PMFORUM Breaking News

The PMI Dallas Chapter held its annual Project Management Vendor Showcase on 13 March 2008 in Addison, Texas. The 2008 Vendor Showcase was held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Crowne Plaza North Dallas-Addison Hotel, site of the chapter’s monthly dinner meetings. The event was free to pre-registered PMI Dallas Chapter members and included plenty of food and entertainment.

Over 30 companies participated, exhibiting their project management-related products and services at tables and booths spread around the hotel ballroom. With approximately 600 attendees, the room was packed with people.

According to PMI Dallas Chapter President Dwaraka Iyengar, pictured with Chapter VP Communications Jennifer Carlisle, “It was a great turnout, with more attendees and vendors than last year. This is one of our most popular events, with attendance and food free or minimal cost. We’ve already received a lot of positive feedback!”

Jennifer added, “This is a fun event, combining education about project management solutions in the market with information, networking and lots of door prizes. We hope everyone has a good time.”

Most of the 30+ vendors provided a door prize, as did the PMI Dallas Chapter. So beginning around 7:30 p.m. drawings were held at each vendor table, with two or three Dallas Chapter leaders coordinating the drawings. Even this reporter was fortunate enough to win something.

According to Christi Blakelock of Wildworks in Dallas, “See you can win something after all! Congratulations!” (In photo, David Pells in center with iPod won during the Wildworks drawing, along with Wildworks staff.) Wildworks is a project management collaboration technology and services company based in Dallas.

Altogether, more than 40 door prizes were handed out during the evening. (Marilyn Sawyer, PMI Dallas Chapter VP Programs shown in photo during drawings for PMI chapter door prizes – free dinner meetings, training sessions, etc.) Participating vendors showcased project management software, training, consulting services, collaboration and facilitation services, staffing services and other PM solutions. While many other PMI chapters hold vendor exhibitions, the PMI Dallas Chapter’s Vendor Showcase is one of the largest and most successful events of its kind in the world.

The next big event for the PMI Dallas Chapter is the chapter’s 2008 Professional Development Day – The Power of Project Management, a one-day project management symposium scheduled for April 12, 2008.

The PMI Dallas Chapter is a volunteer-based professional association dedicated to supporting the growth and development of project management practitioners, as well as building awareness of the project management discipline and its critical role in business and organization success. With more than 270,000 members in over 170 countries, the Project Management Institute (PMI®) is the world’s leading membership association for the project management profession. Founded in 1984 and with over 4,000 members, the PMI Dallas Chapter is one of the world’s largest PMI components. To learn more about the PMI Dallas Chapter and its service offerings, please visit www.pmidallas.org .