PMI Westchester is excited to announce our 17th Annual Symposium, in collaboration with the PMI Hudson Valley. This year, we are focusing on the human qualities that help project leaders guide teams through AI‑driven change and thrive amid the broader uncertainty shaping today’s organizations.

Register here!

This year's program features

• Jackson Kerchis - Keynote session
  The Serious Business of Happiness in Project Management
• Martine Dardignac -
  Beyond the Gantt Chart: Leveraging Project Management Skills Outside the Traditional PM Role
• Dr. Pitchiah "Pitch" Balasubramanian -
  From Disruption to Opportunity: Next-Gen Leaders Driving AI Transformation
• Arun Prasad and Pratik Dhule -
  Next-Gen Sustainability Frontier Unlocked through AI-Driven Project Management
• Deborah Ketai -
  Building Organizational and Personal Resilience with Organizational Change Management

This will be a hybrid event, both on-line and in person, offered in partnership with the PMI Hudson Valley Chapter. Expect a day of mixed formats designed to give you practical tools and techniques for amplifying your impact in the workplace!

 

Presentation Details

Our day will start off with the Keynote presentation by Jackson Kerchis, "The Serious Business of Happiness in Project Management". Project management is demanding, with constant deadlines, pressure, and change. This session introduces the science of positive psychology and shows how happiness directly impacts focus, resilience, teamwork, and project results. Participants will learn why well-being is not a “nice to have,” but a practical advantage in high-pressure project environments. Backed by research, the session shares simple, proven habits that improve performance, reduce negativity, and strengthen collaboration. Attendees will leave with easy-to-use tools to manage stress, improve team morale, and create positive momentum that leads to stronger project outcomes and healthier work cultures.

A former Zen monk, startup executive, and operations leader, Jackson brings a practical perspective on how project leaders can shape the environment around them - often through small, intentional shifts that improve how teams think, communicate, and work together.

Next, Martine Dardignac will lead a "Fireside Chat" - "Beyond the Gantt Chart: Leveraging Project Management Skills Outside the Traditional PM Role". Project management skills are often viewed through the lens of industry-specific roles — IT, construction, finance, operations. But what happens when those same competencies are applied beyond the conventional PM career path? In this 45-minute fireside chat, Martine Dardignac, PMP, shares her unconventional journey from professional project manager to entrepreneur and multi-business owner. Drawing from her experience in wedding planning, catering, and consulting, Martine explores how core PM capabilities — scope management, risk assessment, stakeholder engagement, budgeting, scheduling, and process design — translate seamlessly into business ownership and creative industries. Through candid storytelling and practical examples, this session challenges the idea that project management is confined to a job title. Attendees will gain a fresh perspective on the portability of PM skills, discover new ways to frame their expertise, and leave with actionable insights for applying structured thinking in unexpected professional contexts.

Martine Dardignac is a Project Management Professional and entrepreneur known for applying structured project management thinking across nontraditional industries. With a background in professional project management and as a former Ops PM at Microsoft, Martine has built and operates multiple businesses spanning wedding planning, hospitality, catering, and vendor consulting. Her work focuses on translating PM frameworks — including risk management, stakeholder engagement, budgeting, and process design - into real-world operational strategy for small businesses and creative service providers.

Dr. Pitchiah "Pitch" Balasubramanian, who spoke at our March Chapter meeting, returns to present "From Disruption to Opportunity: Next-Gen Leaders Driving AI Transformation". AI is reshaping how work is planned, delivered, and governed - creating disruption, uncertainty, and unprecedented opportunity. This highly interactive workshop explores how project leaders can guide people confidently through AI-driven transformation by building trust, strengthening capability, and aligning change with meaningful outcomes. Through scenario-based discussions, group problem-solving, stakeholder role mapping, and practical leadership exercises, participants will explore real-world challenges of AI adoption—from workforce concerns and resistance to ethical considerations and skill readiness. Working in collaborative teams, attendees will practice translating AI initiatives into people-centered strategies that drive engagement, adoption, and measurable business value. Participants will leave with practical leadership tools, communication approaches, and change frameworks to help teams navigate disruption and turn AI transformation into sustainable opportunity.

Dr. Balasubramanian is a forward-thinking business technology leader with over three decades of cross-industry experience spanning manufacturing, transportation, hospitality, banking, financial services, insurance, and consulting. A proud PMI member since 1999, he serves as an Assistant Teaching Professor at Arizona State University, and Board Chair for the newly formed PMI Arizona Chapter.
He holds multiple professional certifications, including PMP, PgMP, PMO-CP, and ITIL, underscoring his deep expertise in project, program, and portfolio management. His long-standing volunteer leadership across PMI chapters in Great Lakes, Pittsburgh, Chicagoland, and Phoenix demonstrates his commitment to advancing the profession and developing strong project leaders.
A dedicated advocate for lifelong learning, he mentors students in STEM-based robotics programs and supports community growth through education and leadership. A frequent conference speaker, Dr. Pitch shares insights on AI and the future of work, sustainable project management, strategic leadership, and design thinking, inspiring professionals to lead with purpose and drive meaningful impact.

Arun Prasad and Pratik Dhule will then lead a session, "Next-Gen Sustainability Frontier Unlocked through AI-Driven Project Management". Project management has transcended timelines and budgets; today, it is about navigating disruption and driving operational excellence through innovation. In this era, Artificial Intelligence is no longer a future trend, it is a transformative force reshaping the very fabric of how projects are delivered. For modern leaders, the challenge isn't whether AI will change their role, but how to harness it to amplify their impact. In this forward-looking session, Pratik Dahule unpacks how to integrate AI as a strategic partner rather than a replacement. Drawing from over a decade of leadership and 12+ research papers, Pratik will explore:

• Adoption Dynamics: Navigating the opportunities and barriers to AI integration within complex organizations.
• The Sustainability Lens: Real-world case studies from the Energy, Utilities, and Insurance sectors.
• The Future-Ready Mindset: The essential skills and tools project managers need to remain indispensable.

Pratik and Arun will demonstrate how AI-driven resource optimization and predictive maintenance are being used to meet ESG goals and drive sustainable business practices.

Arun Prasad is a 20+ year applied engineering and finance leader advising Fortune 500 CXOs in North America and the UK on AI‑driven project management and sustainable, reusable solutions. An NYU Stern MBA with advanced engineering degrees, Arun has led Agentic AI transformations across energy, utilities, actuarial, and enterprise services at Capgemini, Verisk, TCS, MathWorks, and DXC.

Finally, Deborah Ketai will discuss "Building Organizational and Personal Resilience with Organizational Change Management". Organizational Change Management isn't overhead - it's your survival toolkit for delivering value from your projects and for thriving in your career. This interactive session will help you reframe uncertainty and resistance into opportunity in a profession undergoing relentless transformation - from AI-powered tools to evolving delivery models and beyond.

Deborah Ketai specializes in change: Facing it. Planning for it. Managing it. Realizing value from it.

With PMP, CCMP, and PMI-RMP credentials, she's managed programs and change initiatives around IT, process improvement, and culture for companies including UnitedHealth Group, Prudential, Cigna HealthCare, Aetna, Prudential, and Bank of America. She's also gone through a lot of changes in her own career, including transitions between training, music, marketing communications, and project and change management. Deborah serves on the Board of Directors of SNEC-PMI, managing the Programs Portfolio. She helps individuals confront change through her workshop series, "Confident Communication in a Changing Business World".

Her poetry has been published in many journals and in her new chapbook, "A Matter of Taste: Poems of Hunger and Thirst."