Latest News
 

Chartered Status remains top priority for APM

Interviewed in the March issue of APM’s Project magazine, CEO Andrew Bragg confirms that APM is committed to achieving chartered status for the Association in as short a timescale as possible.

The in-depth interview explains the rationale for the continuing ‘dignified silence’: to allow for due process of consultation amongst the Queen’s Advisers. Bragg acknowledges that progress of the application has been slower than initial planning assumptions. These were based on the highest levels of support from leading organisations across the public and private sectors that any association has ever achieved for its campaign for chartered status.

The article confirms that, in response to demands for a single professional standard, APM is to launch a pilot in April 2010 for its project professional standard. Created by an expert, pan-sector working group the standard will be rigorous, whilst the routes to achievement will be diverse and flexible, reflecting the wide range of career paths by which professional competence in project management can be achieved. 

Referring to APM’s ‘professionalism’ agenda, Bragg says:

“We are determined to maintain the huge momentum for raising professionalism within project management that the chartered campaign has created. In APM, we now define project professionalism as comprising five dimensions: breadth of knowledge, depth of competence, achievement through professional qualifications, commitment through CPD and accountability through adherence to a code of professional conduct. We are committed to increasing awareness and achievement of these five dimensions across the many organisations intent on improving project management capability.”

Enquiries: Please contact Heather Krobok, PR and Marketing Manager on heather.krobok@apm.org.uk direct line 01844 271632 

Maven Training Accelerated Learning in new APM courses

Are you a Latte or Americano?....join Maven Training’s new cafe style APM courses.

Maven Training brings it’s renown passion and experience to the Association of Project Management range of Certificate courses launching in January in London. These courses showcase the new accelerated learning techniques that help delegates learn quickly and efficiently so that they are ready to use their new skills when they return to the office. 

Maven Training is not selling coffee but they do use the Cafe Style Learning in their new APMIC and APMP. You may think that you are going to spend a the time sitting quietly making notes while your trainer works through the syllabus. But on a Maven APMIC and APMP course you have to do a bit more which helps you to learn faster and better. 

Just as we all like our favourite style of coffee, we all have different learning styles. You may already know whether your style is visual, aural, read/write or kinaesthetic. All of these learning styles are catered for with cafe style course where the delegates sit in small groups so that they can discuss the life-like exercises with their co-learners and then report back their findings. This satisfies the audio and kinaesthetic learners as they can and be involved with discussions about what they would expect to deal with in the scenario given. 

You may not be Picasso but if your learning style is visual then your drawing skills will be used to help you to study and understand the structure of leadership and management. The APMIC and APMP courses are unique in that it allow delegates to gain practical skills for how to implement their project. Married with practical training techniques this course is an enjoyable and effective way to increase the effectiveness of Project Managers. 

APMIC is the Association of Project Management Introductory Certificate which combined with the Practitioner qualification, covers project lifecycle, Project Management as a job, feasibility analysis, business case and risks, project planning, scheduling, quality and change control, documents, deliverables, people, sign off, hand over and lessons learned. 

APMIC and APMP is an established qualification but Maven Training gives it a fresh approach by introducing these accelerated learning techniques to help delegates enjoy their course and quickly gain skills that will be invaluable in their workplace.

The industry's view of Maven’s APM courses : 

• "We are thrilled to bring our expertise and skills in accelerated learning to the APM qualifications ." Melanie Franklin - CEO – Maven Training 
 

Please check our APM courses for further information on these courses.

Project Management 2010 Benchmark Report

As a valued partner of Arras people (Project Management Recruitment) we are helping promote their ‘Project Management Benchmark Report for 2010. This report covers the project management industry in areas such as salaries, rates, gender, current climate, and specific project management areas like professional bodies, competency and the outlook for 2010.

The kind of questions which are to be asked are based around current issues and hot topics within the PPM arena including statistics on salaries, remuneration and day rates so that a database can be created so comparisons can be drawn on last years statistics.

