Olfa Hamdi is an international researcher in the field of project management, independent consultant, founder of the Advanced Work Packaging Institute, co-founder of The Institute of Management and a tech entrepreneur in capital project management office and field solutions.

Olfa Hamdi was a member of the top research joint venture RT272 on Advanced Work Packaging between the Construction Industry Institute (CII) and the Construction Owners Association of Alberta (COAA). She is a co-author of the 3-volume Industry Research Implementation on Advanced Work Packaging IR272-2. Her Research Master Thesis, published by The University of Texas at Austin in 2013, is the first academic publication to document research on AWP benefits, implementation challenges and maturity.

She is a fellow of the State Bar of Texas Construction Law section. Olfa has numerous publications in prestigious academic and professional journals as well as media outlets. Olfa speaks four languages and is a firm believer in the role of interdisciplinary research in driving capital projects effectiveness and project management knowledge sphere expansion.

Olfa Hamdi founded the AWP Institute with a clear objective in mind: trigger and build the global momentum around Advanced Work Packaging and advance the AWP system by closing its gaps through research and innovation for it to become a recognized comprehensive global industry practice. Today, the AWP Institute has an outreach to more than 40 countries across all industrial and transportation construction sectors.

Olfa Hamdi holds a Master of Science in Capital Projects’ Management from The University of Texas at Austin, a Master of Science in Engineering from Ecole Centrale de Lille (France), and a graduate degree in Alternative Dispute Resolution for construction disputes from Texas School of Law.

Sandra is the Managing Director of Valency, a consulting company that implements best practices from the Construction Industry Institute (CII) that dramatically improve capital project performance. Valency is a Registered Education Provider with both CII and PMI and works globally with client in both the private and public sector.

Sandra is a Project Management Professional (PMP), Project Risk Professional (PMI-RMP) and a Certified PDRI Facilitator. She has over 15 years of project management experience and is a past research team member with CII on front end planning, risk management and portfolio management. Sandra is an active member of CII’s Front End Planning Community of Practice.

John has over fifty years’ experience in the Engineering and Construction industry (primarily refining and petro-chemical). He was the architect for the S&B/FB&D Internet Project Information Management System (iPIMS), a web based system for managing the flow of information from Front End Planning to System Turnover. John’s CII resume started in 1992 when he was assigned to be a member of the research team that developed the first PDRI and Alignment Thermometer. Since that time, John has participated in the following CII roles:

1. Board of Advisor for S & B/FB&D since 1996,
2. Four PDRI related research teams,
3. Risk Management Team,
4. Co-chair of the Break Through Strategy Committee,
5. Co-Chair of the Innovative Deliverables to the Craft Team,
6. Co-Chair to initiate the Front End Planning Community of Practice.

In addition, John has instructed the Front End Planning session for the CII Best Practices Course at the University of Texas since 2012.

John is considered one of the industry systems experts in Automation, Information Management, Front End Planning, and Best Practice Execution. He has worked with numerous owners to assist them in the implementation of CII Project Management tools and best practices. He is active in the implementation of FIATECH initiatives to improve productivity using technology to utilize integrated information exchanges and automation.

John is best known as an industry change agent. He was instrumental in leading S & B/FB&D from slide rules, pencils and Mylar into the Intelligent 3D Design age. In 1982, John was given an edict by Wally Maurer, an early mentor, to “…challenge everything we do.” He is still challenging and does not plan to stop anytime soon.