Congratulations, Carolyn Toomer! Carolyn, who serves as VP of the Education Committee, was awarded Volunteer of the Month for November. Over the past three years, Carolyn has dedicated her time to growing a volunteer team that teaches project management skills to the Atlanta area middle and high schools by participating in programs like Junior Achievement and providing PM workshops.

Carolyn encourages all PMI Chapter members to volunteer and give some time back to the profession during their careers. She adds, “Volunteering is a very rewarding experience and project management skills can make a difference in the lives of many people. “

Written by Glenn Boylan

The September PMI Atlanta Technology Forum featured a fascinating talk about big data by Rich Wise.

Steve Kruger welcomed everyone and thanked our hosts, Hewlett-Packard. Excellent food this month. This month’s announcements included the fact that HP has a job opening for a Technical Accounts Manager, and that the chapter can always use additional volunteer help. (Speaking of which, don’t forget that being a speaker at one of the Forums will get you three PDUs towards your PMP!)

The chapter has many events coming up – lunches, dinners, forums, and networking events. The chapter website at pmiatlanta.org has all the details.

Nancy Berlin introduced Mr. Wise. Rich, who is a Software Architect and Professional Services IT consultant, has over 25 years of experience in the Information Technology industry. The title of his talk was "Why Big Data ... How We Got Here".

Congratulations, Carolyn Toomer! Carolyn was selected as the November PMI Atlanta Volunteer of the Month. She serves on the Education Committee and was selected based on her efforts to increase awareness of the PM profession to colleges and high schools. We caught up with Carolyn to learn more about her PMI Atlanta experience.

Q. What has been your favorite or most rewarding volunteer experience with PMI Atlanta?

A. Receiving the enthusiastic emails for the scholarships recipients. The Chapter scholarships had not been awarded in a number of years and it was great to get the program back on track and to begin the education program with the metro area high schools and universities.

Q. What leisurely activities do you enjoy? Is there a little known fact that you’d like to share?

A. I am a musician and love to share my music. Currently, I am playing the Bass Clarinet with the Georgia Perimeter College Community Wind Ensemble

Q. Is there anything else you would like to share about volunteering , PMI Atlanta or your professional experience?

A. I encourage all PMI Chapter members to volunteer and give some time back to the profession during their careers. Volunteering is a very rewarding experience and project management skills can make a difference in the lives of many people. My PMI Atlanta Chapter experience has ranged from participating in the Atlanta Project for a Day event each year, assisting local universities by providing speakers, project management mentors, workshops, and project management expertise to students and faculty.

By Mike Ososki, PMP, Communications Committee

“What we’ve got here is a failure to communicate,” the classic line from 1967’s classic movie Cool Hand Luke, is timeless. This pronouncement rings as true today as ever—probably more so. (And isn’t it ironic, as we enjoy more means to communicate than ever before?)

Monday night’s Dunwoody Dinner tackled this issue in the workplace context, led by Becky Dannenfelser and Conni Todd of Clearwater Consulting Group. Their objectives were to identify the most prevalent tough conversations, give tips to disarm them, and share a framework to prepare.

Susan Scott asserts “The person who can most accurately describe reality without laying blame will emerge the leader.” Seems like a noble goal well worth pursuing—and extremely challenging. But it is very much in your best interest to strive for this mindset. Consider that those most confident to address high-stakes conversations are most likely to enjoy promotions, higher pay, and better reputations.