November 5 LSPM Meeting in Bloomington

I realize this is short notice, but wanted to let as many people as possible know that there will be a Leadership Team meeting at IU in Bloomington this Thursday at 5 pm - just before the main meeting.

If you are interested in helping to plan 2010 and beyond for our young group this would be a good opportunity. Please let me know so I can let the organizers know to expect you.

Also, I will be planning a similar meeting to be held in the Indianapolis area before the end of 2009. This will be another opportunity to volunteer.

Stay tuned for more details...

--Steve

November 5 Meeting in Bloomington

Life Science Project Management Group November 2009 General Meeting

Date:
Thursday, November 05, 2009 at 6:00 PM (ET)

Location:
Kelley School of Business at IU
Room 3059 - Godfrey Graduate and Career Education Center
1309 E. 10th Street
Bloomington, IN 47405

www.lspmnovember.eventbrite.com

Registration open for July 15 LSPM Meeting at IU Bloomington

Indiana Life Science Project Management Group
Wednesday July 15
Kelley School of Business at Indiana University
Room 3059 - Godfrey Graduate and Career Education Center
1309 E. 10th Street
Bloomington, IN 47405
Directions to campus: http://www.kelley.iu.edu/kep/eec.cfm

Click http://lspmjuly09.eventbrite.com/ to register.

Critical Chain Project Management

Many companies have achieved fantastic results using Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM) and many Project Managers are wondering what all the fuss is about. At this month's meeting, Tom Lange of the Lilly Research Laboratories (LRL) Project Management Office will share Lilly's experience implementing CCPM. As everyone will learn, Lilly has made a substantial commitment to the methodology and achieved some significant results. Mr. Lange has been at the center of the implementation having led the pilot and is now serving as an internal CCPM expert on the team conducting the LRL-wide rollout. He will share their experience both in terms of results and lessons learned in the process of rolling it out. Mr. Lange will be joined by Wendell Simpson III, Ph.D., a Principal Consultant with ProChain Solutions, Inc.

Parking Instructions: Park in the garage just behind the Godfrey Building. If the gate is down, just take a ticket—the gate will be open before the program ends, so parking is free. Park on the fifth floor of the garage and go in the double doors (with the Kelley School of Business sign) on the left side/northeast corner of the building (do not enter the glass doors). Once inside the building, follow the hallway directly to the registration table.

July 15 General Meeting at IU Bloomington

We are excited to announce the date and location for the next General Meeting of the Life Science Project Management Group of Central Indiana. We will be meeting at Indiana University in Bloomington. Professor Carl Briggs of the Kelley School of Business is excited about hosting the July LSPM meeting at the Kelley School, starting at 6:00 p.m.
George Telthorst, who is with the Center for the Business of Life Sciences at IU Kelley School of Business, will join us and will say a few words about what the Center has to offer.
We are also tentatively planning a primary program around the topic of Critical Chain Project Management.
As you can tell, we are in the early stages of planning, so check back for updates as the details develop.

May 20 General Meeting at Covance - another success!

There were 35-40 energized professionals at Covance for the May 20 General Meeting. We had an open discussion during the main program and there was a great networking session before the main session. Many in attendance had valuable suggestions for sources of other networking opportunities. For example, Scott Willis talked about his ASQ Biomedical Division Midwest Discussion Group. Let me know if you are interested and I will send you his email address. Other examples were the PMI Central Indiana Chapter (www.pmicic.org) and the PMI Pharmaceutical SIG (yes, we cover medical device and biotech, too! - www.pharmasig.org). I know I heard more and some agreed to send me details about additional opportunities to network. I will compile a list and post on www.lspmindiana.org. Thanks to those who attended for a valuable meeting. I look forward to the next one!

May 20 General Meeting at Covance in Indianapolis

Registration is open for the next General Meeting

Wednesday May 20
Covance
8211 SciCor Drive
Indianapolis, IN 46214

Finding and Filling PM Positions in Life Sciences

Now more than ever Life Science firms need strong leaders to usher through projects faster and with fewer resources. At the same time, there are a number of talented leaders looking for their next opportunity. This general meeting is aimed at bringing together those two goals: Finding opportunities and filling positions. After the presentation, there will be time to network with the speakers, organizers of LSPM and the other participants.
Special networking session one hour before the main program for those looking for their next opportunity.
Click to register: http://lspmcovance.eventbrite.com/

Sucess in Bloomington and Plans for Indy

Though I was limited to listening in on the phone, I could tell the Bloomington meeting tonight was a success. There were 30 to 35 in attendence and the topic was outstanding - PM Maturation. I know the attendees learned something valuable and had a chance for some good networking.

