Certification Magazine - February 2008 - (Page 27) suit filed by the Massachusetts Attorney General demanding approximately $100 million from the contractors, and this is a shining example of how project management can make or break a project. Project management crosses all industries and is present in every corner of the globe. In fact, anytime something must be completed, project management is at work. “Whether or not you call it project management, your life is filled with things that you manage like projects,” said Beth Ouellette, president and CEO of the Ouellette Group. From organizing a holiday dinner to planning for a family vacation, “whether you realize it before this moment or not,” you’re practicing project management. With the exception of certification, which has specific time requirements related to experience and education, potential project managers can come from any work or educational background. “I just grew into those roles, and the projects kept getting bigger and bigger, and about 10 years ago, I realized I’m a project management consultant, that’s what I’ve been doing. So, I’ve been a project management consultant in one form or other for the last 10 years.” As a profession, project management only goes back 50 years. In that time, however, the profession has grown from a nearly unknown specialty to a career path that is becoming increasingly more important and attractive. “It’s only been in the public eye for the last 15 years or so,” said Yinger, who also serves as the deputy project manager on Project Management Institute’s standard, the Project Manager Competency Development Framework. “It’s been going on forever, but it’s always From there, the profession can be broken down into two types of project managers: those who go into it to become project managers and those who go into it to better manage projects within their particular industry. While those interested in the former can take project management certificate courses at places such as Stanford University and George Washington University, project managers come from a variety of fields. In fact, many project managers entered the profession as a way to better their skills in their specific industries. Project management crosses all industries and is present in every corner of the globe. In fact, anytime something must be completed, project management is at work. been limited to certain industries. But now there’s the recognition that it’s going on everywhere.” In fact, there’s never been a better time to toss your hat into the project management ring, as employers look for the expertise to help ensure their projects are completed on time, within budget and within scope. “There is a great demand for project managers globally,” said Ron Hanchar, director of certification at Project Management Institute (PMI), the Pennsylvania-based global organization for the project management profession. “It is an ever-expanding market. Currently, the PMP and the CAPM exams are translated into 10 languages and there are over 250,000 PMI-credentialed individuals.” “What happened is I would be assigned a project, given resources and people, and, in a sense, I developed a way of delivering projects,” said Michael Yinger, president of Pythia Inc., who was working in transportation at the time. “There is a logical way, in that you plan, execute, review and replan. You can’t really do those things in any other order and get anything done. February 2008 CERTIFICATION MAGAZINE 27
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