Celebrating the 3rd year Anniversary of PMAC-AGPC

The Project Management Association of Canada – Association de gestion de projet du Canada (PMAC-AGPC) has completed its third year since inception and its first year as the official Canadian member of the International Project Management Association (IPMA). Excitement continues to brew within Canada’s newest Project Management association. PMAC-AGPC has held true to its commitment to not only explore a broader model of Project Management, and apply a broader definition of project success, but to serve the needs and demands of the growing Canadian project management community, experiencing growth in a bilingual country, while continuing to support the ideals of IPMA. One of the primary missions of the Project Management Association of Canada is to provide independent third party assessments of project, program, and project portfolio management competence for Canadian professionals. To facilitate this achievement, PMAC-AGPC has introduced the 4-tier certification process defined as an international standard by the IPMA. This collection of accreditations not only provides a process where project managers can develop the skills necessary to lead and manage projects and people, but also provides a meaningful development path for those choosing to follow a career in the Project Management discipline. So who organizes and represents the interests of the PMAC-AGPC? The answer to this question is quite simple: our volunteers. The current President of PMAC-AGPC is Beverly Pasian. Beverly is a PhD candidate in Project Management, and has an extensive knowledge in the PM field. Her experience includes 10+ years as senior project manager, and she has published numerous e-learning articles and books in the project management discipline. PMAC-AGPC is as well directed by its Board Members. These members include, Kevin Aguanno, Bob Robinson, Andy Jordan, Alex Jalalian, Beverly Pasian, Keith Farndale, Grant Kerr, Paul Todd, Tamer Atiba, and Morley Selver. Within its first year of membership, the PMAC-AGPC has already had 5 “First Assessors” certified by the IPMA. These are Kevin Aguanno, Keith Farndale, Grant Kerr, Alex Jalalian, and Morley Selver. Additionally, the PMAC-AGPC has itself certified Level D and Agile Project Managers. Certification at all four levels of the IPMA Accreditation is now available within Canada, and assessments have been scheduled across the country. Due to the high level of interest and the large number of applications for assessment, we expect to have more IPMA certified Assessors in the near future. All 5 “First Assessors” play a key role on the Board of PMAC-AGPC. Kevin Aguanno is the Director responsible for Professional Development, while Keith Farndale is a Director-at-Large for the organization. Grant Kerr holds the role of Treasurer, Alex Jalalian is the Director of Awards, and Morley Selver currently serves as both Director of Communications and Director of Certification. Other key active members of PMAC-AGPC include Paul Todd , Bob Robinson, Andy Jordan, and Tamer Atiba. Paul is the Director responsible for all membership services. Bob is the Director for Western Canada, representing PMAC-AGPC interests and membership in that region. Tamer is currently on the Certification Board and Andy Jordon is the past Vice President of the organization. Each board member that represents this non-profit organization brings with them unique strengths and experiences, with a wealth of project management exposure and involvement at international industrial, educational and professional levels. Although the experiences each member brings cover a wide arena of industries and organizations, they all share one common interest: to provide an environment for individuals in project management to share and learn from one another. By partnering with several Canadian companies, PMAC-AGPC is spreading the genuine interest of the project management profession across Canada and beyond. This is shown by the growth in membership, which has increased four fold in the first year. PMAC-AGPC will be an active participant in Project World 2010 in Toronto and Vancouver and beyond. Educating project management professionals about developments in project management practice is critical to the success of this profession. During the past year, PMAC-AGPC has held several educational events. These events included webinars to educate professionals on various project management topics, and training seminars in Agile Project Management. Additionally, PMAC-AGPC also held its first Annual General Meeting, where guest speakers, Mr. Miles Shepherd, and Dr. Lew Ireland, were invited to talk. They presented speeches on Project Management as a Profession and on the changing face of Project Management. Like many other professions, our future lies in developing interest in the project management field within the youth of our society. To promote the project management profession within the second generation of individuals, PMAC-AGPC has created a “Young Crew Canada”. This is a network for young project management professionals and students under 35 years of age. Young Crew Canada will host one of it first events in April 2010, at the University of Toronto. PMAC-AGPC has accomplished a significant amount during its first year, surpassing all of our original expectations, and we thank all those members and volunteers that made this happen. We look forward to another exciting year at PMAC-AGPC, and hope you can join us!