E49 Project Management for Medical Devices and the Coronavirus
Regardless your company size, we have you covered in this episode as we chat project management in the medical device field with leaders from startups and the largest medical device organization. Listen to hear Michael O’Connor with Medtronic and James Foley with Botanisol Analytics.
Michael is an award winning Project Management leader and is the Director of Strategy and Project Management at Medtronic. He shares his story working within a large corporation and the advantages and challenges that brings. We learn of specific activities such as PM Roundtable, Mentoring, Education, use of PM tools, and working across business units or an EPMO.
James is CTO at Botanisol Analytics and they are actively working to help develop a better detection system for the Coronavirus. James shares challenges a small startup faces to deliver projects more agile to satisfy larger customers. He leverages experience from his time in the military to a long career within corporate America prior to his startup experience. We also get a science lesson on how the Raman technology works to be able to detect COVID-19.
Michael and James provide great insight for those starting their project management journey. Don’t be afraid to seek out guidance, mentoring, and step up for leadership opportunities. Listen to hear their other advice for how to advance your project management career.
For those in the Phoenix area, be sure to register for the upcoming ASU PM Summit by visiting – https://uto.asu.edu/events/PM-Summit-2020
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Thanks to our sponsor THE PMO SQUAD. Visit www.thepmosquad.com to learn about the Purpose Driven PMO and all their project management services.
Michael O’Connor is Director of Strategy and Project Management with Medtronic was founded in 1949 as a medical equipment repair shop by Earl Bakken and his brother-in-law, Palmer Hermundslie.
Did these two men set out to change medical technology and the lives of millions of people? No. But they did have a deep moral purpose and an inner drive to use their scientific knowledge and entrepreneurial skills to help others.
That spirit — combined with our founders’ personal integrity and passion — became our guiding philosophy and, ultimately, the Medtronic Mission.
Our first life-changing therapy — a wearable, battery-powered cardiac pacemaker — was the foundation for many more Medtronic therapies that use our electrical stimulation expertise to improve the lives of millions of people.
Over the years, we developed additional core technologies, including implantable mechanical devices, drug and biologic delivery devices, and powered and advanced energy surgical instruments.
Connect with Michael on LinkedIn.
Botanisol Analytics, a start up company in the Phoenix Valley. Taking a patent from the University of Arizona commercial. Creating a mobile chemical detection system with the accuracy found in high end laboratories, with faster results and easier use. Illuminate the unknown.
Awards include: Acceptance in Techstars Air Force Accelerator Program, Center for Entrepreneurial Innovation (Arizona) and TechConnect Innovation Award 2019.
James Foley, CTO of Botanisol Analytics, is a US Naval Academy graduate. Demonstrated experienced dynamic leader with over 30 years of business, technical, domestic and international experience. Forward-thinker skilled in maximizing people, processes and assets to support strategic objectives, transform global operations and improve business performance in rapid-growth environments.
Adept at synthesizing nebulous or incomplete information into actionable plans suitable to meet current and future business needs. Highly skilled in leading strategic initiatives. Passion for developing high-performance teams. Particularly strong in managing within budgets, interpreting financial statements and incorporating methodologies to achieve maximum results. 
Specialties: Raman, Manufacturing, ITAR, ISO13485, P&L Operations Management, Business Process Analysis & Re-engineering, Integrating Legacy & Emerging systems, Product Development, Team Development, Agile, Six Sigma, ITIL, ITSM and Cloud computing.
Connect with James on LinkedIn and follow Botanisol Analytics on Twitter.
ABOUT PROJECT MANAGEMENT OFFICE HOURS SERIES
Project Management Office Hours is intended to provide Project Management professionals a place to drop in and discuss Success Stories, Best Practices, and Lessons Learned. Project Management Consultant Joy Gumz has shared with us, “Operations keep the lights on, strategy provides the light at the end of the tunnel, but project management is the train engine that moves the organization forward.”
Each of us has a unique story to tell, but collectively we share a message that organizations who embrace Project Management Best Practices perform better than those which don’t. Organizations which align Projects to Strategy perform better. Organizations with Engage Executive Sponsors deliver better results. Organizations which measure Project Management performance outperform those which don’t.
During our Project Management Office Hours, we hear directly from Industry leaders how to make an impact in our profession. How we, collectively, will Advance Project Management Best Practices, One Listener at a time!
ABOUT YOUR HOST
Joe Pusz started THE PMO SQUAD to bring real world PMO Leadership experience to the consulting space and to advocate for Project Management through his blog PMOJOE.com. The old saying is “Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.” Following this mindset Joe left Corporate America in 2013 to start THE PMO SQUAD and work with fellow Natural Born Project Managers to advance Project Management Best Practices.
ABOUT OUR SPONSOR
THE PMO SQUAD focuses exclusively on PMO and Project Management consulting. Corporate America is full of Accidental Project Managers running projects who haven’t been trained to be PMs. To help solve this problem THE PMO SQUAD is on the Leading Edge with PMO As a Service. PMO As a Service allows our clients to focus on their respective core competencies while THE PMO SQUAD delivers Project Management expertise. Contact Joe at 678-591-7868. Follow The PMO Squad on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.
