BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:Events Booking BEGIN:VEVENT UID:6ab550ab18241 SUMMARY:Fall 2026 Professional Development Day DESCRIPTION:Join us for our Fall Professional Development Day and earn 8.25 PDUs! \; A continental breakfast will be served\, including pastries\ , gluten-free pastries\, coffee and tea. \; Lunch will be buffet style and will include dessert. \; \; Registration is now OPEN! \ ; \;  \; ♦ \;Keynote &\; Workshop  \; \; We are excited to welcome Darren Mann as our keynote speaker. \; He wi ll lead an engaging workshop titled: Rise Above Routine: Embracing Life Be yond Your Comfort Zone. Bio: Darren Mann is a keynote speaker\, leadersh ip coach\, trainer\, and John Maxwell Certified Coach\, Speaker &\; Tra iner who helps leaders and teams build the confidence\, communication skil ls\, and resilience needed to thrive in today's workplace. With more than 15 years of experience leading complex\, high-risk initiatives across high er education\, healthcare\, insurance\, and the public sector\, Darren bri ngs practical leadership experience and actionable strategies to every pre sentation. A former senior project management leader\, Darren has led mu ltimillion-dollar projects\, developed high-performing teams\, and helped organizations strengthen collaboration\, navigate change\, and improve res ults. He has delivered keynote presentations\, workshops\, and leadership training for organizations including Emily Carr University of Art + Design \, Simon Fraser University\, Los Angeles Pacific University\, YMCA BC\, Mc Kay CEO Forums\, and more than 10 Project Management Institute (PMI) chapt ers across North America. Known for his engaging storytelling\, practica l leadership tools\, and interactive presentation style\, Darren equips au diences to lead with greater confidence\, embrace change\, overcome fear\, and build stronger relationships. Whether speaking on leadership\, resili ence\, courageous communication\, or high-performing teams\, he inspires p eople to move beyond their comfort zones\, take meaningful action\, and ri se above routine to achieve lasting personal and professional growth. Pr esentation: This workshop challenges project professionals to break out of predictability\, reframe fear as a catalyst for growth\, and strengthen c ourageous leadership habits. Participants will gain practical tools to enh ance confidence\, communication\, and influence through change. Particip ants will learn to: Identify routines and limiting beliefs that hold them back from reaching their potential. Reframe failure and setbacks as opportunities for growth and resilience. Develop strategies to step bey ond their comfort zones with confidence. Build daily habits that create lasting leadership growth and meaningful results.  \; ♦ After noon Speakers Two of our chapter members\, Arthur Dawn \;and \;N emo Dighe\, will present in the afternoon. Bio: \;Arthur Dawn is a Project Management Professional (PMP) with over seven years of experienc e leading technology projects across banking\, marketing and technology in dustries.Throughout his career\, Arthur has led complex technology impleme ntations\, cloud migrations\, infrastructure modernization\, and PMO gover nance initiatives\, working with cross-functional teams and executive stak eholders to deliver successful business outcomes. Passionate about practic al project management techniques\, he brings a blend of technical expertis e and hands-on leadership experience to his work. \; Presentation:&n bsp\;Visualization and Graphs: \;Extra Tools to For Project Management In his presentation\, Visualization and Graphs: Extra Tools for Project Management\, Arthur will explore how visual tools \; and diagrams can help project managers simplify complexity\, communicate more effectively\ , and improve project planning\, collaboration\, and decision-making.  \;  \; Bio: Nirmayee “Nemo” Dighe is a Data &\; AI Strat egy expert passionate about translating technology into human-centered imp act. From the initial data strategy to full-scale deployment\, she gets to be part of every step\, solving real-world problems and making a tangible impact on businesses. In her current role\, Nemo leads Data &\; AI ini tiatives where she has designed self-service analytics tools\, conducted A I readiness assessments\, and guided cross-functional teams through digita l transformation. Her focus is on helping organizations leverage data in s marter ways to increase efficiency\, innovate\, and stay ahead in today’ s fast-paced world. Presentation: Why AI Investment Isn't Matching AI Ad optionThis presentation examines why organizations can invest heavily in A I yet struggle to achieve sustained adoption and measurable business value \, particularly in legacy financial institutions. The talk identifies five common causes of the AI adoption gap: \; - Starting with technology r ather than business problems \; - Lacking a shared business language&n bsp\; - Misalignment between business and technology teams \; - Insuff icient data and governance foundations \; - Treating adoption as a fin al rollout activityIt then introduces a practical five-step framework: bui ld pain-point literacy\, create a business-language taxonomy\, assign owne rship of the business-to-technology translation layer\, establish an AI-ca pable operating foundation\, and design trust-based adoption from the begi nning. You will leave with a practical approach to connect AI investments to clear workflows\, accountable decisions\, reliable information\, and me aningful human participation.  \; ♦ Project of the Year Awards We will close the day with the Project of the Year awards and presentatio ns from the winners.  \;  \;  \;  \; LOCATION:2669 Union Rd\, Buffalo NY 14227 DTSTART:20261110T130000Z DTEND:20261110T213000Z DTSTAMP:20260904T224729Z ORGANIZER;CN=PMI Buffalo Events Team:MAILTO:no-reply@pmibuffalo.org GEO:42.885188;-78.753618 X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=2669 Union Rd\, Buffalo NY 14227;X-APPLE-RADIUS=72;X-TITLE=Creekside Banquet & Picnic Grove:42.885188 ;-78.753618 END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR