Big Data and Project Management

Today, organizations are taking strategic risks to add business value through innovative big data initiatives. Big data is a blanket term for any collection of data sets so large and complex that it becomes difficult to process using available data management tools or conventional data processing applications. Tom Davenport, author of “Big Data at Work” has worked with many companies and he’s uncovered key principles around five key areas to be successful at big data projects. He discusses these principles in his article in Harvard Business Review.

These five key areas represent a combination of internal organizational resources, standards, processes, methodologies and/or best practices:

1. Technology
2. Good change management
3. Clear business objectives
4. People
5. Good Project Management

These five key areas represent the foundation of most information technology projects. It may surprise some people that Davenport suggests that out of the five; Project Management done well may give your organization an edge if you have the agility to implement and be successful at these high risk big data projects.

This year ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts has three top speakers discussing big data:

>  Benchmarking Risk Management: What Good Looks Like Dr. Alicia Aitken, Managing Director, Asia Pacific, Human Systems International
>  Cyber Security Silvanus Moses David, Program Manager, SITA South Africa
>  Project Scheduling Lab Lou Russell, CEO, Learning Facilitator, Russell Martin & Associates

Want to learn more about this topic and network with PM and BA professionals like yourself? Don’t miss ProjectWorld and World Congress for Business Analysts 2014 in Seattle this fall. For more information about this event, click here: http://www.iirusa.com/projectworld/pricing-info.xml

Leadership Lessons: Jo Reid

I recently sat down with Jo Reid, Senior Project Manager at The Boeing Company, to talk about the ins and outs of leadership.  Today, leadership is a hot topic among the project management community because a project manager’s role goes far beyond task-related deliverables. Although the project manager must be able to effectively manage goals related to time, scope and cost, the work does not stop here since the project manager must also be able to manage numerous issues and goals, and be able to lead the people performing them.  

Reid is speaking at the upcoming ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts 2014 conference in Seattle. He will be presenting a session entitled, “Requirements Management Best Practices at the Boeing Company.” This year, PW&WCBA combines professional training alongside real world practicality for richer, more holistic leadership development. It's no wonder it's become the actionable playbook for advancing PM and BAs for over a decade.

Check out what Reid had to say:

IIR: How do you, as a leader, stand out in a crowd in this competitive business world?

Reid: I do multiple activities to build and maintain my brand.

> For any project I am managing I make sure that all the homework has been done. Risk & Mitigations, all the finance, all the stakeholder relationships, etc. I make sure my presentations are clean and crisp, and that I have more answers than there are questions.

> I teach, I support workshops, and I coach.

> I chair steering teams. I take minutes and publish them.  I delegate, and praise my delegates for their successes. The more I try to make other people successful, the stronger my brand. 

IIR: What are characteristics of a GREAT leader?

Reid: Lead the way, but know when to get out of the way!

IIR: How does a successful leader communicate?

Reid: With a constant, consistent message, tailored for stakeholder needs.

IIR: Can you name a person who has had a tremendous impact on you as a leader? Maybe someone who has been a mentor to you? Why and how did this person impact your life?

Reid: Judy Churchill. I was a member of her PMO, and helped her define the organizational Project & Portfolio Management Strategy.  She was smart, knowledgeable, committed to standards. She as fair, tough, and always had her PM’s back. She had high expectations for performance, but was always there is you needed help. High bar – I miss her.  She died of cancer about seven years ago.

IIR: What are the most important decisions you make as a leader of your organization or team?

Reid: Scope, cost, schedule, and risk.

IIR: As an organization gets larger there can be a tendency for the “institution” to dampen the “inspiration.” How do you keep this from happening?

Reid: Keep the other PMs engaged and encourage constant process improvement.

IIR: How do you encourage creative thinking within your team or organization?

Reid: Lead them though the process of defining the problem, not the solution. I tell them they are the experts in their field and challenge them to find solutions. They never fail me!  I also make sure EVRYONE knows it was them that created the great solution!

IIR: What is one characteristic that you believe every leader should possess?

Reid: Integrity.

IIR: What is the biggest challenge facing leaders today?

Reid: Unrealistic performance goals.

IIR: What is the one behavior or trait that you have seen derail more leaders’ careers?

Reid: Lack of Integrity.  Putting themselves first at the expense of others.

IIR: Can you explain the impact that social media has made on you as a leader?

Reid: The industry I support has not embraced social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.). We have tried to introduce forums and tools, but use remains sporadic.  People prefer daily standup meetings – even if it’s across 12 time zones.

IIR: What advice would you give someone going into a leadership position for the first time?

Reid: Find a leader you respect and ask them to be a mentor to you.  Leadership is a journey, and having someone who can be a sounding board or help remove roadblocks makes the journey less arduous.

