Take a Trip!
The Value of International Travel for
Project Management Professionals –
based on a Personal Story

Introduction

Last month I was in Istanbul, Turkey, speaking at the annual DYNAMICS 2010 project management conference, sponsored by the Istanbul Project Management Association - IPYD. As I was traveling from Dallas to Frankfurt, then on to Istanbul, I began to think about the value I have gained over the years from traveling internationally, experiencing new and different cultures, project environments, and project management challenges. I thought it might be time to pass on some of those thoughts – all of course from a very personal perspective.

For people living in smaller countries, or in Europe where cross border travel and experiences are common, many of the points in this article are experienced quite early in life and may be taken for granted. For those living in large countries like Brazil, China, India, Russia and the United States, international travel is much less frequent and often does not begin until adulthood. While in still others, such as Australia and Canada, international travel seems both common and natural (at least that is my impression, having met many Australians and Canadians who have traveled the globe).

For those of you in the project management field who have traveled extensively, I hope this editorial reinforces some of your experiences. This article, however, is written for those who have not traveled so much, and especially for North Americans who often seem to be less well traveled (and often less knowledgeable about other places and cultures) than those in many parts of the world. As mentioned above, though, this is from my perspective. This is my story, along with some of the benefits that I have gained over the years from some really interesting international travel.

Read Complete Editorial