Projectified

Project professionals are boosting their personal branding—through blogs, speaking engagements and strong social media presences—not only to help them stand out as forward-thinking leaders but also to share their knowledge and give back to the project management community. In a joint discussion, guests discuss how they decided where to focus their personal branding efforts and their top tips for other project professionals looking to elevate their personal brand, plus how strong personal branding helped them gain greater visibility inside and outside their organizations and brought on more career opportunities.Our guests include Fahad Ahmed, PMP, head of IT, Jubilee General Insurance, Karachi, Pakistan, and Yasmina Khelifi, PMI-ACP, PMI-PBA, PMP, senior project manager, Orange, Paris.Key themes[02:04] Sharing expertise, lessons learned and ways to upskill to kickstart personal branding efforts[04:26] Top tips for using LinkedIn to boost your personal brand[08:40] Determining your area of expertise in personal branding[12:46] Ways to stay up to date on project management trends[16:28] The benefits of strong personal branding? Greater recognition and more career opportunities[19:02] How certifications benefit project professionals’ personal brand[20:37] Take your personal branding to the next level with a focused goal and show your strengths

Introducing new ways of working to teams can be challenging, but they can also bring new insights and solutions that help teams deliver successful projects. We discuss this with: Alexandre Mariano Vieira, AHPP, PMI-ACP, PMP, project manager, SSA México, México City: Mariano Vieira discusses how he evaluates whether a new way of working would be a good fit for his teams or projects, how he introduced agile techniques to create a hybrid approach and how this new way of working improved project delivery timelines. Jessica Montgomery, AHPP, PMP, project manager, CACI, San Antonio, Texas, USA: Montgomery discusses challenges project managers might face when introducing a new way of working when a project is already underway, plus she shares an example of how she built buy-in for agile techniques at a government organization that strictly used a predictive (waterfall) approach for projects.Key themes[02:16] Ways to evaluate whether a new way of working is right for a team or project[03:21] Developing a hybrid approach for pharma projects[05:20] How to garner support and trust from hesitant team members[11:47] Ways to measure if a new way of working is successful[14:18] Challenges to introducing new ways of working mid-project[16:06] Building buy-in for agile techniques at an org that favors predictive approaches[19:08] Utilizing emotional intelligence when introducing new ways of working

Agile is moving further into the mainstream, and much like its name suggests, these approaches are evolving. We discuss this with: Tammy Ashraf, PMI-ACP, Earth science systems integration manager, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, USA: Ashraf discusses the benefits of agile approaches, how traditionally risk-averse organizations are embracing agile techniques, and the skills project professionals need—such as servant leadership and a greater understanding of digital collaboration tools—as agile approaches evolve. Adeyinka Adeniran, PMI-ACP, PMP, PgMP, technical program manager, Quantiphi, London: Adeniran discusses how his use of agile approaches has evolved, starting with scrum and moving to a DevOps environment; how he’s seen greater use of design thinking and artificial intelligence in agile; and why he believes these two trends are growing.  Key themes[03:09] Embracing agile in traditionally risk-averse organizations[06:09] Using agile approaches to push research and discovery[09:43] Skills project professionals need as agile evolves[12:39] Utilizing agile approaches in a DevOps environment[14:07] The growth of value streams and design thinking in agile

The construction sector is moving toward a more digital and connected future, with new technologies changing how teams are executing projects. We discuss this with:Rami Kaibni, PMI-CP, PgMP, PfMP, senior projects and development manager, Field & Marten Associates, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada: Kaibni discusses how new tech, including building information modeling (BIM), is helping boost efficiency in project planning and execution, how his teams decide whether or not to use a specific technology on a construction project, and how the PMI-CP certification can benefit construction professionals.Tim Wark, regional digital director for Australia and New Zealand, AECOM, Brisbane, Australia: Wark discusses how increased data sharing and new tech, such as parametric design, is changing how construction projects are managed and executed, how AECOM is working to embrace digital both internally and in the services it offers clients, and how the organization is working to train, upskill and create a culture of innovation to help further embrace technology in construction. Key themes[02:02] Boosting efficiency in project planning and execution with BIM[03:46] Factors to consider before determining whether to use new tech on construction projects[07:25] The benefits of the PMI-CP certification for construction professionals[09:14] How increased data sharing is accelerating the construction sector’s digital transformation[12:20] Embracing digital in construction through design, data and automation[14:34] Building buy-in for new tech through upskilling, training and creating a culture of innovation

