One of her heros, her mom, Linda Urech introduced her to project management and advised her to get the PMP. Like many of us she needed a wake up call to heed the advice. Her employer, Accenture was reorganizing and provided training to obtain the PMP precertification training requirement through the recorded sessions by Barb Waters, on Skillsoft. They were gracious enough to provide three months to find another role internally or to exit. Her external job search quickly revealed that employers were looking for certifications on her resume. So Sarabeth quickly went to work in devising a plan to find her next role. She started asking others what they knew about the PMP, job seeking and how to pass the exam.

Changing her mindset was instrumental in her success. Sarabeth created a study plan and attacked it, taking advantage of her downtime to complete the PMP training. Be a chameleon and absorb the knowledge around you. Sarabeth Urech attended the New Member Orientation, and liked the warm reception on the call. "Members asked how they could help with the test and she got a couple of people to talk to, they provided her with resources to practice tests and everyone started to link up." Sarabeth said she received a warm welcome and collaborative support congratulating her on persoanl PMP journey. Support came from PMI LinkedIn connections around the world.

Sarabeth considers herself to be a generalist and a jack of all trades. Her hidden talent is mind reading when conversing with others. The skill comes from being an active listener and to being fully present, even on video calls. As you aborb and take the knowledge, give it back. She tries to mentor others to build her network and considers herself to be an extrovert. The PMP allows me to focus, manage stakeholders, problem solve and to connect people and technology. Sarabeth feels that good project managers have emotional intelligence and are an expert at asking good questions. She is now mentoring her work peers to help bring back the generalist, as well as how to build a network and is aiding others to build these skills.

Her advice for the exam? Sarabeth focused on the terms, taking copius notes and working equation examples. She then wrote it all out creating flashcards, watching YouTube on the concepts. "Use all the resources and look into all the resources that people tell you about. I respected their experience, I trusted other people's experience and learned from it and the chapter." On the new exam know the PMBOK processes and order. If taking the exam from your home office, move your personal cell phone out of the room to prevent distraction.

All of her hard work paid off. Sarabeth found an internal position with the help of a mentor, a new role within Accenture. They took note of her mindset change and her determination to pass the PMP. She is now working on a vendor project and is using it as a pilot for the PMBOK process. The learning journey continues and she shares the knowledge she obtains.

Sarabeth has a new ten year life plan with goals and beleieves, "when there are challenging circumstances look for the opportunities."

Change-makers rely on key capabilities to succeed:

• New ways of working, including agile, waterfall, and hybrid methodologies, and digital project management approaches such as problem-solving tools, AI-driven tools, and microlearning apps
• Power skills, such as collaborative leadership, innovative mindset, empathy for the voice of the customer, empathy for the voice of the employee, and the ability to build trusting relationships
• Business acumen, encompassing a well-rounded set of capabilities that enables people to understand not only their own roles, but how their work relates to business strategy and to other parts of the business

First, however, change-makers must have the means to acquire these capabilities. Continuous learning is the only way to thrive in today’s disruption-driven environment. Some of that can come through virtual education, which, especially since the pandemic began, is seemingly everywhere. But organizations that raise the bar by using AI to facilitate continuous, agile, and innovative learning—collaborative human-machine learning—are the ones that excel at driving change. Or, as a 2020 MIT Sloan Management Review report put it: “They don’t just use AI; they learn with AI.”22

It doesn’t matter what sector an organization is in, where it’s located, or even what is driving its strategic mission. It must be ready to adapt to whatever megatrend comes its way. And this is where the ecosystem of employees, partners, customers, and stakeholders committed to change truly proves its value.

“Rome wasn’t built in a day, nor was climate action or the diversity and inclusion agenda,” Coca-Cola HBC’s Dickstein said. “If you want change that is in itself sustainable, you need to do that together with the communities.”

Sources

22. “Expanding AI’s Impact with Organizational Learning,” MIT Sloan Management Review, October 19, 2020.

