Joined by Field Leaders and Program Luminaries, AI, Construction, and the Built Environment Prominent Themes of BU MET’s 19th Annual PMiP Conference
On Friday, June 13, and Saturday, June 14, 2025, Boston University Metropolitan College (BU MET) held its 19th annual Project Management in Practice (PMiP) conference on the scenic 17th floor of BU’s Center for Computing and Data Science. With its spectacular views of Boston and Cambridge, even peering into several other New England states, the so-called “Jenga” building made for an ideal venue, as the Project Management program prepares to offer a new degree and certification program in Construction Project Management.
Those in attendance began with a game of human bingo—an exercise which allowed them to break the ice, meet each other, learn trivia, and win prizes.
The formal proceedings of the conference were opened by Boston University Assistant Provost for Operations Megan Funaro, a BU MET Project Management program graduate, who welcomed the 120 in-person and roughly twenty-five online attendees with an inspiring and strikingly personal account of how AI has affected her career and her life.
Ben Breen, PMI-CP, PMI global director of construction and vice president of Asia Pacific, served as keynote speaker—wowing the crowd with personal construction examples peppered with ideas from the notable Bent Flyvbjerg book, How Big Things Get Done.
AI and elements of the built environment as they pertain to construction were prominent themes throughout, as speakers and panelists included Kathleen Walch, PMI’s director of AI engagement and community, PMI Board of Directors Chair Ike Nwankwo, PMI Chief Growth Officer Johannes Heinlein, and John Davidge, the director of Product Infinity—PMI’s in-house AI system.
While tours of the CDS buildings 19th floor are usually prohibited, PMiP attendees were given the exclusive opportunity to see where the heat exchange takes place from this carbon-negative, LEED Platinum building’s 31 1500-foot underground tubes.
“Voices from the Classroom” and “Voices from the Field” were themes speakers touched upon, with both cases featuring recent BU Metropolitan College graduates now working in the energy and construction sectors.
Several lively, moderated panel discussions were held as part of the session, featuring industry leaders in AI and construction.
Lieutenant Commander Tim Wharton, a BU Metropolitan College MS in Project Management graduate, demonstrated how the customer acceptance of an aircraft carrier serves as a reminder of project “permanence,” and Dr. Denise Arruda, adjunct professor at BU Metropolitan College, stressed the importance of stakeholder engagement.
Dr. Dave Silberman had the audience actively and literally pointing in various directions as he walked them through some of the human elements of AI from his new book, AI-Powered Leadership, which he coauthored alongside BU faculty Rich Maltzman, Dr. Vijay Kanabar, and Dr. Loredana Abramo.
A “shark” closed out the conference as one of Shark Tank Pakistan’s sharks, and a BU Metropolitan College graduate himself, Karim Teli, CEO of IGLOO Pakistan, joined from Karachi to issue a challenge to those listening to think bigger, think broader, and think inventively,
The conference was planned and executed by Director of Project Management and Associate Professor Vijay Kanabar, Dr. Anil Sawney, and Master Lecturer Rich Maltzman, with significant assistance from adjunct faculty member Dr. Loredana Abramo and Professor Emeritus Dr. Roger Warburton.
The event could not have taken place without the assistance of about 15 student ambassadors, each of whom paired with one or more assigned speakers to assure presentations, timing, and logistics were aligned. Such a complex conference, with attendees in person as well as connected via web conferencing, requires robust IT help, which was provided by MET IT, led by Daniel Mitrano, and the LETS Classroom tech team from BU.
With another successful year under its belt, the BU Metropolitan College Project Management program community now turns its eyes next year’s annual PMiP conference, marking the 20th, which promises to be yet another well-attended and cutting-edge event.