Meet a Project Management Expert – ALAN HARPHAM, the co-author of “The Spirit of Project Management”

I have a pleasure to announce that Alan Harpham will be a guest of PMI Gdansk Branch on the evening 17^th January 2013.

As an interesting fact you should know that first time Alan came to Poland with 1000 other English workers to take part in a PVC factory construction project which took place in 1978-1979 in Wloclawek (PL) for a Polish company Zaklady Azotowe Wloclawek (currently called “Anwil”). During this 1 year assignment he was coordinating the work of subcontractors. Among these 1000 was also Sir John Alexander Armitt, CBE, FREng, the Chairman of the Olympic Delivery Authority, the body charged with building the venues, facilities and infrastructure for the 2012 Olympic Games.

Alan Harpham BSc MBA CMC FAPM FIC FIOD is currently a Chairman of the APM Group, trading as APMG-International in Poland. For many years he worked in construction projects at John Laing. Till today he is an active guest lecturer on European universities.

Alan is the co-author of “The Spirit of Project Management” book published by Gower in a series edited by Prof Darren Dalcher and one of the books in the ‘advances in PM series’. A member of selection committee for Faith and Spirit at Work Awards, previous director of The Center for Spirit at Work (University of Newhaven), Chair of Workplace Matters, an ecumenical Christian organisation in UK providing chaplains to workplaces (60+ volunteer chaplains), chair of Cranfield University’s Science and Engineering Research Ethics Committee, Member of the Cranfield University Research Ethics Committee, Chair of SPD Ethics C’ee (a medical research company), founding chair of MODEM UK (charity organisation encouraging dialogue between those interested in Leadership, Organisation and Management and those interested in Theology, Spirituality and Ministry), Member of the Christian Association of Business Execs (CABE), and many others.  

Advances in Project Management provides short, state of play, guides to the main aspects of the new emerging applications including: maturity models, agile projects, extreme projects, six sigma and projects, human factors and leadership in projects, project governance, value management, virtual teams, project benefits.

Projects have always been essentially human endeavours. Large modern projects are generally highly complex, fraught with technical difficulties and supported by diverse, often apparently conflicted stakeholders. The spirituality that originally defined some of the great construction projects of the classical era surely has a role in project management today.

The Spirit of Project Management explains the context for spirituality in projects and explores how it can be used to create a larger sense of purpose and achievement; to help encourage an esprit de corps amongst all those involved; to act as a touchstone for ethical and sustainable decision-making

.“In writing this book the authors remind us of the longforgotten and vital spiritual component of business life, and how to get a better balance into our management methods – one that will bring greater success . In giving practical advice, through examples as well as tools and techniques, they help many of us do what we know we should be doing already. They propose an exciting new future, one where the full potential of people and teams is realised – probably the only way we can deal with the complexity of the modern world.”

John Kay, Director of Change Management,Transforming Business and former partner at PA Consulting Group

Alan privately loves mountain hiking and is a supporter of his favorite rugby teams Northampton Saints and Scotland.

If you are interested in meeting Alan in person please join PMI Gdansk Branch seminar in Sopot on the 17^th of January. Sitting is limited. More details and registration here.