Jim Vaughan , PMP

PMI Member Since 2002

Personal History
Jim's expertise as a highly successful project manager was achieved in one of the most complex and demanding of today's technical environments - global telecommunications.

His 28 years of experience includes 23 years at Motorola where his leadership advanced his career to an executive level. He started out as a software development engineer and held various leadership positions in engineering development, deployment and project management. He is disciplined in all five of the Project Management Process Areas.

While at Motorola one of his major accomplishments was the successful delivery of the first non-Japanese cellular systems to be put into operation in the Japanese market, an environment famous for its attention to quality and performance. Jim also developed project management offices for Motorola and was one of the first technical managers to implement technical team development as a standard management practice.

Jim offers a wide variety of PMBOK-based seminars and training programs as part of his leadership development. As a consultant his vast experience delivers quick and effective results for his clients. He also provides individual leadership coaching and skill development for project managers and senior level executives wishing to take their personal and professional skill set to the next level.

All of Jim's services are carefully targeted at helping other project managers accelerate their learning cycles. He places strong emphasis on assisting his clients in the practical and directly applicable aspects of project management that pay immediate returns on their investment.

Jim has a Bachelors degree in engineering from the University of Illinois, he is certified Project Management Professional (PMP) and a graduate of the Coach Training program at CoachU. Jim is currently enrolled at Loyola University seeking a Master of Arts in Spirituality.

Best Project Management advice ever received
Trust but verify.

Your secret to effective Project Management
Active listening. It's the only way you find out what is happening on your project.

Why did you volunteer to serve as a VP for PMI Chicagoland?
I saw a need and wanted to help out. I am all about helping others. I also enjoy being a part of a great organization.

Recommended Reading for Project Managers
Yertle the Turtle. Yes the Dr. Suess book. (Read my review on the Amazon page.)

Where do you recharge your batteries?
Lately I feel like this comes with every aspect of my life. I enjoy work, school, family and church. Oh yeah, I also enjoy my time spent on the PMI board. As a leadership coach I teach my clients that they need to make the best of everything they do. If you don’t enjoy something, find something else to do. It is possible.

If you could have been a team member on any project, which would it have been?
The Apollo moon project would have been interesting.