Project Management Institute Testifies on Disaster Relief Project Management

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Oct 20, 2011, 02:30 ET

— Research Shows Project Management Helps in Reconstruction Efforts —

WASHINGTON, Oct. 20, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Project Management Institute (PMI), the world's leading professional membership organization for project managers, today presented testimony to a Senate panel on FEMA accountability showing that project management expertise has practical applications for FEMA in providing disaster relief efforts.

"Disaster relief presents unique challenges because of the inherent urgency and high risk," said Craig Killough, vice president for organization markets, PMI. "Program management practices allow a disaster recovery team to stay organized and focused, and to implement solutions a community needs after being struck by a disaster."

Killough called for the federal government to broadly adopt project management standards across agencies, create a job classification for project and program managers and make the current IT project and program management career paths government-wide, across all agencies. He commended former U.S. Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra for identifying program management as a centerpiece of his "25 Point Implementation Plan to Reform Federal Information Technology Management" and cited PMI research showing that the Army Corps of Engineers realized a cost reduction of 20 to 30 percent by using trained program managers and a more systematic approach to managing programs.

"Our research shows that project management provides the kind of leadership and clarity of thought needed to help in the reconstruction effort," said Killough. "Project management is about solving problems and delivering intended results through an organized, structured methodology."

PMI research shows that effective stakeholder engagement, a core project management competency, enables stakeholders to share a common project vision as the team works toward a successful outcome. Killough's testimony drew in part from Project Management Methodology for Post Disaster Reconstruction, a 2006 PMI study undertaken in response to the Asian Tsunami and Hurricane Katrina based on the principles and processes outlined in A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) –Third Edition. Killough also cited What Enables Project Success: Lessons From Aid Relief Projects, a PMI sponsored study that assessed aid relief projects between 2007 and 2009.

PMI testified before the United States Senate Ad Hoc Subcommittee on Disaster Recovery and Intergovernmental Affairs on October 20, 2011 at 10:30 a.m. in a hearing titled, "Accountability at FEMA: Is Quality Job #1?" The hearing focused on quality control and business practices at the Federal Emergency Management Agency in order to reduce errors, mitigate waste, fraud, and abuse, and ensure greater efficiency in the agency's response and recovery activities.

About Project Management Institute (PMI) PMI is the world's largest project management member association, representing more than half a million practitioners in over 185 countries. As a global thought leader and knowledge resource, PMI advances the profession through its global standards and credentials, collaborative chapters and virtual communities and academic research. When organizations invest in project management, supported by PMI, executives have confidence their important initiatives deliver expected results, greater business value and competitive advantage. Learn more at www.pmi.org.

SOURCE Project Management Institute