Congratulations
We look forward to seeing you at the IT Project Management Research Symposium 2025 on 27 November at 1:00pm in WZ4126 of the WZ Building at the Auckland University of Technology.

Keynote Speakers

We have a fantastic line up of Keynote Presenters:

Youssef Mourra
Founder, Principal P3M Consultant
Nonsuch
Youssef Mourra

Youssef is an experienced consultant, trainer, and presenter with expertise in portfolio, programme, and project management. He has delivered training worldwide, helping organisations achieve their strategic goals. Known for turning complex topics into accessible learning, Youssef works with all levels, from staff to board members, across various sectors and countries. He has developed a great reputation for training and presenting material in a manner that many people find engaging and occasionally entertaining.

Damon Kelly
Founder and CEO
Enlighten Designs
https://www.linkedin.com/in/damonkellyenlighten/

Damon Kelly is the Founder and CEO of Enlighten Designs, a technology services leader known for pioneering AI-driven digital solutions and transformative customer experiences. With a deep passion for people, business, and technology, Damon founded Enlighten in 1998, not in a Silicon Valley garage but uniquely in a caravan in his New Zealand backyard. Under Damon's visionary leadership, Enlighten Designs has evolved into a cutting-edge technology partner, blending creativity, strategic thinking, and advanced AI capabilities. Damon champions using artificial intelligence to drive meaningful business innovation, frequently sharing insights and expertise online and at conferences as a recognized thought leader on the future of AI in enterprise settings.

Industry Discussion Panellists

We are also excited to announce the Industry Discussion Panellists:

Olga Lozova, Solar Program Delivery Lead & Commercial Partnerships & Strategy at Fisher & Paykel Appliances and on the board of the Project Management Institute New Zealand.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/olgalozova/

Sune Rogers, Head of ICT Planning and Portfolio Management at Fisher & Paykel Healthcare
https://www.linkedin.com/in/sune-rogers/

Raymond Kwok, Senior Delivery Lead, Sourced Group and PMI NZ Auckland Co-Lead
https://www.linkedin.com/in/raymondmskwok/

We also have a great lineup of Masters of IT Project Management and PhD students presenting on some very interesting topics:

The Environmental, Social, and Governance Leadership Gap: Why Women Project Managers Are Essential for Sustainability Success - Dr Olga Lozova

The IT Project Manager: Benefits of a Technical Skill Set - Livia Krstic and Stephen Thorpe

An Investigation of Teamwork in the Era of AI - Thatiane Palumbo Ascar and Stephen Thorpe

Global Knowledge Management Practices in Information Technology: A Multivocal Literature Review - Deepa Veerabhadrachar and Dr Ramesh Lal

The Effect of Digital Literacy on Digital Government Adoption in Developing Countries: A Systematic Literature Review - Alvin Dave Carmelo Joson and Stephen Thorpe

Managing Academic Integrity in AI Era: A Project Management lens on Academic Integrity - Kavya Ramesh and Associate Professor Minh Nguyen

A Mobile DevOps Project Management Framework - Farhan Khan and Jing Ma

Beyond Automation: Human-Centered Agility and AI-Enabled Leadership for the Future of IT Project Management - Beni Suranto

Addressing the Challenges of Remote Work in Scaled Agile Frameworks: Organisational and Change Management Solutions - Twinkle Joy and Stephen Thorpe

Mapping Core Practices in Disciplined Agile Delivery (DAD) to ISO 9001:2015 Requirements - Arie Kurniawan and Dr Ramesh Lal

Adopting Data-Analytics methods for decision-making process in IT Project Portfolio Management - Thafnitha Faisal and Daniel Vaipulu

Agile Adoption: A New Zealand Case Study - Tauqeer Bilal

Critical Factors Influencing the Adoption of Basic and Scaled Agile Methods: A Comparative Study - Yinghui (Michael) Zhang and Dr Ramesh Lal

Feel free to come along to see the interesting and exciting work that our MITPM research students have done and to mix and mingle with our industry speakers from 1pm on Thursday 27 November in WZ416.

Best regards,
Stephen Thorpe
Symposium Chair
AUT Project Management Research Office
pmro@aut.ac.nz

Contact the host of Project Management Research Symposium 2026