The Critical Path

As a follow-up to an earlier post, we have officially migrated our webinar platform from Webex to Zoom! Going forward, all live webinars will take place on the Zoom platform. Due to this change and to ensure an enjoyable viewing experience on Zoom, we have outlined some important information in the below FAQs.

1. What Zoom features will be enabled for live webinars? 

Chat and Q&A will be enabled when live webinars are switched over to Zoom in January 2022. Questions for the presenter will need to be entered into the Q&A panel in order for the presenter to see them.

2. How will users access webinars when the cutover to Zoom is complete?

The way in which users access webinars on ProjectManagement.com will not change with the transition from Webex to Zoom. Logged-in users should go to the relevant page on ProjectManagement.com for the live webinar and click “Join this webinar.” Users will continue to be able to join a webinar 15 minutes prior to the scheduled start time. The link to the webinar page on ProjectManagement.com can be found in confirmation and reminder emails as well as the calendar invitation.

3. Now that Zoom is being used for live webinars, do I need to take any action?

Necessary action on the part of the user is limited, as you will join live webinars in the same way that you do now – from a ProjectManagement.com webpage while logged into the site. When you join a webinar from ProjectManagement.com, Zoom will launch. Similar to other webinar platforms, you may need to install the Zoom application or add-in if you have never used Zoom before on your device. You will also need to connect audio (via computer or phone) in order to hear the presentation.

4. Where can I find technical help with Zoom?

For technical assistance with Zoom, you may go to the Help Center for Users & Participants on Zoom’s website.

5. Why is ProjectManagement.com now using Zoom for live webinars instead of Webex?

On ProjectManagement.com, we aim to provide the best viewing experience for community members and to support our speakers in delivering high quality webinars – switching to Zoom for live webinars is an important step forward in doing so! We look forward to your continued participation in ProjectManagement.com webinars and appreciate your patience during the transition period to Zoom!

6. Can community members continue to submit webinar proposals?

Yes, ProjectManagement.com will continue to accept and process webinar proposals. Interested community members should continue to submit their proposal via the “Propose a Webinar” form (additional information and the online form can be found here). To allow time for the transition to Zoom, webinars will be scheduled from 17 January 2022 onwards.

7. Will ProjectManagement.com webinars continue to be posted on-demand?

Yes, webinars will continue to be recorded and then posted as on-demand videos.

8. Will webinar capacity change?

For now, webinar capacity will remain capped at 2,000 people.

9. Now that webinars are hosted via Zoom, will PDUs continue to be reported to PMI as they are earned by viewers?

We will continue to report PDUs on behalf of PMI credential holders for both the live and on-demand sessions, unless otherwise indicated on the webinar page (for instance, non-PDU bearing webinars).

To facilitate automatic reporting of PDUs, please make sure that you are not already logged into Zoom on your device. In the event that the email address that you use for Zoom is different than the one that you use for ProjectManagement.com, our system will not recognize you in order to report PDUs on your behalf. Logging out of Zoom before accessing ProjectManagement.com and joining a live webinar will prevent this issue from occurring. 

10. The mobile experience was not supported with Webex. Will this change when webinars switch to the Zoom platform?

A mobile experience was not supported with Webex because the Webex mobile app was not able to authenticate PMI member information from ProjectManagement.com when entering the platform. This presented issues for verification of membership status to view webinars and automatic reporting of PDUs. The ProjectManagement.com team is currently investigating ways to enable a mobile viewing experience for live webinars with Zoom.

In the meantime, you should continue to watch live webinars from a computer to ensure proper access and automatic reporting of PDUs to CCRS. We'll provide an update on mobile functionality as soon as one is available!

If you have any questions about viewing a live or on-demand webinar, please reach out to us, and we'll be happy to help. We’re looking forward to continuing to bring you exciting webinar content in 2022 and beyond!

Photo by J. Kelly Brito on Unsplash

2022 is off to an exciting start in PMI’s online community! In order to improve the user experience for webinar participants, we are making a change to the way in which you view ProjectManagement.com webinars. Starting in January 2022, we will move from the Webex platform to Zoom to deliver all live webinars on ProjectManagement.com.

What does this change mean for you? The platform used to host, present, and view live webinars will be different, but you will still experience the same great project management content! The Chat and Q&A windows will be available in Zoom; you will be able to choose whether or not you see that information as you're watching the webinar (by minimizing or expanding the windows). And, yes, we will still automatically report PDUs on behalf of PMI credential holders.

In the upcoming weeks, we will post more information regarding the switch to the Zoom platform, including FAQs, to The Critical Path blog.

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to the Community team! We are looking forward to an improved webinar experience and hope you're as excited about this update as we are!