IIR: What are you doing to ensure you continue to grow and develop as a leader?

Reid: Talk to my mentor on a regular basis. She challenges me!

Reid will be speaking at ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts 2014, taking place in Seattle, Washington September 22-24th at the W Hotel. The 2014 program is designed with courses for all training levels, a robust agenda, and most importantly tangible lessons which you can begin implementing the day you return to your office, making you even more valuable to your organization. PW&WCBA offers attendees 36 PDU/CDUs - that's more than half of the required credits necessary to maintain your certification in just one place.

To learn more or register for the event, click here: http://bit.ly/1jtZtxB 

Project Managers Get Lost with Apple Maps

As of late, Apple has delivered significant updates across virtually every facet of the company. In fact, the tech giant has released 4,000 new APIs to developers; a more aggressive push in cloud services; and changes across its mobile and desktop operating systems.

But, one area of Apple’s business that is seriously lacking in function and updates is Apple Maps. Maps are important to Apple because, just as search has been at the heart of how people find their way around the Internet, maps are the key to how many people use their smartphones.

According to Apple, there is a feature in iOS 8 that will give venue owners the ability to add more indoor positioning data. But from what we understand this was far from what Apple had intended. A source told Apple Insider, “There were multiple improvements that didn’t make it into iOS8,” a source tells us.

After two years of parting ways with Google, Apple is still working on its Maps app. Some key changes included enhanced, more reliable data; more points of interest and better labels to make certain locations like airports, highways and parks easier to find; a cleaner maps interface; and public transit directions.

Further ahead, the report noted plans to integrate augmented reality features to give people images of what was nearby. So, why didn’t they appear?

One source said, “Many developers left the company, no map improvements planned for iOS 8 release were finished in time. Mostly it was failure of project managers and engineering project managers, tasks were very badly planned, developers had to switch multiple times from project to project. I would say that planning, project management and internal politics issues were a much more significant contributor to the failure to complete projects than developers leaving the group.”

Over the years, Maps have been a sensitive area in Apple’s business. It was at the 2012 WWDC that Apple unveiled a new version of its Maps app, but it turned out to be a disastrous move for the company. Unreliable data produced random renderings and bewildered users, and even prompted an apology from CEO Tim Cook with the promise that things would get better.

Apple appears to be taking similar steps to bring search closer to its core business, so there will be two areas to watch to see how the company evolves.

Related articles

• Apple Maps Are Still Lost (techcrunch.com)

Key Tips on Hiring a Project Manager

Businesses require finding people that will make them more successful, but a lot of hiring managers go about their candidate search in the wrong way, especially when it comes to finding the right project managers. According to Forbe’s article by Veteran Project Manager Russell Harley, here are some tips to help you hire a great project manager.

Don’t Use Generic Descriptions

Every project manager posted online appears to be copied out of books, but these types of descriptions will overwhelm you with mismatched applicants. Instead of generic requirements, spend time to describe details of the project itself. By putting the specific needs for that position into the job description, you are more likely to get responses from PMs that want to do that type of project instead of those that would rather not.

Decide What You Need

By requiring specialized knowledge of PMs for projects you are reducing the pool of people that will apply. This means that an outstanding PM, who could do amazing things for your company, is left out.

Critical Projects Need Dedicated PMs

With smaller budgets in place at many companies today, hiring managers are trying to do more with less people. So, a PM is often expected not to just lead the project but also get their hands dirty in whatever the team needs doing.

Be Clear On Methodology

A common question asked of PM is, “What project management methodologies do you use?” The answer from the applicant should be, “Whatever one you want me to use.” If you need a PMBOK PM, say you are a Project Management Institute shop in the job description as this will help you reduce the number of applicants. If you aren’t sure or have a variety of processes, then say you need a PM that has experience in a variety of methods and can adjust as needed.

Get Rid of the Long Questions

Don’t ask open ended questions that, to answer in a professional manner, require more than two to three sentences. If nothing else you will have a lot less to read and can see how concise the applicant can be.

Want to learn more about this topic and network with PM and BA professionals like yourself? Don’t miss ProjectWorld and World Congress for Business Analysts 2014 in Seattle this fall. For more information about this event, click here: http://bit.ly/1kioQrc

Related articles

• "Top 5 resume tips" from a reluctant observer (timragan.wordpress.com)

Earn a FREE Pass to PW&WCBA - Become a Guest Blogger

Earn a complimentary all-access pass to ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts 2014 by serving as a Guest Blogger at the event. As a Guest Blogger, you’ll have access to PW&WCBA's comprehensive agenda attracting the best in insights from around the world, right in Seattle, Washington this fall.

You'll get a free pass to the annual PW&WCBA event plus exclusive access to a networking community and on-demand webinars, to help you grow and learn throughout the year.