To take part in the survey please visit:
http://www.arraspeople.co.uk/PMReport/

2009 Survey Highlights
• Recession has hit the project management market, with the majority of professionals fearing redundancies and cuts
• Over a third of all respondents said they were ‘worse off’ last year and 22% of freelancer experienced decreased rates, with a significant number (11%) experiencing cuts of more than 10%
• Employees feared better than contractors with salary expectations being met in 2008
• Project Managers are a resilient lot. Despite the widespread doom and gloom, only 8% described their personal situation as ‘gloomy’, 63% described their situation as ‘steady’ and 18% as ‘neutral’
• A massive 84% of Project Management Professionals believe they have a significant role to play in helping the UK economy out of its current difficulties
• Public sector employees are better protected than private. Twice as many private sector employees and 5% more contractors expect rewards to fall in 2009
• The gender pay gap is not closing
For previous reports please visit: http://www.arraspeople.co.uk/projectmanagementsalarysurvey/2010/projectmanagementbenchmarksurveyreport2010.html
 

Project Management in the Transport Industry

Maven Training along with sponsor Matchtech and partner WTS London (Women in Transportation) present the event 'Project Management in the Transport Industry', a unique opportunity to hear from leaders in Project Management recruitment and training and representatives from the transport industry. Melanie Franklin, CEO of Maven Training, a leading training provider, will speak about opportunities for individuals and companies to build capacity in their teams, through project and programme management training and identify how qualifications can be used to further your career in project management in the transport industry. Matchtech, sponsor of WTS London, and recruitment specialist for engineering, science, construction and professional services, will present an overview of what it is employers are looking for in a project manager: What type of qualifications are expected? What types of roles are available in the transport industry? We will also hear from a project manager within the transport industry - what their experiences are and what they think are the key qualities and qualifications that have helped them succeed in their role.

WTS London will be offering members the opportunity to undertake a PRINCE2 qualification in Jan 2010, so ensure you come along to this exciting event to find out more about project management in the transport industry and your potential to advance your project management skills. Further information and the ability to sign up to this course will be available on the night.

Places are strictly limited, so ensure you don't miss this great event by registering now.

• Venue: Maven Training Centre Location and Map
• Date: 26th November 2009
• Time: 6:30pm (arrive at 6:15pm) for a 8:30pm finish
• Cost: FREE
• Bookings: info@maventraining.co.uk (please email us with your name and contact details so we can confirm your place)

Light refreshments will be offered throughout the day and you will be given the chance to network with trainers and fellow peers.

New style Practitioner results letter from Maven Training

PPSO SIG Conference

Maven Training partner with Women in Technology

We are pleased to announce that Maven Training have become official partners with Women in Technology. Our relationship has gone from strength to strength in 2009 with Women in Technology heavily supporting our 'PRINCE2® for Girls Initiative' which was an astounding success.


In accordance with this, we are now offering a 10% discount to members of Women in technology in gaining crucial project and programme management qualifications to secure that next job opportunity.

Abit more information on Women in Technology
womenintechnology.co.uk is a networking and recruitment organisation committed to helping women build successful and satisfying careers in the technology profession and since their launch in 2005, they have grown into a network of over 5,200 individuals. They run regular networking events and training courses, host an online job board and provide a recruitment service for employers and job seekers.

Partnerships
Lastly we would like to say to any organisations who are in support of personal development and education/training to give us a call or drop us an email in becoming an official partner of the future!

Effective Project Management Delivery in tough times
 

Due to popular demand, the Maven Training and Arras People FREE breakfast event, which will give you an overview of project management market trends in these difficult times, is back on the 13th July.

Melanie Franklin , CEO of Maven Training, will be talking about personal and professional development and how you can get the balance right between accredited qualifications and skills-based development, as well as finding the right balance of organisational needs vs. individual needs. John Thorpe, MD of Arras People will share his thoughts on current trends in the PM marketplace – recruitment and people strategies, and current benchmarking information.

