George Mason University OCPE Programs

L. John Hoover, PhD, PMP

Dr. Hoover is president of Business Performance Group. Business Performance Group's mission is to enhance enterprise results by improving business planning, marketing and project performance. Hoover has more than thirty years of experience with Strategic Planning and Operations Management in the public and private sectors. He has held senior management (president and vice-president) positions with major consulting (ATESI, a PRC subsidiary) firms and contract research (e.g., Argonne National Laboratory) organizations. In addition, he has served as a corporate officer for start-up firms and firms with revenues of $700 million. His public sector experience includes energy, water, environment, defense, and information technology.

Hoover marketed and managed a $10 million engineering database project for an East Coast electric utility. He has successfully led or been a major contributor to software evaluation and selection projects for AT Massey Coal Company, Fannie Mae and Progress Energy. He led the development of a business intelligence practice with CMS Information Systems, and led ATESI's efforts establishing the company as a leader in implementing the Instructional Systems Development approach to designing and implementing training programs. He is a frequent instructor for college level courses in project management, managing innovation, and finance for technical managers.

Hoover earned his BS (cum laude) and PhD from Pennsylvania State University. He has served in advisory positions to Penn State, the Department of Energy and the State of Virginia Joint Commission on Technology. Over the last five years, Hoover has been certified in various knowledge management solutions and tools.

Testimonials -

Dr. Hoover was superb. His sense of humor tied with obvious depth of knowledge and breath of experience were appreciated. - Spring 2007 participant
A very effective instructor, his past job experience adds credibility and depth to the instruction provided. - Fall 2006 participant
Dr. Hoover brings real-life experience into the classroom & I am looking forward to my other PM classes. - Spring 2006 participant

Larry M. Joseph, PhD, PMP

Dr. Joseph, senior associate, Business Performance Group, has diverse experience in both public and private sectors including project management, new venture formation, technology assessment, and strategy development and implementation. This experience in managing complex projects and programs is extensive and has contributed to his current global consulting/teaching practice. Its emphasis is on the strategic aspects of program management and project development for energy, information technology, and financial services clients.

After receiving his PhD from the University of Michigan, he accepted a faculty position at the University of Illinois. In a period of growing energy problems, he left academia to accept a position at the Department of Energy. Over his 15 year involvement in the government, he managed several large international programs oriented toward meeting the Nation's energy needs from domestic natural resources while satisfying current environmental standards. His tenure in the government was punctuated by a five year stint in private sector that focused on new energy technology development. Roughly five years ago, Joseph left the government to start a consulting practice and return to a more active role in teaching. He has adjunct faculty positions at two universities where he teaches when his schedule permits. He has developed academic and executive education programs and has taught them worldwide and he has helped global companies in the energy, information technology, and financial services industries deal with deregulation and privatization, the practical aspect of globalization.

Joseph created/implemented a training program that assisted hundreds of project managers get their PMP® certification. Along with his doctorate from the University of Michigan, he has earned his bachelor’s degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and his MS from Tufts University.

Testimonials -

The instructor was really informative, and his teaching was easy to follow. He was very helpful and knowledgeable. - Spring 2007 participant
Dr. Joseph was well established in both experience and positive attitude towards the students varied backgrounds. I feel better prepared for future negotiations and look forward to continuing to study the subject. - Fall 2006 participant
Dr. Joseph is an engaging, interesting teacher. I enjoyed this class. - Spring 2006 participant

Michael Sands, PMP

Mr. Sands, associate with Performance Business Group, has over 20 years of experience in management, organization development and training with both the public and private sectors. As an independent consultant, Sands has provided training and technical assistance to both private and public firms. Sands has extensive experience as an Army officer in defense intelligence, management, and leadership and organization development.

As an Army officer, Sands served in numerous positions of significant responsibility. He led a project to create a new Army Reserve component intelligence organization with nationwide span of control of over 6000 people and a budget of over five million dollars. He led the development of a software application affecting several levels of command and military service organizations in the Pacific region. Sands supported the creation of functional requirements for the first Army automated intelligence system. As a consultant, Sands supported firms seeking ISO 9000 certification, as well as process improvement initiatives. He has also provided over 5000 contact hours to both public and private organizations in total quality management, organizational change management, and project management.

Sands has a bachelor's degree from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a master's degree from the University of Phoenix. He is certified as a Project Management Professional through Project Management Institute.

Testimonials -

Great instructor. - Spring 2007 participant
Good, easy style, professional. - Spring 2007 participant

Kristen L. Allen, PE, PMP

Mr. Allen is a senior partner with Business Performance Group. Over the past 25 years, Allen has held executive level positions in both privately held and publicly held corporations engaged in engineering, information technology, and management consulting. He has built and sold two successful businesses. For a period of two years, he served on the faculty of the United States Naval Academy, where he taught naval engineering, thermodynamics, and nuclear reactor physics.

