Daily Pioneer News

PLATTEVILLE-Ginger Levin, Ph.D., adjunct professor for Project Management 701 and 784 at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, has focused her attention on project management for the better part of the last two decades, making it more than just an academic subject for her.

Levin holds a master of science administration degree, and her doctorate in public administration and information systems technology from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. She also holds a bachelor of business administration degree in economics and in business administration from Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Levin's years of experience enable her to empathize with her students on their projects as she recalls one of her own assignments that did not go well. Levin said, "My worst project was one that my small company...bid on and won for a government agency. In this project, we really didn't have the technical expertise for the job, but we needed work...from the beginning the atmosphere was less than cooperative...the client was only partially satisfied with the end result. What I learned was to not over promise and to be careful not to take on an assignment that is really over my head."

She has taught graduate level courses in telecommunications, data base management systems, and management information systems as an assistant professor at the American University in Washington, D.C.

Not satisfied with merely teaching about the subject, Levin has developed nine courses for the Project Management Institute. She has created other PM courses for such companies as BellSouth, IBM, Honeywell, Delta, GTE, Baan and Arthur Andersen, as well as a PM curriculum for The Weather Channel. Since 1992, Levin has been actively managing a virtual team concerned with milk safety for the Food and Drug Administration.

When not teaching or creating new programs, Levin enjoys writing. She is a co-author of many books with her latest being, "Achieving Project Management Success with Virtual Teams," published in 2003. In her book, "People Skills for Project Managers," she encourages managers to develop their softer side. Levin notes, "We tend to focus on our technical skills, but we also can develop and cultivate our people skills."

Of her many varied experiences, Levin has discovered that teaching online has become one of her favorite activities. "I really like the online teaching at UWP...trying to be as responsive as possible to students. To that end, I live on e-mail," Levin said.

Generally busy herself, Levin recognizes that students are often struggling to balance family, work, and studies. She knows first hand that meeting project deadlines can be frustrating. When burnout sets in, she says it is time to do something enjoyable, like swimming. While facing deadlines, Levin recommends talking with a friend, journaling about feelings and trying to focus on the big picture. She also advises people to review their journal entries monthly.

Levin is a member of PMI and is a frequent speaker at seminars, chapters and at Project World. UWP expects a visit from Levin around the time of her speaking engagement at the Madison PMI chapter on April 21.