Volume IX - Issue VII - July 2007
Editor's Perspective
Welcome to the July The Editor’s Perspective on the Current Issue is intended to provide a short overview of the articles and contributions included in the current edition. It is also intended to provide some perspective on why the articles should be of interest or why they are included in the first place. Whether this is read before or after the articles, we hope it is useful. This month’s Editorial is entitled “Why is Project Management so White Hot – Cool.” Project management is hot! It seems to be one of the hottest management topics in the business world today, with the demand for qualified project managers sky rocketing. There are some obvious reasons for this, but there may also be some less visible but significant other reasons to explain the phenomena as well. The editorial is an attempt to document some of the reasons why I think the project management field continues to grow and expand around the world. I think the trend will continue for many years. Please read the editorial, then let me know your reaction in a Letter to the Editor. Our one Letter to the Editor is from Eric Jenett, PMI founder and Fellow in Houston, “On the Subject of Ajith Kumar’s Quicksand Article Last Month.” Eric suggests that Mr. Kumar raises some valid concerns but might want to rail a little less against the system and focus on providing more constructive suggestions. One Viewpoints article is included this month. It is a third essay by Mr. Ajith Kumar, a project services department manager in Oman, who provides another critical article about quality management. His article, entitled “Management of ISO Certification” is interesting and should continue to stir some additional debate. According to Mr. Kumar, the world is awash with Quality Assurance Mangers and, ironically, better quality is a casualty. Featured Papers are serious professional contributions to the PM literature; this month six serious papers are included. In the first one, Mark Kozak-Holland returns with an introduction and first installment in a new interesting article based on his newest book in the award winning ‘Lessons from History’ series. The title of his new book, and of this article, is “Project Lessons from the Great Escape (Stalag Luft III)”. Mr. Kozak-Holland sets some facts straight, then offers some interesting project management perspectives on this story from World War II. Russ Martinelli and Jim Waddell also return with the 7th and final installment in their program management series of papers with “Managing Programs to Success: Key Program Management Metrics.” Also drawn from their recent book authored together, this paper discusses how to design a set of useful metrics for a program. Professor Ali Jaafari of the Asia Pacific International College (APIC) in Australia contributed another Feature Paper entitled “Bridging the Business and Academic Worlds”. This is not just another “academic” discussion, but rather addresses the issue of balancing project management experience and education for preparing young PM professionals. The fourth Feature Paper this month is from Mr. Sujit Mishra on the subject of “Human Resource Management in a Project”, in which he provides a process model for planning and managing project team members. He discusses both traditional and practical HR issues, with a lot of emphasis on planning and detailed follow through. Kathleen Hass of Management Concepts has returned with another excellent paper entitled “Introducing the Project Complexity Model – A New Approach to Diagnosing and Managing Projects.” Part 1 of 2, this paper makes a solid contribution to this topic, which is now generating new interest and debate worldwide. The final Feature Paper this month is entitled “When Uncertainties become Assumptions in Government Planning!” This paper, co-authored by Rebecca Winston and Pramod Mallick, provides some very interesting perspective on project risk management issues on major US government energy and environmental remediation programs. The authors explore the question, “what happens to risk when uncertainties are incorrectly characterized?” during the project planning process. The paper is based on recent reviews at seven US Department of Energy project sites. PM Tips & Techniques papers provide an opportunity for project management consultants, experts, trainers and vendors to contribute to the PM World Today eJournal, with helpful and practical suggestions. We offer one such paper in this issue. In his paper “Enhancing Project Performance and Productivity – Addressing it in Project Management and Beyond,” Suresh Malladi discusses some areas where organizations and project managers might focus to enhance project performance and bridge productivity gaps on IT projects. Eight Regional Reports are included this month from our international correspondents in Argentina, India, Nigeria, Peru, Romania, Spain, and the UAE. Our correspondent in Argentina, Ana Maria Rodriguez, has provided a report about project management in Argentina in both English and Spanish languages. Ana Maria’s article this month discusses the “Outsourcing of Project Management in Argentina”, based on her own experiences and perspective on this important topic. The second report is from Dr. O. Chima Okereke, International Correspondent for Nigeria, in which he discusses economic and political conditions in Nigeria following the recent national elections, as well as the status of the PM profession there. Chima suggests that the formation of PMI chapters is seen as the fastest way for the PM profession to develop in Nigeria and discusses current status. Mounir Ajam in Dubai has provided an interesting first report from our newest international correspondent, inviting readers to Dubai. In fact, this is an invitation to learn more about Dubai and the UAE, especially related to projects and project management. From one of the most dynamic regions in the world, this is great start and we hope to hear much more from Mounir in the future. In his Regional Report from Spain, Alfonso Bucero in Madrid has provided a short review of a PMI chapter event in which he participated in Naples, Italy and about a PMI Seminars World workshop in Barcelona. His report is also in both English and Spanish languages. The fifth Regional Report is from Raju Rao in Chennai, India, on the subject of “Airport Projects