UPDATE (2010-04-06): the first call for volunteers has closed, but please do e-mail me if you are interested. Once the Steering Committee is formed and the Community site is launched we'll be looking for additional subject-matter experts and general members to assist in getting this Community off to a good start.
I've been working with the Project Management Institute on establishing a new "Community of Practice" and recently was informed that the project has received the green light. What excites me about this is that this Community, dedicated to the management of legal projects, will have the backing of PMI, one of the largest professional organizations in the world, and certainly the largest project management organization.
The PMI LPM CoP will involve PMI members, people who by their membership in PMI have shown a commitment to professional project management. By gathering together PMI members with experience or an interest in the managing of legal projects, we'll enhance the body of LPM knowledge, create high-quality process assets to share with members, and develop high-quality, in-depth, PDU-eligible (and perhaps CLE-eligible), on-line training programs on PM topics of interest to lawyers and legal support professionals.
We already have a great group of people who have pledged their support and offered their time to this endeavor, but we need more. Below, I've pasted PMI's official "Call for Volunteers." The Call has not yet been posted to the PMI Web site, but I have permission to post it here. For now, if you are interested, please e-mail your contact information, PMI member ID, and a bit about yourself to me at:
pmi-lpm-cop@legalprojectmanagement.info
I'll update this post with a link to an on-line application form, once it is live on the PMI site.
Please note that you must be a member of PMI to participate in this new community. For more information about PMI, see: http://www.pmi.org/Membership/Pages/default.aspx
Other requirements are detailed in the "Call for Volunteers," immediately below.
Call for Volunteers for Legal Project Management Community of Practice Council Leadership Team
Summary
PMI is seeking volunteers to lead the formation, implementation and success of a brand new virtual community dedicated to promoting the adoption of project management methods, standards and tools within the legal services industry. Each volunteer will have a specific role as identified below and collectively serve on the Legal Project Management Community of Practice (CoP) Steering Committee. The steering committee is responsible for navigating through the requirements to complete the CoP formation process. This committee shall be made up of a group of people who share a concern, or a passion about a topic, and who want to deepen the understanding and knowledge of this area by creating opportunities for interaction on an ongoing basis.
As the community develops and the steering committee evolves from managing formation activities to facilitating the creation of a knowledge networking structure, the role and composition of the steering committee will shift from a stewardship group to the Community Council. When the community has completed the formation process, the amount of time a member can serve on the Community Council is limited to term lengths (measured in years).
The purpose of the Legal Project Management CoP is to provide critical knowledge generation and sharing in this working space for the entire PMI Community to develop a full understanding of project management principles and techniques, and the benefits to be gained from their use within the legal services industry.
The focus of the Legal Project Management Community of Practice is to create and increase awareness of this community, provide education, exchange knowledge, offer tools and techniques, and enable collaboration "on how to increase the probability and impact of positive events, and decrease the probability and impact of negative events in the project," according to A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide).
Steering Committee Specific Responsibilities
- Lead the community through the formation process by participating in meetings, conference calls, leading volunteers, and encouraging participation to complete a CoP specific business plan.
- Communicate regularly and collaborate closely with PMI staff and volunteer advisors to complete the formation process.
- Recruit members and subject matter experts to address and fulfill the needs of the community.
Community Council Specific Roles
- Community Manager (leads the Community Council in the formation and implementation of the virtual community)
- Community Involvement Lead (oversees and monitors the Virtual Community Council selection process)
- Knowledge Management Lead (establishes knowledge strategy, leads knowledge content team, and engages SME's)
- Service Delivery Lead (leads service delivery team in setting activities and milestones to deliver value to stakeholders)
- Marketing Coordinator (establishes communication processes and procedures and leads others on marketing team)
Duties include:
- Perform desktop research and analysis in the practice of project management within the legal services industry in order to build a CoP business plan
- Includes creation of a knowledge content plan on pertinent legal services industry and PM related topics
- Includes identification of activities and deliverables, and development of resource plan and budget to support their delivery
- Work with PMI on Marketing and Communications planning and implementation including engaging members in online collaboration (discussion groups, blogs, etc.) and capturing important insights in order to expand the conversation, aiming to share and bring forth knowledge to members
- Create & moderate CoP events such as webinars
Deliverable(s)
Deliverables may include but are not limited to the following:
- Preparation of the business plan for the virtual community
- Building out content to prepare for launch of the virtual community to the PMI public
- Ongoing management of the virtual community
- Analyses, white papers, articles for publications, tools, presentations, webinars, interviews
- Share project management techniques and approaches, providing ideas, best practices, and actionable advice.
