by Kevin Taylor, PMP
Thailand has been the only ASEAN member with a comprehensive plan to prepare for the 2015 deadline, some say. Yet, there remains some skepticism that Thailand will meet its ASEAN goals in the face of a looming 2015 deadline. At least one other ASEAN country doubts its own readiness by 2015.
Background
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has been around since 1967 and seeks to harmonize various frameworks for better cultural, economic, and legal cooperation. It is comprised of Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam. ASEAN published a “Roadmap for ASEAN Community 2009-2015.”
Thailand BOI
Thailand has a Board of Investment website that details possible investments by province. The Thailand Board of Investment (BOI) claims that “decentralization is a major theme in devising the BOI incentive scheme, the country is divided into three zones based on economic factors (with earnings and primary facilities as criteria of each province.)” Looking at the website, it is clear that “Zone 3” is an Investment Promotion Zone.
The list of “Zone 3” cities includes a beautiful city called Chiang Mai. It has already created an initiative called Chiang Mai Creative City (CMCC) with the stated aim “to develop and promote Chiang Mai so that it can become an internationally known city of creativity and innovation. It also aims to stimulate Chiang Mai’s economy by creating job opportunities for the current and future generations.”
Opportunities for Project Managers
There are many cities listed in Zone 3 that can use project expertise. Thailand is looking to make the investments necessary for the ASEAN 2015. All project managers should seek out ambitious projects to lead or join. Or, consider lending your expertise to those who could use a hand to be ready for 2015. PMI Thailand is a great resource for making the necessary connections to get you started.
Kevin Taylor is a PMP certified project manager with a BA in Behavioral Science from San Jose State University. He worked
in a variety of Silicon Valley’s tech companies for 17 years. For the last 10 years he has performed legal support and customer support roles with related projects for companies including Yahoo! and Google. For last 4 years he’s been living and working in Singapore with a growing interest in Thailand.
Kevin also earned a Master of Project Management from the University of Adelaide, a Certified Scrum Master (CSM) certificate, and a Project and Program Management certificate from UC Santa Cruz, California. Yet, there is still so much more to learn. Feedback on this article, offers from potential mentors, and suggestions for project opportunities are welcomed.