The Critical Path

Happy New Year, everyone!

Can you believe we're already in 2019? While I haven't had any trouble writing it, my brain is still having some trouble making the transition. One thing I decided to do this year was not make resolutions, but set goals for myself with individual start and end dates that have nothing to do with the beginning or end of a new year. I think if you're going to resolve to do something, why wait? That said, what goals have you set for yourself this year? Is there a big project you're looking to kickoff or finish up? Are you looking to enhance your project management skill set? Tell us in the comments below so we can support you! In the meantime, here's your January News You Can Use:

PMI® EMEA Congress: Registration is now open for PMI EMEA Congress! This year's event will be held in Dublin, Ireland 13-15 May 2019 and you can take advantage of early bird rates through 20 February! For more information and to register, visit the information page on PMI.org. We hope to see you there!

50 hours to rebuild a railroad bridge…and the schedule was for 96 hours! A story linked from PM Port tells how a design-build team demolished the old bridge, located in Columbus, Indiana, USA, and slid in a new bridge. Innovative planning and design facilitated the project, as did use of rapid bridge replacement construction techniques. The team overcame challenges such as unexpected ground conditions and the need to raise the bottom of the new bridge above the flood plain. Find interesting articles like this as well as trends news you can use on PM Port, PMI’s news service.

PODCASTS! Now that I have your attention: Did you know that you can listen to podcasts from community experts right here on ProjectManagement.com? That's right! You can take advantage of short form content to listen to during your commute or on your lunch break. You can find community podcasts here. And don't forget about Projectifed with PMI! Take a few moments to expand your knowledge and sharpen your skills!

Can a PM be an Agile Coach? That's the question Stelian Roman is asking of his fellow practitioners. There's a robust conversation happening around this topic, so jump into the discussion!

We hope 2019 has started off great for you all and that it's just the beginning of what's to come. As always, if you have any questions regarding this month's news (or any questions in general) feel free to reach out to any of the Community Engagement Specialists. We're here to help!

See you next month!

We have recently discovered technical issues with our webinar platform that require that we temporarily reduce the room size for live webinars to allow us to address these concerns without interruption to the webinar program on ProjectManagement.com. Effective immediately, webinar attendance for live webinars will temporarily be limited to the first 1,000 attendees. After the attendance limit has been reached, members will not be able to login to the live webinar and must watch on-demand once the recorded webinar is available.

Please be assured that attendees who are not able to join the live webinar will be able to view the session on-demand as you always have. This change will not affect on-demand viewing or PDU reporting for these webinars.

We apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate your patience as we work to resolve this issue. We will update the community as soon as we have more information to share.

Thank you,

Marjorie

As I sit and look back over the year that we've had, I'm always amazed at what a community can accomplish. The level of expertise and knowledge held within this online community never ceases to amaze me. We have a lot of people that come through our virtual doors. Some come, take what they need, and then go. Some stay around for a while. Some take the time to build relationships, strengthen their professional muscle, and make it easier for those who enter the community to find their way around. All of those interactions hold an immense amount of value and are important to the ongoing growth and maturity of online communities.

Each and every one of you has played a part in our evolution. Yes, we've made some updates to the site making it easier to navigate. We continue to build upon the user experience and interface. We have made some tweaks to make it easier to highlight your expertise. But it's important to remember that none of this would have been possible without your feedback, your passion for the profession, and your passion for this online community. 

While this is just one of the many ways you can engage with PMI, we hope that it has helped to connect you with what you need, when you need it, and how you need it. Whether it's asking a question in the discussion threads, connecting you to your local chapter, or helping you find thought leadership content that helps you drive your projects forward, it is YOU that drives us, as an organization, to create the experiences that will help you be more successful.

There is a quote by Coretta Scott King that reads "the greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members." The very nature of the way you help one another (be that through answering questions or contributing your own content) shows your dedication to each other's success and the success of the profession as a whole. And I have to say, seeing that all come together has to be one of the best parts of my job. 

We're working on some really great things for you in 2019 and we'll keep you updated as those things develop.

In the meantime, enjoy the holidays and thank you for your continued support of PMI's online community. We could not do this work without you.

All the best,

Marjorie 

Each year, PMI awards grants of up to US$50,000 per project to support research with themes and perspectives that have direct application to the theory and/or practice of project management.

For 2019, PMI has awarded four Sponsored Research Grants:

1. Project Title: Knowing when to embrace ambiguity and when to fear it: developing the ability to manage uncertainty in project managers
   Investigators: Anna Wiewiora (principal investigator) and Peter O'Connor
   Affiliation: Queensland University of Technology, Australia
2. Project Title: Harnessing Social Capital with Community Stakeholders in Infrastructure Projects
   Investigators: Suresh Cuganesan (principal investigator), Kenneth Chung, and Pernille Eskerod
   Affiliation: The University of Sydney, Australia
3. Project Title: Project Organizing for Tackling Grand Challenges in Emergent Markets
   Investigator: Nuno Gil (principal investigator)
   Affiliation: Manchester Business School, United Kingdom
4. Project Title: P3M Implementation Framework for Grand Challenges Policies: The Case of Climate Change Mitigation Infrastructure
   Investigators: Vedran Zerjav (principal investigator), Efrosyni Konstantinou, Kate Gasparro
   Affiliation: University College London, United Kingdom

Congratulations to this year’s grant recipients! The next Sponsored Research Program grant funding cycle opens 1 February 2019 for funding in 2020. To learn more about the PMI Sponsored Research Program, visit pmi.org/SponsoredResearch.

On this global day of giving, we are grateful for people like you who choose to support our mission to promote Project Management for Social Good®. We are focused on working together to help create a better future for people and communities around the world, especially our youth, by leveraging the power of project management. So, how would your gift make a difference?

This year, support from donors has helped PMIEF:

1. Work with nonprofits to help some of our most vulnerable youth
2. Supply project management scholarships and awards
3. Bring PM education to communities around the world
4. Work with nonprofits to support people with disabilities
5. Engage with organizations supporting women’s efforts to provide better lives for their families and communities

A gift to PMIEF of just $25 by year-end will have a ripple effect on people and communities around the world. Together we’ll change the world, one project at a time!