PMI Portland is staffed by a dedicated and talented cadre of Volunteer Leaders - from our Board of Directors, through our Directors, Program and Project Managers, Roundtable Coordinators, event speakers and meeting table helpers. Everything that you, as a member, see - our website, newsletters, workshops, & certification classes, roundtable sessions, dinner meetings, etc., etc. - is the result of volunteer effort. Each has committed their time and energy to making our chapter operations and events work. And we appreciate each and every one of you!
To recognize outstanding dedication and commitment to PMI Portland and our members, we've started a Volunteer Recognition Program. Chapter Board members will work with their organizations to identify outstanding talented contributors. Volunteer of the month and quarter will be selected and recognized here, in the Newsletter, and at chapter dinner meetings. Monthly winners will receive a $50- and quarterly winners will receive a $100 gift.
Please join me in congratulating our February Volunteer of the Month, Rita Jenks. Rita Jenks is the Director of Academic Outreach and is the epitome of hard work, solid ethics, and a constant focus on the future. Rita has taken on many new tasks and strategic objectives the past two years including writing many proposals that have been presented and approved by the board. Recently she reached out to the Global Operations Center of PMI and helped our board form a partnership with the PMI Educational Foundation. Rita challenges the status quo and is always willing to provide solid research that helps guide decisions for this chapter. Her tireless focus on quality is highly valued and appreciated. Rita is a great example of a volunteer who puts the good of the chapter and its members first. Thank you Rita.
January 2010
Jeff Oltmann - VP At Large
Please join me in congratulating our January Volunteer of the Month, Jeff Oltmann. As the 2009-2010 elected VP at Large, Jeff has the responsibility to learn the various roles on the board so that if needed he can step into any role with little or no impact to the organization. He has been consistently diligent in asking questions throughout the year to make sure he is aware of what is going on with the chapter and its board. This helped make his transition into the Acting VP of Membership board position this past month a successful one. He immediately assessed the need, met with the portfolio directors, and began to interview candidates for the VP of Membership position.
Jeff has also agreed to take on some of the responsibility within a second chapter portfolio to assist another board member. Therefore, Jeff is managing his role on the board as VP at Large, he is acting VP of Membership until the role is filled, and he is now working in yet another area of the board. Jeff is a strong example of a volunteer going above and beyond when and where needed, and he is a tremendous asset to our chapter and its board. Thank you Jeff, for all that you do.
Dec. 2009
Thank You All PMI Portland Chapter Volunteers
All PMI Portland Chapter Volunteers are being recognized during the month of December. We currently have approximately 50 volunteers throughout the organization that generously offer both their time and knowledge on a regular basis. We will take a few moments to collectively thank the volunteers in person during the upcoming dinner meeting on December 15th. The volunteers will also be presented with a small token of appreciation during this time. The thank you gift will include a special pin that can be worn to proudly display their status as a dedicated PMI Portland Chapter Volunteer.
Please take a moment to personally thank a volunteer member when you see one at the monthly dinner meetings, round table discussions, educational programs, or other PMI events. Their efforts keep the organization strong and help to ensure we have the capacity to meet the ever-changing needs of you, our members.
Nov. 2009
Saby Wairich - Director of Volunteering
Please join me in congratulating our November Volunteer of the Month, Sarabjeet (Saby) Waraich. Saby was working as the Assistant Director of Volunteering since last October, and then he formally stepped into the role of Director of Volunteers last month. Saby enjoys working with people and brings enthusiasm and great customer service qualities to this role as he responds to the queries and needs of other member volunteers.
Saby is currently working as IT Project Manager for the City of Portland. Prior to moving to the US he was a software engineer and project manager in India for various projects while implementing Six Sigma quality initiatives. Saby is a graduate of Portland State University with an MS in Engineering & Technology Management. He also holds a BS in Computer Science & Engineering from Punjab Engineering College, India.
Saby is a member of the online Mentor Net community where he has been very active in mentoring individuals. He is also a member of committees such as Rose City Spin, local Java users, .NET users, and OMEGA Rho groups. In his spare time, Saby likes to watch action movies and play with his 6 year old son and 3 year old daughter.