Venue: Maven Training Centre (Location and Map)
Cost: FREE
Bookings: info@maventraining.co.uk

Dates and times:

13th July 2009
08:00am - 10:30am
12:00am - 14:30pm

Limited availability, so BOOK NOW!

The Best Practice Showcase

Join Maven Training and Arras People for a FREE breakfast event that will give you an overview of project management market trends in these difficult times.

The Best Practice Showcase
 
We’d like to invite all of our readers, trainers, partners and clients to come and spend the day at The Best Practice Showcase on Tuesday 23rd June at the QE11 Conference Centre.

The Showcase, which is free to attend, has been going for seven years and its interactive format proves a real hit with delegates, who spend the day discussing issues, talking to experts and sharing experiences with each other.

Two of our senior personnel will be hosting Birds of a Feather sessions at the event. These sessions entail sitting round a table with around ten to fifteen other delegates and grappling with pertinent programme and project management issues – our idea of heaven!

Melanie Franklin, our CEO, will host sessions that will focus on Programme Management – where are we and where do we go next? Melanie will present a step by step guide as to how to go about establishing and implementing a programme environment in your organisation. The examples she’ll be exploring are derived from our work with public and private sector organisations. She’ll also ask delegates to share their experiences and challenges.

Susan Tuttle, Associate Trainer, will be hosting sessions on Project management – what next? Susan will discuss how project managers can get commitment from their sponsors, how to persuade line managers to release staff to work on projects, and how to engage support staff fully. The session will give those involved in project management a chance to share their experiences, and set this against our roadmap for increasing organisation wide project management capability. This is an opportunity to devise practical steps to address these issues. Using a combination of interactive examples and our in depth experience in resolving these issues, those attending this session will feel empowered to return to work and make a tangible difference.

In addition to these discussion groups, the Best Practice Showcase will also feature a full seminar programme. Emma Jones, Chief Examiner for PRINCE2® Qualifications will update delegates on the impact of the 2009 Refresh.

Emma Hilditch, the event director, says: “For the last six years 98% of delegates have left the event completely satisfied, so we are very confident of putting on an excellent day for them. They will get up-to-date news on the refreshed OGC guidance such as P3O, P3M3™ and PRINCE2. They can take active part in round table discussion sessions, with over 100 different targeted topics to choose from.”

The event is free so we’d love to see all our clients take part. Click here for details of all the sessions on offer, and to register.

The Best Practice Showcase
Tuesday 23rd June 2009
QE II Conference Centre, London
www.bestpracticeshowcase.com 
 

Effective Project Management Delivery in tough times

Join Maven Training and Arras People for a FREE breakfast event that will give you an overview of project management market trends in these difficult times.

Melanie Franklin , CEO of Maven Training, will be talking about personal and professional development and how you can get the balance right between accredited qualifications and skills-based development, as well as finding the right balance of organisational needs vs. individual needs.

John Thorpe, MD of Arras People will share his thoughts on current trends in the PM marketplace – recruitment and people strategies, and current benchmarking information.

Date: 26th June 2009
Time: from 08am to 10.30am
Venue: Maven Training Centre Location and Map
Cost: FREE
Bookings: info@maventraining.co.uk

Limited availability, so BOOK NOW!

Industry Awareness Day

We’re delighted to once again support the MoD’s Career Transition Partnership event, to be held on 31st March at Wentworth Barraks in Herford, Germany.

The Industry Awareness Day for our service personnel provides valuable insight for Service Leaders into opportunities for their future careers.

We are very experienced with helping service leaders find their feet – and their confidence – through gaining recognised business qualifications.

One of our delegates, Westley Cockle went through the difficult process of leaving the Army and starting a professional career. Westly decided on Maven Training’s PRINCE2, MSP and Change Management courses. You can read about Westley’s experience on our blog here: Visit our blog post

For details about the Industry Awareness Day, see: www.ctp.org.uk
 

Project Challenge

A must for everyone involved in projects and Programmes!

