Project Management : Novice-to-expert! a Qualitative Comparative Case Study

The project management profession is proliferating, and many company executives have ascertained that efficient and effective project management is required to help them achieve their strategic goals and objectives.  However, there are challenges; according to the Standish group, 52% of all IT projects are delivered at 189% of budget, and 70% of all IT projects are late.  As a result, many company executives are requiring project managers to enhance their project management acumen and become “leaders” who manage projects.  Essentially, leaders who are equipped with business and domain knowledge, pragmatic tools and techniques, conflict resolution skills, and soft skills among others, that will galvanize their project teams and create an environment in which project success is the norm.

Project Management: Novice-To-Expert! is a qualitative comparative case study approach that investigates how project managers in the context of the Engineering Procurement and Construction management (EPCM) industry initiate, navigate, and successfully traverse the arduous, but rewarding path that the author calls the “Novice-To-Expert Continuum”.  Specifically, this book is an expose on “how project managers become experts?”  The book primarily focuses on the EPCM industry, but the information uncovered by this research, can be applied to other professions such as IT, Healthcare, Banking, library science, Real Estate, Marketing, Sales, Accounting, Finance, government, sanitation, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals and beyond.

The three major constructs of expertise:  Absolute, relative, and the theory of deliberate practice are used as the study’s conceptual framework, along with project management, continuing professional education (CPE) and informal learning to investigate, and ultimately expound on how project managers become experts in the context of the EPCM industry and other industries as mentioned above.

Dr. Derrick Walters has a diverse background and resume that includes 30 years of maintenance, engineering, business, management, project management, university teaching, corporate training, and consulting experience. He has held several middle management positions in engineering, maintenance, and business with progressive responsibilities that have allowed him to enhance and sharpen his project and business acumen. He has been the lead project manager for projects that range from $100K to 200M, and his project teams typically consist of 10-15 cross-functional professionals with advanced degrees in engineering: Civil, Structural, mechanical, and electrical. Also included were maintenance, management, computer networking, database administrators, developers, process engineers, stress analyst, architects, designers, and a team of administrative personnel.

Professor Walters completed his undergraduate degree in engineering technology at Purdue University, his MBA in project management at Keller Graduate School of Management, and his doctoral studies (EdD) at Northern Illinois University (NIU). In addition, he completed the requirement for PMI’s PMP certification in 2005, and has been an active PMP for 13 years.

Dr. Walters currently lives in the suburbs of Chicago, IL and owns a consulting company, Walters Consulting, LLC. He has been teaching PMP Prep courses for the past 13 years, while teaching at colleges and universities (online and on-ground) for the past 17 years. In addition, he advocates the use of computer simulations to illuminate and reinforce topics like project management. His interests include NBA basketball, NFL football, ML Baseball, Boxing, the UFC, Gospel music, the Internet, video games, and reading.