MI is the leading global standard-setting organization and advocate for the project management profession. PMI comprises a truly global community of project management practitioners that represent every major industry including aerospace and defense, automotive, business management, construction, engineering, IT, infrastructure, financial services, pharmaceuticals and telecommunications.

(In photo: PMI CEO Gregory Balestrero, PMI Chair Philip Diab, Dr. E Sreedharan)

Gregory Balestrero, Chief Executive Officer of PMI who was in India for the inauguration of the news office, stated, “We are delighted to honour and applaud Dr E Sreedharan, who we believe epitomizes the values of project management. Dr Sreedharan has symbolized and demonstrated leadership and initiative while advancing project management concepts, techniques and practices effectively in the various projects he has worked on in India. We believe Dr Sreedharan is symbolic of the profession and the principles of project management that PMI hopes to promote in India.”

Dr E Sreedharan, Managing Director of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, was honored by the Project Management Institute for his contributions to the project management profession through his work on the Konkan Railway, Delhi Metro and other key infrastructure projects in India. The presentation was made by Gregory Balestrero, Chief Executive Officer of PMI, and Philip Diab, Chair of the PMI Board of Directors, who flew in for the occasion from Amman, Jordan.

PMI’s new office in India is PMI Organization Centre Pvt., Ltd., #1031, Regus, Level Ground & 1, Trade Centre, Bandra Kurla Complex, Bandra (E), Mumbai, India, 400 051, Tel: + 91 22 4070 0325 Fax: + 91 22 4070 0800 PMI Service Centre, Haryana, India, Tel: + 91 - 124 4517140, e-mail: customercare.india@pmi.org.

Quang Ton holds a Masters degree in Computer Engineering from the Université de Technologie de Compiègne and a BS in Industrial Data Processing and Electronics Engineering from the Université de Créteil in France. Quang is a Certified Project Management Professional (PMP®) from the Project Management Institute (PMI®), a Certified Information Technology Infrastructure Library Foundation (ITIL) in Service Management from EXIN, a Certified Information Security Manager (CISM) from the Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA) and a Certified Associate Business Manager (CABM) from the Association of Professionals in Business Management (APBM).

Quang has been involved in various programs, projects and service management of products with worldwide scope, organizational strategy and system delivery to over 70,000 users. His various assignments have extended his skills not only to project management discipline but also business development, communications, marketing and personnel training. Additionally, He has been leader of the Eureka Process Management Special Interest Group (SIG) from 2005 to 2007 serving globally 1,300 members (the top 5 countries for members were: France, Great Britain, Nigeria, United Arab Emirates and USA).

Some of Quang’s assignments at Schlumberger since 1998 have included:

• Service Delivery Manager – applying best practices of ITIL framework to service management of a new solution, ensuring all aspects of IT service management of the solution to senior management; taking all components of the company’s networking, servers, software and storage technologies to business units as an integrated service; supporting other projects related to collaboration, configuration management and smart card usage company-wide.

AMEC acquires Rider Hunt International

Reported by Miles Shepherd in the UK

The Best Practice Showcase, an event showcasing best practices in programme and project management, will take place at the QE11 Conference Centre in Westminster, UK on June 24th 2008. Project and programme managers are invited to attend this free learning event. Now in its sixth year, more interactive and innovative sessions have been announced for the program this year.

According to event director Emma Hilditch, “Delegates tell us they enjoy the chance to air their views, join in discussions and talk to other delegates and speakers, so we’ve added more opportunities for them to do just that.”

Interactive sessions at the Best Practice Showcase will include:

• Interactive Seminar Sessions - sessions such as one from Steve Clarke of Onemind Management will be a big new feature of the event. “We’ll be asking the question ‘What does it take for an organisation to become more effective at handling change?’” Steve says. “Most of the clients we work with underestimate what needs fixing in their organisations. We’ll be proposing the notion that portfolio management is the heart of the matter –doing the right things is more important that doing the wrong thing well.” Steve will be presenting with his client Sarian Harcombe, IT Portfolio Manager, Environment Agency. Last year, as part of the OGC’s P3M3, her department was awarded a Project Management Maturity Level 3 award.

• Ask The Expert Panel - an Ask the Experts Panel with Susan and Alan Ferguson from AFA and Alison Browne, Director for Pathways, Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust. The session will be entitled: Beyond MSP: Attitudes, Benefits or Challenges

• Question Time: Ask the Author – Attendees will have an opportunity to interact with Sue Vowler, P3O Lead Author, Rod Sowden, P3M3 Lead Author and Andy Murray, PRINCE2 Lead Author.

• Ask The APM Group – Alan Harpham, chairman of The APM Group, will field questions related to “what’s new?” with PRINCE2 and MPM.