Allen's project management experience includes analysis, design, development, implementation, and control of engineering, plant-referenced simulator, performance-based training, business process design, and information technology projects. For a major mid-Atlantic commercial nuclear utility, he developed a three-phase engineering project management process that was used by the utility to reduce the cost of engineering design projects. For a telecommunications engineering firm, he supervised the development of a software application that automated the project management processes associated with cell tower design and build-out. For a major utility equipment vendor, he supervised the design and construction of a portable vitrification system, used to process various forms of low-level radioactive waste. He has also project managed the development of more than $25 million in performance-based training programs for electric utilities.

Allen holds a BS in nuclear engineering and MS in high energy physics. He is a registered professional engineer in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Testimonials -

Prof. Allen was superb, his depth of knowledge and sense of humor complemented each other and his course material very well. - Spring 2007 participant
Excellent instructor. Covered the material thoroughly at a great pace. - Fall 2006 participant
Superb instructor. One of the best I have ever had. - Spring 2006 participant

Bowin M. Lindgren, MBA

Mr. Lindgren supports Business Performance Groups's mission to enhance enterprise results by improving business planning, marketing, and project performance. Mr. Lindgren has more than thirty years of experience in leadership development, strategic planning, organizational design and development, M&A integration, project management, human resources management and other administrative functions working for pharmaceutical, electric utility and media companies.

Lindgren has been a corporate officer or a member of the senior management team of the companies he has worked for since 1989. In those capacities, he has led a wide variety of functions including finance, strategic planning, emergency planning, integration, environmental mMonitoring, tTraining, human resources, information technology, security, document management, purchasing, and customer service.

During the past fifteen years, Lindgren has done extensive work in the area of operational efficiency through organizational redesign and development. He has also completed one M&A integration and led two others.

Lindgren earned an MBA from Pace University and a bachelor's degree from the State University of New York (magna cum laude).. Lindgren's graduate project involved demonstrating the use of linear programming in the identification and resolution of bottlenecks in manufacturing processes.

Testimonials -

The instructor is very knowledgeable and I would like to take class from him again. - Spring 2007 participant
Bo is the best! Excellent communication skills, relevant and interesting examples; clear, concise communicator really cares to ensure people understand concepts and materials. - Summer 2006 participant
Bo is an excellent teacher. His explanations were so clear that I feel I have a much better grasp on some of the more complicated topics. Excellent! - Summer 2006 participant

Michael Van Dyke

Michael R. Van Dyke is an associate of Business Performance Group providing training, team-building, and coaching services to business teams and individuals. He is a certified coach (NCC) through the Newfield Network and a member of the International Coach Federation (ICF).

Van Dyke worked in higher education for 20 years, wearing two hats: professor and project manager. His previous employers include Yale University, Amherst College, Dartmouth College, Smith College, and the University of Massachusetts. As a theatrical Production Manager, Van Dyke honed his skills as a team development specialist, managing 12-28 overlapping project teams per year. With teams composed of union workers, technical professionals, students, and volunteers, managing team dynamics became a constant practice. By capturing the 'lessons learned' and applying them to new situations, Van Dyke can provide an array of proven strategies.

Van Dyke's educational methodology is not your standard classroom presentation. Through training with Project Adventure, an international outdoor experiential educational organization, Mr. Van Dyke believes in 'hands-on' learning through individual and group exercises. For four years, he was the Program Administrator for Corporate Challenge, an outdoor team building company that catered to the fifth largest electric utility company at the time, Northeast Utilities. The Nuclear Division used Corporate Challenge programs to mount a change initiative, sending 120 top managers through a two-year series of team training. Even the lecture portions of his presentations are not boring since he updates his professional speaking skills through membership in the National Speakers Association (NSA) and the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD). Mr. Van Dyke regularly speaks on the human dynamics side project management and innovative business leadership.

Van Dyke earned his MFA in Technical Design and Production at the Yale School of Drama and a BA in Communications Studies Education at the University of Massachusetts. As a believer in life-long learning, he frequently attends seminars and conferences including Stephen Covey's "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People," "Self-Directed Work Teams," and the Management Leadership Academy of the United States Institute for Theater Technology (USITT).

Testimonials -

Michael is very charismatic and knowledgeable. Both Michael and John are very good instructors with excellent real-world experience that helped to convey the learning objectives. - Spring 2007 participant
Great instructor. - Spring 2007 participant
Very well done- instructor is very experienced, able to translate theoretical into practical. Great knowledge of subject matter very informative, fun. - Summer 2006 participant

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