Project management: the high ground of professionalism or the swamp of the real world

Paper


Todhunter, Barrie. 2010. "Project management: the high ground of professionalism or the swamp of the real world." 7th Annual Project Management Australia Conference (PMOz 2010): Building on the Global Recovery. Brisbane, Australia 23 - 26 Aug 2010 Sydney, Australia.
Paper/Presentation Title

Project management: the high ground of professionalism or the swamp of the real world

Presentation TypePaper
Authors
AuthorTodhunter, Barrie
Journal or Proceedings TitleProceedings of the 7th Annual Project Management Australia Conference (PMOz 2010)
ERA Conference ID44002
Number of Pages13
Year2010
Place of PublicationSydney, Australia
ISBN9780980768022
Web Address (URL) of Paperhttp://www.ciob.org.au/event/pmoz-7th-annual-project-management-australia-conference-2010-brisbane
Conference/Event7th Annual Project Management Australia Conference (PMOz 2010): Building on the Global Recovery
Project Management conference
Event Details
Project Management conference
PMOZ
Rank
B
B
B
B
B
B
B
B
Event Details
7th Annual Project Management Australia Conference (PMOz 2010): Building on the Global Recovery
Event Date
23 to end of 26 Aug 2010
Event Location
Brisbane, Australia
Abstract

This paper is an exploration of anomalies that exist in the education and training of project managers to assist them in becoming the future members of a truly recognisable and sustainable profession. The current education model for project management (PM) is substantially different to that of other professions and has been examined previously, but there has been little research into where the primary responsibility should lie for developing future generations of project managers. Many questions arise by virtue of the unique nature of PM. Will practitioners see themselves as professional project managers first and foremost, or will 'accidental' project managers continue to see their role as an overlay to their substantive role as engineer, IT specialist, health care worker, etc? Executive committees of professional PM bodies are generally dominated by passionate practitioners, but who lack formal academic PM qualifications. Formal PM education is predominantly delivered by educators without PM qualifications and with limited practical experience in the discipline. Would this be tolerated in professions such as medicine, engineering or architecture? PM desperately needs experienced and qualified educators who can provide a platform for effective education and training based on established pedagogical models, rather than fragmented profit-driven programs.

Keywordseducation; training; profession; project management; higher education research
ANZSRC Field of Research 2020350711. Organisational planning and management
330202. Building construction management and project planning
390103. Economics, business and management curriculum and pedagogy
Public Notes

This publication is copyright. It may be reproduced in whole or in part for the purposes of study, research, or review, but is subject to the inclusion of an acknowledgment of the source.

Byline AffiliationsSchool of Management and Marketing
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