I WANTED TO LET YOU ABOUT ANOTHER PROJECT MANAGEMENT EVENT CO-ORGANIZED BY ASPIRATION AND IDEALWARE - OUR FIRST ONE WAS SO POPULAR THAT WE'RE REPEATING IT, THIS TIME ON THE WEST COAST. AND WE INVITE YOU TO HELP US SPREAD THE WORD...
ARE YOU INTERESTED IN HOW TO BETTER MANAGE TECHNOLOGY PROJECTS IN YOUR NONPROFIT OR AS A CONSULTANT TO NONPROFITS? WE'RE HOSTING OUR SECOND NONPROFIT TECHNOLOGY PROJECT MANAGEMENT EVENT IN OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA ON TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY, MAY 20TH AND 21ST, 2008. THE FIRST EVENT IN NEW YORK WAS A BIG SUCCESS, AND SOLD OUT WELL IN ADVANCE.
MANAGING NONPROFIT TECHNOLOGY PROJECTS WILL EXAMINE THE TOOLS AND BEST PRACTICES THAT HELP NONPROFITS ACHIEVE SUCCESSFUL TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS - WHETHER WEB SITES, PACKAGED SOFTWARE IMPLEMENTATIONS, OR CUSTOM APPLICATIONS.
INTERACTIVE SESSIONS AND DEMOS WILL ALLOW PARTICIPANTS TO COMPARE PROCESSES, TOOLS, SUCCESSES, AND LESSONS LEARNED. WE WILL DISCUSS AREAS SUCH AS TEAM COLLABORATION, PROJECT PLANNING, SOFTWARE SELECTION, MIGRATION, AND PROJECT ROLL-OUT, AND MAP OUT THE SOFTWARE TOOLS €“ FROM PROJECT MANAGEMENT PACKAGES TO COLLABORATIVE COMMUNICATION TO ISSUE TRACKING AND MORE €“ THAT SUPPORT SUCCESSFUL TECHNOLOGY PROJECTS.
ASPIRATION'S APPROACH TO FACILITATING PRACTITIONER KNOWLEDGE SHARING, COMBINED WITH IDEALWARE'S EXPERIENCE IN PROVIDING TOOL ASSESSMENT FRAMEWORKS AND RESEARCH-BASED INFORMATION WILL ENSURE AN INFORMAL, COLLABORATIVE, AND INFORMATION-RICH EVENT.
COMPLETE DETAILS ARE AT HTTP://WWW.ASPIRATIONTECH.ORG/EVENTS/MNTP-SF
AND YOU CAN REGISTER DIRECTLY AT HTTP://TINYURL.COM/YRTTKD
*WHAT'S ON THE AGENDA? *
THE AGENDA WILL BE DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY TO ENSURE PARTICIPANTS INTERACT WITH AND LEARN FROM EACH OTHER, WHILE ALSO PROVIDING A SOLID GROUNDING IN ESSENTIAL TOPICS. SOME OF THE SESSIONS WILL INCLUDE:
* ANATOMY OF A WELL-MANAGED TECHNOLOGY PROJECT: DRAWING FROM CASE STUDIES GOOD, BAD AND UGLY, THIS SESSION WILL FOCUS ON KEY ASPECTS OF SUCCESSFUL PROJECT MANAGEMENT.
* WHAT SHOULD A WEB SITE COST? USING ANECDOTAL DATA AND PARTICIPANT INPUT, WE WILL EXPLORE COSTING FOR DIFFERENT TYPES OF WEB SITES, FROM SIMPLE "BROCHURE-WARE" SITES TO CUSTOM, DATABASE-BACKED APPLICATIONS AND POINTS IN BETWEEN.
* USING WIKIS FOR EFFECTIVE COLLABORATION: THIS SESSION WILL MAP OUT BEST PRACTICES AND TECHNIQUES FOR SUCCESSFULLY UTILIZING WIKI TECHNOLOGY ((SEE HTTP://EN.WIKIPEDIA.ORG/WIKI/WIKI) FOR PROJECT COLLABORATION. ALSO DISCUSSED WILL BE WHEN NOT TO USE WIKIS, AND WHEN MORE STRUCTURED INFORMATION SHARING TOOLS ARE ADVISABLE.
* MANAGING CONSULTANTS AND DEALING WITH VENDORS: THIS PEER SHARING WORKSHOP WILL INVITE PARTICIPANTS TO COMPARE THEIR PROCESSES AND TACTICS FOR MANAGING CRITICAL PROJECT RELATIONSHIPS THAT FALL OUTSIDE OF ORGANIZATIONAL BOUNDARIES.
