House of Representatives Notice Paper Question No 254
Schedule Number: 300047 		Publication Date: 13 October 2008
Hansard: Page 8945

Defence: Overseas Study Tour

Member: Baldwin

Mr Baldwin asked the Minister for Defence, upon notice, on 2 September 2008:

  1. Did staff from his department and the Australian Defence Force (ADF) go on an overseas trip as part of their efforts towards acquiring an Executive Masters in Complex Project Management.
  2. If staff from his department and the ADF did go on this trip:
    1. what were the dates;
    2. how many staff from his department and the ADF attended;
    3. what was the itinerary;
    4. what was the cost of the
      1. airfares,
      2. accommodation, and
      3. meals;
    5. what were the specific outcomes; and
    6. would it have been possible for the attendees to achieve the same outcomes without leaving the country.

Mr Fitzgibbon - The answer to the honourable member's question is as follows:

1. Staff from the Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO) and the ADF are currently participating in an overseas study tour as part of the course curriculum of the Executive Masters in Complex Project Management.
  a. The tour departed on Friday 19 September 2008 and is scheduled to return on Sunday 5 October 2008.
  b. Defence staff comprises 14 civilians from the DMO and two ADF (Army) members.
  c. Students will travel to the UK and USA visiting;
    i. the London Olympic Delivery Authority and Olympic Site;
    ii. Mary McKinley, Vice President of the International Project Management Association;
    iii. Michael Jackson, British Systems Scientist and Professor of Management Systems;
    iv. BAE Systems Submarine Solutions (Astute Project);
    v. National Defence University Industrial College of the Armed Forces; Micron Technology Inc; and
    vi. The Joint Strike Fighter project at Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company.
  d.    
    i. $3,726 per person.
    ii. Estimated at $3,948 per person.
    iii. Estimated at $910 per person.
  e. The study tour is a requisite component of the Masters course and counts towards one full unit of study. Students of the Queensland University of Technology are required to participate in the activity to ensure that they meet the university’s requirements to graduate with this degree. The study tour will consolidate learning from the first half of the course and form the basis of several critical pieces of assessment on their return.
    The study tour forms a critical component of a broader learning strategy to incorporate a strong practical and experiential element within the program. “Implementation of Complex Projects” is an important unit of study on the program, putting into practice the academic theory that students have studied to date. To fully appreciate the challenges and complexities of project management at this level, it is essential that students directly engage with international project managers of these complex projects. This will enable them to understand and appreciate the strategies (successful or otherwise) these individuals implement in managing these projects.
    As the majority of Defence’s most complex projects form part of a global supply chain it is important for our future project managers to appreciate the challenges this presents in addition to developing an understanding of how these challenges might best be managed in an environment characterised by uncertainty and high levels of scrutiny. Experiential learning in this style is an essential element to successful adult learning and development and has been proven to enhance knowledge retention and subsequent successful application.
    The Masters course has been developed with the Competency Standard for Complex Project Managers as the underpinning knowledge of the course content. View 8 of the Standard refers to "Culture and Being Human" and is based around the importance of Complex Project Managers having a sound appreciation of the cultural nuances that can impact international projects. Experiencing this first hand on the study tour fulfils the requirement that students be exposed to this as part of their ongoing understanding of the underpinning knowledge in the Standard.
  f. No.

close