Event Report

On November 1, Judy Balaban President and Lisa Blake VP Symposium welcomed a full cast of talented speakers, generous sponsors, attendees, and volunteers to PMINJ's 2018 IPM Day at The Palace in Somerset, New Jersey.

Dr. David Hillson, the internationally recognized "Risk Doctor," used insight and humor in "Risk Based Innovation: The Innovation Ecocycle," to demonstrate how the PMBOK's risk management process supports both the innovation and development loops of the innovation ecocycle. By expanding risk impact analysis to include positive impacts, risk management helps us identify opportunities. Those that result in new, better, useful, and profitable products or services can pave the way for innovation.

We usually think of using project management to build things: new systems, capabilities, products, and services. Instead, in "Resurrecting Projects Going South Using PMBOK," Michael Thomas, PMINJ's Project Manager of the Year, described how his team used the PMBOK's processes to demolish a site to make way for new construction. Michael's team prepared the engineering documents and plans for the demolition. By managing with earned value, he identified when the project began to "head south." Using PMBOK techniques, the team corrected course and delivered on time, with a cost variance of less than $400 on a $275,000 budget. Congratulations to Michael Thomas, PMINJ 2018 Project Manager of the Year.

Regulations and changing standards of care are forcing the healthcare industry to adopt an integrated approach to delivering patient care. The PMINJ Project of the Year award presenters, Andrea Peine-Ardila and Rheya Boykins-Munroe, explained how their project team implemented the Executive Strategy Initiatives Portfolio project to break down silos and implement change across the Hackensack Meridian Health—Hackensack University Medical Center (HMH HUMC) network. Their goal? Make HMH HUMC the most integrated and comprehensive health care system in New Jersey. The team catalogued current initiatives, implemented governance, and provided strategic guidance for future initiatives. Using techniques from the PMBOK, the team reduced costs of redundant efforts with innovative technologies and efficient processes, resulting in measurable, high-quality patient outcomes. Congratulations to HMH HUMC for winning the PMINJ 2018 Project of the Year award.

Do you communicate so clearly that you are always understood and so precisely that you cannot possibly be misunderstood? In "Communications Bleeps and Blunders," Todd Hunt delivered hilarious stories of communications gone wrong and he taught us to be concise and precise to avoid miscommunication.

Do you have a bad memory? In "The Memory Switch," Matt Goerke suggested that instead of a bad memory, we lack the ability to recall information on demand. In his humorous, story-filled talk, Matt shared a series of simple, unforgettable images, the "tree" list, to help us remember the names of a room full of strangers, give presentations without notes, and increase our brain's flexibility.

Plan now to attend our next PMINJ stellar event - the 33rd Annual PMINJ Symposium to be held on May 5th and 6th, 2019 at a new venue.

View Photos from the event and login to see Webinars of the presentations.

Submitted by Charles Jijon