Take project management to the next level thanks to our unique skills framework, skills ladder model, and methodology extracted from 46 years of in-the-trenches experience.
Tailored coaching series leveraging our unique methodology for faster skill development.
Modular training courses presented on-site or in the online form to specific groups.
Free resources in various forms (written, video, audio, etc.) for project managers to maximize their potential.
High-tech industries are fiercely competitive, constantly pushing for the next groundbreaking product launch. This relentless pace places immense pressure on project managers, who must navigate complex product developments and tight deadlines.
At High-Tech Project Management, we equip project managers with the skills needed to handle the most challenging product developments and the most complex project situations. They can deal with difficult customers, and communicate with high efficiency and impact. In essence, we transform them into Super Project Managers, propelling their companies to new heights.
Over the past three years, I’ve had the privilege of knowing Paul both through Toastmasters and as a career coach. Throughout this journey, he has been far more than a mentor and one of the most genuinely supportive influences in my professional development.
Paul’s coaching style is deeply personal and transformative. His support during my transition into healthcare innovation and high-tech project management was invaluable, helping me navigate complex career decisions with clarity and confidence through practical frameworks and real-world experience.
Through Paul’s mentorship, I gained insights into rigorous project management methodologies drawn from his nearly 30 years managing complex high-tech projects. I have found Paul to be a clear thinker with strong knowledge of both the theory and application of project management, and I wholeheartedly recommend him.
Dinesh Chintapalli
Healthcare Innovation Consultant
Paul Ovington’s High-Tech Project Management workshops are valuable, well-structured, and highly relevant.
His strategic approach aligns perfectly with our focus at Escape Company. With more than 30 years of experience in high-tech project management and strategy, I find his content both thorough and refreshing.
The sessions are engaging and have started valuable discussions across the Escape team. We look forward to continuing our collaboration through future workshops.
Rolf Christensen
Project Manager at Escape Academy
At Escape Company, Paul turns intricate high-tech strategy into clear competitive moves. His energising one-day workshops equipped our partner network with tools we still use daily. We’re already booking deeper business-strategy and project-management sessions—designed and driven by Paul himself.
Michael Sandfær
Partner at Escape Company
Paul rose to the challenge of introducing project management methodology into the world of complex System-on-Chip design at both VLSI Technology and Jennic with positive results. Design engineers bought into the approach, internal management were able to monitor the business more closely and customers were delighted with the results….. an all round success.
Louis Kourra
Semiconductor Program Manager at Nokia
It has been a pleasure to work with Paul in several companies in a variety of different roles and he has always shown a very high level of knowledge and professionalism in all aspect of his work.
He has an ability to orgnize and manage projects very well, but also a deeper understanding of the technical issues and processes involved by the various groups in the development process, which is essential in managing complex System-on-Chip projects.
At NemeriX he was a real asset in ensuring that all aspects of the program were co-ordinated efficiently and he helped NemeriX to manage the development of our first 2 generations ( NX1 / NX2 ) in a more efficient manner, imparting some of the project management methodology on the design team at the same time, rather than simply managing the tasks from a top level.
Phil Young
Staff Modelling Engineer at Arm
Paul was CAD Director at EM-Marin, responsible for the engineering team that implemented the electronic design automation tools. Very detail orientated with a strong grasp of ASIC design, flows, technology management and vendor benchmarking, Paul was effective in managing this team. Paul was also responsible for purchasing and in this role interfaced with senior management, successfully transitioning the company to modern CAD tools thereby improving overall designer productivity.
Navraj Nandra
Senior Director Product Marketing Interface IP
Paul is one of the best project managers I have worked with. He has very good interpersonal skills, is diligent and methodical, all things that are required to stay on top of a project. I have worked with Paul on a number of projects and thanks to him they have always run smoothly and come in on time.
Andrew Crowe
Semiconductors Consultant and Professional
As a young entrepreneur I had the opportunity to work with Paul during the early NemeriX times. Acting as Programmes Manager Paul brought methodology into the company, helping in the development of all the processes a semiconductor company requires, from scratch. It has been a pleasure to work and learn from Paul.
Paolo Orsatti
Managing Partner at TiVenture SA
I worked with Paul Ovington when he was the Manager of ASIC Design group of Hitachi Europe(EuroDESC, later HMSE).
He was an outstanding engineer and project leader who helped me to accomplish our business missions in Europe.
He is very gentle but also a strong-willed man.
Kazuhiko Eguchi
Professor at Aichi Institute of Technology
I had the privilege to work together with Paul when he was the project manager for a complex ASIC development project planned to use in our smartphones. As customer, I was very pleased with the overall project management. Paul always acted in a professional manner and had an ability to provide comprehensive progress and status reporting. Paul was very supportive and easy to cooperate with, and as customer, I was convinced that the project was managed in the best way.
Peter Wickström
Manager
Paul has helped me to look at my business from a strategic view, check whether I am on the right lines and work out where I want to go with the business. He has made some good suggestions of ways that I could develop areas of the business. Paul took the time to experience my offering so that he could really understand what I do and what I could offer my customers. For me, this was crucial for him to be able to make appropriate suggestions – but something that others have failed to do.
Mary Thomas
Marketing Manager
I had the pleasure of working together with Paul at Hitachi for more than 10 years.He set up the first ASIC design facility for Hitachi in Europe and was instrumental in winning many design projects and creating a significant revenue stream for the company.
It is no surprise to me that Paul has been so successful managing large scale technically complex projects and establishing professional Project Management Programmes in several major companies.
They will have benefited from his clear thinking and foresight.
I have no hesitation in recommending him to any prospective employer
or customer requiring his special brand of consulting services.
