AUSTIN, Texas—Royal Dutch Shell Petroleum, PLC, announced today that it has selected the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin as one of four university learning partners working in a consortium to support its global Project Academy program.
The three other partners in the consortium are Queensland University of Technology in Australia, Cranfield School of Management in the U.K. and Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands.
Shell Project Academy is an integrated development program for Shell employees working at all stages of the project lifecycle. The program includes learning events, assessment and accreditation, coaching and mentoring services, a global online knowledge network, project community events, and work experience opportunities.
The McCombs School and the other partners were selected for the quality and depth of their project management expertise, and are collaborating with Shell to develop a world-class curriculum. Faculty from multiple disciplines at the business school and the College of Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin will develop and deliver the innovative curriculum. In 2006, about 1,000 Shell staff will participate in 40 Project Academy learning events, covering 19 learning modules. The learning events will be delivered at Shell locations globally.
Shell Chief Executive Jeroen van der Veer said: “The university appointments are an important milestone for Shell Project Academy. It is one of a series of actions we are taking to achieve consistent project preparation and execution across our capital investment program, which is $19 billion in 2006. Our university learning partners will complement Shell’s internal project management expertise with leading-edge external practices and research.”
George Gau, dean of the McCombs School said: “The Shell Project Academy learning program is unparalleled anywhere in the industry in quality and scope, and demonstrates Shell’s commitment to the highest standards of project performance.”
The Shell Project Academy will leverage both academic and industry experience, to provide leading edge external practices in project management and applied research.
Lawrence Abeln, associate dean and director of executive education at the McCombs School said: “This learning consortium is a powerful combination of leading international business schools and technical centers of excellence in project engineering and project management. It will provide significant benefits to Shell staff, its projects and the overall business.”
For more information contact: David Wenger, McCombs School, 512-471-3314; Dean George Gau, McCombs School, 512-471-5058; Larry Abeln, McCombs School, 512-471-1976.
