COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT
COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT
INSIGHTS AND PERSPECTIVES FROM LEADING WOMEN IN PROJECT MANAGEMENT
***PLEASE NOTE: Our main presentation will be starting earlier at 6:30 pm. If you are attending the presentation only, please arrive in time! Dinner will begin at 5:45. New member orientation begins at 6:00 pm.***
Our dinner events have been selling out, so please register early! Dinner orders closed on Thursday, October 17 at 6:00 PM. Session(s) online registration closes on Monday, October 21 at 6:00 PM. Please note: If you have paid for your PMI Austin Chapter Membership within the past 48 hours, register as a guest and self-report the PDUs.
Menu: TBD. Gluten-free and vegetarian options available.
CELEBRATING PMI'S 50TH ANNIVERSARY
SCHEDULE
| 5:30 – 6:30 pm | Registration, Business Meeting, Networking and Dinner (Cash Bar) | .5 Leadership PDU |
| 6:30 - 8:30 pm |
INSIGHTS AND PERSPECTIVES FROM LEADING WOMEN IN PROJECT MANAGEMENTEducation Track Panel |
2 PDUs |
| 8:30 - 9:00 pm | Additional Networking Time |
INSIGHTS AND PERSPECTIVES FROM LEADING WOMEN IN PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Presentations and Panel Discussion with tracks in Education and Business. More program details coming soon.
Panel discussions moderated by
Sandra Jackson PMP, CTCM President, PMI Austin Chapter Education Track
Jade Adediwura PMP, PMI Austin Chapter as the Director of Education Partnerships Business Track
Stephanie Samuels (facilitator)
EDUCATION TRACK PANEL
Leah Folgate is an out-of-the-box thinker who believes that disruption of the norm results in break-through innovation and enablement.
After serving in the United States Air Force, Leah received her Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science and began her career spending 10 years as a software developer. Leah later served as Director of Project Portfolio Management in 2014 (Texas Department of Information Resources), Project Delivery Branch Manager in 2017 (TXDOT), and Director of Public Health Applications in 2019 (Texas Health and Human Resources Commission).
With over 30 years of robust Information Technology experience, Leah has delivered results in software development, project/program management, project management office (PMO), service delivery, applications management, customer experience, and organizational change and transformation.
Mei Lin is a resourceful, results-driven, multilingual, Six Sigma Lean Black Belt, PMI-certified Project Manager (PMP, ACP, PBA) with ten years of global experience delivering and implementing projects for a diverse set of industries.
As a native of Taiwan where she earned dual bachelor degrees in Law and Social Work from National Taipei University. She emigrated to the U.S. in 2008 and earned a Masters of Business Administration from Texas A&M University-Commerce.
She works tenaciously serving her team as a project manager for the City Of Plano, where her efforts resulted in the delivery of successful software implantation city-wide and Infrastructure technology upgraded to server citizens and meet City's technology strategic goals one project at a time. Her enthusiasm for improving her skills and applying new techniques to her projects shows in her daily life.
Currently, she is the Vice President of Programs for the PMI Dallas Chapter. Additionally, she has been an active member of Toastmasters International since 2014 where she has served in a variety of leadership roles including Metro Division Director 2016-2017 where she supervised and supported the education of six areas which accounted for over 600 individual members. She also is an active member of the Richardson Citizens Fire Department Alumni Association where she served as the Vice President 2016-2017 and the board member (2018-2019). Mei was a Heartsaver and Basic Life Support instructor with the American Heart Association between 2014-2017. She has delivered presentations to national audiences on the topics of leadership, emotional intelligence, diversity, and project management.
Kimberly Thomsen began an advertising career in New York City in early 2000's. She stepped away from the professional world for 10+ years to raise three children overseas. Her stay-at-home-mom pursuits include international blogger, ex-pat Primaires les Ecole Tourrettes-sur-Loup, France, Special Events Coordinator for the Michelin Star awarded Les Bacchanales, Vence, France and various board member NPO positions in Austin, Texas. She looks forward to a 2020 vice president position with Project Management Institute, Austin Chapter as well as an official R.E.P. accreditation.