In an important step for PMI’s digital community transformation, all community members will access ProjectManagement.com with their PMI.org account credentials going forward. There will no longer be a separate ProjectManagement.com and PMI.org login, simplifying access across sites. With this change, the option to access the online community with your ProjectManagement.com or Facebook credentials will be sunset.

Beginning 18 February 2021, when you click Login on ProjectManagement.com, you will be directed to the PMI.org login screen. Once you have entered your username or email and your password, you will be brought back to ProjectManagement.com.

Prior to this change, many community members already had a PMI.org account; please utilize your existing PMI.org credentials to login to ProjectManagement.com. For those users who did not create a PMI.org account and/or link an existing PMI.org account to their ProjectManagement.com account, you will need to set a new password and security question the next time that you attempt to access ProjectManagement.com. An email will be sent to any affected users on February 18th.  

We are excited for what the future holds for PMI’s online community and look forward to hearing your feedback, as the new community experience evolves! Please see below for answers to potential questions arising from this update. If you are in need of further assistance, please reach out to [email protected]. 

FAQ – Can I login utilizing my email address instead of username?

Yes, you may utilize your email address or username to login.  

FAQ – Why do I now have a PMI account?

This action was taken in preparation for PMI’s upcoming community transformation. The new community experience will be fully integrated with PMI.org, eventually allowing you to manage and update your profile in a single location. For that reason, a PMI.org account has been created for users who had not yet created an account and/or linked an existing PMI.org account to their ProjectManagement.com account. Going forward, all community members will access ProjectManagement.com using their PMI account credentials.

FAQ – Why do I need to set a new password?

Only users who did not have a PMI.org account previously need to set a new password; affected users will be prompted to do so the first time that they attempt to access ProjectManagement.com following the change to the login. Going forward, you will access ProjectManagement.com with your PMI account credentials, rather than a separate login.

FAQ – I am attempting to set my password, but I cannot locate the email to verify my email address and finish setting a password. Could you please resend the email?

Password reset is only relevant to community members who did not previously have a PMI.org account. To trigger a verification email to your email address, please attempt to Login to ProjectManagement.com. Go to ProjectManagement.com, and click Login. Enter your username or email address and any password, and click Log In. This will send the email to the email address that is on file for your account; please check any spam folders if the email is not showing up in your Inbox. Open the email, and click the link to set your new password and the answer to a security question. Going forward, you will access ProjectManagement.com with these PMI account credentials. If an outdated email address is reflected on your account, please note that the email address can be updated by Customer Care.

FAQ – What are the implications of having a PMI.org account?

You will now access ProjectManagement.com using your PMI account credentials, simplifying login across PMI’s sites. The upcoming community experience will be fully integrated with PMI.org, eventually allowing you to manage and update your profile in a single location. More information to come!

The Academic & Research Achievement Awards recognize individuals, groups and published works that significantly advanced the concepts, knowledge and practices of project, program and portfolio management.

We are happy to announce the 2020 award winners.

The PMI Linn Stuckenbruck Teaching Excellence Award recognizes and honors an individual faculty member for excellence in teaching project management, and for their strong commitment to improving and enhancing project management curricula in higher education.

The winner of the 2020 PMI Linn Stuckenbruck Teaching Excellence Award is Callum Robert Kidd

Callum has been at the forefront of Project Management education for over 20 years at the University of Manchester. He has been a significant part of the success story of many highly innovative initiatives such as the groundbreaking Project Management Professional Development Program (PMPDP) and the launch of the joint MSc Project Management initiative with Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore. His development of the PM-PAL (peer assisted learning) project was twice awarded funding from the Deans Teaching and Learning Awards in the Faculty of Engineering and Science at Manchester. He continues to innovate on programs at both undergraduate and postgraduate level, and in his new role as Head of Education for the Engineering and Project Management Discipline, has the task of setting the longer-term strategy for PM course delivery across the Faculty of Engineering and Science. “I feel incredibly honored in being chosen to be the 2020 recipient of the PMI Linn Stuckenbruck Teaching Excellence award. To be rewarded for doing something that you passionately enjoy doing always comes as a great surprise, and I thank the Project Management Institute for continuing to champion project management education around the globe,” says Callum Kidd.

The PMI Research Achievement Award recognizes and honors an individual or group of individuals whose work has significantly advanced the concepts, knowledge, and practices of project management through a published body of academic research.

The winner of the 2020 PMI Research Achievement Award is Professor Monique Aubry, PHD, MPM

Monique Aubry, Ph.D., is an associate professor at the School of Business and Management, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM). Now retired from full professorship, she pursues her research on two main topics: the development of megaprojects and organizing for projects. The results of her work have been published in major academic journals in project management and presented at several research and professional conferences. She founded the Lab for Transfer on Innovative Practices in Project Context and serves now as the director of the scientific committee. She is also a research member of the ESG UQAM Project Management Center and the UQAM’s Health and Society Institute. “This Research Achievement Award has several meanings to me. First, I am proud for the recognition of my research to the advancement of project studies. I feel this pride not only for me, but also more importantly for my colleagues involved in the project management program at UQAM and students. Second, this is a wish at the same time as a meaning; it signals encouragement to embark strongly in research”, shared Professor Aubry.