in India – Flying High.” As Raju reports, there are a number of major airport development projects underway throughout the country, offering examples of and opportunities for working project managers. Jose Machicao reports from Lima, Peru about the growing importance of tourism projects and industry in Peru in his report, including a report about how “Bill Gates and Cameron Diaz visit Peru and make some projects shine.” His report is also in both Spanish and English. The seventh Regional Report is from Romania by our International Correspondent there, Mr. Florin Gheorghiu, PMP. In his report entitled “Unity through Diversity – or a Common language for Project Management – A PMI Romanian and Roland Gareis Consulting Approach”, Florin describes a recent meeting in Bucharest involving leaders from the local PMI chapter and Roland Gareis and his team from Vienna. These are all very interesting stories and we thank these international correspondents for their contributions this month. Miles Shepherd has provided a “Roundup” of project management in the UK. He reports on some interesting projects, including the need for more PM on emergency response programs – highlighted by recent flooding in the North of England. He also suggests that PM may still have a negative image on public sector projects in the UK, based on recent news in the media about problem projects. These are all very interesting stories and we thank these international correspondents for their contributions this month. One Project Management Book Review is included this month. Robert Youker, previously with the World Bank (now retired), provides an updated review of The Modern Firm by John D. Roberts. Nominated the best business book of 2004 by The Economist magazine, it is an important book for project management thought leaders to review before jumping to conclusions about the future of organization structures, teams and communications. We jumped at the chance to publish Bob’s review this month. The balance of this month’s PM World Today features calls for papers, announcements of future events, news, information and stories related to projects and project management. We hope the inclusion of those stories is helpful, especially those announcing future PM events and Calls for Papers. I want to welcome our newest International Editorial Advisor Professor Viatcheslav Poznyakov, PhD, Dr.Sc., who is professor of Project Management and Information Systems at the State Academy for Top Managers in Investment Area, Moscow, Russia. He holds a Doctor of Science from University of Dnepropetrovsk. Professor Poznyakov was formerly Head of Department for Computer-aided Management Systems at the Moscow Civil Engineering University. He has been a visiting professor at the University of London, UK and the Leipzig High Engineering School in Leipzig, Germany. He previously headed a project management training department for the World Bank in Moscow for the Russian construction industry. He is one of the founders and a Vice-president of the Russian Project Management Association SOVNET. Please read the article announcing his participation under PM Community News in this issue. We also extend a warm welcome to Mr. Mounir Ajam, our newest International Correspondent, who lives and works in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Mounir will be providing news from Dubai and has already contributed an interesting “regional report” this month, which is included in this edition of PM World Today. Mounir Ajam, MS, PMP, is chief executive officer of SUKAD FZ-LLC, an Innovation Centre based in Dubai Knowledge Village and with services provided across the Middle East.Mr. Ajam is a PM expert with 20 years of experience in the engineering, construction, oil, gas, and petrochemical industries, and on both large and small projects in various locations in the Middle East, Southeast Asia, UK and USA. Mr. Ajam has an MS in Engineering & Construction Management from the University of California at Berkeley (USA) and a BS (honors) in Civil Engineering from the University of Houston (USA). He received his PMP® certification from the Project Management Institute (PMI®) in 1998 and graduated from PMI’s Leadership Institute Masters Class in 2007. He is a past director for the PMI-Arabian Gulf Chapter and lead advocate for a new PMI chapter in the UAE. Please read the article announcing his participation in the PM Community News section of this issue. PMForum introduced an exciting new program this month, the PM Ambassadors(TM) Speakers Bureau, a major new service for project management leaders and sponsors of project management events around the world. Through this new service, PMForum can provide speakers for project management conferences, seminars, meetings and other events worldwide. The PM Ambassadors(TM) Speakers Bureau was launched on June 26 with the participation of five of the world’s leading project management authorities: Gilles Caupin, former IPMA and AFITEP chair (France), Paul Dinsmore, PMF Fellow and well known PM author and consultant (Brazil), Adesh Jain, current IPMA chair and founder of PMA (India), Miles Shepherd, former chair of both IPMA and APM (UK), and Harvey Levine, former PMI president & chair (USA). On June 29, Rebecca Winston, former PMI chair, was also named a PM AmbassadorTM in the USA, with Brian Kooyman, former national president of AIPM in Australia named PM Ambassador(TM) on June 30. Please read about this program and these professional leaders in the PM Community News section of this issue. You can see more about this program at http://www.pmforum.org/ambassadors/ambassadors.htm. We want to thank our sponsors again this month, which include the IPMA, Journyx, Threon, and PMForum . Please visit their websites for some leading PM products, publications and services. Sponsors receive visibility and publicity in the PM World Today e-Journal that is emailed to thousands of PM practitioners and professionals worldwide, and on the PMWT home page at www.pmworldtoday.net. If your organization is interested in sponsoring an issue of PM World Today please contact me at editor@pmforum.org. Thank you for your subscription, and for reading the articles submitted by our authors and contributors. We are excited about the future of this online publication and the world of project management . 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