We have a new team member! Only time will tell if she'll be a fifth generation project manager?
The big news in the Iconic Project Management office this week is that apprentice project manager, Oscar Hewitt (who also happens to be my son), became a Dad for the first time. Many congratulations to him and his partner who will make wonderful parents, I'm sure. This means that I've been promoted to Granny and I couldn't be more pleased.
The arrival of a new baby is a joyous thing; Baby Hewitt has a whole lifetime of opportunity ahead of her. It made me wonder if she'll follow the family tradition and grow up to be a project manager. If so, she'll be a fifth generation project manager.
I've understandably been reflecting on my family this last week, and thought I'd share how project management is very much in our blood. Please indulge me...
The first generation of project manager was my Grandpa, Gilbert. Coincidentally, he studied a distant ancestor of the same course our current Iconic apprentices follow at University College of Estate Management, graduating around 1930. We are lucky enough to have one of his course books on construction in our archive. Apologies to the people at UCEM - I don't think he was supposed to have kept that...
Our second generation project manager is my Dad, Andrew, who is Iconic's IT Director. He took a slightly different path, first studying Physics at Oxford, then embarking on a long and illustrious career as an IT project manager. He was lucky enough to travel the world over 40 years working for corporations such as Fujitsu, Ericsson, British Telecom and British Gas. These days he's happy keeping the Iconic website working and is delighted to have achieved one of the most ambitious items on his bucket list - living to meet his first great-grandchild.
The third generation of project manager is cheating slightly - I married him into the family. You may be familiar with Iconic's Director of Project Management, Darren Hewitt. He has been a construction project manager for over 25 years, working his way through the ranks at Barclays before going on to consultancy. His experience in construction project management is vast and diverse, covering the full spectrum of the commercial sector.
Our fourth generation project manager is, of course, new Dad Oscar. He's just finished the second year of his degree apprenticeship and has all the makings of a fantastic project manager. He's studying hard and learning quickly. Already, his experience covers hospitality, retail and aviation projects.
Working in our family business is one of the great joys of my life. Who knows if my new granddaughter will join us here one day?
Author
Lizzie Hewitt
Lizzie is CEO at Iconic Project Management. She loves dreaming up the creative strategies that set Iconic apart. She puts the team at the centre of everything we do, making sure that our people have all the tools and support they need to get on with the important job of delivering our clients’ projects on time, on budget, on brief.
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