The Critical Path

With the holidays approaching, I thought it would be nice this month to focus on our community as a whole rather than a particular "Member of the Month." While the community has grown by leaps and bounds, we've managed to remain approachable and welcoming to members who come for support and connections.

But it's YOU (yes, I mean *you*) who helps keep the community valuable, professional, and neighborly. Without your participation, the community wouldn't be where it is today - and we wouldn't be able to continue to grow and improve. The community team is so thankful that you continue to post, answer questions, submit content, and participate in webinars. Your dedication to growing the project management profession as a whole is reflected in the community. 

Photo by WoodleyWonderWorks via Flickr at https://flic.kr/p/8fzSe1

And so, in the spirit of reflection and gratitude, I'd like the #ThankItForward to each and every one of you. I encourage you to look around the community and find a member you would like to "ThankItForward." Is there a member who answered one of your questions? Or a member who presented a webinar which you found especially useful? Perhaps there's a blog post you truly enjoyed reading? Did someone inspire you?

So tell us - leave a comment below thanking a fellow community member (or members!) for his or her efforts. Let's inspire one another to reflect and #ThankItForward to those who helped us become better at what we do.

We’re excited to bring you some new functionality to the community. You may have noticed that our discussion boards have changed a bit. Here’s what we’ve accomplished so far:

• New “Up Vote” – an easy way to show your appreciation of a post. Just click on the arrow next to “Up Vote” and give the author kudos for contributing to the community!
• Active Links - We now have automatically-generated links in the Discussion threads! This makes it easier to post a link. Just be sure to follow the community rules around link posting.
• Time Stamps - New time stamps for posts and comments! Now you can easily see when the post was entered and if or when it was updated. You may see “updated by moderator” appear in some posts. This means that one of the community engagement specialists edited the post to comply with user guidelines or to clarify a title/language.
• Podcast Page – Looking for podcasts on project management? Check out the new Podcast Page for a curation of some community member podcasts.

Discussion Board Round-Up

Check out the Project Management Central forum board and find out what the community is saying on a variety of hot topics!

• Is risk management being properly utilized?
• Can you apply agile methodologies to all projects?
• PMP self-study . . . where do I begin?

Have an opinion of your own? Help out a fellow project manager and weigh in on these posts that need answers!

• What are you working on?
• What is your strategy for negative cash flow projects?
• What are the 5 best books for a new project manager

Stay tuned for more updates and featured community activity!

Welcome to today's Open House - It's BA, All Day! We're excited to open up our community today to all project managers around the world to talk about business analysis and connect members to valuable resources and knowledge. Here's what's on the agenda:

Two Amazing (and Free!) Templates:

• Download this valuable worksheet from expert Richard Larson, President and Founder of Watermark Learning - perfect for project managers who are interested in obtaining the PMI-PBA certification.
• Interested in managing risk requirements more effectively? Then make sure you download this template created by expert Cheryl Lee, Business Analysis & Project Management Consultant & Instructor.

Two Free Webinars (great way to earn PDUs!)

• (RESCHEDULED TBD): Richard Larson presents PMI-PBA: From "What Is It?" to "I Did It!". Join us for an overview on PMI-PBA® certification. Attendees will come away with a clear idea of what the exam covers, and tips for applying for, preparing for, and passing the exam. A special focus is on how the PBA exam maps to the PMP to show candidates how to apply their existing knowledge to the new certification. 
• 5:00 PM ET: Cheryl Lee presents Uncover Gaps in Your Requirements Using Requirements Risk Management Techniques. This interactive session will explore the hand-offs between project and requirements risk and arm attendees with information to begin addressing the #2 reason of why projects fail – inaccurate requirements - immediately within their workplace using requirements risk management techniques.

One (1) PDU will automatically be reported for PMI credential holders who view either the live or recorded version of this webinar. Please allow 10-14 business days for processing. 

Please note: Pre-registration does not guarantee access. Our webinars are on a first come, first serve basis with a maximum room capacity of 1500 attendees. These webinars will be recorded and available On-Demand within 48 hours.

 More Free Resources Unlocked!

Our premium content is reserved for PMI members and ProjectManagement.com premium members.  To celebrate today's Open House, we've unlocked the following resources and webinars for a limited time! Get started on downloading these resources and watching webinars on Business Analysis (free PDU alert!) here:

• Strategic Requirements Template
• Requirements Gathering Guidelines and Checklists
• System Requirements Specification
• Requirements Management Plan
• Effective PM-BA Role Collaboration (webinar)
• Relationship Between the PM and BA (webinar)
• Business Requirements Techniques for Delivering Value While Controlling Scope (webinar)
• What's Hot  and What's Not: Trends in Business Analysis (webinar)
• Forward Thinking for Tomorrow's Projects - Requirements for Business Analytics (webinar)
• Requirements Definition - Project and Outcome Success Drivers, PMI's Road Map (webinar)
• EMEA Congress Highlights - Business Analysis and Requirements Management (webinar)
• Requirements Toolkit: Top Models for Complete Requirements (webinar)
• PMXPO 2015: PMI's Annual Pulse of the Profession: An In-Depth Look at Requirements Management (webinar)

First Ever PMI Business Analysis Virtual Conference 2015

• What: This all-day virtual event is designed for business analysts in all industries—and it’s absolutely free! It’s the only event where you’ll find the world’s expert BA and agile speakers together—with live Q&A. You’ll have the opportunity to engage with industry experts while earning up to six (6) free PDUs.
• When: TOMORROW! 4 November 2015 from 8:30 AM ET to 4:45 PM ET.
• Where: From the comfort of your own home or office! Register now at PMI BA Virtual Conference.