Guest Blogger responsibilities will include submitting one post per week to the PW&WCBA blog between now and the conference and attending specifically assigned sessions at the event and blogging live or same day.

By participating as a Guest Blogger leading up to and at the event, you’ll receive an all-access pass for the entire event, taking place September 22-24^th at the W Hotel in Seattle, WA. In addition, Guest Bloggers are responsible for their own travel and lodging. Learn more about the event by visiting our website: http://bit.ly/1eqcUl3

Apply today by sending your name, title, company, short biography and links to your blog or writing samples, along with a few sentences about why we should choose you to be our 2014 Guest Blogger to Amanda Ciccatelli at aciccatelli@iirusa.com. We will review your submission and contact the chosen Guest Bloggers directly with more details.

All readers of our blog receive an exclusive 15% discount off the standard registration rate with code PW14BL. Register here:  http://bit.ly/1eqcUl3

We hope to have you join us in Seattle!

Cheers,

The PW&WBCA Team

#PW14

pwwbcablog.iirusa.com

Leadership Lessons: Lou Russell

I was lucky enough to sit down with Lou Russell, CEO, Learning Facilitator, Russell Martin & Associates, to talk about leadership. Today, leadership is a hot topic among the project management community because a project manager’s role goes far beyond task-related deliverables. Although the project manager must be able to effectively manage goals related to time, scope and cost, the work does not stop here since the project manager must also be able to manage numerous issues and goals, and be able to lead the people performing them.  

Russell is speaking at the upcoming ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts 2014 conference in Seattle. He will be presenting a session entitled, “Emotional Intelligence for Project Team Decision Making.” This year, PW&WCBA combines professional training alongside real world practicality for richer, more holistic leadership development. It's no wonder it's become the actionable playbook for advancing PM and BAs for over a decade.

Check out what Russell had to say:

IIR: How do you, as a leader, stand out in a crowd in this competitive business world?

Russell: We challenge people to not give up on project management just because it’s hard.  And to help, we have created a lean version of PM with some radical ideas which include building a project charter in 45 minutes or less, and working back from the end date/budget.  All of this is done with fun, fast, flexible and measurable tools and process.

IIR: What are characteristics of a GREAT leader?

Russell: A GREAT leader is focused on serving others, not themselves.

IIR: How does a successful leader communicate?

Russell: A successful leader always seeks first to understand / listen.

IIR: Can you name a person who has had a tremendous impact on you as a leader? Maybe someone who has been a mentor to you? Why and how did this person impact your life?

Russell: There are many, and Mike Donahue is my personal coach, and has been for many years. His advice/voice is always in my head.

IIR: What are the most important decisions you make as a leader of your organization or team?

Russell: How to improve the performance of our customers in a measurable way, and how to help my team grow past what they believe their limits are.

IIR: As an organization gets larger there can be a tendency for the “institution” to dampen the “inspiration.” How do you keep this from happening?

Russell: Lots of laughing.

IIR: How do you encourage creative thinking within your team or organization?

Russell: Everyone on my team has full ownership of everything they do, and can change it in any way to make us all better. They know that and do that.  Failure is fine – that’s how people learn. Failure twice is a blind spot and needs mitigation, which is part of my job.

IIR: Which is most important to your organization or team? (mission, core values or vision?)

How do you communicate the “core values” to your team?

Russell: Our current mantra is Scalable and Sustainable. We will only exceed as ONE with many.  

IIR: How do you help a new employee understand the culture of your organization?

Russell: We share our Mission, Vision, Values and spend lots of time with them. 

IIR: What is one characteristic that you believe every leader should possess?

Russell: Trust in providence with a humble heart.  

IIR: What is the biggest challenge facing leaders today?

Russell: The perception of being busy when we could be wasting our time on the wrong things.

IIR: What is the one behavior or trait that you have seen derail more leaders’ careers?

Russell: Avoidance of conflict and accountability 

IIR: Can you explain the impact that social media has made on you as a leader?

Russell: It connects us to others every minute of the day (good) and provides us with a huge diversion to not focus (bad).  

IIR: What advice would you give someone going into a leadership position for the first time?

Russell: Be brave, have a strategy, be ready to change that strategy and be open to growth throw trips and falls.  

IIR: What are you doing to ensure you continue to grow and develop as a leader?

Russell: I am part of a CEO group that meets monthly to keep each other on track.

Russell will be speaking at ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts 2014, taking place in Seattle, Washington September 22-24^th at the W Hotel. The 2014 program is designed with courses for all training levels, a robust agenda, and most importantly tangible lessons which you can begin implementing the day you return to your office, making you even more valuable to your organization. PW&WCBA offers attendees 36 PDU/CDUs - that's more than half of the required credits necessary to maintain your certification in just one place.

