Jo Ferguson is currently the Owner and Manager of Complex Systems Solutions, a new consulting firm in the Tri-Cities. She has been practicing project management for 20 years. She is a member of the Project Management Institute (PMI), which provides global leadership in the development of standards for the practice of the project management profession throughout the world. She will provide practical solutions to project management problems for engineering projects.

Jo learned project management in graduate school in the 1980’s, earned her PMP in 2001, and has a track record of bringing in her projects on-schedule and under-cost (prior to Hanford, she always achieved less than 2 % cost and schedule variance). Since taking a self-select IROF from the Hanford Site last summer, she has been applying her project management skills to establish her woman-owned business. She has currently become a Registered Partner with Microsoft, and is aggressively seeking contracts to help employ some of her colleagues who were recently laid off from Hanford.

Jo has been an active supporter of the PMI CRBC for the past several years. She stepped up to replace Laura Shikashio as VP, Membership, and over the past few months, helped to improve membership activities so that new and old members are appreciated. Additionally, Jo became a Director for the local chapter of the International Council on Systems Engineering in 2001, and is currently managing a project for that group to assist TRIDEC in examining their decision process in business development for our community. She is also a member of the Women Helping Women Fund – Tri-Cities, a philanthropic group that raised over $65,000 this year in support of women and children, and chairs the Instrument Drive for the Mid-Columbia Symphony.

Ms. Ferguson is presenting:

SATURDAY
Session A, 8:00 AM - 10:00 AM
SESSION A2 - Project Management
Chairperson: Denise Bent
"How Project Management Affects and Benefits Engineers"
The plan for the workshop is a 30-45 minute overview of project management, followed by assorted interactive discussion groups or problem-solving sessions. Several board members and certified Project Management Professionals will lead the group sessions.

Questions from participants are encouraged before the workshop. Ideally, organizers would like to have them ~ 3 weeks prior to the event. Send questions to .

The Project Management Book of Knowledge (PMBOK) organizes project management concepts into the following areas. Questions or problems will be organized into these areas: (1) Scope Management; (2) Time Management; (3) Cost Management; (4) Quality Management; (5) Resource Management; (6) Communications Management; (7) Ethics; (8) Project Closeout.

Check out the entire conference schedule at Agenda
Back to Workshops
Back to Conference Home

Sponsored by: Civic Mind Media
Last updated 03/14/04