The Western Michigan Chapter of the Project Management Institute Announces Return of Reverse Career Fair at 6th Annual "THE Project" Competition

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., March 7, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The Western Michigan Chapter of the Project Management Institute (WMPMI) 6^th Annual "THE Project" student competition will feature a Reverse Career Fair, taking place on April 10, 2017, providing participating students with a unique opportunity to showcase themselves to prospective employers.

Students participating in the WMPMI "THE Project" competition are placed in the spotlight from the very start; their information is sent over to participating companies prior to the event which allows the companies to select the students they want to connect with during the event. Participating students include those with a wide range of backgrounds, including supply chain operation, finance, management and entrepreneurship, and marketing, just to name a few.

"The Reverse Career Fair places the students at the center of attention in a truly unique way," said Ted Kallman, President of The Western Michigan Chapter of the Project Management Institute. "The students have proven themselves to be hard-working individuals throughout THE Project competition, and this career fair allows their work to come to fruition in a tangible way."

In addition to the announcement of the competition updates, the keynote speaker has been announced. Dr. Joel Carboni, President, and Founder of Green Project Management will be presenting the keynote on competition day, discussing sustainable project management. Dr. Carboni's topic aligns with THE Project's community gardening scenario, which the competing teams are basing their plans around.

Students have now entered into the second phase of the contest and are now working on the second deliverable, known as the RACI component. RACI is used to define roles and responsibilities based on the stakeholder register.  The students were challenged to design and create an implementation plan to promote a community garden or farm on a location in Michigan that spans a five-year period of time. Each team was provided a detailed scenario and assigned a certified mentor to teach them how to transform their solutions into project plans. This year's teams include students from Cornerstone University, Davenport University, Ferris State University, Finlandia University, Grand Valley State University, Hillsdale College, and Michigan Technological University.

The main event includes team presentations, keynote speakers, and the reverse career fair. Mayor Bliss has also announced her support of THE Project and is scheduled to attend the event taking place in April.

"I am pleased to support THE Project," Grand Rapids Mayor Rosalynn Bliss said. "It is a great way to showcase the skills of our future leaders and it demonstrates the power of community collaborations."    

THE Project competition is made possible through the generosity corporate sponsors including: 4Pillars of Success, Crossroads Conference Center, Lambert, Edwards & Associates, StellaFly, Steelcase and Whirlpool.  In addition, WMPMI is actively seeking sponsors for the 2017 calendar year.

About Western Michigan Chapter of the Project Management Institute
The Western Michigan Chapter of the Project Management Institute works to promote the activities of the Project Management Institution Association, which is dedicated to advancing the state-of-the-art effective and appropriate application of the practice and science of project management. The West Michigan Chapter is one of over 200 chapters geographically dispersed over 67 countries. For more information, head to http://wmpmi.org/

SOURCE Western Michigan Chapter of the Project Management Institute