ACT CHAPTER
2006 PMAA

GOLD SPONSOR

ACT COMMUNITY BENEFIT AWARD SPONSOR

SILVER SPONSOR

BRONZE SPONSOR

Welcome to another edition of the ACT Chapter in Focus. This month we celebrate the success and provide recognition to the most outstanding projects ACT has to offer.

Congratulations goes to Ratheon Australia for their CMMI project, the ACT winner for 2006 and to each of the category winners. The ACT winner and category winners will now compete at the National awards with the winners being announced at the PMAA Gala Dinner on 27th September. Good luck!

A big thanks goes to Raytheon Australia, EDS, ACT Procurement Solutions and Ross Logic, our sponsors for PMAA 2006. Without their generous support the Awards would not have been the resounding success that it was.

Thanks also goes to the many organisations who invested their time and energy to put together their submission, as without these submissions there would be no Awards.

I’d like to also take the opportunity to publicly thank Helen Briggs, our trusty and enthusiastic Chapter Administrator. Helen has worked tirelessly behind the scenes to plan and coordinate the Awards for 2006. Without Helen’s dedication, commitment and perseverance, the event would simply not have happened.

Like all good project managers we pursue a continuous improvement approach and we encourage your feedback on PMAA 06. It is through this feedback that we capitalise on our strengths and build on our weaknesses to deliver an even more exceptional event in 2007.

It is also with pleasure that we begin the planning for the AIPM National Conference in 2008 which will be held in Canberra. We will be calling for nominations shortly for anyone interested in participating in a Steering Group to plan and govern the 2008 event.

I look forward to seeing you at the AIPM National Conference in Sydney on 26th September.

Michael Young
ACT President
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As most of you are aware, the 2006 Project Management Achievement Awards Gala Dinner was held on the 30th August, at the National Convention Centre Ballroom. The evening was a glittering success, with over 250 people attending. This year there were again a high number of awards presented over the differing project categories. The 2006 PMAA Winners are:

Overall ACT Project of the Year Winner:
Organisation / Change Management Category Winner:
Raytheon Australia Pty Ltd – CMMI Project

Construction / Engineering / Aerospace Category Winner:
Defence Materiel Organisation - Collins Class Replacement Combat System Project

Information Technology Category Winner:
Joint Submission Volante Group Limited / Department of the Environment & Heritage - DEH Refresh Project 2005-2006

Regional Development Category Winner:
KBR Pty Ltd - Seahawk E-Publication Upgrade Project

Community Service or Development Winner:
Centrelink - Internet Remote Access Service Project

Individual Achievement Award Winner:
Wing Commander Scott Miller

Individual Achievement Award High Commendation:
Ms Rebecca Adams

Student Medal Winner:
DMO Project Managers Development Program Class of 2005

The ACT Chapter Council would like to congratulate all our deserved winners. For those of you who would like to see further detail on the winning projects, they are now listed on the AIPM website at ACT 2006 PMAA Winners. For an overview on all submissions received this year in the ACT please go to ACT 2006 PMAA Submissions.

Planning is already well underway for the 2007 Awards program, with next year promising some new exciting initiatives in the ACT. We are now calling for Expressions of Interest, from anyone who wishes to undertake the volunteer role of Project Manager and spearhead the Awards Program in the ACT for 2007. This role requires a defined level of committment, however the outcomes are extremely rewarding. If managing the program is not feasible, why not look at becoming a member of the program team. If you have approximately 10 hours of time that you could volunteer over a 6 month period, to help with the awards program in the ACT, we would love to hear from you.

For further information on the Program Managers role or Program Team role, please contact me.
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Our monthly Forums are held on the last Wednesday of every month, commencing at 5:30pm until 7:30pm. Drinks and cocktail food are served, and members are more than welcome to bring a guest. For all RSVP's please contact the Chapter Administrator.

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National Council all on the Same Page and
Ready to Tackle Big Issues

I am pleased to be able to tell you all that the recent problems of the AIPM National Council mentioned in our June 2006 newsletter are now behind us.