To learn more or register for the event, click here: http://bit.ly/1lIhzzc

Causes of Conflict in Project Management

There will be times when a project doesn’t run as smooth as you had planned. When you put together a group of intellectuals that all have the same goal, but have different ways to achieve that goal, is when you’ll run into problems in project management. Team conflict is challenging for project leaders but it is not necessarily bad. Conflict can lead to new ideas and approaches and facilitate the surfacing of important issues between team members if it is managed well.

In fact, according to various research studies on team conflict, the major sources of conflict among project teams are project goals not agreed upon, disagreement of the project's priorities and conflicting work schedules. This is no surprise since most organizations today run multiple projects and employees often find themselves serving on a variety of project teams.

Here is an infographic from Visual.ly that highlights the key causes of conflict in project management teams today:

Explore more visuals like this one on the web's largest information design community - Visually.

PW&WCBA 2014 Submission Deadline Extended to Friday 1/17

ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts
September 22-24, 2014 | Seattle, WA

Papers are being accepted on a rolling basis, we suggest your proposal as early as possible. If this is something you're interested in considering, please let us know as sessions fill up quickly. Submit your proposal no later than Friday, January 17th to Romina Kunstadter, Conference Producer at rkunstadter@iirusa.com or 646.895.7453.

The Institute for International Research (IIR) is currently seeking corporate practitioners, authors and experienced facilitators to present at the 2014 ProjectWorld ^® & World Congress for Business Analysts^® conference.

The event will take place in September, 2014 in Seattle, Washington. Exact Dates and Location will be announced in the coming weeks.

About this Unique Event
PW&WCBA is the industry's year round resource for gaining cutting-edge insights through C-Level case studies & corporate best practice presentations, exclusive Web Seminars, Learning Labs, and facilitated sharing sessions.  

Who & What We're Looking For

Leaders of high profile, complex projects to share their story in an open forum with industry peers. We are also inviting highly experienced, unbiased project managers, program managers, portfolio managers, PMO heads, system engineers and business analysts. We are particularly interested in experienced corporate practitioners, industry experts and qualified facilitators sharing innovative case studies, techniques, templates that attendees can implements as soon as they get back to the office.

Each presentation should demonstrate actionable tangible takeaways. We are looking for presentations that will demonstrate how something went from concept to reality (what were the decisions you had to make along the way, why did you choose that route, what did you learn from it, what if anything would you do differently, what can the audience learn, where do you go from here?).

Please note: Decisions will be based on the alignment of the content with the 2014 agenda content, feedback from the event advisors as well as on industry recognition and/or personal references. 

We Expect Our Speakers to Move Beyond the Fundamentals
2014 presentation topics include, but are not limited to:
 

Managing Stakeholder Expectations Leveraging Portfolio Project Management Tools Education & Training for New PM's- Passing down the knowledge Integration PM Setting up a Project Office Communication Across Roles (Organization) Using Agile to Implement Larger Multi Web Projects Tools Used with Agile Moving from BA to PM Discovering What Metrics you Need Lean Projects: A Case Study PM & BA Collaboration Risk Management Program & Portfolio Management Effective Teams: How to build them Cyber Security Big Data & Analytics PMBOK Changes Dealing with Stakeholders and Sponsors Integrating Contracted People into an Ongoing Project Mobile Creative Problem Solving Collaborative Problem Solving Honing Your PM Skills Virtualization Understanding The Business Ecosystem The Move: Agile to Waterfall Convan Vs Agile Process Management Developing BA Skills Effective Data Modeling State Modeling BA's in A Global Environment Capturing Non functional requirements Shadow IT and how to make sure you remain a partner Managing to scale Tailor BA function in an onshore vs offshore environment Systems Integration What's New in Agile? Agile, Tools and Metric Tracking Cloud Risk: Managing the Risk and Rewards of Cloud Computing Defining and Developing the Next Generation of PMs Improving the Value of Your PMO

IT Portfolio Management Soft Leadership Skills Risk Management Building Program Management Expertise Motivating Teams and Increasing Team Performance Creating a Center of Excellence (Both BA and/or PM) Demonstrating the Current Value of Project Management and Business Analysis to Your Organization Career Paths for the BA and PM - Where Do You Go After 5 Years? Using Six Sigma and LEAN to Improve Project Management Requirements Management and Communication Leading Global Teams Change Management Reading Verbal and Non-Verbal Cues Virtual Engagement Lightweight Project Management Tools vs. Heavyweight Enterprise Analysis Enterprise Architecture Negotiation Skills for Dealing with Suppliers Agile Project Management A Systematic Approach to Increase Business Process Performance Improving Service Levels with Your Stakeholders Business Analysis Planning and Monitoring Developing a PM Toolkit: The Essentials Implementing a Portfolio Management Estimating and Identification of Requirements Business Rules: An Important Technique to Capture and Discover What You Need Green Practices for the PM and BA Getting the Benefits of Consolidating, But Without Doing So The Current and Future State of the BA Agile: Governance and Decision-Making Sustainable Portfolio Management Practices Development Techniques that are Flexible and Responsive SOA Governance Integrating the Business Architecture with Human Performance

BONUS: In addition to the exposure and honor of being a speaker, speakers will also FREE admission to the conference, access to post-conference web seminar series as well as any pre-conference activities (a $3,000+ value).