We have preliminary confirmation for a meeting next month, May 20, at Covance's Indianapolis location. The topic (again, preliminarily) is Finding and Filling PM Positions in Life Sciences. Bill Allbee and Lou Begnel are hard at work planning the event. Stay tuned for more details.

In the mean time, keep the momentum going by taking part in the forum on LinkedIn or by posting a comment to the blog.

Agenda for Aprill 22 General Meeting

Tim and Colleen have announced the following preliminary agenda for the April 22 meeting in Bloomington.
6:00 p.m. - Refreshments & Networking
6:20 p.m. - Welcome & Introductions
6:30 p.m. - LSPM Group Overview
6:45 p.m. - PM Matuation with Raul Soikes, Colleen Dixon, and Tim Ward
7:00 p.m. - Q&A and Open Discussion
7:30 p.m. - Networking
8:00 p.m. - Meeting closed

Don't forget your business cards!

Carpooling to Bloomington for April Meeting

Bill Allbee is coordinating a carpool to Bloomington for Indianapolis-based attendees. To find out more or to join in the carpooling discussion, go to the LSPM Indiana LinkedIn Group.
We are looking forward to an exciting and informative program!

New Networking Tools

We now have a LinkedIn Group up and running. Brandon Lott, Lou Begnel, and I will be the managers. Let's make this an active community using tools like LinkedIn, this blog, Twitter (coming soon), and of course, our face-to-face meetings.
We are embarking on what I see as an interesting experiment. We are trying to create a regional community here in Central Indiana to take advantage of the intimacy that comes with face-to-face networking opportunities. Nothing innovative about that. However, we are trying to use the principles and tools that come with Web 2.0 to create what John Jantsch called a "neighborhood wide rave" in a recent podcast (local version of a World Wide Rave).
We will leverage the new media opportunities to add to the value of our face-to-face meetings. The best of both worlds!
For all of you not yet plugged in to all the new fangled web stuff, do not fear. First of all, I just started a few months ago. It's not that hard to learn and is well worth it if you like that sort of thing. On the other hand, this group will continue to use traditional methods to get the word out. In other words, you will always be able to network the old fashioned way.
The bottom line is, this group will always be what you make it. The more you give the more you'll get. So comment on this blog, join the LinkedIn Group, tweet your colleagues, and come to the meetings. We will all be better off for it.

April 22 General Meeting in Bloomington

Life Science PM Group: April Meeting
Wednesday April 22
Baxter Pharmaceutical Solutions
927 South Curry Pike
Bloomington, IN 47403

PM Maturation in Life Sciences Companies

Project managers from local life sciences companies will present their strategies for growing their PM organizations to face the evolving needs of their customers. This interactive presentation will allow participants to discuss their questions and ideas with professionals facing the same challenges and opportunities. After the presentation, there will be time to network with the speakers, organizers of LSPM and the other participants.
Click to Register

January 27 General Meeting a Success

Despite the blizzard of January 27, we were able to have an interesting and productive meeting. Of the 42 registered, 15 were able to brave the elements and join us at the IU Emerging Technologies Center. This is double the attendance at our first meeting in late 2008.
Congratulaions to Lou Begnel on a successful event. Thanks to Brad Fravel for hosting the event.
Our next meeting will be in the Bloomington area and is being planned by Tim Ward and Colleen Dixon.
Let me or them know if you would like to help plan the event.

Weather Update

We are going forward with the meeting tonight. Please be careful and use your best judgement in deciding whether to attend.

Bad Weather Predicted for January 27

Forecasters are predicting that a winter storm will impact the Central Indiana region Tuesday afternoon and evening. At this time we plan to hold our event at IUETC as scheduled. I will continue to monitor the forecast and provide an update here and via email if conditions deteriorate to the point that we need to cancel the event.

Regardless, please use good judgement and caution. There is absolutely no reason to take an unreasonable risk in trying to reach us. There will be plenty of other valuable events.

I hope the weather cooperates and we have a successful event but stay tuned just in case.

January 27 Agenda Preview

The agenda for the Tuesday, 1/27/09 meeting is taking shape. The Leadership Team is excited about this high impact event...

6:00 Check-in, grab food (if you ordered it), network
6:15 Main Program

WELCOME and LEADERSHIP TEAM INTRODUCTION

• Steven A. Vinson, PMP - Founder of LSPM Group and Marketing Director of the PMI Pharmaceutical SIG

WHAT IS PROJECT MANAGEMENT?

• Lou Begnel - Chairman of this evening's Event

IU EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES CENTER AND STARTUP COMPANIES

• Dr. Brad Fravel - Business Development Manager, IUETC

PANEL AND OPEN DISCUSSION - PROJECT MANAGMENT
AT LIFE SCIENCE STARTUPS

• Facilitated by Lou Begnel

7:30 - 8:00 Wrap up and Informal Networking