PMI Atlanta is pleased to announce November’s Volunteer of the Month – congratulations, Dana Murphy!

For the past 3.5 years she has served as Board Secretary for our PMI Atlanta Chapter. Dana is a "consummate volunteer" in various aspects. In addition to her outstanding work with our PMI Atlanta organization, she and her Bernese Mountain Dog Ben, a certified Happy Tails Therapy Dog, volunteers their time by visiting and bringing cheer to a nursing home two Saturdays a month. What a commendable inspiration they are, even her dog Ben's a "project manager" of sorts for goodness sake….outstanding. Dana is being recognized for being an invaluable and tireless volunteer who continues to help our leadership team move our chapter forward on multiple initiatives. As a result of her diligent efforts with our PMI Atlanta Chapter, she has been selected and appointed to a 3 year term on PMI Global’s Ethics Review Committee. In her leisure time she enjoys gardening, traveling to sunny and warm destinations to relax and spending time with friends and family. As an IT Project Lead at Colonial Pipeline Company, she was recently chosen as their "Safe Person of the Quarter", an honor for exceptional work in their firm. We love Dana's passion for the project management profession, she's even re-branded "The Golden Rule" to be called "The Platinum Rule"….how cool is that – read and learn more about her below and what she enjoys about volunteering for PMI Atlanta.

1. What has been your favorite or most rewarding volunteer experience with PMI Atlanta?
While I feel I’ve done a number of things to help Atlanta’s Leadership Team (e.g., created transition plan templates, led the Audit Committee, created two new policies on Harassment and Whistle-blowing, and updated the contracts policy besides my normal duties as Board Secretary), I am so proud to have been part of establishing a Military Mentoring Program for PMI Atlanta. While it’s just in its infancy stage, the opportunity to spend time brainstorming with former service members, hearing some of their history with my head spinning from their military jargon, was such an honor and an incredible experience. I’ve always been so proud of my brother (West Point grad) and have a deep love for our country so this project was near and very dear to my heart!

The Nominations Committee would like to present the candidates for the 2015 Executive Board of Directors Elections.  Elections will commence on November 9th and close on November 20th. The winners will be announced on December 8th at the Holiday Celebration event at The Georgian Club.

Ballots were emailed to PMI Atlanta Members on November 9th.  Be sure to check your email and cast your vote!  If you are a current member and did not receive a ballot, please email us.
 

Secretary Candidate:	Director 3 (At-Large) Candidate:
Chiquetta West, PMP - 2015 Secretary Candidate	Bill Kay, PMP - 2015 Director 3 Candidate

Written by Glenn Boylan, PMP

During September and October meetings, I’ve been presenting information about the upcoming CCR changes at various PMI Atlanta events, including the Technology Forum, Alpharetta Lunch Meeting, and PMIConnects! meetings. If you currently have a PMI certification you should be aware of these changes, as they will impact what you have to do to maintain them. 

The Continuing Certification Requirements (CCR) program outlines the requirements for obtaining professional development units (PDUs) that are required to maintain PMI certifications. 

Based on feedback from employers, PMI is changing the CCR requirements to better align with the skills employers need today, and to guide and support PM professional development to better meet those needs. 

The changes apply to PMP, PgMP, PfMP, PMI–PBA certifications (which require 60 PDUs every three years), as well as the PMI–ACP, PMI–RMP, PMI–SP certifications (30 PDUs every three years). In the discussion below, I’ll be referring to PDU quantities for the 60 PDU certifications, but keep in mind that the same type of changes will apply to the 30 PDU certifications as well. The actual numbers will just be different.

You will still earn PDUs in two main categories: Education and Giving Back. Here is how the CCR guidelines are going to change.

PMI Atlanta is pleased to announce October’s Volunteer of the Month – congratulations, Les Scott! For the past three years he has been hosting the Alpharetta lunch meeting. Les is an awesome example of the spirit of our PMI Atlanta organization, in addition to hosting, he also coordinates the registrations, introduces speakers, manages last minute questions and does it all with huge smile. He is being recognized for being a dependable and invaluable go to volunteer who helps ensure the Alpharetta lunch meetings are always successful. We love Les' positivity and passion for the project management profession – read and learn more about him below and what he enjoys about volunteering for PMI Atlanta.

What has been your favorite or most rewarding volunteer experience with PMI Atlanta? 
My most rewarding experiences as a PMI Atlanta volunteer is the opportunity as a Program Manager to host the Alpharetta Lunch Meeting. Being that this is the end of my third year hosting, it feels like the beginning. What I enjoy most is the meeting of new people who attend the presentation and the facial expressions and comments of the first time visitors. Their enthusiasm and eagerness is simply priceless.

How did you become interested in the project management profession?
While working for Lucent Technologies as an Engineering Supervisor, a colleague informed me that he had accepted a Project Management position and was very excited. He also informed me that he had completed his PMP Certification and couldn’t wait to apply the methodologies in his new position. He also stated that there were several positions available and suggested that I apply. After carefully considering my options, I decided to apply and was offered a similar position and caught the Project Management bug also.

What leisurely activities do you enjoy? Any little known fact that you’d like to share?
I enjoy bowling, reading (favorite author Larry McMurtry) and movies (action, suspense). After the completion of my PMP certification, I was offered a position as an instructor teaching project managers how to pass the PMP certification exam. I really enjoy teaching and the ability to help others do something that would be instrumental in their career.