Amazing Giveaways (sorry, open to US residents only)

If you're interested in learning more about business analysis, are preparing to take the exam, or just like to win prizes, make sure you enter our giveaway below by Monday, November 9, 2015, 12:00 AM ET.  To celebrate today's open house, we're giving away the following prizes:

• One (1) PMI-PBA Study Guide by Richard and Elizabeth Larson of Watermark Learning. Covering all five domains of business analysis knowledge in depth, this guide provides the structure and explanation you need to comprehend and absorb that knowledge. Retail value $69.00

• Two winners will receive one (1) 30-day subscriptions to Watermark Learning's PBA Online Study Exam. A 3-in-1 tool that lets you warm-up, drill on each domain, and take unlimited exam simulations. Practice on realistic exam questions to help prepare for the PMI-PBA exam. Retail value $99.00!

• PMI-PBA Study Tables by Watermark Learning. These colorful, robust tables are designed for independent study or for use with study groups or training classes. They also are a valuable aid on the job as a quick-reference resource. Retail value $27.00. 


• Three (3) winners will receive one (1) signed copy of "Project Pain Reliever) by Dave Garrett, founder of ProjectManagement.com. Retail value $49.95.
• Three (3) winners will receive this handy spiral bound notebook that can hold your business cards and a pen. Perfect for taking notes! Retail value $3.00.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

So, who out there is going to #PMIcongress this year?

The community team is especially excited for this year's conference because we've changed things up a bit. While we knew that we needed to use our exhibit space to encourage Congress attendees to register and get involved on ProjectManagement.com, we also really wanted to show just how close-knit we are as a community.

So, we decided to bring some of the community to Congress. This year, nine of our most active community members (Gina Abudi, Mike Adams, Naomi Caietti, Dan Furlong, Bruce Harpham, Dave Maynard, Priya Patra, Beth Spriggs, and Michelle Stronach) will be live and in person, sharing their knowledge in the ProjectManagement.com "Ask an Expert" sessions. Attendees can sign up for 15 minute one on one sessions with a project management expert and get questions answered, get advice, support, brainstorm and more. Spaces are limited, so it's on a first come, first serve basis. We'll have a sign up sheet at the ProjectManagement.com booth beginning Sunday evening. Don't miss out on this chance to get expert advice and guidance - whether it's for a project problem/issue, figuring out the next step in your career, or anything project related. Even if you miss out on signing up for a one on one session with one of our experts, they'll be easy to find at the conference because they'll be wearing black shirts that say "Subject Matter Expert" - be sure to stop them and introduce yourself.

Our experts will also be leading more "freestyle" type group discussions to help bring the project management community together to discuss hot topics.We'll be collecting group discussion ideas throughout the conference and it's a great opportunity to weigh in on a topic or issue you feel passionately about.

The Community Engagement Specialists will also be on deck to help attendees with creating profiles, setting up accounts, and showing them how to get more involved in the online community. Even if you are already an active member, please stop by and introduce yourself - we'd love to meet you in person! And for those of you who can't make it this year, don't miss out on our blog post and social updates. We'll be sharing the experience in the online community and on Twitter and Instagram using hashtag #PMIcongress. 

Looking forward to chatting community!

Beth Spriggs,PMP is the Vice President of Technology for Leadership for Educational Equity (LEE). She's contributed some amazing webinars to the community and will be speaking at our virtual Information Systems Technology Symposium on 30 September 2015!

1.  How did you get involved in project management?

I was working for a very small nonprofit association as a one-woman IT department. During that time I got a lot of tech exposure including managing servers, the website, databases, hardware, budget, vendors, events, and marketing. Amongst that was a lot of IT project management. I then realized I could take my career in one of two directions, either systems administration or project management. I really enjoyed and had a skill for planning, communications, user adoption, and the personal factor of project management so I was naturally drawn in that direction and focused my career on IT project management.

2.  Who or what inspires you to be the best project manager you can be?

My team inspires me. They are an amazing group to work with, and I encourage all of them to develop their project management skills. I do my best to lead by example, so they are my source of inspiration.

3.  What is one thing you wished you'd known when you first started out in project management?

I wish I had an appreciation for the value of humor and having fun while doing the work. When I first started I think I took myself too seriously and was missing the fun part of project management. In truth, it stifled my creativity and ability to think outside the box when problem solving. Now I try to have lots of laughs while working hard.

4.  You’ve come to the realization that an important project you are currently managing is going to be a massive failure. Somehow, every red flag has been missed or ignored and it’s far too late in the game to turn things around. Maybe you inherited the mess, maybe you’re the cause of the failure, or maybe it’s just the way things turned out and there’s nothing you could have done to prevent it. What 3 types of things will you do, mentally, physically, or even spiritually, to cope until the project is over?

1. Laugh – find humor anywhere I can
2. Empathize with others sharing in my struggle
3. Update my resume (personal risk management

Please introduce yourself to Beth below in the comments and add her to your network. Is there a community member who you think deserves some recognition for their contributions to the community? Let us know! Email the member’s name and a brief explanation as to why you think he/she should be featured in our Member of the Month to [email protected].