest speakers, Alicia Burke, John Munro, Scott Ambler and Mark Lines discussing what’s happening in different industries and around the globe with respect to agile approaches and practices, successes and challenges. This webinar is open to both PMI members and non-members, translation, FREE to ALL! Folks can register at https://www.projectmanagement.com/webinars/656507/Agile-Insights--Everything-You-Ever-Wanted-to-Know-About-Agile-at-PMI. You definitely don’t want to miss this informative session!

That’s all for now, and we encourage you to check back for future updates within the Critical Path blog. Also, please remember to post your answer to the question posed above, I’m so looking forward to reading your comments! Thank you for all of your feedback and engagement, and keep up the good work!

                            

We would like to extend a big thank you to all who were able to join us on Friday, 18 September 2020 for our Ask the Expert Webinar Series - Agile for Rest of Us! We had an astounding record of 963 attendees that joined and engaged in such a lively discussion that it could have continued for another hour or two! So if you missed the live session, no worries, you can now watch it On-Demand at Ask the Expert Webinar Series – “Agile for Rest of Us”!

As a bonus, our presenters David Maynard and Kiron Bondale were gracious to answer the many questions during this hour-long session that could not be answered. This article contains a list of questions which were not answered during the live session along with feedback on each from Dave and Kiron.

Please reach out to to either Dave or Kiron should you have any additional questions that may not have been posted during the live session.

Thank you Dave and Kiron for such a wonderful and lively discussion!

PMI has partnered with TED, the non-profit dedicated to ideas worth spreading, to unlock institutional knowledge, identify thought-leaders, and showcase the best ideas within our community.

TED and PMI will bring inspiring ideas and powerful voices to the world of project management, empowering people to turn ideas into reality. This partnership is an immersive and impactful experience that has the power to create change, to shift perspectives and connect cultures across our diverse group of audiences.

Join us for FREE on 25 and 26 September 2020 for our virtual TED@PMI event.

Ask the Expert Webinar Series - Agile For Rest of Us - The Ask the Expert Webinar Series is an extension of the Ask the Expert Program offered at PMI® Global Conference. Each year, experts from the ProjectManagement.com community offer one-on-one sessions to conference attendees, acting as mentors, coaches, and sounding boards for Project Managers at varying stages of their careers and across industries. Gain access to these leading project management and industry experts through the Ask the Expert Webinar Series – ask your most pressing Project Management questions, seek career advice, and gain insights into industry trends. Join us on 18 September at 12 PM EDT and be prepared to pose questions to the experts!

The new Virtual Experience Series is in full swing! If you attended any of the series since its inception in July, we would love you which session(s) were your favorites, and why? And if case you haven’t yet registered, please visit here to sign up!  As a bonus, the September & November sessions are free to PMI members, so there’s no excuse not to register and earn PDUs!

SeminarsWorld® Virtual – 5-8 October: Join our expert SeminarsWorld^® instructors online to network and learn with your peers in small-group, topic-intensive seminars aligned with the PMI Talent Triangle^® while you earn up to 28+ PDUs and 2.8+ Continuing Education Units. Build your career with these real-time online project management courses. Join us and benefit from tools, templates, and tactics you can use right away.  SeminarsWorld® in October runs from 11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. EDT, but you can sign on early at 10:00 a.m. EDT and power up with a one-hour course. Register here: https://www.pmi.org/events/seminarsworld/seminarsworld-in-seattle

Did you know that graduates from GAC accredited programs now receive a major reduction in the experience requirement for all PMI certifications? The PMI Global Accreditation Center for Project Management Education Programs (GAC) is excited to announce that effective with the release of the new PMI certification application, graduates of a GAC accredited program are granted substantial credit toward the experience requirement when they complete an application for any PMI certification. This new benefit applies retroactively to the degree program’s initial accreditation date. Click here to see how this benefit applies to each PMI certification!

That’s all for now, and we encourage you to check back for future updates within the Critical Path blog. Thank you for all of your feedback and engagement, and keep up the good work!