How to Get Accepted
Priority will be given to presentations that highlight NEW case studies on pushing beyond the PMBOK and BABOK, presenting new skills, techniques and best practices for today's PM and BA worlds. ONLY corporate/client-side speaker will be considered. If you are a consultant, solution provider, technology provider, analyst or consultant, please see sponsorship/exhibit section below.

Sponsorship & Exhibition Opportunities
If you are a vendor or solution provider and are interested in showcasing your organization's expertise - Please contact Jon Saxe, Senior Business Development Manager at jsaxe@iirusa.com or 646.895.7467 for more information.

If you were not selected to present and are a vendor or solution provider, you may qualify for additional speaking opportunities available through sponsorship.

Submission Guidelines
Please submit the following to Romina Kunstadter, Conference Producer at rkunstadter@iirusa.com no later than Friday, January 17, 2014. 

For proper consideration, please include the following information with your proposal:

• Proposed speaker name(s), job title(s), and company name(s)
• Contact information including address, telephone and e-mail
• Title and objective of presentation
• Please indicate which topic you plan to address and please indicate what is NEW about the presentation
• Summary of the talk
• What the audience will gain from your presentation (please list 3-5 key "take-aways")
• NEW FOR THIS YEAR: Please submit a short video telling us why you want to speak at PW&WCBA 2014 (optional, but preferred)

If your submission is selected, portions of your bio and summary will be used to promote your participation. In an effort to ensure the utmost quality, all final presentations will be subject to review by our content review board one month prior to the event.

Additional Details

• Commercialism and self-promotion are NOT permitted or tolerated. If this happens, you will NOT be invited to return as a speaker.
• Travel, lodging and other expenses are the responsibility of the speaker.

Interested in Becoming a Media Partner or Featured Event Blogger?
Contact Kacey Anderson, Marketing Manager at kanderson@iirusa.com. 

Due to the high volume of response, we are unable to respond to each submission. All those selected to participate as speakers will be notified shortly after the deadline.

Thank you for your interest in ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts. We look forward to receiving your proposal!

Best, 

The PW&WCBA Team

@Project_World 

ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts 2014 Call for Presenters Now Open

Papers are being accepted on a rolling basis, we suggest your proposal as early as possible. If this is something you're interested in considering, please let us know as sessions fill up quickly. Submit your proposal no later than Friday, December 20th to Romina Kunstadter, Conference Producer at rkunstadter@iirusa.com or 646.895.7453.

The Institute for International Research (IIR) is currently seeking corporate practitioners, authors and experienced facilitators to present at the 2014 ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts conference.

The event will take place in September 22-24, 2014 in Seattle, Washington.

About this Unique Event
PW&WCBA is the industry's year round resource for gaining cutting-edge insights through C-Level case studies & corporate best practice presentations, exclusive Web Seminars, Learning Labs, and facilitated sharing sessions.  

Who & What We're Looking For
Leaders of high profile, complex projects to share their story in an open forum with industry peers. We are also inviting highly experienced, unbiased project managers, program managers, portfolio managers, PMO heads, system engineers and business analysts. We are particularly interested in experienced corporate practitioners, industry experts and qualified facilitators sharing innovative case studies, techniques, templates that attendees can implements as soon as they get back to the office.

Each presentation should demonstrate actionable tangible takeaways. We are looking for presentations that will demonstrate how something went from concept to reality (what were the decisions you had to make along the way, why did you choose that route, what did you learn from it, what if anything would you do differently, what can the audience learn, where do you go from here?).

Please note: Decisions will be based on the alignment of the content with the 2014 agenda content, feedback from the event advisors as well as on industry recognition and/or personal references. 

