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Volume X - Issue X - October 2008
Viewpoints
PM World Today™ Viewpoints articles reflect the personal opinions of the authors and not that of PM Forum™ and PM World Today™. Publication does not constitute endorsement by either PM Forum™ or PM World Today™. We strive only to provide a non-biased platform for the exchange of constructive and diverse ideas, opinions, perspectives, and thought-provoking articles about matters affecting the world of project management. PM World Today™ also does not endorse nor allow abusive, inaccurate or unprofessional content. PM Forum and PM World Today™ encourage and support high standards of ethical and professional conduct at all times. Contact information for each author is normally included with each article (when provided) so that if you have a differing opinion or a shared interest you may dialogue directly with the author.
Green Project Management:
By Andrea Krasnoff, PMP. Green, environment, sustainability – these are words that continue to become more and more common in everyday vocabulary. Globally we are recognizing that natural resources are limited and we are taking steps to preserve these resources. In our personal lives, some of the most common environment-related discussions include neighborhood and school recycling programs, environmentally friendly vehicles, carpooling, and water usage. However, our profession seems to be in its infancy in applying green standards. At first glance, it appears that any project team could take steps to recycle and reduce the use of resources. This may include reducing the amount of documentation that is printed, and using workflow capabilities to cut down on the movement and approval of paper documents. Project team members may also be required to shut off computers and printers nightly if this reduces electrical use. Another area that has received attention within Information Technology is in building and running data centers. It makes sense to focus our attention to building environmentally friendly products. It seems that we can also consider the environmental impact in the decisions that arise while building these products. “GreenPM” (green project management), coined by Tom Mochal and Andrea Krasnoff of TenStep, Inc., is a concept in its infancy with a goal of incorporating an organization’s environmental policies into project management processes. It is a model where we think green throughout our project and make decisions that take into account the impact on the environment, if any. It is a way to ingrain “greenthink” into every project management process. Read complete paper in English
Consulting Rules of Engagement By Ammar Mango A big part of a manager’s role is to communicate vision, mission, and core values. In a consulting environment, this might be even the more important. Here are excerpts from a long memo I found in my files called “Consulting Rules of Engagement”. I thought I would share it with colleagues through PMForum and PM World Today. “Providing sustainable benefits to the customer and our company in an ethical and professional fashion should be the mission of every consultant. All our consulting engagements should be based on win-win arrangements were BOTH our company and client must win. If a consultant feels that a certain engagement is a win-lose one, then the consultant must clearly and promptly communicate such concerns to her or his direct supervisor to understand management point of view. At the end, all engagements must be win-win. You as a consultant must understand our company’s line on how we provide value, buy into it, and commit to it. Otherwise no long term value adding relationship can be sustained with client or with our company without this win-win mentality. All of us face external temptations and pressures in everything we do. However, these pressures and temptations should never be an excuse for us preventing us from doing the right thing. We as professional consultants should ask ourselves what is the right thing, in an unwavering objective fashion and stick to doing what is right. Sometimes doing what is right requires politics, shrewdness, and being smart. Use all the tools the consultant have available to do what is right, in a professional and ethical manner. Read complete paper in English
The Challange of PM Associations in Latin America By Ana María Rodríguez, MSE, PMP Latin American interest and awareness of Project Management is constantly increasing. Demand for training on the topic is overwhelming, and most companies are looking for methods to improve their projects performance. But there are few professional associations on Project Management in the region, and few Latin American professionals are members of a PM association. Many new PMI communities are being established in the region, and are looking for volunteers, members and sponsors. Is Latin America ready for more PM associations? Will PMs in the region become more involved in the new and already existing associations? Why are they not participating yet? This viewpoint article intends to contribute to the awareness of the need for developing Project Management Professional Associations in the region. First, I would like to analyze the actual picture of professional associations in Latin America and the Caribbean. There are 25 chapters of the Project Management Institute (PMI) in the region, 13 of them located in Brazil, 4 in Mexico, and one per country in Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia, Peru, Costa Rica, Panama and Venezuela. New Branches of the Buenos Aires and Santiago Chapters are being established. A new PMI chapter in Ecuador is being established. 10,700 members of PMI live in Latin America, most of them in Brazil. Not all members of PMI have joined local chapters. In average, PMI chapters outside Brazil count with 200-300 members. Brazilian chapters are larger. Read complete paper in English | Spanish
PMBOK® Guide – Fourth Edition Changes – An Overview By Cyndi Snyder Stackpole A lot of people are wondering what is going to change with the PMBOK® Guide – Fourth Edition. There is not that much that will change with regards to the content. There are a few additions and deletions to processes, but mostly of the work was done in making the standard internally consistent. We wanted the chapters to feel more cohesive as if one person wrote the standard instead of a group of people. In addition to internal consistency, our charter required that the PMBOK® Guide – Fourth Edition be aligned with The Standard for Program Management – Second Edition and The Standard for Portfolio Management – Second Edition. We accomplished that by having one person architect and lay out chapters 1 and 2 across all three standards so that they are in agreement. This is not to say that they are identical, but the chapter structure is aligned and the content is not contradictory. There are several figures and tables that are identical across the standards to keep a consistent message when talking about the relationship between the standards. Read complete paper in English
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