The final session of the day will be an interactive presentation by Nick Fewings, Director of The Colour Works. Nick’s session ‘Fired Up For Success! Managing Change Effectively’ will showcase how the Shropshire Fire Brigade worked with The Colour Works to become one of the leading Fire & Rescue services in the UK.

“I am really looking forward to this year’s event and hearing some very healthy debating during the course of the day,” stated Hilditch. “Delegates always report they enjoy the Best Practice Showcase, but this year I think they will find it even more useful. Our ultimate objective is that they will go away with the confidence to run even more effective programmes and projects.”

The Best Practice Showcase is free to attend for programme, project and risk managers. Delegate registration is via the web site at www.bestpracticeshowcase.com

According to Wikipedia, The Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre is a conference centre in London, England. It is located right in the heart of the city, a minute's walk from the Palace of Westminster. It was opened by Her Majesty the Queen in 1986. It is operated by the British government as an executive agency of Communities and Local Government. The centre has four main auditoria, seven conference rooms and many smaller rooms. It specialises in events for between 40 and 1,300 delegates. Due to its location it attracts many high profile meetings. It also has 2,000 square metres of exhibition space.

 

The Association for Project Management (APM) has named PMForum a media partner for APM's 2008 national project management conference, now scheduled for 28-29 October 2008. The 2008 APM national conference will again be held at The Brewery Conference Centre in London. This will be APM's second annual conference, inaugurated in October 2007 with a successful two-day set of presentations and discussions on issues of national importance. APM's annual Awards Banquet will again be held in conjunction with the October conference.

According to Mike Nichols (pictured), APM Chairman, “Our first national conference was deemed a success last year, so we will do it again. PMForum did a good job of promoting and reporting on our 2007 event. We were all quite pleased. We hope to attract more international participants this year, so their global reach and reputation should be helpful.”

An official “call for presentations”, invitation to sponsors and other information about the 2008 conference has been issued by APM. As a PMForum media partner, APM will receive publicity on PMForum web pages including listing in PMForum’s global Events Calendar, pre-event news coverage of announcements and developments, live breaking news reported directly from location during the event, and post-event reporting. Examples of PMForum partnering efforts and media coverage can be found at http://www.pmforum.org/events/partner_program.htm

The Association for Project Management (APM) is the UK’s national body for professional project management. With over 16,500 individual and 490 corporate members throughout the UK and abroad, APM is one of the largest organisations of its kind in Europe. The organisation develops and promotes project management across all sectors of industry and beyond. APM's published mission is: "To develop and promote the professional disciplines of project and programme management for the public benefit." APM is the UK member of the International Project Management Association (IPMA). With headquarters in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, APM has twelve regional branches throughout the UK and one in Hong Kong. Additional information can be found at www.apm.org.uk.

Established in 1995, www.pmforum.org was the world’s first website devoted to professional project management and is one of the world’s most popular sources of project management news and information. PMForum also produces the monthly online PM World Today eJournal where articles, case studies, papers and viewpoints by leading PM authorities from around the world can be found; free subscriptions are available at www.pmworldtoday.net. Examples of PMForum media partners and associated articles and news coverage can be seen at http://www.pmforum.org/events/partner_program.htm.

Following one of the largest ever Competition Act investigations, the Office of Fair Trade (OFT) has issued a Statement of Objections (SO) against 112 firms in the construction sector in England. The OFT formally alleges that the construction companies named in the SO have engaged in bid rigging activities, and in particular cover pricing.

Cover pricing describes a situation where one or more bidders collude with a competitor during a tender process to obtain a price or prices which are intended to be too high to win the contract. The tendering authority, for example a local council or other customer, is not made aware of the contacts between bidders, leaving it with a false impression of the level of competition and this may result in it paying inflated prices.

Cover pricing arrangements have previously been found by the OFT and the Competition Appeal Tribunal to be illegal and in breach of the Competition Act 1998 due to the restrictions on competition that arise.

In addition, the SO formally alleges that a minority of the construction companies have variously entered into one or more arrangements whereby it was agreed that the successful tenderer would pay an agreed sum of money to the unsuccessful tenderer (known as a 'compensation payment'). These more serious forms of bid rigging are usually facilitated by false invoices.

The construction companies under investigation carry out general building work including construction of housing, as well as commercial and industrial construction both in the public and private sector. The SO allegations cover a diverse range of projects, including tenders for schools, universities and hospitals.

The OFT's investigation originated from a specific complaint in the East Midlands in 2004, but it quickly became clear from the evidence that the practice of cover pricing was widespread. The SO's formal allegations therefore cover neighbouring areas including Yorkshire and Humberside and also elsewhere in England. The OFT has also received evidence of cover pricing implicating many more companies on thousands of tender processes, but has focused its investigation on approximately 240 alleged infringements which are being pursued in the SO.