We Expect Our Speakers to Move Beyond the Fundamentals
2014 presentation topics include, but are not limited to:

Managing Stakeholder Expectations Leveraging Portfolio Project Management Tools Education & Training for New PM's- Passing down the knowledge Integration PM Setting up a Project Office Communication Across Roles (Organization) Using Agile to Implement Larger Multi Web Projects Tools Used with Agile Moving from BA to PM Discovering What Metrics you Need Lean Projects: A Case Study PM & BA Collaboration Risk Management Program & Portfolio Management Effective Teams: How to build them Cyber Security Big Data & Analytics PMBOK Changes Dealing with Stakeholders and Sponsors Integrating Contracted People into an Ongoing Project Mobile Creative Problem Solving Collaborative Problem Solving Honing Your PM Skills Virtualization Understanding The Business Ecosystem The Move: Agile to Waterfall Convan Vs Agile Process Management Developing BA Skills Effective Data Modeling State Modeling BA's in A Global Environment Capturing Non functional requirements Shadow IT and how to make sure you remain a partner Managing to scale Tailor BA function in an onshore vs offshore environment Systems Integration What's New in Agile? Agile, Tools and Metric Tracking Cloud Risk: Managing the Risk and Rewards of Cloud Computing Defining and Developing the Next Generation of PMs Improving the Value of Your PMO

IT Portfolio Management Soft Leadership Skills Risk Management Building Program Management Expertise Motivating Teams and Increasing Team Performance Creating a Center of Excellence (Both BA and/or PM) Demonstrating the Current Value of Project Management and Business Analysis to Your Organization Career Paths for the BA and PM - Where Do You Go After 5 Years? Using Six Sigma and LEAN to Improve Project Management Requirements Management and Communication Leading Global Teams Change Management Reading Verbal and Non-Verbal Cues Virtual Engagement Lightweight Project Management Tools vs. Heavyweight Enterprise Analysis Enterprise Architecture Negotiation Skills for Dealing with Suppliers Agile Project Management A Systematic Approach to Increase Business Process Performance Improving Service Levels with Your Stakeholders Business Analysis Planning and Monitoring Developing a PM Toolkit: The Essentials Implementing a Portfolio Management Estimating and Identification of Requirements Business Rules: An Important Technique to Capture and Discover What You Need Green Practices for the PM and BA Getting the Benefits of Consolidating, But Without Doing So The Current and Future State of the BA Agile: Governance and Decision-Making Sustainable Portfolio Management Practices Development Techniques that are Flexible and Responsive SOA Governance Integrating the Business Architecture with Human Performance

BONUS: In addition to the exposure and honor of being a speaker, speakers will also FREE admission to the conference, access to post-conference web seminar series as well as any pre-conference activities (a $3,000+ value).

How to Get Accepted
Priority will be given to presentations that highlight NEW case studies on pushing beyond the PMBOK and BABOK, presenting new skills, techniques and best practices for today's PM and BA worlds. ONLY corporate/client-side speaker will be considered. If you are a consultant, solution provider, technology provider, analyst or consultant, please see sponsorship/exhibit section below.

Sponsorship & Exhibition Opportunities
If you are a vendor or solution provider and are interested in showcasing your organization's expertise - Please contact Jon Saxe, Senior Business Development Manager at jsaxe@iirusa.com or 646.895.7467 for more information.

If you were not selected to present and are a vendor or solution provider, you may qualify for additional speaking opportunities available through sponsorship.

Submission Guidelines
Please submit the following to Romina Kunstadter, Conference Producer at rkunstadter@iirusa.com no later than Friday, December 20, 2013.

For proper consideration, please include the following information with your proposal:

• Proposed speaker name(s), job title(s), and company name(s)
• Contact information including address, telephone and e-mail
• Title and objective of presentation
• Please indicate which topic you plan to address and please indicate what is NEW about the presentation
• Summary of the talk
• What the audience will gain from your presentation (please list 3-5 key "take-aways")
• NEW FOR THIS YEAR: Please submit a short video telling us why you want to speak at PW&WCBA 2014

If your submission is selected, portions of your bio and summary will be used to promote your participation. In an effort to ensure the utmost quality, all final presentations will be subject to review by our content review board one month prior to the event. 

Additional Details

• Commercialism and self-promotion are NOT permitted or tolerated. If this happens, you will NOT be invited to return as a speaker.
• Travel, lodging and other expenses are the responsibility of the speaker.

Interested in Becoming a Media Partner or Featured Event Blogger?

Contact Kacey Anderson, Marketing Manager at kanderson@iirusa.com. 

Due to the high volume of response, we are unable to respond to each submission. All those selected to participate as speakers will be notified shortly after the deadline.

Thank you for your interest in ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts. We look forward to receiving your proposal!

Cheers,

The PW&WCBA Team

http://pwwbca.blogspot.com

Don’t Let Your Project Fail: Management and Communication Practices for Project Success

Next month, Naomi Karten, Author of Changing How You Manage and Communicate Change, will share critical management and communication practices for project success at ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts. There are countless reasons why a project fails. One of the most common is the increasing difficulty of projects. In addition to budget and resource constraints and technology challenges, projects face shifting project demands, demanding stakeholders, and the list goes on and on.