Please join me in congratulating our October Volunteer of the Month, Shancy Saban. As the 2009-2010 elected VP of Finance, Shancy has invested countless hours getting up to speed on how our chapter’s finances have been managed while working with the President and bookkeeper to bring current processes and supporting procedures up to date. She has also ensured the rest of the board is educated on the details necessary to manage our fiduciary responsibilities moving forward.
Shancy has either met with in person or called each and every board member to understand their portfolio’s processes and financial needs. She has worked one on one with the President to ensure her work is in alignment with our strategic objectives and any financial changes that may be needed. Additionally, she is been proactive in ensuring our board is ready to meet the financial obligations that this next year will bring as well as helping the board plan for better reserves with a 3-5 year focus. Shancy has not once complained about the amount of work we threw at her and has done an amazing job exceeding initial expectations.
This board is set up for a successful 2009-2010 financial year because of Shancy – we are lucky to have her.
Sept. 2009
Pam Melton - Director of Career Networking
Please join me in congratulating our September Volunteer of the Month, Pam Melton. In her role as Director of Career Networking, Pam was the driving force behind our first networking event in May. The event took considerable planning, creativity, and dedication. Using her superb powers of persuasion, Pam assembled a small army of volunteers to orchestrate a memorable evening for all attendees.
Based on the positive response to the May networking event, Pam has been busy this summer developing a joint venture with the Eugene and Salem branches of PMI’s Willamette Valley Chapter and the Portland based Program Management Forum (PMF). The next ‘Take the Work out of Networking’ event is currently schedule for October with additional events slated for next year.
In her spare time, Pam also manages the Career Networking table at our monthly dinner meetings with the help of Terry Shane, who recently joined the Marketing team, and Jerry Young, Director of Jobs. This has been a valuable resource for our members to learn about job-hunting skills and to network with local recruiters.
Pam moved to Portland earlier this year from Chicago and had the good sense to check-in with the local chapter of PMI where she was quickly recruited by the Marketing team. Her positive attitude and infectious laughter serve her well as a Senior Interactive Project Manager with Pop Art, Inc. She works exclusively on the Xerox account managing web-based projects for the Interactive Marketing department.
Pam has 12 years of Project Management experience and has worked with clients such as Disney, McDonald's, Kraft and PepsiCo. When she is not planning the next PMI Career Networking event, Pam enjoys hiking on the Oregon coast, playing the piano, and spending time with her fiancé, Chris.
It’s a pleasure to have her on our team, and we look forward to see her continued accomplishments this year.
June 2009
Steve Wollenburg, PMP - Director of Certification
Please join me in congratulating our June Volunteer of the Month Winner, Steve Wollenburg, PMP. Steve has served as Director of Certification for the past three years. In this role, Steve has overseen formal project management training in accordance with the PMBOK Guide for both CAPM and PMP-eligible candidates. The CAPM/PMP Exam Prep class is held twice a year, and is a major source of chapter revenues. Steve's duties have included scheduling ten different volunteer instructors and capturing and collating their presentations to create study binders for the class participants. Steve has kept tabs on cost per student, per class, thus affecting the bottom line benefit to the chapter. This last winter Steve also assisted the curriculum update team with the 4th edition of the PMBOK Guide. One particular trait that impressed me early on was Steve's impeccable fairness in dealing with students and the public. Steve has kept in touch with some students and has made lifelong friends along his journey. While serving as the PMI certification director, he concurrently served as President for the local Air Force Sergeants' Association. Steve obtained his PMP credential in 2005, and earned his MBA from Keller Graduate School of Management in 2008. He's recently accepted employment from the State of Oregon's Employment Department. Past experience includes Manager of Business Analysis and Testing and Executive Director for the Department of Defense Emergency Management Agency and Operations Center for the US Air Force.Steve will be continuing his volunteerism with the chapter by remaining an instructor with the program.