The PMI David I. Cleland Project Management Literature Award recognizes the author(s) of a published book that significantly advances project management knowledge, concepts, and practice.

The winners of the 2020 PMI David I. Cleland Project Management Literature Award are Professor Ofer Zwikael and John R Smyrk, for the book “Project Management: A Benefit Realisation Approach”.

Ofer Zwikael is Professor of Management and Director of the Research School of Management at the Australian National University. Ofer’s research broadly focuses on project benefits management and has been published in a number of books and leading journals. Ofer’s research excellence has been recognized in several ways including receiving multiple research awards by the Academy of Management, British Academy of Management, International Project Management Association, Emerald and the Australian Institute of Project Management. Ofer has held leadership roles such as Associate Dean and Associate Editor for the International Journal of Project Management. He has led, trained, mentored and consulted projects and program groups in dozens of organizations. “I fell in love with projects by observation, engagement and participation when working as a project team member. I then learned more about projects in practice, as well as in academia. It is hence a great honor and privilege to be able to share this knowledge and experience with the project management community. I hope that the book will contribute to the education of a new generation of successful project managers who will make a difference to their organizations and our society. I would like to thank PMI for this recognition and their continuous support of the project management community”, says Professor Zwikael.

John Smyrk worked for many years as a senior advisor on significant projects in Australia and across Asia.  These covered a variety of settings including: heavy engineering, industrial processing, business, government and infrastructure. John taught project management on postgraduate programs at a number of Universities for over 25 years and played an active role in various project management research programs resulting in a number of published papers. “Winning this award represents an acknowledgement and acceptance by the project management profession of the (often radical) ideas to emerge from many years of challenging conventional wisdom,” says John Smyrk.

It is with sadness that we share that Mr. Smyrk passed away subsequent to the publication of this article. 

The PMI Project Management Journal® Paper of the Year Award recognizes the best paper published in the Project Management Journal in the previous year.

The 2020 PMI Project Management Journal® Paper of the Year Award winning paper is “How Digital Information Transforms Project Delivery Models” by Professor Jennifer Whyte

Jennifer Whyte is a Professor at Imperial College London, and holds the Royal Academy of Engineering and Laing O’Rourke Chair in Systems Integration. Her research is on the delivery of major infrastructure projects, and on the integration of systems, modular and digital delivery strategies. Her work is published in leading international journals including Project Management Journal, International Journal of Project Management, Organization Studies and Research Policy. As a member of Construction Leadership Council in the UK, she has strong links to industry and policy, giving advice based on her research. She has been visiting faculty at Stanford and is Co-Director of the Centre for Systems Engineering and Innovation at Imperial College London. “I’m delighted to win the 2020 PMI Project Management Journal® Paper of the Year Award. It is great that the committee recognize the work on How Digital Information Transforms Project Delivery Models. It is an honor to be part of this Project Management Journal Special Issue on Project Delivery Models. I feel passionately about research on projects, and am deeply honored to join such a distinguished set of best paper award winners” shares Professor Whyte.

Congratulations to these 2020 PMI Research & Academic Award winners!

How did you become a project manager? Chances are you “stumbled into it” in the course of your job, but now it’s become your career.

As we move through this uncertain time and into what the future holds, project managers will continue to be in high demand as corporate and government entities plan projects to adapt to new ways of working and living. That’s why its more important than ever to understand how PMs become PMs, and how they progress in their career paths.

The latest issue of the Project Management Journal takes a close look at project management careers. It features research that identifies how project managers enter into, and progress within, the profession. The journal is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by the Project Management Institute (PMI). 

The April 2020 issue of the journal opens with what we know about the project management career path, and why we need to know more. Project manager careers are often accidental, cross-occupational, and eclectic. Building our knowledge helps PMs plot more productive and satisfying career paths, and helps organizations foster their talent in order to benefit from more successful projects. This opening editorial is open access, which means it is available for anyone to read.

Articles in the issue investigate: the benefits of integrating project management with career studies; students’ readiness for project work; graduates’ readiness for project work; project manager competencies; factors that predict career success among project managers; and factors that stall careers. If you’re a member of PMI, access to all content in the journal is a benefit of your membership. Many universities and other academic institutions also have subscriptions to the journal.

You can find this special careers issue of the journal at https://journals.sagepub.com/toc/pmxa/51/2