ABOUT THE TALK

Increasingly, projects are recognised as a means both to achieve socio-economic development and competitive advantage in Africa. However, the discipline of project management is still immature on the continent and as a result project failure occurs all too often.

In his recent research, Prof. PD Rwelamila of Unisa's School for Business Leadership highlights 13 symptoms of project failure in Africa and sums up their causes in what he calls the PM Trilogy Challenges. These are:
The confusion of equating technical specialisations with project management competencies; inadequacy of project management training programs and a lack of strategic project management in project orientated organisations.

The recently published Prosperus Report: The Africa Edition, also casts light on the disparity between perception and reality in the context of project management maturity and success, with data from 14 African countries and spanning several industry sectors.

More and more, South African project capability is being deployed in other parts of Africa, with varying degrees of success. Is it a question of South Africa being a forerunner on the continent in terms of global good practice, or is it because we are uniquely placed to incorporate these into Africa-grown solutions to meet African project challenges.

In this next instalment of the recently-launched PMSA Knowledge Series, join our panel of experts to explore the trends in Project Management in Africa from a Research, Practice and Methodology perspective. Outcomes of empirical research will form the backdrop to interactive discussions and sharing of lessons learned by those who have been at the coal-face of project implementation in a variety of industry sectors on the continent.

TIME

07:30am - 08:15am - Registration and breakfast
08:15am - 08:30am - Welcome and introduction
08:30am - 09:00am - Research
09:00am - 09:30am - Practice
09:30am - 10:00am - Methodology
10:00am - 10:30am - Q&A

CONTACT HOURS

Earn two contact hours for attending this event (Contact hours can be submitted towards professional development points)

COST

Members - R150 incl. VAT

Non-Members - R250 incl. VAT

PLEASE NOTE: Payment is required at least 48 hours prior to the event

SPONSORSHIP

There is an opportunity for companies to associate themselves with the knowledge series by contributing in one of the following ways:

Nominating expert presenters
Sponsoring one or more sessions of the series in return for ongoing exposure through various channels

If you are interested in collaboration opportunities please contact Dilshaan Duearte at events@projectmanagement.org.za

BANKING DETAILS

Nedbank Limited
Account name: PMISA
Branch: Nicolway
Account number: 1522079319
Reference: Invoice number

CANCELLATION POLICY

Please be aware that a 100% cancellation fee will be incurred for cancellations received later than midday Tuesday 6th May 2014

RSVP

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ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

PD Rwelamila

Professor P. M. D. Rwelamila is a Professor of Project Management at the Graduate School of Business Leadership (GSBL), University of South Africa (UNISA); Joint coordinator CIB W107: Construction in developing countries and past President of The South African Council for Project and Construction Management Professions (SACPCMP). He is a joint owner of Built Environment Management Consults (Pty) Ltd – an engineering and project management consulting company based in Gaborone, Botswana. Until March 2012 he was a non-executive chairman of Msingi Construction Project Management (Pty) Ltd – a consulting company based in Cape Town.  At the CIB W92 Symposium, February 2005, at Arizona State University, Prof Rwelamila was named as the second most cited researcher on project procurement systems in the world.  He has published more than 200 peer-reviewed journal papers, sections in books, and conference proceedings.

In his recent research, Prof. PD Rwelamila of Unisa's School for Business Leadership highlights 13 symptoms of project failure in Africa and sums up their causes in what he calls the PM Trilogy Challenges.

These are:

The confusion of equating technical specialisations with project management competencies; inadequacy of project management training programs and a lack of strategic project management in project orientated organisations.

Nissi Ekpott

Nsikak ("Nissi”) Ekpott coordinates the business activities of Trans Africa Invest in South Africa. He brings to the Knowledge Series an in-depth understanding of business culture in Africa and will be addressing the audience on an often overlooked challenge to project success in Africa – that of cultural differences. Thinking that a solution that works on one part of the continent can be replicated in another has proven to be a constraint on numerous projects. When conducting business and implementing projects, it is important to understand the nuances of the vastly different countries making up the continent rather than view the continent as a whole. Nissi will discuss how to overcome this constraint by broadening our understanding of business culture in Africa.

Nissi is an entrepreneur, business developer, and catalyst for African restoration. Raised in Nigeria, he started his first business - a dry cleaning service - at the age of 15. Over the years, he gained experience through conventional education, and several hands-on experiences. Nissi consults for small and big businesses in Africa, touching business and leadership development and providing services, including business tours and training programs for public and private sector officials. Nissi coordinates BizConnect Afrika, a place businesses connect, as well as share ideas, opportunities, and resources. He also serves as a business journalist for Afribiz.net and other websites and magazines in South Africa.

He lives in Johannesburg, South Africa with his wife and two beautiful daughters.

Together with Lauri Elliott and Hartmut Sieper, Nissi has written the books:
• Creating Wealth by Harnessing Opportunities in Africa, and
• Redefining Business in the New Africa

Sudesh Pursad

Sudesh is an experienced senior portfolio, programme and project manager with over seventeen years of experience spanning public and private sectors. He has managed, led and worked on projects for blue chip companies in South Africa and the UK including Anglo American, Eskom, Airports Company South Africa, ABSA, BBC (UK), and Trillium Group (UK). Sudesh also served as an executive of a National telecommunications company where he headed up the capital programme department responsible for fibre optic projects countrywide. Sudesh also served the Auditor General where he managed and led the SDLC reviews of large government IT implementations including three National projects which exceeded R2bn.

Academically Sudesh is an MBA graduate (University of the Witwatersrand) and a certified Project Management Professional (PMI). He also has a B.Sc. Computer Science degree and diplomas in Project Management, Management Accounting and Finance, and Nature and Culture Tour Guiding. His experience also extends into General Management and Operations Management. He is currently the Senior Manager for PwC’s Capital Projects and Infrastructure competency within the Advisory service line.

Sudesh will reflect on PWC’s experience in Africa and look at the methodologies that can be applied to improve the rate of success on African projects and address continent-specific issues.