Visitors to this exceptional event will gain real practical value and a very worthwhile learning experience.

After last years instrumental success we will be coming back to Birmingham for this years Project Challenge event on the 25th-26th March In Birmingham at the NEC. If you have worked with Maven Training in the past, come and visit us at stand 84 or if you are interested in learning a bit more about us then come and have a chat about what we can do for you! 

Our CEO Melanie Franklin will also be speaking on Thursday the 26th March at Project Challenge at 11:15am!
Melanie Franklin, a world class inspirational speaker, will demystify the interpersonal skills required to deliver projects and programmes using the latest thinking in emotional intelligence. Her interactive and passionate delivery never fails to excite her audience who take away tangible techniques and apply them immediately. Melanie is CEO of Maven Training, a thought leader in project and programme management and accredited author for the UK Government with five books to her name.

For further information on Project Challenge please click here
 

All Girl Learning Environments

PRINCE2® for Girls - and all the Women in Technology
 
We were delighted to see large numbers of women have attended the BPUG Congress – proof indeed that the ladies are becoming more and more visible among the ranks of project managers, which has in the past been dominated by men.

Of course, we are not being sexist here and the success of the gentlemen is still as interesting to us – however, we are indeed very pleased to see women gaining acknowledgement and more senior roles in their organisations.

This is a theme that is becoming more and more prevalent – and we should know: our CEO, Melanie Franklin, has been a leader within this industry for many years now!

Elizabeth Harrin, the author of Project Management in the Real World and blogger of PM4Girls, gave a presentation at BPUG on how to use web 2.0 technologies to enable better and more frequent communication. Elizabeth combines her writing career with a programme management role at Spire Healthcare – no mean feat!

Meanwhile, Sue Vowler of Project Angels is the Lead Author of the new P3O Guidance which is creating huge amounts of interest among senior executives in both the public and private sectors.

Another woman who is playing a very important role in the Project Management world is Emma Jones, the new Chief Examiner for the PRINCE2 exams. Emma enlightened delegates at the BPUG Congress as to the impact of the update of PRINCE2 on the accompanying examinations. She reassured everyone that their PRINCE2 Practitioner qualification will remain valid until they need to re-register, and that the update is more “evolution than revolution”.

Maven Training is joining in Suw Charman-Anderson’s crusade to “Bring Women in Technology to the fore” by supporting the Ada Lovelace Day – an international day of blogging, taking place on 24th March, to draw attention to women excelling in technology. Suw says: “Women’s contributions often go unacknowledged, their innovations seldom mentioned, their faces rarely recognised. We want you to tell the world about these unsung heroines. Entrepreneurs, innovators, sysadmins, programmers, designers, games developers, hardware experts, tech journalists, tech consultants. The list of tech-related careers is endless.”

And that’s not all!

As we’re sensing a bit of a movement here, we thought we would celebrate by launching a new course especially for the ladies! Called PRINCE2® for Girls, the first course will take place on 30th March at our training centre in London. As a special treat, all delegates will receive a complimentary head and shoulder massage after their course. Go to our website for further details!

What about the boys?

Don’t worry though boys – we haven’t forgotten about you and have already got our thinking caps on as to what we can do specially for you. We’d love to hear your ideas so let us know via this blog!
 

NHS Event

PRINCE2®: 2009 – IMPACT ON EXAMINATIONS

The APM Group, the body responsible for accrediting training organisations and administering the PRINCE2 examination scheme, has issued a statement regarding the update of PRINCE2 and the impact this update will have on the Foundation and Practitioner examinations.

Candidates are advised that there will not be a major difference between the 2005 and 2009 versions of PRINCE2. The APM Group therefore recommends candidates not to delay their training or exams. Furthermore, all candidates who have taken their examination on the earlier edition of the method will find their qualification remains valid until they need to re-register.

PRINCE2 Registered Practitioners need to take the re-registration exam within five years of their certification date as shown on their certificate. All certificates are valid for the registration period shown on them and exams do not have to be retaken outside of the normal re-registration cycle.