May 2009
Jerry Young, PMP - Director of Jobs
Jerry Young, PMP has served as the Director of Jobs on the Marketing team. He has successfully piloted a program to build relationships with local staffing agencies to attend the new Career Networking table at the monthly dinner meetings to engage with our members seeking employment. We now have a rotating list of staffing agencies eager to work with us and have learned which ones keep their commitments. He has manned the table at every dinner meeting where he actively engages with attendees and provides guidance to the collateral we provide and people who can offer help. The Jobs email notification process is one of Jerry’s core responsibilities where he works with recruiters to post job openings to those members signed up with this service. He has worked with the Operations team to develop an online Jobs listing that will be launched soon. Jerry demonstrated initiative when he learned of the InnoTech Conference opportunity to co-market the event which offered discounts to members and a free booth for PMI Portland. He crafted a proposal which was approved by the board and recruited volunteers to man the booth. This was a great model of how the public can learn more about what our chapter can offer in terms of education, resources and membership. We gained valuable contacts with future speakers and networking resources. He leveraged his experience with the staffing agencies to plan the first dedicated Career Networking Event along with Pam Melton. Jerry successfully negotiated with the staffing agencies to sell them on the value of the event that we have 4 sponsors covering the majority of the event costs.
April 2009
Kevin Nichols, PMP - Director of Registration
Please join me in congratulating our April Volunteer of the Month winner, Kevin Nichols,
PMP. Kevin has done a commendable job as our Director of Registration for the last 2 years.
He is responsible for registration for the monthly chapter meetings. This includes setting up the
registration table, training the volunteers that help with registering people in a timely fashion,
creating name tags and documenting attendees for PMI. People are greeted with Kevin’s warm
smile and outgoing personality and can’t help but smile back and feel welcomed and excited to
be attending the evening’s event.
Kevin has been working for Advisicon, Inc. as the Director of Operations since 2005. He received
his PMP certification in July of 2006. Prior to working for Advisicon, Kevin managed
the operation at Bergen Brunswig Co. PDX, a pharmaceutical wholesale distribution center, for
nearly 19 years. In 1998 Kevin resigned from BBC and began working for a nonprofit organization
as the director of Global Operations until 2005.
Kevin has been married to his wife, Julie, for 29 years. He has five children and four grandchildren.
He plays guitar semi-professionally, enjoys running and is involved with overseas humanitarian initiatives.
March 2009
Sujitha Seevaratnam, PMP - Director of Volunteering
Please join me in congratulating our March Volunteer of the Month winner, Sujitha Seevaratnam, PMP. Sujitha has done an exemplary job as our Director of Volunteering this year. She has developed and implemented a highly effective volunteering program that has enabled the chapter to pursue new - and support ongoing initiatives. Her program includes regular communication of the many benefits of volunteering, the new Volunteer Pool, and volunteer recognition - including monthly, quarterly and annual volunteer recognition. The Volunteering program is nicely outlined on the chapter website. Sujitha has also developed a volunteering team to support chapter volunteering goals. One of Sujitha's upcoming goals includes the annual Volunteer Recognition event - she welcomes your help!
Sujitha recently relocated to the Portland area after serving as a Project Manager at Butterfield Bank, Bermuda. Previously, she worked in Toronto, Canada in the banking and high-tech industries where she managed projects and led teams through new initiatives. Her work also involved project governance and business process reengineering.
Sujitha is a graduate of the University of Toronto, Canada with a B.Sc in Computer Science., and she has a B.Sc in Mathematics from University of Madras, India. She is a certified Project Management Professional.
In her spare time, Sujitha has taken up hiking and paddling with Portland's dragon boat teams.
Sujitha's charm and enthusiasm are refreshing, and I'm delighted that she is on the Membership team in this high-profile, critical position.
February 2009
Megan Strand, PMP - Director of Marketing
Megan has done an outstanding job as our Director of Marketing since July 2008 by working closely with our dinner meeting sponsors and advertisers to ensure a full sponsorship calendar for PMI-Portland and a positive experience for our corporate partners. Sponsorship is a key program that allows PMI Portland to keep meeting costs reasonable for our members. She consistently delivers value to the Marketing Team with her can-do attitude, dedication and professionalism.
Megan is a project-based marketing/communications professional with over ten years experience in a variety of sectors including non-profit organizations and the public sector. Most recently, she was co-owner and VP of Operations/Projects for a small continuing education company serving education professionals. Megan obtained her PMP certification this past November. She has a B.S. in Marketing from Miami University in Ohio.
This past June, she used her Project Management skills to develop and lead an international medical service trip to Liberia, Costa Rica where a group of 10 speech-language pathologists worked in a special education school serving over 150 children and 15 teachers.
When she's not working on PMI-related projects or networking to find a new career opportunity, Megan enjoys spending time with her children, ages 6 and 4, running and reading.
