The 4th Annual Scottish Conference in 2013 will be focussing on how projects and project teams ensure clarity of what they are setting out to do and clearly communicate what they will deliver. This is a fundamental for all projects.  The conference will therefore focus on how diverse teams maintain their vision of delivery and how that is practically translated into reality.

For Full details of the conference and to register go to http://www.apm.org.uk/event/scottish-conference-2013-delivering-vision 

The following speakers are confirmed:

Richard Noble of the Bloodhound Super Sonic Car project.

Creating a jet and rocket powered car that can hit 1,000mph in a matter of seconds isn’t just about Britain retaining the land speed record, Bloodhound SSC provides a stimulating topic for schools with the aim to produce the next generation of engineers, scientists and project managers.

Richard Noble OBE (left) will underline the importance for his engineers having a full understanding of project management, as it ultimately impacts project cost. Richard said: “In our project we don’t have managers, so everybody is doing their own project management. The problem is some are very good at it and some of them aren’t."

“We have a very high level of fixed costs and all the time I drum into them the fact that if you make a mistake and we are delayed by one day then that is £12,000 gone.” Richard stressed that in order to avoid this then everybody should be given the required project management skills.

Gordon Dewar - Chief Executive, Edinburgh Airport

Upping the tempo – Delivering change in Scotland’s busiest airport

Gordon was part of the Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) team which bought Edinburgh Airport from BAA in July last year. He will speak on the challenges of establishing Edinburgh Airport as a more dynamic, competitive player in the global aviation industry. These challenges include leading change within a high profile and fast moving operational environment whilst never compromising on quality of service or standards of safety and security.

Graeme McNaught - Project Planning Manager, Selex

How we ensure successful projects

This session will take a look at how Selex ES creates and maintains an environment conducive to project success. The discussion will include an overview of Selex ES, its product portfolio and the projects therein. Then we’ll consider the changing business environment in which we must operate and how Selex ES continues to innovate in order to maintain and grow market share. This can only be achieved by having a clear vision for the company’s strategy, understanding the ever demanding needs of the customer base and the ability to execute a comprehensive plan of action at all levels of the business. The session will delve into the organisational and operational environment that Selex ES has evolved over the years to maximise the success of the business, and deliver world class products and services to its customers.

Graeme has a background in electronic systems design and manufacture, technology sales, project management and project services. He has operated across many market sectors, including defence, aerospace, manufacturing, medical and nuclear.

Dr Richard Blanchfield - Uk Delivery Manager, NorthConnect KS

NorthConnect: Delivering Scotland's sustainable future

The NorthConnect interconnector with Norway will play a crucial role in securing Scotland’s vision as a leader in renewable power, by connecting Scottish wind and wave developments with Norway’s hydro-storage potential. With increasingly uncertain power supplies in the coming decade, this sort of integration of energy markets will be essential for the European vision of a renewable and sustainable future for our society.

In his position as UK Delivery Manager for the project over the last two years, Richard’s primary aim has been to keep the project team aligned with that vision to meet the project objectives, in an environment where political and regulatory risks pose a constant threat to its viability. The presentation will illustrate how the big picture and detailed work has been linked through stakeholder and other management techniques to keep the project delivery on track.

Paul Major - Program Framework

Start with the end in mind – engaging the audience is more important than creating the plan!

Our training, our job descriptions and even industry regulators might tell us that creating the “plan”, establishing governance, implementing policy and process are all the hallmarks of a great project.

Maybe they are, but are they the hallmarks of a successful project, one where the original vision, idea, dream or benefit was achieved?

When was the last time an end user (or sponsor for that matter) burst into your office and said “I hear you have a great project plan, a brilliant blueprint, a fantastic project initiation document, can you show me so I can tell all my team about it?” - Probably not often, or recently!

Vision is only realised when something (and usually someone) changes, and people only change when they either have to, or want to. In other words organisations and the people in them will not change because you TELL THEM TOO; no matter how nicely you prepare the document.

If we are truly interested in realising benefits, creating legacy and achieving our vision then we need to learn how to inspire change, showing that there is something worth changing for. There is nothing more critical to achieving every project successful because, to quote Gary Hamel, “in the absence of purpose, the only thing that will disrupt the status quo is pain” – do you really want to build a career on delivering pain?

Project managers or society’s changemakers – do you have a choice?

Afternoon sessions

The afternoon sessions of the conference will feature a number of round table sessions from a number of participants, including APM's Governance, PMO, Value Management and Risk Specific Interest Groups. These sessions are designed as intimate opportunities to hear about the conference theme through the lens of each particular group.