Dawn Feltner has been a chapter member for almost 10 years and like many of us wonders where the time went. She joined PMI to obtain her PMP which she received shortly after joining in October of 2011. Like many of us, she was performing the work of a project manager long before before she learned of the title. Dawn stumbled on it while studying for the PMP. Once she started studying for her certification, suddenly there was a name, some tools and rigor to what she had been doing and it all clicked! Dawn was fortunate enough that her previous employer, Voya Investment Management, was willing to pay for a PMP boot camp and she had 6 months to study and pass the test. "I loved the classes and study groups, but put that test off until the last possible moment and passed (whew)!"

She is passionate about learning and emphasizes that it doesn't have to be solely academic. Dawn shared, "just listen to people around you (whether you agree with them or not), listen to yourself." The certification has opened professional doors and windows of learnings. "I've learned so much from others in this space and it's great when we can connect and share best practices as well as war stories!"
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Dawn Feltner's personal motto, "If you don't swing you don't hit, so be brave, even if you miss, you learn. Say yes to opportunities that serve you! Live! I try to do a little something different each day since we don't know our expiration date." From a career perspective, Dawn shared, "don't be afraid to ask for help. It gets easier with practice."

When I asked how her what makes her unique it was that a communications major could somehow fit into a financial and technology field and make it this far, it was beyond her imagination. Dawn started her career as a radio morning show co-host for a country music station and at the time was not a country music lover.

Dawn's path to project management? "My project management journey started when I was a kid! I always liked organizing fun events... like getting a group of us to the water park or skiing for the day and it carried with me into my professional life." Dawn started doing corporate event planning, then assisting with IT transformations and a complete continuous improvement business initiative. Dawn Feltner now has a new title, she is a Change Manager for GoDaddy, which is becoming more entwined with traditional Project Management.

Dawn's proudest moment, winning the highest award at my previous company for helping to develop a training course on "Developing a Culture of Feedback" Her inspiration was seeing light bulb moments when people you work with understand and are excited for what's going on...whether its a project, during training or coaching. She is so thankful to have had a supportive workplace and leaders who walked the walk when it came to work life balance and that showed me how to integrate the two.

Dawn Feltner's, heros were her parents. They illustrated a strong work ethic, compassion, tenacity and humor. "You need to get it done while having some fun, her career attitude." The causes she cares about, AZ Helping Hands which provides basic needs for foster children in Arizona. She is on their Junior Board to help with scheduled events from a project process management perspective. It brings her joy to watch kids becoming who they are meant to be.

If she needs to balance her work and daily life she seeks nature. Dawn is a mountain, lake and wilderness seeker to find a bit of tranquility to slow down the chaos of life. Dawn's can do manner, impressed me and brought me a ray of sunshine.

He is being honored for his work on his most recent project of the past two years, Future Cities. Future Cities is a reoccurring social good project that the chapter supports, year over year, supporting local high school students. They mentor project management skills, interview and judge students across Arizona.

His colleagues often tell John that he is organized, creative, and a team player. Helping him through his daily work is his sense of humor. John Chico recently went back to his career roots of accounting and applied the project management principles to his work. His attention to detail is serving him well as an SRP Auditor. John's philosophy is that in challenging times, success comes to those that demonstrate focus and flexibility.

John Chico enjoys music and travel and hopes to make it to Northern Italy. John is a centered family man whose passion revolves around his wife, children, and grandchildren. His proudest moments were their births that continued his family legacy.
From a career perspective, John Chico's proudest moment of his professional career was when he worked for an airline that had fatalities on 9/11. John was asked to be part of a project to help victims' families. "Getting those families through events that were so sudden and tragic made me feel like I had made a difference when it was most needed."

I was struck with my realization that John Chico pauses in his life journey to smell the roses. His motto is to be kind, appreciate the environment around you, and say thank you. Yes, like all project managers, he works hard, but this was also instilled by his grandfathers, who were immigrants. They taught him to work hard and to be kind to others. The message of kindness and the practice of gratitude resonated with him. For those of you who might not be familiar with the concept of the practice of gratitude, it is noticing the small things when you are fully present. If you string the small things together, it promotes well being, positivity and over time, creates a feeling of well-being, which helps alleviate our stress in our daily life of being a project manager.

Giving back to youth and others resonate with John Chico. His passion was apparent, and the chapter is proud to award him the February 2021 volunteer of the month award.