The Volunteering Journey to Project Leadership: A Pathway to Improving Leadership Skills, Broadening Networks, and Exploring New Fields

Winner of the 2025 Gold Quill for Nonfiction from the League of Utah Writers!

The project management profession has grown through the hard work of many volunteer groups and organizations. The Volunteering Journey to Project Leadership explains how volunteering can help project management professionals grow their own capabilities and careers. It explains how volunteering in project-oriented organizations, or any organization where projects are delivered, can help project managers develop leadership skills, build strong and diverse networks, and gain experiences in new fields. Any project manager or PMO can get advice and insights from this book, which explains how to:

• Identify volunteering goals that align with career goals
• Find the right organization that complements professional aspiration
• Choose activities for enhancing careers in project leadership
• Strategically select the right role to advance careers

Based on the authors’ own volunteering and professional experiences, as well as interviews and informal discussion with more than 100 volunteers, this book is a hands-on guide to personal and professional growth in the field of project management. It is structured in three parts. Part I describes four ways volunteering can develop project leadership abilities. Part II focuses on leadership and adaptative skills, networking, and new skills gained by experimenting. Part III consolidates the learning and explains how to apply it at work. Each chapter ends with practical case studies, detailed interviews, key takeaways, and questions to reflect on.

Mayte Mata Sivera was born and raised in Xàbia, Spain. She is an experienced Project Management Office (PMO) Director based in Salt Lake City in the USA. With a master’s degree in chemical engineering, Mayte has served as a project manager in the technology sector, overseeing projects around the world. Motivated by a passion for strategic and business development, Mayte pivoted her career trajectory to specialize as a project leader in these domains. This transition allowed her to contribute significantly to the strategic growth of organizations and align projects with their business objectives. She is committed to the project management community and is a dedicated board member at the Project Management Institute (PMI) Northern Utah chapter.

Yasmina Khelifi is a French telecom engineer and project manager with three PMI certifications. She has been working in the telecom industry for 20 years. She is a passionate volunteer at PMI. She is also a regular volunteer blogger on projectmanagement.com and a volunteer international correspondent at PM World Journal. She also writes in Harvard Business Review Ascend. She can speak six languages and has an MSc in Mobile Telecommunications. You can learn more about her work on her website: yasminakhelifi.com