IPMA International Project Excellence Gala and IPMA Congress 2016

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17 and 18 November 2016 I visited the IPMA International Project Excellence Congress in Warsaw.

Competences of Professionals

The theme of this year’s event was the importance of the PM competences which integrate knowledge and experience of project management professionals. The absolute top of international project managers were present and several of them presented their:

  • Project management leadership styles
  • Key competences for project managers
  • Lessons learned from global projects
  • Stakeholder communication strategies
  • Vision on how to integrate mindfulness and philosophy in PM-roles

Reinhard Wagner, the president of the IPMA, explained the importance to get C-level leaders engaged and involved in projects and programmes throughout the entire lifecycle. The reason is that programmes and projects need to realize the organisation strategy. Key messages: Use C-level language, reduce the level of detail in your communication, demonstrate the benefits for the company as a whole, establish a Chief Project Officer (CPO), our profession is instrumental for the whole organisation.

Another important presentation for me was the embedding of mindfulness in your role. Mindfulness means maintaining a moment-by-moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and surrounding environment. It was inspiring to hear the discussion and feel the energy in the room; mindfulness is not only important for you, but also for the entire project organisation to deliver better projects.

Project Excellence Award Gala

In the evening we had the IPMA PE (Project Excellence) Award gala diner, where the most prestigious (global) projects were presented and awarded. Below you will find the names of the prize winning projects and some pictures of the PE award gala diner.

Please see here my blog on the award and the Project Excellence Baseline Model (PEB).

I believe it’s important to keep on pushing project managers and their project teams to reach the highest possible (and sustainable) level to benefit of our society and planet as a whole.

NEVER STOP LEARNING!