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Greetings!
Project managers are behind every major industry and product. In fact, PMI was founded on the very belief that project management is a universal skill and profession.
While PMI is focused on making project management and its versatility indispensable for business results, the PMI Educational Foundation (PMIEF) is focused on bringing the power of project management to the rest of society, empowering volunteers and PMI members to make a difference in their local communities and globally.
Using PMIEF educational resources, volunteers around the world are using project management methodology to help transform their passion for social and/or environmental causes into constructive action that creates lasting change. Using the same project management skill-set that is used in business, nonprofit organization employees and volunteers are streamlining processes, creating plans, and increasing their efficiency.
 We invite you to keep reading to learn about how project management skills are helping an organization that is helping rebuild Haiti after the devastating earthquake that struck in 2010.
Sincerely, Your friends at the PMI Educational Foundation |
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Helping Recovery Teams in Haiti
"A lot of NGOs and nonprofits face the challenge of balancing project plans with available funding and with beneficiary needs and expectations. It requires close collaboration between fundraising and operations. That's where good project management disciplines can help out," says Mark Kerr, PMP.
Last September, Mark traveled to Haiti to volunteer with All Hands Volunteers, a U.S.-based nonprofit disaster response organization. With a disaster the size of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the nation's needs have been tremendous. After examining these needs, All Hands morphed its traditional model of short-term disaster response (three to six months) into a long-term recovery and sustainability plan to support a better future for the Haitian people.
Mark treated this assignment just like he would any project he manages, preparing materials and activities in advance to ensure everything was ready when he arrived in the country.
Once on site, Mark met with local site directors to understand the requirements and challenges of each, which helped him tailor the training materials. The training amounted to seven hours in the classroom and also included mentoring and consulting with individuals throughout the day. Using project management tools to increase the organization's efficiency, the All Hands employees have able to magnify the impact of their programs throughout the country.
During his time in Haiti, Mark also got his hands dirty and offered his assistance with several of All Hands' programs by mixing concrete, applying stucco to the walls of school buildings, and delivering water filters to Haitian homes.
At the end of the week, Mark left each of the site directors with a toolkit of resources containing the templates and everything he had gathered or created for the training so that they could continue their good work long after he was gone. He has plans to return and conduct more employee trainings in the near future.
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All Hands Volunteers in Haiti |
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PMIEF Educational Resources |
The PMMPDR that Mark used in Haiti and other nonprofit resources are available free of charge for noncommercial use through the PMIEF website. Maybe they will benefit an organization that you know! Please spread the word!
(English, Brazilian Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese, and Spanish versions)
An introduction to project management contextualized for nonprofit organizations. (English and Spanish versions) A twelve-hour course for nonprofit employees and volunteers. (English version only) |
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PMI Educational Foundation
14 Campus Boulevard
Newtown Square, PA 19073
Phone: +1-610-356-4600
Fax: +1-610-356-0357
E-mail: pmief@pmi.org
Website: www.pmief.org |
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