Event Report
PMINJs 33rd Annual Symposium was held on May 6, 2019 at the Palace in Somerset, NJ. It was another highly successful sold-out event with over 480 attendees representing IT, Pharmaceuticals, Financial Services, Health Care, Consulting, Manufacturing, and Telecommunications industries. The theme for the event was Project Management in a Digital World. Judy Balaban, PMINJ Chapter President and Lisa Blake, VP Symposium provided the opening remarks.
A phenomenal group of experts were selected to present at the Symposium, which had three keynote speaker sessions. These sessions were: "Finding Your Place in a New, Digital World", Michael Milutis addressed the bewilderment most people face with complex technologies and ways to deal with the dilemma to make a difference and flourish in the digital world; "Cybersecurity, Are we at Risk?", Susan Parante presented the importance of IT security, existence of cyber threats / vulnerabilities and ways to react and prevent them; and "A Billion Dollar Project Blunder", Uri Galimidi talked about the eight imperatives of project success: executive support, project leadership, clear and achievable scope, realistic plans, vendor management, stakeholder management, project team, and methodology and process.
There were twelve breakout sessions throughout the day and attendees were given a free hand in choosing which speaker session to attend. The topics ranged from Big Data, Digital Management, Solutions and Transformations, Agile Approach including Agile Framework, Cyber Security, DevOps, Machine Learning, etc. Those who presented were Lynn DeHart, Richard Eng, Jimmy Godard, George Pace, Anindya Sengupta, Carol Smith, Carolyn Smith, Deven Trivedi, Harum Urata-Thompson, Dan Wakeman, and Henry Will.
PMINJ also hosted the 13th Annual Sunday Seminar on May 5, 2019 led by Christa Kirby, Director at International Institute for Learning. She presented "Emotional Intelligence in a Digital World". She suggested following basics such as making sure to maintain a good sleeping schedule, exercise, keep healthy eating habits, and practice mindfulness. In the life of a PMP, Kirby's suggestions are a great reminder that even in the busiest of times, to do great work we must take great care of ourselves.
Thus concludes PMINJ's Sunday Seminar and Symposium 2019! Attendees gained both physical and emotional knowledge, as well as how the two tie together. Each session was highly informative and incredibly useful, and it is without a doubt those in attendance left the events with new knowledge that will help them in their strides to become better project management professionals. Between sessions, attendees had time to network, visit sponsor tables and exhibits. Some lucky attendees won prizes and raffles.
With this year's resounding success, it can only bring about excitement for our future events. (Visit PMINJ Events for our upcoming activities). Thanks to those who presented, as well as those who attended. Last but not least, kudos to the PMINJ organizers and volunteers for their dedication and hard work in making this event one more for the books.
See you in the Fall for the PMINJ celebration of IPM day!