In addition industry leaders from Bank of America, Boeing, Cisco, FedEx, Humana, Shire HGT, Travelers and more will reveal PM and BA best practices and skills needed to accelerate your professional development.

Download the brochure for the full agenda: http://bit.ly/14jTYgn

Check out who's already signed on to attend: 

AAA National Aaron's Inc Acorn Consulting Enterprises ALSAC St Jude Childrens Research Hospital Arbitration Forums Inc Arbitron Atlas Copco Compressors LLC AutoTrader.com AXA Equitable Bank of America Capital Group Companies Caribbean Development Bank CEB Chevron Churchill Downs Inc Cisco Citizens Bank ConnectWise Coventry Health Care EBG Consulting Farm Bureau Insurance Federal Depositors Insurance Corp Federal Reserve Bank FedEx Florida Virtual Campus Follett Software Great American Insurance Group

Great Lakes Educational Loan Services Green Shield Canada Hoffmann La Roche Inc HTC Humana Inc IBM International Monetary Fund Karten Associates Kentucky Lottery Corporation Kindred Healthcare Inc Kings College London LinkedIn Mabson Investment Managed Market Resources Marathon Oil Company McKee Foods Corporation MedImmune National Insurance Producer Registry NavCanada Navy Federal Credit Union NCCI Holdings Inc New York Life Insurance Company North Highland Northrop Grumman IS NTT Data Inc.

ONEOK Inc Paula A. Bell Consulting, LLC PetSmart Prudential Prudential Financial Public School Retirement System of Missouri Railway Procurement Agency Realization Robert Bosch Corp Russell Martin Associates Scottrade Inc Scotts Miracle Gro Company Seilevel Siemens Stage Stores State of Wisconsin TCS America The Boeing Company The Travelers Company Inc Thomson Reuters ThoughtWorks Travelers Companies Inc UIHNA UNC Charlotte Vertex Inc Why What How Consulting Inc Wisconsin Department of Justice

PW&WCBA
September 9-11, 2013
Disney’s Contemporary Resort
Orlando, FL

Mention code PW13BLOG & Save 15% off the standard rate.
Register today:  http://bit.ly/14jTYgn

Join us and know that you are investing in yourself and your career. We hope to see you in Orlando!

Best,
The PW&WCBA Team
@Project_World
pwwbca.blogspot.com

Don’t Leave Your Projects to Fate, Project Risk Best Practices from Boeing, Travelers Cisco, BoA and More

Christoph Schwager, Chief Risk Officer, EADS has said that “the more innovative our products have become; the more risk we must take. The alternative to risk management is luck and fate.”

Don’t leave your projects to fate, we as project managers and business analysts know that we need a plan to overcome the risks in our projects. There's no question that to survive today, innovation is a necessity. This means that our projects have become more complex, more focused on resources and time sensitive.  Find out how companies like Boeing, Bank of America, Railway Procurement Agency, Cisco, Travelers and more have planned for risk at PW&WCBA this September.

ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts brings you the success stories and best practices from risk management professionals in the trenches. From identifying to managing risk, to developing an organizational environment that supports risk management, PW&WCBA gives you the tools you need to mitigate and overcome project risks. 

Download the brochure for the full agenda: http://bit.ly/13jM72A

Time is Running Out - book your room at Disney's Contemporary Resort before Thursday, August 8th at the PW&WCBA discounted rate!

PW&WCBA

September 9-11, 2013

Disney’s Contemporary Resort

Orlando, FL

Mention code PW13LINK & Save 15% off the standard rate. Register today: http://bit.ly/13jM72A

Join us and know that you are investing in yourself and your career. We hope to see you in Orlando!

Best,

The PW&WCBA Team

@Project_World

pwwbca.blogspot.com

Related articles

• how do you plan for the unexpected?
• Risk Management Step 1: Risk Evaluation

U.S. Navy Reveals Keys to Leadership and High Performing Teams at PW&WCBA 2013

Carey Lohrenz knows what it takes to win in one of the highest pressure, extreme environments imaginable: in the cockpit at Mach 2, as the first female F-14 Tomcat Fighter Pilot in the U.S. Navy. Having flown missions worldwide as a combat mission-ready United States Navy pilot, Lohrenz is used to working in fast moving, dynamic environments, where inconsistent execution can generate catastrophic results. 

At ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts this September, Carey will share the U.S. Navy's lessons of leadership and creating high performing teams, and how they can be applied to any business. You'll learn best practices in planning, briefing, debriefing and adjusting processes to help manage the risks within your projects, and become a high performing organization.

Interested in more best practices and lessons learned in leadership and project teams? Through a full-day workshop dedicated to leadership and a half-day workshop dedicated to creating engagement in your project teams and a breakout track dedicated to PM and BA collaboration, PW&WCBA has it covered:

·         Retooling Leadership (through the lens of NeuroScience)
William Greenwald, Director, Performance Coaching and Advisory Practice, Humana Inc.

