The Association for Project Management is committed to developing and promoting project and programme management through its Five Dimensions of Professionalism. There are a number of ways in which you can benefit from what we do, including:membership,qualifications,events,publications,online services.The association is a registered charity with over 20,000 individual and 500 corporate members making it the largest professional body of its kind in Europe. As part of its strategy to raise awareness and standards in the profession it is currently in the process of applying for a Royal Charter....
On the 18th of March 2010 the APM Scotland Branch hosted the inaugural APM Scottish Conference which was attended by around 200 delegates. The conference theme was 'Professionalising Project Management'.A number of presentations was delivered by senior project management professionals including Mike Nichols of The Nichols Group, Anne Moises from the Scottish Government and Chris McLean of Fujitsu. The conference was chaired by Andrew Bragg, CEO of APM.Four inter-active workshops were held during the afternoon. The presentations from the conference can be downloaded below...
THE BACKGROUND to this discussion was concern over the future direction of qualifications in project management.In light of recent moves to gain Chartered status and professionalise the sector, there are some key questions regarding the suitability of qualifications and about how training is delivered and assessed.One of the issues with qualifications picked up on by the panel, was the tendency to view qualifications as an end in themselves – the feeling beingthat there was too much emphasis placed on passing the exam rather than learning to do the job.Far better, suggested the panel (which...
The commitment and enthusiasm of the people in the APM community never ceases to amaze me, whether newcomers or the most distinguished members of the profession such as our Honorary Fellows . But for a cloud of volcanic ash, I would have made it to Belfast to visit our branch and corporate members there. However I did manage to make the Specific Interest Group forum, the Branch forum, the Honorary Fellows annual lunch, the Education Network advisory group, a visit to APM's Aberdeen chapter and Project Challenge.I felt privileged to attend the Honorary Fellows lunch - people who have shaped...
The March issue of Project included a robust challenge from David Shannon on the role and value of Project Management Offices. The article and some of the counter-arguments are recreated on the Project Offices blog. As you might expect, the defence from the PMO community has been particularly vocal, alongside the blog post, we’ve received a number of strongly worded emails defending the role of the PMO and the April issue of Project features several letters responding to David’s piece.David is a respected professional, an honorary fellow and one of the breakthrough thinkers behind the...
In developing the new APM website, which launches in the spring, I've come to realise the huge potential it has for project professionals. Behind every association is a community organised to develop knowledge, traditionally through events, meetings and publications. APM has a strong foundation in this respect with its branches and SIGs offering a variety of opportunities to develop their skills, theories and thoughts and to help develop effective solutions that address professional needs. In fact, it's possible to attend an APM branch or SIG event every working day of the year. As my...
Martin Gosden, FAPM RPPMartin Gosden’s commitment to the APM 5 Dimensions of Professionalism has helped him to develop his career in project management:BreadthMartin’s career started as an apprentice within the Ministry of Defence which led on to its Graduate Engineer trainee programme. Martin’s wide ranging career with MoD has provided a broad understanding of project management across a wide variety of projects, ranging from research and development to business change.DepthMartin developed his capability through automotive research and development, training simulator, missile defence,...
Water Cube (Beijing), ArupThe Water Cube aquatics centre is an icon of the Beijing Olympics. Delivered by Ove Arup & Partners, it won the APM Project Management Awards' Project of the Year in 2008. This global landmark demonstrates the value of a commitment to professional project management.The centre amazed visitors and inspired athletes at the Games , hosting swimming, diving and water polo. The design was delivered from competition to approval in 12 weeks and the fast-track programme continued through to its official opening in January 2008 - on time, and on budget.The project...
David Bright presented to South Wales and West of England Branch in October 2006 on the governance of project management. David asked why is project management relevant to corporate governance? he discussed at length as to why they have become integrated and stated that GoPM is new for the 5th edition of the APM Body of Knowledge. David investigated the eight causes of project failure and also failures attributable to governance. As a direct result of such findings, a new APM Governance specific interest group has been formed.This is an incredibly detailed presentation focusing...