Companies across regions and sectors face myriad cyber threats from ransomware and phishing scams to attacks from professional cybercriminals—a growing number of them now using AI. In response, organizations are launching cybersecurity projects to keep their companies’ and customers’ data secure. We discuss this with:Gordon Yan, PMP, vice president, IT project manager, OCBC Bank, Singapore: Yan discusses how Singapore’s banking industry is reacting to more phishing and impersonation scams, artificial intelligence’s growing role—as a potential threat and opportunity—in cybersecurity, how he’s adopting agile practices in his projects and how greater cybersecurity investments and awareness can help build customer trust and confidence.Mateusz Jasny, PMP, cybersecurity director, Comarch, Krakow, Poland: Jasny discusses the biggest cyber threats companies face today and how they’re leading to increased cybersecurity efforts across organizations, along with how his teams use threat modeling to identify potential risks to projects. Plus, he shares why cybersecurity project managers need collaboration and facilitation skills along with cybersecurity literacy.Key themes[00:52] Teams are meeting cyber threats with increased cybersecurity efforts[05:16] Delivering a continuous surveillance cybersecurity project at a financial institution[07:52] Adopting agile practices to improve project delivery[08:52] Investing in cybersecurity efforts and awareness to boost customer confidence and trust[10:30] Responding with agility and flexibility in the face of professional threat actors and advances in AI[13:32] Utilizing threat modeling to determine risks on cybersecurity projects[14:44] Must-haves for cybersecurity project managers: Collaboration and facilitation skills, plus cybersecurity literacy

Project professionals are in high demand, but how does someone break into the profession? In a joint discussion, guests share how they started their project management careers—one pursuing it from the start, the other taking the role unexpectedly—the top skills new project managers should develop and how organizations can help project leaders upskill. Plus, they share how certifications from PMI have given their career development a boost.Our guests include Johanna Kolerski-Bezerra, PMP, project manager for forecasting, Euromonitor International, London; and Alisa Vovk, CAPM, consultant in HR global strategic initiatives, CGI, Toronto. Key themes[02:06] Two project leaders share their career journeys[07:51] Four skills new project managers should focus on developing[09:28] Ways organizations can help project professionals upskill[11:53] Never had a project management role? Look for workshops, certifications and volunteer opportunities[14:41] How the PMI community and certifications from PMI have helped two project leaders’ careers[18:05] Looking to break into project management? Learn fast, stay inquisitive and be patient

More and more businesses are realizing that sustainability projects are not just good for the environment—they also can boost an organization’s bottom line. But project managers need the right skills to get organizational support to deliver successful initiatives. We discuss this with: Brittany Brama, principal sustainability program manager, C.H. Robinson, Eden Prairie, Minnesota, USA: Brama discusses how she prioritizes sustainability-focused projects, how a passion project became a tool that helped customers reduce carbon emissions by 350,000 metric tons in its pilot phase, and ways project managers can build support and a collaborative environment for sustainability projects—plus the different ways her teams measure the impact of these projects.Oladele Iyiola, PMP, program manager for strategic programs, sustainability and ESG, Tawal, Riyadh: Iyiola discusses how his passion drove him to lead sustainability projects, how a recycling and waste management project helped his company re-use assets and better recycle operational waste, and his top advice to other project professionals leading sustainability projects.Key themes[02:01] Prioritizing sustainability projects that share value across an enterprise[02:41] Delivering value to customers through a carbon emissions monitoring tool[05:20] Building collaboration and buy-in for sustainability projects with the C-suite and customers[06:58] Ways to measure a project’s impact: sustainability pledges met, CO2 reduced and stakeholder feedback[08:54] A passion for sustainability: balancing telecom’s energy needs and environmental impact[11:43] Launching a recycling and waste management project to boost the recycling of operational waste[14:28] Must-have skills for sustainability projects: technical skills, collaboration and stakeholder management [15:18] Looking to lead sustainability projects? Be a change agent and increase awareness