During the course of the investigation, the OFT carried out site visits at the premises of 57 firms. The OFT received 37 leniency applications in the investigation leading to this SO, and all other parties received an offer of a reduced financial penalty, which led to over 40 further companies subsequently admitting participation in some bid rigging activities.

No assumption should be made at this stage that there has been an infringement of competition law by any of the companies named in the SO. The 112 parties concerned now have the opportunity to make written and oral representations which the OFT will take into account before making a final decision as to whether competition law has been infringed, and as to the appropriate amount of any penalties the OFT may decide to impose on each of the firms concerned.

John Fingleton, OFT Chief Executive, said “Cartel activity of the type alleged today harms the economy by distorting competition and keeping prices artificially high. This investigation, together with the OFT's previous decisions in the roofing sector, will hopefully send out a strong message to the construction industry about the seriousness with which we view suspected anti-competitive behaviour. Businesses have no excuses for not knowing and abiding by the law.”

The Office of Fair Trade (OFT) is the UK's consumer and competition authority with a mission to make markets work well for consumers. OFT pursues this goal by: encouraging businesses to comply with competition and consumer law and to improve their trading practices through self-regulation; acting decisively to stop hardcore or flagrant offenders; studying markets and recommending action where required; and empowering consumers with the knowledge and skills to make informed choices and get the best value from markets, and helping them resolve problems with suppliers through Consumer Direct. The OFT is a non-ministerial government department established by statute in 1973. For more information, visit http://www.oft.gov.uk/.

The Project Management Institute (PMI®) has announced that Gomez Project and Training Ltd., of Bogotá, Colombia, has become PMI's 1000th Registered Education Provider (R.E.P.). R.E.Ps are authorized by PMI to offer Professional Development Units (PDUs) to individuals seeking to maintain a PMI credential through continuing education; a PDU is the measuring unit used by PMI to quantify approved learning and service activities.

“Registered Education Providers are PMI's key partners in the growth of the project management profession,” said Michael A. Price (pictured), Ph. D., manager of PMI’s Accreditation Programs. “By being very careful who we approve to become R.E.P.s, we help PMI credential holders as well as the public identify effective project management training providers. We congratulate Gomez Project and Training on becoming PMI’s 1000th R.E.P.”

To qualify to become an approved R.E.P., a training organization must provide PMI with evidence of quality instructional design, delivery and content of their courses, conferences and/or training products. Each R.E.P.’s program is reviewed every three years by PMI. R.E.P.s are located in 56 countries and include universities, training consultants, government agencies and corporate universities. Over the past three years, R.E.P.s have provided training to more than one million project management professionals worldwide.

“As a Registered Education Provider for the PMI, we assist project managers who are working to earn and then maintain PMI credentials,” said Andres Felipe Gómez, founder of Gomez Project and Training. “The most widely recognized of the PMI credentials is the Project Management Professional or PMP®. Candidates for the PMP are required to earn a minimum of 35 hours of training in project management. Once certified, PMPs must earn at least 60 PDUs every three years.”

(Photo: Gomez Project and Training Ltd. staff (standing, left to right) -- Andres Felipe Gomez, general manager, and Sandra Mercado, project manager (seating, left to right) Carolina Rojas, commercial manager and Martha Fierro, management assistant - courtesy of PMI)

Of the approximately 500 people trained at Gomez Project and Training since the firm was founded in 2006, Gómez said most have been information technology managers and personnel of multinational and large national companies. His company also has provided training for Colombian government project managers.

With project management as one of the fastest growing service industries in Colombia and Latin America, Gomez Project and Training Ltd. provides project management consulting and training services. It also provides outsourcing for project managers. Gomez Project and Training Ltda. has focused its training on basic and advanced project management and Project Management Professional (PMP®) and CAPM® (Certified Associate in Project Management) exam preparation courses. Some of the advanced project management topics are risk management, earned value analysis, project estimation, project financial evaluation and project management simulation. For additional information, please visit www.gomezpt.com.

With more than 260,000 members in 170 plus countries, the Project Management Institute, Inc. (PMI^®) is the leading membership association for the project management profession and the largest association dedicated to project management in the world. As the leading advocate for the profession, PMI is actively engaged in setting professional standards, providing a professional career path for project managers and maintaining a family of globally-transferable professional credentials: Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM^®), Project Management Professional (PMP^®) and Program Management Professional (PgMP)^®. Additionally, the Institute provides members with access to the knowledge, skills, educational support and networking opportunities needed to drive business results through project management, program management and portfolio management. PMI is highly regarded for its extensive research program as well as its program to accredit colleges and universities. PMI Registered Education Providers are authorized to teach PMI approved project management courses. PMI was founded in 1969. Please visit PMI.org