When the 2009 exams are released the re-registration exams will be based on this version and not previous versions. Candidates are then advised to attend either a short course from an Accredited Training Organisation (ATO) rather than simply reading the new manual. Both the Foundation and Practitioner Examinations will be based on the new ‘Managing Projects’ manual and will not include material from the new ‘Directing Projects’ book.  Depending on demand an examination based on the Directing manual will be developed and launched towards the end of 2009.

The 2009 examinations will come into practice once the official manual has been published and they are dependant on this publication. It is expected that both the publication and examinations will be available during Q2 2009.

There will be a crossover period for exams – for a minimum of three months after the launch of 2009 – where exams will be issued on either the 2005 or 2009 version of the manual. After this, exams will be based on 2009 manual only. Dates during which either examination version can be taken will be confirmed when the launch date is finalised, as will the date for the withdrawal of PRINCE2:2005 examinations.

Investment in training on previous PRINCE2 versions will not be lost as it is still a valid and productive methodology for the management of projects. The refresh of the manual updates and improves the method but it is not a major re-write. Users of the 2005 version are under no obligation to update to the 2009 version, though of course may do so if they wish to. If the system is working well for an individual or organisation at the moment they are under no pressure to change this.

The PRINCE2:2009 examinations at Foundation and Practitioner level will be available in all the languages which the PRINCE2:2005 ones are; Chinese (Mandarin), Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Polish, Spanish (Castilian). All languages will be available at the launch of the PRINCE2:2009 examinations.

All currently approved ATOs will be permitted to train PRINCE2 2009 provided they have updated their courseware – and the updating of course materials is well underway here at Maven Training.

The APM Group is running a series of sessions to update ATOs on the method and pilots of the new examinations will take place during March and April 2009.

For further updates and information please click here

Learning made easier with Maven Training

A new year and new presentations to write. Today I am back from my holiday, and my first task is to write a compelling and relevant briefing that explains the different project, programme and change management examinations. This feels like a useful spend of my time, because as the CEO of this company, I am receiving so many queries from people in and out of work about how to improve their CVs and how to make themselves more marketable to potential employers.

In part, this is driven by fear – I think there is a genuine concern, by many people who appear to have stable jobs, that redundancy is just around the corner. Even though they are overworked and under pressure, and leaving the office for a few days feels risky, people realise that if they have to apply for new roles, a CV that only says they have been on a couple of internal training courses over the last couple of years is not going to make them that marketable.

Employers look favourably on people who are already qualified, as it gives them a sense of comfort. An examination qualification is external validation of what the CV is saying about the person - making them a much less risky hire. Also, it means that the employer will not have to release them for training once they are employed, which is a bonus when times are tough.

My job is to help people identify what training and development activities are most relevant for their situation, and that’s why I enjoy the open forum that we create at our briefing evenings. I really enjoy the two way flow of questions and answers between myself and those that attend the briefings, because at the end of the evening, I feel I have been able to answer questions that often employees don't want to ask their employers.

Having re-read this article, I am even more committed than ever to making the briefings a great event – so I had better stop writing this and get on with putting my presentation together. Hope to see you there!

Melanie Franklin,
CEO, Maven Training

Skills Academy

We are announcing the launch of The Maven Training Skills Academy – a specialist division focused on delivering project and programme management success through the development of excellence in interpersonal skills.

The Maven Training Skills Academy™ offers a series of skills-based courses. Each course addresses a key area of skills development, such as negotiation and communication skills, allowing delegates to develop only those areas in which they want additional support, without signing up to lengthy courses and time out of the office.

