The annual PMI Region 14 Conference was held in Florida's beautiful St. Pete Beach on April 24th and 25th. Many of your PMICAC board members attended this conference which is geared toward the volunteers of the region 14 chapters.
One of the Keynote speakers included David Marquet who's presentation on Intent-based Leadership was informative and inspirational. Fortune magazine called Mr. Marquet's book Turn the Ship Around! A True Story of Turning Followers Into Leaders the "best how-to manual anywhere for managers on delegating, training, and driving flawless execution."
The other Keynote speaker, John Stenbeck, motivated participants with secrets for creating robust, self-sustaining Chapter growth ... without burning themselves or their teams out!
Michael Dale, your 2015 Board Advisor, shared his thoughts on John Stenbeck's presentation.
1. "PMI volunteerism is a chance to experiment, trial and error without being fired (mostly)"....this is very true in the sense that all members are looking for experience and a way to differentiate themselves in the marketplace. The chapter ought to advertise itself as an awesome way to be part of a legislative and executive board making key decisions that impact close to 600 members and the professional community around us. And a chance to create and execute a strategy plan that includes a decent size budget. This type of experience can be a very attractive if the right picture is provided pertaining to the experience of being a PMI chapter volunteer leader.
2. "Irrational behavior may be caused by ineffective leadership"....this was a very strong point as the board should look at itself when discussing the reasons for attrition, lack of enthusiasm, etc. As with the earlier point, we need to magnify the significance of being a volunteer, member or leader in the chapter. Its the board's task to do this. To this end, I think we have seen the excitement and demand to be a part of the chapter from a lot of new members. It may make sense to look at engaging new members since the fire is still lit with them and let some of the older members like myself take a break so that we can recharge our batteries.
Theresa Cook, your VP of Membership, especially enjoyed the welcome speech from Maria Lowe, the mayor of St. Pete Beach. Mayor Lowe emphasized how important Project Managers are to local government. "It is viewed that credentialed PM's take projects to a new level." Theresa summarized.
Conference Attendees enjoyed breakout sessions which included topics on team building, leadership development, project management techniques and efficient ways to manager your PMI chapter. Networking and building relationships was a big part of the event. The conference offered numerous networking opportunities which included interactive sessions, a speed networking event and mixers held right on the beach.
If you are interested in attending a conference such as this, consider volunteering with the PMICAC chapter. Board positions are available annually and there are a plethora of chapter volunteer opportunities. You may learn more by visiting the Get Involved page on our website.
Pamela Smith, PMP
PMICAC President