The National Councillors recently voted to note the findings of the Temporary Governance Council and to act upon the recommendations put forward.

The voting was almost unanimous and the change in office bearers in October will also change the complexion of the Council which will inevitably form its own views. We should therefore accord the incoming Council the benefit of a fresh start.

My thanks to all the members who wrote to the AIPM expressing their wish that the National Council resolve the issues and get on with the job, and the support of the ACT Councillors in what for me has been a prolonged quest to resolve the National Council domestic issues.

Paul Black
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The first combined Forum with Aust. Computer Society was a great success.

Rob Thomsett, a highly respected Project Management Guru, gave an entertaining, learning and enjoyable presentation to over 200 attendees.

Rob went through the history of project management or lack thereof from the 70s. He addressed the impact on and implications for the governance of IT projects and the broader areas of IT from adopting Agile Development that had been relatively ignored. In his presentation, Rob gave an insight into corporate and government project management, and the differences in approaches by these organisations.

He explored the challenges that Agile Development presented to IT and project governance. CEOs would spend at least 1/2 an hour a day with the project management team. These daily visits assisted with understanding the team dynamics, as well as keeping the CEO up to date i.e. whether the project was on track, time and budget.

Rob has made available a booklet on Agile Project Governance which can be downloaded at ACS website (please be advised that this is a 10meg document).

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Please Note: Hard copy certificates will be sent to those who are listed below, within 2 weeks of the newsletter publication date. If you received your membership or certification in the months listed, and received electronic confirmation from our National office, and your name is not listed below, please contact the Chapter Administrator.

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If there are any errors in the above lists, please notify the Chapter Administrator.

APOLOGIES

AIPM would like to apologise to the following members, who's details were incorrectly advertised in last month's newsletter.

Mr Jody Whymark - incorrectly listed title

Ms Susan Murray - incorrectly listed Certification, should have been listed as RegPM

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ITIL

Guest Speakers
Mr Martin Steffans
EDS Australia

Presentation details to be provided in October newsletter.

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Up Coming Events

Wednesday 27 September - Breakfast session, titled "Troubled Software Projects" with Professor Robert Glass (internationally renown software engineering specialist)
Time: 7am for 7.15am in the Orion Room, Canberra Southern Cross Club, Corinna Street, Phillip.
Cost: $35 ACS/AIPM Members and $45 non Members.
Details: This talk presents war stories from two of those spectacular "runaway" failures - the U.S. Denver Airport Baggage Handling System, and the Australian Westpac Bank CS90 project. Even though you hope you will never be involved with such a runaway project, you will find the lessons drawn from them useful, and perhaps even indelible.

Wednesday 11 October - one day workshop "Consulting Skills" with Graeme Simsion.
Where: Belconnen Premier Inn, 110 Benjamin Way, Belconnen
Cost: $495 Members and $695 Non-members.
Details: Graeme will show you how to:
. Gain a deeper understanding of business needs and priorities
. Negotiate and manage expectations
. Deal with problems - and difficult people
. Build effective long-term relationships

This is a heavily interactive workshop, with time set aside for discussion of case studies and issues raised by attendees.

For bookings or enquiries, please go to ACS - ACT Chapter website.

ACS Canberra Contacts
PO Box 779
MAWSON ACT 2607
Ph: (02) 6290-0711
Fax: (02) 6290-0722
Email: acscanb@acslink.net.au
Web: www.acs.org.au

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Could all members please ensure that their contact details are up to date. There is an ever increasing number of non deliverable emails, and we would hate for you to miss out on any correspondence the the AIPM need to send to you. Updating your contact details is as easy as 1 2 3 ...

1. Log onto our website at www.aipm.com.au, and click on the Update Contact Details link on the top of the screen.

2. Email me and let me know your new details

3. Email the National Support Office and let them know directly of your new details.

Please note, the new ACT Chapter Council will be official as at the 28th September. New Councillor details will be listed in the next newsletter due in October.

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