Artificial intelligence, machine learning, big data, collaboration tools—project managers are using a bevy of new technologies to boost efficiency and improve project outcomes. We discuss this with: Niral Rajani, project manager, Aristocrat, Sydney: Rajani discusses how tech tools can increase efficiency and reduce cost and time on projects, and how he uses machine learning to predict risk, complexity and resources on future projects—plus the steps he takes to ensure a smooth implementation for new technologies or tech tools on his teams. Dunola Oladapo, founder of Luton Lights and Generation Connect program lead at the U.N.’s International Telecommunication Union, U.K.: Oladapo discusses how she’s seen an increase in project management and collaboration tools as more people embrace remote work, how she uses collaboration tools to connect with young leaders around the world, and why empathy, equity and creating a safe, collaborative environment are must-haves when leading virtual teams.Key themes[02:07] How tech tools are changing how project managers deliver initiatives[04:14] Training machine learning models to predict risk, resourcing and more[06:10] Steps to ensure a smooth implementation of new technologies[07:22] Ways to build buy-in for next-gen tech tools[11:10] Project managers seeing more tech tools as remote work increases[13:12] Finding collaboration tools that work for your team[16:03] Empathy and compassion: Two must-haves for project managers in a tech-fueled world

Resilience is a must-have for teams delivering projects in today’s disruptive and volatile world. So how do you build resiliency on teams? We discuss this with:Ray Jones, PMI-ACP, PMP, program manager, SMX Technology, San Antonio, Texas, USA: Jones discusses the new context for resilience in a more complex and ambiguous world, how project leaders can build team resiliency by leaning into a learning mindset, how he helped make a team more resilient by changing their work processes and environment, plus how a diversity of skills and perspectives makes for a more resilient team.Carlos Augusto Fernandes Filho, senior director for commercial aviation programs, Embraer, São José dos Campos, Brazil: Filho shares how resilience can help drive results in an organization and motivate teams, the skills he’s looking for to create—and develop—a resilient team, and how multidisciplinary, collaborative teams help build resilience. Key Themes [01:44] Resiliency’s role in a volatile, uncertain environment[03:33] Building resilience through experiential learning and empathy[08:55] How a diversity of skills boosts team resilience[12:21] The benefits of resiliency—and the pitfalls of lacking it[13:17] Creating teams with resilient members, plus how to help them further develop their resilience[17:37] How division within teams—and organizations—can hinder resilience[21:11] Looking to encourage team resilience? Create a culture of moving forward

For International Women’s Day, Projectified® hosts a roundtable with three women project leaders to discuss what it’s currently like for women in project management, how teams benefit from diversity and how organizations can better support women leaders, plus questions they had for one another as fellow project leaders.Our guests include Janete Faustino, PMP, PfMP, portfolio management leader of operations strategy and performance, TAP Air Portugal, Lisbon; Bharti Ochani, PMP, IT project manager, Halian, Dubai; and Maeve O’Brien, project manager, DDB, Chicago.Key themes[02:00] Three women project leaders on the state of women in project management[05:00] The benefits of diverse teams[06:16] Top skills for project managers: stakeholder management, accountability and conviction[09:43] Ways organizations can support women leaders[13:22] How do you keep moving forward in the face of obstacles on projects?[18:54] Advice to women project leaders: Network, be the driver of your own career, be genuine