by Mike Ososki, PMP, Public Relations Committee

Collective strength. As metro Atlanta’s “innovation conduit to support the growth and development of our local communities,” the arc of the ARC spans across plenty. Its breadth includes a multitude of ATL regional topics, issues, programs, geographies and jurisdictions, sometimes up to the Federal level. Monday’s Dunwoody Dinner was graced to host and learn more from Mr. Doug Hooker, P.E., the ARC’s Executive Director since 2011.

ARC was the first multijurisdictional public planning agency in the Nation, founded in 1947 as the Metropolitan Planning Commission. Now with nearly 200 employees and a $70M budget, its vision is to identify values, develop policies, and execute plans that matter to residents and communities, to ensure competitive advantage and preserve long-term sustainability. Think of it as our regional “planning and intergovernmental coordination agency.” As Mr. Hooker states, “Not all agencies do all things well, and not all counties are equal,” so it makes good sense to work together and benefit from each other’s strengths. With our $339B economy (34th largest in the world), we surely do benefit to coordinate, a major thrust of ARC’s efforts.

Our team is proud to bring another networking event for our members and guests - please join us!  Registration is now open!

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PMI Atlanta is pleased to announce March’s Volunteer of the Month – congratulations, Glenn Boylan!

For several years Glenn has served as a sedulous volunteer for the PMI Atlanta Chapter. He serves primarily on the Technology Forum Team where he writes up all the summaries of Forum Events for the PMI Atlanta newsletter and website. However, due to Glenn being such a "Herculean" volunteer and always willing to help and assist wherever needed, he's frequently a speaker not only for the Technology Forums, but also for other Forums and the PMI luncheons as well, that's simply PRIMO.

Moving forward, he's excited about PMI Atlanta's new initiative to help military veterans get into project management roles. He sees this as a win-win-win……..for the veterans, the project management profession and our PMI Atlanta organization. With this type of foresight, it's no accident that Glenn believes the sharing of ideas and knowledge of the PM process with new and seasoned "PMI'ers" is constitutive to help further the project management professional's individual growth, as well as continuing to help grow the Technology Forums and PMI Atlanta organization as a whole.

In addition to being a consummate PMI Atlanta volunteer, Glenn has to be one of the "Bravest or Battiest" volunteers our chapter has known. Why you may ask? Well you certainly have to exhibit one or both of those qualities to be a college kid, while on breaks from college, deciding to drive a quintessential "Big Yellow Checker Taxi Cab Sedan", in and around New York City. This further explains Glenn's success as a project management professional and PMI Atlanta Volunteer………."If He Made It There, He Could Make It Anywhere!!" :)

Read and learn more about Glenn below and what he enjoys about volunteering for PMI Atlanta.

By Glenn Boylan, PMP

PMI Atlanta’s February Healthcare Forum featured a great presentation by Michael Cooley about the Facilities Supply Lean Kaizen project he completed at Grady Hospital in Atlanta.

Andrew Gurbaxani opened the meeting welcoming everyone and thanking our Alpharetta hosts Phillips Healthcare. Andrew also reviewed upcoming PMI Atlanta events, and reminded everyone the chapter has numerous volunteer openings where folks can help out… and earn PDUs!

Andrew then introduced the evening’s speaker, Michael Cooley from Grady Healthcare. Mr. Cooley is a Senior Remodeling Project Manager for Grady. His responsibilities include remodeling projects and minor repairs throughout Grady’s facilities.

Michael completed his Bachelor’s degree at Capella University in Business Administration with a specialization in project management, graduating Magnum Cum Laude. Michael is also a journeyman carpenter with Carpenters Local 225 in Atlanta, and has worked on many commercial healthcare construction projects. At the Healthcare Forum, he reviewed his Facilities Supply Lean Kaizen project, which had significant positive impacts for Grady.

The Facilities Supply project addressed the problem of Grady’s maintenance staff having to spend a great amount of time looking for tools and equipment in order to complete work orders, resulting in wasted time. Michael’s team felt that streamlining the process of obtaining supplies and equipment would increase quality and customer satisfaction, as well as decrease costs.