Message from the Chair

I recently returned from Atlanta, where I had the privilege of attending both the PMI® Leadership Institute Meeting and the North America Global Congress. I am always energized by these meetings. First, it's fun to see familiar colleagues and meet new ones. Second, the presentations and discussions always lead to valuable insights.

It's not feasible for me to summarize all of the presentations I attended, but I will summarize just three (among many) that directly apply to our roles as Project Management Consultants. The selection of these three is somewhat arbitrary and in no way should be construed as a prioritization of importance.

Susan Scott was the keynote speaker for the Leadership Institute. Among other things, she talked about the importance of relationships. We've discussed the critical role of relationships in Project Management Consulting in previous Connections issues. Susan paraphrased an excerpt from Ernest Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises: "How did you go bankrupt? Gradually, and then all of a sudden." Relationships generally don't fail because of one conversation. Rather, failed relationships are often the cumulative result of many missed conversations. During Susan's presentation, I made a note to be more cognizant of trying to make each conversation an effective one.

Jeff Petty was one of the presenters at the North America Congress. He suggested that we ask up front about the minimum required to consider our project a success. My immediate impression was that targeting the minimum expectations wasn't the right approach. Then Jeff explained that if we don't know the minimum requirements for success, it's difficult to exceed those expectations. When he put it that way, it made sense. If all we do as Project Management Consultants is meet our clients' expectations, we mentally get an average grade. Our differentiator should be to exceed client expectations in a meaningful, cost-effective way.

Juergen Oschadleus also made a presentation at the N.A. Congress. Juergen referred to Aristotle to suggest three things for a speaker to consider. The first is ethos, which includes the character and credibility of the speaker. The second is pathos, which includes the overall context of the discussion. The third is logos, which includes the reasoning or logic of the speaker's arguments. Now, substitute "Project Management Consultant" for "speaker" in these descriptions. I think that accurately reflects what we should strive to attain as Project Management Consultants. The three concepts, taken together, represent how a trusted advisor should be viewed.

I would like to hear about your insights regarding Project Management Consulting from conferences you've attended (or even conversations with colleagues). You can send them to me at chair@pmiconsultingsig.org. As always, I will check with you before including them in a Connections article. And, as always, I appreciate your responses.

Regards,

Bill Craddock, PMP
Chair, Consulting SIG
chair@pmiconsultingsig.org

Co-Chair
Assist the Chair and assume the duties of the Chair in his/her absence. The CO-Chair is elected annually and serves in that capacity for one (1) year, prior to assuming the office of Chair and serves in that capacity for one (1) year. The total time commitment is two (2) years.

VP Finance
Responsible for the effective management of the CSIGs financial affairs. Processes invoices and payments to vendors, as well as manages the Board expenditures for meeting attendance. Conducts financial reviews in preparation for Board meetings and also works with external auditors as required. Prepares tax filings and provides PMI with financial reports as appropriate.

VP Communication
Responsible for the preparation of an annual communications plan and execution of the communication plan over the course their term. Activities include preparation and editorial oversight of the monthly e-bulletin, Connections, and the quarterly e-newsletter, RoadMap, both of which promote events and activities of the broader project management community the to the CSIG.

VP Membership
Responsible for monitoring the CSIGs membership and other activities designed to support members’ engagement. Conducts member surveys. Provides oversight for the Consulting SIG Local Interest Group program and serves as supporting liaison to Chapter leaders where the CSIG supports LIGs.

Director-at-Large
Responsible for assisting the Chair, CO-Chair, or other officers, as assigned.

More information about the positions can be obtained by referring to the Consulting SIG Bylaws posted on the home page of the Consulting SIG web site. Officers will be elected to these board positions for a two (2) year term. All elected officer positions are open to any members of the CSIG, who are also members in good standing of PMI®.

Consulting SIG officers earn 10 PDUs/education credits per year!

Hurry! Nominations close at 11:59 PM EDT 26 October 2007.

Approximately 27 people attended the 2007 C-SIG annual membership meeting held on the afternoon of Saturday, October 6 in Atlanta as the PMI Leadership Congress was winding down and PMI conference attendees began to arrive. More than 20 PMI chapters were represented; the member having traveled the farthest came from Poland. Nearly a quarter of the attendees were prospective C-SIG members! Several board members commented later that they really enjoyed the laid-back, informal tone the meeting took on as the group filled the meeting room, making it easy to have a lot of back and forth dialog as well as questions and answers while the board members presented their Annual Report on accomplishments in the past 12 months and plans for 2008.

Here is a link to the PowerPoint presentation the board used at the meeting. Please email any questions about the content of the Annual Report or the meeting to chair@consultingsig.com.

The PMI® Melbourne Australia Chapter will be supporting the 4th annual World Project Management Week to be held from 12-16 November 2007 in Singapore. This year's theme is Project Management: Driving Growth; Creating Equality.

Keynote speakers will lead a program of over 40 session presenters. The conference will also feature 25 trade exhibits, a quality pre-conference workshop program and a number of interactive networking opportunities that are not to be missed.

Register online

PMI® Charleston Chapter to Host a Day With
Dr. Eliyahu Goldratt on 13 November 2007

Still relying on CPM or PERT to manage your projects? Have you ever wondered why we are using 50-year-old processes to manage today’s complex projects? Join PMI® Charleston for a day with Dr. Eliyahu Goldratt where he will talk about innovative, yet proven, approaches to managing projects!

View the brochure and register online