PMFORUM Breaking News

The PMI Greater New Orleans (PMI GNO) chapter and LavaCon organizers will make every minute count during the LavaCon/Project Management Professional Development Summit (PDS) being held October 27-30, 2007 in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA - even lunch times. Featured lunchtime speakers have been announced for each of the three days during the PMI GNO chapter’s 2007 PDS, which is being held in conjunction with the LavaCon conference on technical writing.

Andrea Ames of IBM will be the featured luncheon speaker on Sunday, October 28, 2007. Ms. Ames is Information Strategist and Architect in the Information Management Division of IBM Software Group. With 25 years of experience in technical communications, Andrea holds an MS degree in science and technical communications form Drexel University and a BA degree in English from Temple University. She is a Fellow and past president of Society for Technical Communications (STC), a senior member of the Institute of Electronics and Electrical Engineers (IEEE), and a member of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM), the American Society for Information Science and Technology (ASIS&T), the Information Architecture Institute (IAI), the Usability Professionals Association (UPA) and the Association of Teachers of Technical Writing (ATTW).

Frank Saladis of the International Institute for Learning (IIL) will be the featured lunchtime speaker on Monday, October 29. Frank Saladis, PMP, is a senior consultant and instructor/facilitator for IIL and has over 35 years experience in the IT, Telecoms, and PM training environments. Frank has been a featured speaker at a number of PMI global congresses, chapter events and PM conferences around the world. He is the originator of the International Project Management Day, for which he won PMI’s Person of the Year Award in 2006. Mr. Saladis is the author of the Project Management Workbook and PMP®/CAPM® Exam Study Guide. He was the president of the PMI New York City chapter for more than 10 years, has been VP of PMI’s Global Communications Technology SIG (Specific Interest Group), and a former leader of PMI’s Council of Chapter Presidents. Frank holds a Masters Certificate in Commercial Project Management from the George Washington University in Washington, DC, USA.

Linda Oestreich of Hewlett-Packard (HP) will be the featured luncheon speaker on Tuesday, October 30. Linda is a Fellow and current president of the Society for Technical Communications (STC). Linda is also currently Systems and Software Engineering Manager for Service Management software products for HP Software in San Diego. During the past 30 years, she has worked as technical writer, editor and manager in a variety of industries, including software development, oil and gas, science and engineering R&D, and property management. Linda holds a BA in English from the University of California San Diego and a Certificate in Project Management from Rice University in Houston, Texas, USA.

According to John Saia, vice president programs for the PMI GNO chapter, "Our luncheon speakers are recognized experts from the technical writing and project management fields and reflect our partnership with LavaCon for the conference. We wanted to provide every opportunity for learning at this event, and the lunchtime speakers will be a great part of the program each day."

The LavaCon/Project Management PDS will be held October 27-30 at the Astor Crowne Plaza Hotel in the French Quarter of New Orleans. The Summit will present best practices in the fields of technical communication and project management, as well as innovative techniques for meeting project management challenges. The event will include national and international speakers, professional leaders and project management experts. Help rebuild the project management profession in New Orleans; attend this conference! For more information about the October PDS, visit http://www.gnopmi.com/PDD2007/PDD%202007%20Index.html.


With 250,000 members in more than 160 countries, the Project Management Institute (PMI®) is the world’s leading membership association for the project management profession. The PMI Greater New Orleans (PMI GNO) chapter serves PMI members in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama with project management programs and educational events. The President of the PMI GNO Chapter for 2007 is Ana Boudreaux, PMP. For more information on the PMI Greater New Orleans chapter, visit www.gnopmi.com.