* SOFTWARE SHARE: BASECAMP, MS PROJECT, DREAMTEAM AND MORE €“ NONPPROFIT PRACTITIONERS WILL PROVIDE A VARIETY OF 10-15 MINUTE SOFTWARE DEMOS TO ALLOW PARTICIPANTS TO SEE THE PACKAGES IN REAL-LIFE SITUATIONS AND COMPARE THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES.
SEE THE FULL DESCRIPTION OF THE EVENT AT HTTP://WWW.ASPIRATIONTECH.ORG/EVENTS/MNTP-SF FOR MORE SESSIONS. OR LET US KNOW WHAT YOU'D LIKE TO TALK ABOUT - THE AGENDA WILL BE DESIGNED COLLABORATIVELY UP TO AND DURING THE EVENT.
*WHO SHOULD COME? *
THIS EVENT WILL FOCUS ON GROWING THE COMMUNITY OF NONPROFIT TECHNOLOGY PROJECT MANAGERS BY PROVIDING SUPPORT TO THOSE CURRENTLY PRACTICING AS PROJECT MANAGERS, RECRUITING AND OFFERING SUPPORT TO THOSE NEW TO (OR BEWILDERED BY) THIS CRAFT, AND CREATING A SPACE FOR THE "ACCIDENTAL PROJECT MANAGERS" TO SHARE THEIR STORIES, DISCOVER THEIR ALLIES, AND GROW INTO MORE "INTENTIONAL" PROJECT MANAGERS. A SIGNIFICANT PART OF THE EVENT WILL BE BUILT AROUND MENTORING RELATIONSHIPS; EXPERIENCED INDIVIDUALS WITH KNOWLEDGE AND STORIES TO SHARE WILL COLLABORATE WITH PARTICIPANTS WHO WANT TO LEARN MORE.
*WHAT ARE THEY SAYING?*
THE FEEDBACK FROM OUR NEW YORK PROJECT MANAGEMENT EVENT WAS QUITE ENTHUSIASTIC. JUST A FEW OF THE COMMENTS INCLUDED:
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"THE EVENT WAS VERY ENERGIZING, AND RENEWED MY ENTHUSIASM FOR TACKLING SOME COMPLEX ISSUES"
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"THIS GATHERING WILL INFORM EVERYTHING I DO IN IT FROM HERE ON." -
"I USED TO BE SUPER INTIMIDATED - NOW I FEEL MORE EMPOWERED ABOUT WHAT I DO KNOW AND HOW TO FIND ANSWERS TO WHAT I DON'T"; -
"IT WAS A FUN, CASUAL, OPEN, RESPONSIVE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT FOR NON-TECHIES" -
"I LEARNED THAT I'M NOT ALONE, AND I CAN LEARN FROM A RICH COMMUNITY OF PEOPLE FACING SIMILAR CHALLENGES" -
"I WAS IMPRESSED WITH ALL THAT HAPPENED - IT WAS AMAZING"
*HOW DO I GET INVOLVED? *
INTERESTED IN HEARING MORE? VIEW THE FULL DESCRIPTION OF THE EVENT ONLINE AT HTTP://WWW.ASPIRATIONTECH.ORG/EVENTS/MNTP-SF.
READY TO REGISTER? THE EVENT IS $595 FOR THOSE FROM ORGANIZATIONS WITH BUDGETS OVER $2,000,000, $495 FOR THOSE FROM ORGANIZATIONS WITH BUDGETS BETWEEN $500K AND $2,000,000, AND $295 FOR THOSE FROM ORGANIZATIONS UNDER $500K. WE HAVE A LIMITED NUMBER SLIDING SCALE AND SCHOLARSHIP SEATS AVAILABLE AS WELL.
YOU CAN REGISTER ONLINE VIA CHECK OR CREDIT CARD AT
HTTP://TINYURL.COM/YRTTKD
QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? WANT TO BE ADDED TO A LOW-VOLUME EMAIL LIST FOR EVENT REMINDERS AND KEY DATES? HAVE A BURNING DESIRE TO BE THERE BUT JUST CAN'T AFFORD IT? CONTACT US AT MNTP%40ASPIRATIONTECH.ORG">MNTP
ASPIRATIONTECH.ORG OR MNTP%40IDEALWARE.ORG">MNTPIDEALWARE.ORG.
AND PLEASE BLOG IT, FORWARD IT, AND OTHERWISE LET FOLKS KNOW ABOUT THIS UNIQUE EVENT.
LOOK FORWARD TO SEE YOU SOON!
LAURA
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LAURA S. QUINN
IDEALWARE
CANDID INFORMATION ABOUT NONPROFIT SOFTWARE
WWW.IDEALWARE.ORG
718-208-8172
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