PMI is committed to providing fair and equitable access to the support and resources needed by those working in the profession, regardless of (and not limited to) race, age, gender, or nationality.

Recently, PMI’s President and CEO, Sunil Prashara, issued a statement to the PMI community driving home our pledge to honoring diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) within the project management profession. You can read Sunil’s CEO pledge here.

As the world gets more and more complicated to traverse in such unprecedented times, we want to ensure that the voices of our global practitioner community are heard. We want to understand the challenges that you are facing and how you are (or are not) having conversations around DE&I within your workplaces and with your colleagues. We also want to know if you are helping to drive diversity, equity, and inclusion in your workplaces and communities. Our global community is home to some of the most passionate professionals I have ever had the chance to interact with, so we want to know your challenges and successes in this space.

We also want to understand how to support you as you have these conversations to ensure that they that will be productive and beneficial. Let us know in the comments below, or by email at [email protected], how you are approaching DE&I in your work life and/or communities.

Together, we will continue to be One Team. One Song. One Dance. One PMI.

Time is flying by and we’ve certainly been buzzing with activity around the community!  We hope those in the Northern Hemisphere have enjoyed the unseasonably hot summer we’ve had; and those in the Southern Hemisphere have enjoyed a cool winter! However, we do hope you and your families are faring well during this stressful time worldwide. I myself, could have never imagined living during a global pandemic in my lifetime. However, what brings me comfort, and hopefully you as well, is the recognition that WE are ALL in this together, and we will continue to thrive. Hope is the force to dispel all worries and apprehensions we face each and every day, so please keep the faith. Now, let’s see what circulating around the “virtual watercooler” here in our very own community!

Together We Rise – The second installment of the new Virtual Experience Series (VES)!  Learn what it takes to galvanize a community, practice agility daily and lead a global team from Trevor Noah, comedian, host of "The Daily Show", and the manager of many projects. Connect, collaborate and celebrate the impact of our industry. Hosted by journalist, talk show host, and Executive Producer Tamron Hall.  Additional information and registration here!  

PMIEF: Outcomes and Efficacy of PM Knowledgeable Youth Grant Making, 2012 – 2017 - The Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education (SCOPE) at Stanford University led a year-long external evaluation for the PMI Educational Foundation (PMIEF) to examine the foundation's work on behalf of youth-related initiatives from 2012 – 2017.  Join PMIEF to learn the findings of the SCOPE research and the recommendations it generated, especially as these data have helped support the foundation's current strategy and grant investments to strengthen the capacity and programming of youth-serving nonprofits worldwide. Register here for this free webinar!

Have you read the latest Pulse In-Depth: The Innovation Imperative report? PMI research reveals how organizations promote innovative practices that lead to investment in new ideas. Read the full report here.

Take advantage of the latest Unplugged videos with our very own CEO, Sunil Prashara? In addition to providing information about PMI’s ongoing efforts to provide value to its various stakeholders, this space enables you to contact Sunil directly with comments and suggestions. We encourage you to check back frequently for updates and additional information. Sunil’s communications are available in various formats based on the most expedient way to tell the story and share the content with you. Check out the latest episode here.  

Success Story: "Disciplined Agile Changes Everything" - See how Karen Lewis, Vice President, IT at global investment firm Franklin Templeton used Disciplined Agile to increase quality, speed to market AND customer satisfaction.

Interested in Volunteering? There are volunteer opportunities available for everyone no matter how much time you have or whether you want to be involved at a local, national, or global level. Get Involved with these PMI Opportunities!

Types of volunteer opportunities include:

• Contribute to the development of professional standards that shape the future of the profession
• Manage local PMI chapters
• Influence the profession by writing and publishing white papers and reviewing project management manuals, books and periodicals
• Help younger professionals build experience and grow their careers

That’s all for now, and we encourage you to check back for future updates within the Critical Path blog. Again, stay safe and keep being the great members you are! Thank you for all of your feedback and engagement, and keep up the good work!

Also, if you feel so inclined, tell us what new skills or hobbies you’ve developed while the majority of us are indefinitely working from home. We would love to hear all about the creative side you may never knew you had!

Be well my friends!