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Vol. XII Issue VII - July 2010
Project Management eJournal
REGIONAL REPORT:
Project Management Update from East Midlands
By Philip Smelt
International Correspondent for PMForum
& PM World Today
Lincolnshire, UK
Introduction
Welcome to my regional report, for which again I make no apologies for its APM centric nature.
To start however I will raise the issue of Public Sector Project cut-backs. With the Chancellor of the Exchequer making clear the Government’s determination to repay the nation’s debt over the next four years; the public sector spend will therefore be greatly reduced and there will be pain.
Indications are that income from the Government will be cut by at least 25%, possibly more, over the next four years. This is on top of the reductions already in place.
These reductions will challenge all of the UK’s Local Council activities, and certainly means re-visiting all projects and services. At Lincolnshire County Council these projects and services all have their value, so difficult decisions will have to be made over which are absolutely core to what we do, and which are not and need to be revised, reduced or provided in a very different way. With such a scale of reduction we must accept that there will be job losses.
It is perhaps fitting then, that the value of professional project and programme management has at last been recognised in its capacity as the deliverer of the change, transformation and improvements needed to ensure value for money and the successful realisation of identified project and programme benefits; both of which are needed if we are to minimise the impact of such high spending cuts.
To read entire report click here
About the Author Philip Smelt International Correspondent - UK
Philip Smelt, B.Sc.(Hons.), M.Phil., MAPM works at Lincolnshire County Council (England’s 4th largest County) as a Project Manager within their new Programme Centre. Philip began his career as a research chemist for the Ministry of Defence at the Chemical Defence Establishment, Porton Down; studying gas adsorption on novel polymeric materials, research that resulted in an M.Phil. Philip has traveled the globe whilst working on projects in the scientific instrumentation industry, including 5 years in the Former Soviet Union at the time of Perestroika and Glasnost. His work involved the commissioning of multi-million pound state of the art Surface Science Instrumentation. Philip also held the post of Innovation & Technology Counsellor for Humberside's new Business Links where he managed a portfolio of 200 companies, providing solutions and advice utilizing schemes and initiatives delivered through the UK’s Department of Trade and Industry and European Commission. For a Westland Helicopters Computer Based Training sub-contractor, he led a team of courseware designers, authors, graphics artists and application software engineers in the production of multi-screen Computer Aided Instruction and Emulation Systems. He has also worked for several overseas Navies and delivered multi-million pound control room projects for a ‘bluelight’ company specializing in Integrated Communications Control Systems. As a Managing Successful Programmes (MSP) Practitioner and Management of Risk (M_O_R) Practitioner, Philip has broad private and public sector exposure. Philip also possesses a Post-graduate Certificate in Systems Thinking and a Post-graduate Diploma in Management Studies, both from the University of Lincoln. He has been a member of the Association for Project Management (APM) since 2005 and Chairman of APM’s Yorkshire & North Lincolnshire branch since 2008. Philip is also an Associate Consultant for Cogenic Ltd., www.cogenic.co.uk a UK consultancy that specializes in helping organizations implement strategy, reduce wasted resources and effort, and increase return on investments. Philip can be contacted at project_prince@hotmail.com. |
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