Amidst all the Copilot, Cowork, and other updates racing for your attention in LinkedIn posts (generated mostly with the help of AI). Here’s a personal note from my hand. No AI used, except for maybe the image 🤫.
17 years of consultancy!
What started as a junior MS Project consultancy role, ended as a Principal xPM Consultant & MVP. In itself, this has been an ever changing role that has kept me reinventing myself over and over again.
For a large part of course this is due to the ever changing landscape of the software. Starting with MS Project 2003 and “Project Server” 2003, moving all the way towards Project Online which is now close to its own end.
But not only the direct Project technology caught my attention. Power BI turned into a very welcome hobby, Power Automate made it possible for me (not a dev/coder) to automate a lot. And Power Platform as a whole changed the world of Project and Portfolio Management for me and a lot of you immensely!
As Projectum changed into a Power Platform and Azure focused organization. It also changed names into Context&. And we adopted a xPM mindset instead of a PPM mindset. In case you wonder what the x stands for, take a look at the video made by Peter Kestenholz and Nick Freeman:
And then, OpenAI released a very capable LLM to the public. And our world changed again! For me, as a consultant I saw my capabilities increase 10-fold. Where I previously struggled understanding the simplest codes (remember, I’m not a developer/coder) I was now able to co-create code and explore new and previously only dreamed customer solutions.
A new role, same company and mission
I’m not moving from Context&’s xPM branch. The Projectum xPM solution and it’s add-ons is one I really believe in.
I’ve previously made no mystery about my mission with the blog, YouTube Channel and basically all the work I do. But it’s good to repeat it here:
It’s my mission to help the PMO succeed with Microsoft Technology.
And I believe that I will be able to expand my reach to help PMOs across industries, all over the world, and of all sizes, with this new role.
So, what is this new role Erik?!
As of today, taking over from Dariana Kestenholtz, I’ll be leading the Customer Care & Support department.
In this role my focus will be on the phase where value is truly proven: after implementation. Adoption, support, product evolution, customer feedback, and helping organizations turn their xPM solution into a lasting success.
Our products keep evolving (in the capable hands of Dariana, who is going to focus on her role as Product Director), and I would like to ensure our customers are aware and able to join in on this evolution.
It’s going to be my pleasure to ensure customers use our solutions with success.
I will aim to improve their day-to-day work and elevate their capabilities and insights.
I won’t be alone in this effort, as I will be leading a team of capable consultants from the Customer Care & Support department.
Will this affect TPC?
Yes, very likely it will, in a good way. I believe I’ll be able to get involved with more customers and with more strategic PMO conversations than before. Leading to richer articles and videos.
I don’t have any intention to stop blogging (like I mentioned in the previous article) or creating new videos regarding Planner, Power BI, AI and the Power Platform. But please be aware that I’ll be shifting my focus for the near future to land in this new job and make the most out of it.
This new position can give me more access to real adoption challenges, customer patterns, product gaps, and strategic PMO questions. That is exactly the kind of practical insight that can make TPC stronger.
Final notes
Thanks for sticking around till the end. And if you are a customer of ours, or through our partner network and want to know what I can do for you, please feel free to reach out to me directly. I would love to know your struggles, thoughts and future wishes.
And if you aren’t a user of Projectum xPM yet, let’s connect and see what we can do for you: Let’s connect.
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