- Contribution in Blogs, Discussions, Wikis, new or re-prioritization of tactical/strategic initiatives
- Webinar coordination, volunteer management, measuring performance, ensuring quality is delivered through evaluations
Lead Support
Additional volunteers may support the council leads focusing on the day-to-day efforts of the virtual community. The need for these volunteers would be identified in the community business plan, and also on an ad hoc basis to enable flexibility within the community to contribute to the attainment of the organizational goals and objectives. These volunteers will be accountable to the assigned lead. They are appointed by the Council, and not member selected. They may interface directly with the members of the community.
Subject Matter Experts (SMEs)
SMEs are individuals that have become recognized through their in-depth knowledge and experience in their chosen field, industry, or area of interest for which the community is focused.
SMEs can participate individually, or they can participate as group. Individual SMEs generate thought leadership and serve as the knowledge creators within a community's domain or practice.
An SME group can review the submissions for quality and other publishing standards prior to their entry into the PMI knowledge portal. In addition, an SME will contribute credible, relevant knowledge to the community, author articles based on the specific focus of the community, act as a speaker on topics directly related to the community focus, and serve as an active and knowledgeable participant in discussions.
Culture of Assignment
- As the CoP is virtual community, this role is for a PMI member which can be performed from any location so long as the individual has access to the internet and virtual communication tools
- This is a community leadership role that is responsible for virtual community operations, including development and sharing of knowledge content
- The steering team/council consists of multiple members of a team of globally diverse volunteers
Alignment to PMI Strategy
- Supports the superior practice of project management by bringing forth thought leadership, knowledge and tools
Volunteer Start and End Dates
- April 2010 until December 31, 2010, and throughout 2011 if desired
- Initial volunteers in these leadership roles will be asked to serve for a one year term with potential renewal for a second year to ensure the virtual community is launched and functioning effectively and efficiently. Additional terms of service will be considered as the community evolves.
Estimated Time Commitment
- The initial time commitment may range from 5--7 hours per week in order to build and launch the virtual community, which is targeted for March 2010. Post-launch, the time commitment may be reduced in order to accommodate the ongoing management of the virtual community.
- Expect 2 - 5 hrs per week depending on assignment.
- Potential 2 - 3 days for Seminar/Presentation type assignments (1x per year, travel expenses paid)
- Expect to attend 3-4 toll free conference calls per month for approximately 1-2 hours each to accommodate formal discussions as well as collaborative, working type sessions.
PMI Requirements
- As this is a leadership role, volunteers may not be serving in another concurrent PMI volunteer leadership role.
- The volunteers serving on the Community Council are required to sign PMI Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality Agreements.
- Members who are determined to have a conflict of interest and/or pending litigation and ethics complaints are not eligible to apply for a Virtual Community Council position.
- Members can reside and/or work in any part of the world but must be able to fulfill their leadership role by communicating in English.
Volunteer Requirements
Volunteers serving on the Legal Project Management CoP Steering/Council are expected to be knowledgeable about the practice of project management within the legal services industry.
- Must be PMI members in good standing.
- Have good project, program and/or portfolio management capability.
- Abide by the laws, rules and regulations that govern the conduct of our business and to report any suspected violations in accordance with responsibilities provided in the "PMI Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, Terms of Use and Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality."
- Understand PMI's organizational structure, including the PMI Strategic Plan and the community's purpose within those strategic objectives
- Understand and commit to PMI's objectives and goals around increasing member value and knowledge delivery
- Become familiar with PMI's annual program plan and budget cycle
- Understand PMI's brand platform and how the community supports those objectives
- Possess experience in leading teams in a virtual environment demonstrating results and progress toward community goals
- Posses knowledge and understanding of basic nonprofit fiduciary responsibilities, which are PMI Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, Terms of Use, and, Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality
- Create a positive environment for progress through respect of individuals, credibility, and empathy
- Recognize and practice diversity awareness within PMI's global community of practitioners
- Empower others
- Possess group facilitation skills
- Be able to stimulate and motivate others to share their ideas and thoughts to engage others
- Be familiar and support PMI's policies and the Virtual Community Guidelines.
- No travel is required although opportunities to travel on behalf of the community may exist in regard to leadership development.
Optional:
- If not selected for the Legal Project Management Steering and Community Council, or you want a lead support role, please indicate on your application if you want to be considered for a Subject Matter Expert/Thought Leader role within the community.
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