"I am a Project Manager." "I am a Business Analyst." This is how you used to answer when asked "What do you do?"  In today’s professional world, the line drawn between these two professions is increasingly blurry, and in some cases, non-existent, so answering this question has become much harder. Have you ever been asked to take on a hybrid project manager/business analyst role? Are you doing it now? Come join us as a panel of PMs and BAs discuss how these two professions are becoming increasingly more blended. If you can relate, please come and engage in the discussion and share your stories!

August 2020 Virtual Breakfast Meeting 

Presentation Title/Topic: 

There’s got to be a better way – Leveraging innovation in project management.

Speaker: Kevin Jacobs

Kevin Jacobs has 20+ years of experience leveraging IT project management to implement innovative solutions in a wide variety of industries.  He completed a doctoral degree in information systems focused on reducing project failure in 2006.  He just finished six years of working as the PMO manager for Freeport McMoRan where he developed and taught an internal PMP course, improved the visibility between strategic roadmaps and ongoing projects, and rolled out agile and design thinking principles to both IT and business operations.  He is currently coaching Agile, blogging, and enjoying time with family while looking for his next adventure. 

Kevin's Blog is https://simplifiedagile.com/blog/

People are also welcome to connect with him via LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-jacobsdba/

Topic Summary:

Project and Portfolio Management (PPM) tools can enable your organization by providing transparency, governance and the ability to manage work across remote, distributed teams.  But, how much do these tools cost? What functionality is going to cost us the most, and how can I ensure I maximize the value of our organization’s investment?

In this talk, Kim Essendrup of Kolme Group walks through the typical costs you can expect when implementing a PPM tool, and provides actionable advice on how to maximize the value of your PPM solution – whether you are looking for a tool now, or already have one implemented in your organization.

Speaker Bio:

Kim Essendrup is co-host of the Project Management Happy Hour podcast, and co-founder of Kolme Group, a PPM consultancy with an aim to help their clients make data driven decisions by integrating Project Delivery leadership with modern project management systems.  Kim is a PMP with 20+ years experience managing teams, projects, programs and PMO’s.