Delegates can choose from the following courses:

• Interpersonal Skills for Projects and Programmes
• Leadership Skills for Projects and Programmes
• Communication Skills for Projects and Programmes
• Team Management Skills for Projects and Programmes
• Coaching and Mentoring Skills for Projects and Programmes
• Problem Solving and Decision Making Skills for Projects and Programmes
• Negotiating and Influencing Skills for Projects and Programmes
• Conflict Management Skills for Projects and Programmes

William Franklin, Client Relations Director, said, “Delegates can pick and choose which of the new courses are relevant to them. Our aim is to ensure they return to work feeling inspired, re-energised and valued with a new level of knowledge and understanding which they can apply to their job and working environment.”

Interpersonal Skills for Projects and Programmes: join the first course!

The first course in the series – Interpersonal Skills for Projects and Programmes – is a one-day baseline course that clarifies the definition of interpersonal skills and is an introduction for all the other courses. It will be delivered for the first time on Thursday 11th December at the Maven Training Centre in London.

The course clarifies the definition of interpersonal skills and reviews how they apply to the challenges faced during a typical project or programme. This includes a review of the assumptions that methodologies including PRINCE2®, MSP™ and M_o_R® have made regarding the experience of those undertaking key roles in soft skills, and the links between emotional intelligence and excellence in interpersonal skills.

“This is a highly participative course giving delegates many opportunities to review their own skill set and understand how their skills impact on their success at work. Delegates will take part in discussions to share their experiences and learn from each other, and define strategies for improving their skill set for different work based situations,” William said.

The ‘Interpersonal Skills for Projects and Programmes’ course, will take place on 11th December with a special launch price £199 + VAT. 

Click here for further details


 

NAJAH

In October Maven Training attended IIR’s Najah exhibition in Abu Dhabi.

Najah – which means to succeed – is held in the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, which really has the wow factor.  The centre was opened in February 2007 – it’s the most modern exhibition centre in the world.

Unlike the economic climate in the UK, the UAE is in the throes of massive expansion. By 2030 Abu Dhabi's gross population is projected to double to 3.1 million. Numbers of tourists will increase six fold and the government is braced to expand its healthcare, education, tourism, housing and industrial capabilities to accommodate this growth.

In his blog,
(http://www.wellingtone.co.uk/blog/?p=50#more-50) Vince Hines, Managing Director, Wellingtone Project Management,  discusses how the UK’s economic downturn is affecting UK jobs for project managers. But in the Middle East, he reports a “strong demand for senior road, rail, utilities, bridge, tunnel, large construction, high rise and general infrastructure Project & Programme Managers, Planners, Cost Engineers and specially claims experts from large multinationals in Dubai.”

This was certainly borne out by our experience at the event. Project Management skills are in huge demand and interest in PRINCE2 is growing. Our new office in Dubai will help meet this demand.
 
 

APM Conference

The APM Project Management Conference - Success through projects
The Brewery conference centre, London, 29-30th October 2008

This year the APM Conference was held in London’s Brewery conference centre. Built in 1782 and famous for its magnificent King Post timber roof, The Porter Tun is one of the largest unobstructed rooms in London.  It seemed very appropriate to hold the APM annual conference in this remarkable venue – a testament to the enduring nature of successful project management.

At the event we were able to talk to delegates about our Skills Academy and our focus on interpersonal skills was once again a huge hit. While good project management will always be the bedrock of successful projects, its really important we don’t lose sight of the fact that projects are about people. If we neglect our interpersonal skills it can be a lot more difficult getting projects delivered on time and to budget.

Understanding how people feel, managing conflict, and negotiating effectively will make your projects not only more successful on completion but more enjoyable throughout the journey – and that’s got to be good for everyone.

We are running a free briefing on Interpersonal Skills which will be scheduled for 2009, but it’s worth keeping watch on our web site because we run sessions throughout the year so that delegates can trial our courses before they sign up.
 

PRINCE2® is a Registered Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce in the United Kingdom and other countries

MSP® is a Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce

M_o_R® is a Registered Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce in the United Kingdom and other countries

P3O® is a Registered Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce

The Swirl logo™ is a Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce

PMI® is a registered mark of Project Management Institute, Inc.

ITIL® is a Registered Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce in the United Kingdom and other countries