By: Vijay Kanabar

Vijay Kanabar — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 13:26:57 +0000

I don't see any organization other than PMI dominating the general PM space in North America for the foreseeable future. PMI whether you like it or not, absolutely dominates the bandwidth of project management across all industries here. At a PM research conference in Montreal (IRNOP)last June, it was baffling to watch many discussions circle back to PMBOK or PMI! Even the GAC marketing material from ESC-Lille/SKEMA administration panders to PMI with the statement that "more than 50% students apparently reported that the PMI affiliation was their reason for choosing SKEMA". This puts even more pressure on higher education to lead the way academically. While being aware we cannot be led by any organization. A good start would be to see greater investment in full time faculty dedicated to teaching, research and curriculum development. Canada, Europe, and Australia are ahead of the curve here, I hope Dean Halfond's article leads to a greater recognition and investment in quality project management programs in the USA as well.

By: Dr. Paul D. Giammalvo

Dr. Paul D. Giammalvo — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 13:39:24 +0000

Dear Dean Halfond,
Just as you described, I got my undergrad degree from WPI in Civil Engineering, majoring in construction project management back in 1974, then my Master's in Project Management from GWU in 2003 via their distance learning program and then in 2007, received my PhD in Project and Program Management from ESC-Lille, (now SKEMA) also via distance learning mode. I also have 40 years experience in the field, primarily in oil, gas, mining and telecommunications construction.

I wanted to warn you to be careful of the PMI only perspective. Construction Project Management has been a formal career path since the 1940s. This includes undergrad degrees, master's and PhD's in construction project management. So "project management" is far from "new" in academia.

Furthermore, despite PMI's efforts to capitalize on the growing awareness and popularity, "project management" is a process which uses exactly the same "tools and techniques" we find in general management. The only significant difference is projects, by definition, produce a unique product or service and have a defined stop. Otherwise, as Peter Drucker alluded, "management is management is management".

Globally, there are other professional organizations besides PMI, including the International Project Management Association (IPMA) http://www.ipma.ch/Pages/default.aspx based in Europe, which also has a branch in the USA-the American Society for the Advancement of Project Management (asapm)- http://www.asapm.org/; There is also the Association for the Advancement of Cost Engineering International, http://www.aacei.org/, which, despite the name is a viable competitor to PMI, and then there is the International Council of Systems Engineers (INCOSE) http://www.incose.org/, which, like AACE takes a much more holistic organizational view of project management than does PMI.

Bottom line: PMI is by far the largest, but not necessarily the most highly respected of the organizations representing the practice of project management. And while their PMP (Project Management Professional) certification has become a de facto license to practice in some sectors, it is, IMPO, a grossly oversold credential. Clearly, the trends are moving away from exam-based certifications in this field and more toward competency-based credentials. I would hope that in the future, you can publish a more balanced perspective so that readers can do their own due diligence and make their own choices about whether "bigger" is really "better."

Best Regards,
Dr. Paul D. Giammalvo, CDT, CCE, MscPM, MRICS
http://www.build-project-management-competency.com
Jakarta, Indonesia

Comments on: Projecting Project Management’s Future Within the Academic Landscape

By: Vijay Kanabar

By: Dr. Paul D. Giammalvo