IPMA Appoints New Secretary General

Mr Veikko Valila has been appointed IPMA Secretary-General. He will assume the two-year position in April 2009. Veikko is the former President of the International Project Management Association and former Chairman of Project Management Association Finland.

Veikko sees his appointment as a logical step in the continuing IPMA expansion. The organization now represents the international interests of some 45 countries with Canada being welcomed into the family at the Council of Delegates meeting in Nuremberg in March. "The growth of an organization demands an equivalent increase in organizational governance. As well as maximizing the added value to IPMA member associations, we need to vigorously promote our brand particularly with regards to the benefits of our competence-based certification system which is growing annually by some 20%."

Mr Valila has more than 25 years of experience in project and risk management. He has been Scientific and Industrial Commissioner of Finland for China and Southeast Asia and has lived and worked in approximately 50 countries. He is a co-founder of Soredex Ltd (a dental imaging company) and responsible for the start-up of new insurance underwriting operations in the London market (Hansa Industrial Insurance). Mr Valila has provided consulting and risk management services for many large corporations in the areas of power generation (including thermal and nuclear power), pulp & paper industry and large infrastructure projects (including harbour and motorway projects).