·         Successful Projects Across Borders: How to Achieve Team Unity
Malgorzata Kusyk, PMI Poland, Senior Project Manager, Thomson Reuters

·         Leading Virtual Teams in 2012: A Successful Methodology
Paul A. Capello, PMP, Program Management Consultant, RGP Healthcare

·         My Global Project Team is Not United...What Did I Do Wrong?
Edward Wisniewski, PMP, CSCP, Global Clinical Supply Project Manager, SHIRE HGT

·         Soft Skills for Effective Collaboration
Maureen McWhite, Business Applications Analyst, FedEx

And much more!

PW&WCBA

September 9-11, 2013

Disney’s Contemporary Resort

Orlando, FL

Mention code PW13LINK & Save 15% off the standard rate.

Register today: http://bit.ly/1bsswxa

Download the brochure for the full agenda and speaking roster:  http://bit.ly/1bsswxa Also, don't miss the Colorful, Creative & Collaborative: User Stories Unleashed webinar with Ellen Gottesdiener, Founder, Principal Consultant, EBG Consulting and PW&WCBA Agile Summit Chair on Thursday, June 27 at 1:00pm ET. Register here: http://bit.ly/11uBDbT

Best,

The PW&WCBA Team

#Project_World

The Best Project Manager for the Job

Having the right project manager (PM) is crucial to successful project delivery. But, what attributes does a great PM have? According to Hemant Kogekar, principal of Kogekar Consulting, here are findings from a CIO Executive Board Study on what differentiates a good PM from an average one.

Experience

Many organizations look for PM candidates who have a project management certification. But, the study found that certification does not predict PM effectiveness. Turns out that PMs with diverse experience across technology and business areas are more effective.

Knowledge of the Business

Effective PMs understand not only ‘how’ but also ‘why’. They know the goals of their projects and how the goals fit within the organization. High performing PMs become ‘business partners’ and not just ‘order-takers’. Business partners improve their credibility due to their understanding of project scenarios. Effective PMs develop relationships across the organization so that they understand dynamics within the organization – enabling PMs to steer through complex issues.  

Leadership Ability

The importance of leadership skills is often underestimated when businesses select PMs. Effective PMs understand what the team needs and tailor their communications to drive performance. These PMs leverage team members’ skills, and gain the team’s trust. Poor PMs run the team into the ground while the project is delivered. Although PMs with a poor track record of  leadership may achieve short-term gains, these PMs constrain the success of the project. Good PMs not only deliver the project outcomes, but build a team’s capabilities throughout the project.

Commitment

According to the study, two of the top three drivers of PM effectiveness are “passion to succeed”, and an “ability to meet internal deadlines”. When selecting PMs, leaders should seek candidates who demonstrate these attributes. Good PMs become demonstrate passion in the project and holding themselves accountable for the project’s success. Effective PMs follow the standard processes, but look to improve these processes to remove bottlenecks, time consuming steps and other inefficiencies.

Risk Management

Effective PMs are skilled in anticipating the risks throughout the project life-cycle. These PMs not only identify risks, but also develop strategies to avoid them. The study found that there was a big difference in the ability to anticipate and manage risks between the top and bottom performers.

Crisis Management  

Projects are stressful; a smoothly running project is a rarity. Good PMs maintain their cool in times of crisis. They maintain composure and guide their teams through the myriad of crises and challenges that projects encounter.

Quick Problem Solving

The best PMs are experts at solving the problems that a project encounters. These PMs deal with insufficient information and are quick learners who draw lessons from unfamiliar situations and concepts.

Ambition

Good PMs are success-driven. Organizations need to recognize this and create pathways for PMs to progress to senior roles. If organizations fail to look after good PMs, they will find and opportunities elsewhere.

Related articles

• Managing Risk Through Effective Project Management
• Deciphering A Project Management Maturity Level Assessment
• Decision Making in Project Management

Download the ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts 2012 Executive Summary

Last year, we gathered all the key takeaways from the ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts event so that attendees could immediately take action once afterwards.

The 29-page executive summary highlights the key points and overarching themes of the 2012 conference covered by our esteemed keynotes. We've now made these action points available for download to provide value, drive innovation and create real life business impact on both you and your leaderships’ health and future success.

Download ProjectWorld & World Congress for Business Analysts 2012 Executive Summary to learn:

• Why Risk management is not always negative; there are opportunities to harvest in the uncertainty of risk.
• The Essentials of the agile method
• Techniques for achieving excellence in project portfolio management
• How your audience can help to break down the inter-departmental communication barriers
• How to Collaborate to deliver value
• and much more.

Related articles

• Drive Innovation Forward: 2012 Front End of Innovation Brief Now Available