Last week Vilnius, the capitol of Lithuania, was an international hot spot of project management. The IPMA Young Crew held its International PM Championship. Teams from five countries started into the competition, gained more experiences through an intensive project simulation. Finally, Team Finland was  announced as winner. Following this competition, the annual “PM Spring” conference was performed in Vilnius, a format gathering more than 200 participants representing classical and agile views and coming from diverse industries. The event was held at the ISM University of Management and Economics. These are two great examples of what is happening in Lithuania.

 Lithuania is one of the three Baltic states. It was formed as a Kingdom already in 1253, but got its real status as a republic on 11 March 1990. Nowadays it is a member of European Union, NATO and the Euro-Zone. Main sectors for projects are ICT, infrastructure and energy. A very prestigious project was the so called “Independence” Gas-Ship together with the terminal in Klaipeda. It helped Lithuania to get independent from Russia as gas supplier and helped them also to support the other two Baltic countries. Another great challenge is to link the Baltic countries with the European Union. This is why a large rail project was started, to connect Tallinn in Estonia with Berlin in Germany. But also in the Energy sector there are many strategic projects, transforming from “old types” of energy, such as nuclear power, to the renewable energies ().

 11 years ago the  Lithuanian Project Management Association was formed, which is member of the IPMA. It was established out of a private University. Still, the main focus of the association in Lithuania is on education in the field of project management. All major universities and training providers are engaged. Important in a country, that is one of the top countries in higher education for young people. Subsequently the Young Crew of the Lithuanian Project Management Association plays a decisive role in moving the profession forward. Annual PM Championships are performed to attract young professional to project management. Also a very active Agile community gathers many young people for an intensive exchange in the ICT as well as in the service sector. Not only on a national level, but also together with the other Baltic countries and beyond. Last year Lithuania joined together with Latvia and Estonia the NORDNET, a regional network of IPMA member associations. This will enable a further experience exchange.

Last but not least, Vilnius is a wonderful city, a must visit if you are in the region (). Vilnius is well known for its Old Town of beautiful architecture, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994 and acted 2009 as European Capital of Culture.