Jett Chafin is an IB diploma candidate at Vandegrift High School and is in her 6th year of robotics as part of the hardware and marketing subteams. She’s the current project manager of her team, Viperbots Copperhead and plans to study electrical engineering in college to further her career plans in the STEM field.
Tagline: High school senior, skilled communicator, deep thinker, and robot enthusiast driven to expand her own abilities.
BUSINESS TRACK PANEL
Lieutenant Colonel Anita McGinthy is a current operations officer with Army Futures Command (AFC). She is responsible for overseeing active projects that are intended to educate and inform government, academic, civic, industry, and veteran-advocate personnel on a full spectrum of matters influencing AFC.
Anita’s team focuses on applying the Army’s best-practices to non-traditional decision making processes, working groups, and stakeholder coordination efforts. These practices help to ensure that AFC initiatives are synchronized with key Army programs, with the ultimate goal of helping advance the US Army's modernization efforts.
Prior to joining AFC, Anita was the military assistant to the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Manpower and Reserve Affairs and the executive officer to the Principal Deputy. She is an Army Strategist and Adjutant General Corps Officer. Her previous branches are Logistics, and Field Artillery.
Anita was commissioned into the United States Army via the ROTC program at Penn State University in 2001. She has served at seven duty stations across the United States and overseas, and has three combat deployments. Anita is married to Anthony, and together they have two beautiful children. She originally hails from Latham, New York.
Jenna Edge, President of Ash Creek Homes, believes the most important part of any business is the people: the internal team, the customers, the contractors. The internal team’s passion, resourcefulness and experience directly impact the company’s operations and product. When you’re building homes in a city like Austin, The Best Place To Live In (Forbes), you really have to be at the top of your game and focus on the customer’s experience. Jenna believes this is where the right people make the difference and finding contractors with values that align with a company’s core beliefs is the key to success.
Jenna began her seven-year career with Ash Creek Homes in business marketing. She was previously Ash Creek Homes’ Marketing Manager, but quickly realized it was the business’ land acquisition and development of residential projects that she was most passionate about. After six months as the Marketing Manager, she was excited to take on the position of Director of Land Acquisition and Development.
It was in this role where Jenna managed the development of residential communities from identifying and acquiring raw land, product development, marketing, sales, and construction of the homes. As a project manager in development and construction, it is important to be organized, yet flexible. Jenna also found that she needed to understand the complexities of the entire project, not just pieces of it. Here hard work and dedication paid off. As an effort to build her education in real estate, she became a licensed real estate agent in 2016.
In 2017, the Austin Home Builders Association named Jenna Project Manager of the Year and recognized one of her projects, Canyonside at Falconhead West, as the Best New Community for a Developer.
Cynthia Kahn has over 20 years’ experience organizing teams and managing projects. She has been exclusively agile for the last 10 years. Her recent TEDx talk takes her excitement about agile to a personal level, where she reveals how to apply agile practices in your life to be happier. Cynthia has her MBA, PMP and CSM. She is co-author of the GSD Scrum Handbook and co-founder of the agile consulting company GSD Mindset, where she teaches Scrum in 1 Day and coaches teams as they transition to agile, leaving their waterfall ways behind.
Tagline: Always looking for ways to help people be more agile.
Shannon Mantrom is Executive Director of Leap to Success, the signature program of Launch Pad Job Club in Austin, TX. The program offers pro bono, professional projects assistance to Austin and Central Texas nonprofit organizations. Since its founding in 2012, Leap to Success has delivered over 125 projects to more than 110 nonprofits totaling over $550K in services. The program won the “2013 Nonprofit Advocate” award from PeopleFund and in 2017 won the “Nonprofit of the Year” award by the Austin LGBT Chamber of Commerce.
Shannon's background is 20 years in sales and event coordination (with time off to raise two amazing daughters!) and it is Shannon and her Leap to Success team who coordinate the annual Launch Pad Job Club Employment Expo, the club’s annual fundraiser and service to its membership held each September.
Questions:
For any issues with registration or questions about claiming PDUs, email VP of Professional Development.
Photo Disclaimer: Upon participating in any PMI event, you are agreeing to allow PMI to use your likeness for use in its promotional material including their websites.
Thanks to our Chapter Meeting Sponsors:
It is no longer possible to register for this event
