Instructor Spotlight: Bill Murray
Our spotlight is on PMP Exam Prep instructor, Bill Murray, PMI-ACP®, PMP®, PH.D., Owner and Managing Director of WJ Murray & Associates a Strategy Development and Implementation consulting company. He is a PMP preparation instructor, and consults in areas of strategic planning and implementation, change management, and leadership topics. Murray has over 45 years of experience working in a large multinational chemical company with profit and loss responsibility for strategic business units. Murray has served as senior consulting manager at Expressworks international, LLC, a change management consulting organization. He has consulted and/or lead projects for United Airlines, Chevron, BMC software, Kellogg Brown and Root, Saudi Aramco, the European Academy for Thoracic and Cardiac Surgery Limited, Exxon, and the University of Texas Health Science Center.
Mr. Murray has been a member of Toastmasters International where he achieved the Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM) award, the highest educational award that can be earned by an individual Toastmaster, and has earned membership in the Toastmaster’s Hall of Fame for his achievements in public speaking.
What made you decide to become a PMP instructor?
In my work as an executive in industry responsible for the development and implementation of strategic plans, I found that planning was a commodity and that the ability to execute strategic plans was the scarce resource. As I began to focus on strategy execution, it became obvious that most business strategies are executed through projects. I began sharing my experiences in an informal manner and wanted to help others shorten the journey to effective project management. I earned my PMP® and have been an instructor for 12 years.
What’s your favorite aspect of teaching the PMP Certification Exam Prep Course?
While teaching the Exam Prep Course requires covering subjects as directed by the Project Management Institute, I enjoy explaining how the material is related projects in the real world outside of the exam requirement and having class participants share their experiences as well. I also learn much from the class participants as we work through the course material. I have come to realize that excellence in project management is a journey and not a destination.
What is your teaching philosophy?
The PMP® Exam Prep course as the name implies prepares people to pass the exam consisting of 180 multiple choice questions over a 230 minute period. It is a difficult exam. Consequently, I focus on preparing people for the exam not by memorizing material but explaining underlying concepts. Throughout the course, I pop up questions for the participants to work, sometimes in groups and sometimes alone, that show how the concepts can appear on the exam.
What do you hope students will gain after taking your course?
In addition to being ready to take the exam, my aspiration for participants’ is that they leave the class:
1. Understanding how to apply the project management concepts in their work and in their personal lives as the acquire leadership positions.
2. Realizing that that they do not have to have all the answers. They can seek help but as a leader, the have the responsibility to make progress towards meaningful results. In other words, keep moving.
What are the key concepts you hope students will leave your course with?
The key concepts I work towards imparting to participants, is that the role of a project manager is to communicate. Most of the project manager’s time is spent communicating. Communicating with the project team, customers, vendors, senior managers, and those who control the resources needed to complete the project and there are always conflicting priorities. The bottom line for a project manager is to create value for the business which in today’s world requires the ability to disagree well, balance priorities, and the ability to adapt to changing circumstances while keeping an eye on the goals of the project.
How do you motivate the students in your classroom?
I motivate participants by constantly asking myself, “What’s in it for them.” What value can I create for them? One is the ability to pass the exam. I do that by challenging them with questions, engaging them in discussions, allowing them to challenge me, and asking participants to coach me on what is working or not working in the class.
What is your #1 tip for passing the certification exam?
Have an exam strategy. That includes how much time to allow for each question, know when to pass on a question and go back, cross out potential answers known to be incorrect, and don’t get upset if the first couple of questions fluster you. Have patience, develop a rhythm, and the answers will come to you.
What are three interesting facts about you outside the classroom?
1. I’m a race car enthusiast. I race several different classes of cars and instruct in cars including Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, and Porsche.
2. I enjoy sail boating and have sailed in many parts of the world and my favorite place is the Aegean Sea off the coast of Greece.
3. I embrace continuous learning and do that by reading and putting myself in challenging situations where I do not agree with the opinion others hold. I try to listen to understand and work at presenting my point of view in a way that does not set up “I am right, therefore you are wrong.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
George Zombakis, is assistant director for professional and corporate programs at Rice University’s Susanne M. Glasscock School of Continuing Studies where he manages a growing portfolio of successful face-to-face and online programs including human resource management, paralegal studies, project management, communication, marketing and leadership.
Connect with me on Linkedin.