Mike Foss
Manager
Paul is an experienced leader who is dedicated to the success of his endeavours as well as of those around him. He has an extraordinary ability of leading, engaging and influencing his team – qualities I witnessed whilst working with him during his tenure as the Toastmasters Area 7 Governor. As a speaker, Paul has a persuasive and entertaining style. His speeches are enriched with in-depth research and innovative delivery approaches, making them appealing to a wide variety of audiences.
Mohamed Kharbat
Infrastructure Finance at J.P. Morgan
46+ Years of Experience
Paul Ovington was among the first in the UK to earn an MSc in Microelectronics. In 1981, he founded a UK design center for California Devices, Inc., and in 1984, established Hitachi’s European ASIC operation, growing it over a decade. He then held a senior role at EM Microelectronics and developed router technology for Telebit Communications in Denmark.
Returning to the UK, Paul joined VLSI Technology, Inc. as a Project Manager for ARM-based System-on-Chip solutions for Ericsson Mobile Phones. By 2000, he was one of the UK’s highest-paid program managers, known for his expertise in project management and product development methodologies. In 2002, he founded Oxford Management Solutions Ltd to help high-tech companies master project management.
With a 46-year career, Paul has managed projects for the first Bluetooth solution, internet-enabled smartphone, and lowest power GPS solution. He has worked globally and speaks Danish, German, French, and Russian. Outside engineering, Paul is a Black Belt in Karate, a former President of Oxford Speakers Club, and a Certified World Class Speaking Coach. Today, he educates and coaches high-tech project managers and business leaders.
A 10-session coaching series for high-tech project managers accelerates skill development 10 times faster. Tailored to individual needs, the program provides practical, real-time learning on your current projects. Coaches are available throughout the engagement, enhancing managers’ ability to handle complex projects and tight deadlines, improving leadership and project success, and making them more resilient to industry demands.
Who are you?
Modular training series for high-tech project managers accelerates skill development by 10 times. Customisable or available in predefined packages, this training equips managers to tackle complex projects and tight deadlines efficiently, enhancing team leadership and project success. Building on basic training makes managers more resilient and capable of meeting high-tech industry demands and requirements.
Who are you?
Gain free access to a comprehensive portal specifically designed to help project managers take their skills and know-how to the next level.
Inside the portal, you will find numerous resources that have been tried and tested by us. The resources come in many forms, such as articles, videos, podcasts, guides, and more. New content is constantly added and upgraded every week.
The content inside the portal is a culmination of 46 years distilled into easy-to-understand resources that are completely free.
It has never been easier to become part of the top 5% of project managers in the world. So if that is your goal, what are you waiting for?
Introduction: Why Reviews Matter More Than Ever In high-tech industries, development speed and product quality are often seen as a trade-off. Many leaders assume that
1. The Challenge We have a progressive group of over 80 project managers who are freelance professionals. The associate is run by the Escape Company,
High-tech project managers rarely suffer from a shortage of activity. The calendar is full, the inbox is noisy, the team is waiting for decisions, and
Complex project management skills are often talked about as if they are single abilities. Communication. Leadership. Negotiation. Strategic thinking. Problem-solving. Each one sounds simple enough
Most project managers want to improve. They want to walk into difficult meetings with more confidence, explain complexity without losing the room, spot risks earlier,
Standard project management training gets a project manager to basecamp. That is not a small achievement. It gives people the basic equipment: language, structure, methods,
A project case study can be interesting without being particularly useful.
The difference is in how deeply you work through it.
Suppose someone describes a project that ran six months late because of a serious technical problem.
Most people immediately want to know how it was fixed.
But experienced project managers should be asking more.
Why did the problem get that far?
Was it really a technical problem, or was there also a weakness in feasibility checking, change management, knowledge sharing, or organisational structure?
What signals were available earlier?
What action was taken?
What finally worked?
And most importantly:
What should we carry into the next project?
This is the thinking behind SCARL:
→ Situation gives the context
→ Challenge forces diagnosis
→ Action exposes the thinking behind the response
→ Result tests whether the approach worked
→ Lessons Learned converts the experience into reusable knowledge
The framework is simple.
The discussion it creates is not.
In workshops, PMs can take a complex project situation, work through it in small groups, decide on a course of action, and present their conclusions as though they were facing an executive team.
Different people see different risks.
Different experience produces different strategies.
Those differences create critical thinking and constructive debate, and that is where much of the learning happens.
SCARL makes project experience teachable.
Instead of asking people to remember a good story, it asks them to understand the mechanism behind it.
That is a much more useful form of learning.
👉 If you’re interested in how structured project cases can develop stronger PM judgement, you can explore the full article here: https://high-techprojectmanagement.com/new-frontiers-high-tech-project-management-training/
#StrategicThinking #ProjectManagement #Innovation #HighTech #Leadership
Project management training is often discussed as a development cost.
In high-tech organisations, that is too narrow a view.
A complex engineering project may influence tens of millions in future sales. In some cases, the commercial value can reach hundreds of millions, or more.
At that scale, the quality of project management has an economic consequence.
A PM who diagnoses the situation earlier, challenges a weak assumption sooner, improves the review system, or prevents a late-stage failure can protect far more value than the cost of developing that capability.
The reverse is also true.
While advanced judgement develops slowly through experience alone, the organisation may be paying through:
➡️ Delayed market entry
➡️ Avoidable redesign and rework
➡️ Cost overruns
➡️ Burnout and loss of momentum
➡️ Missed sales while the product remains unfinished
This is why faster capability building matters.
It is not about sending PMs on more courses for the sake of development.
It is about reducing the time between knowing the basics and being able to lead effectively in complex, high-pressure situations.
When the projects are strategically important, even a modest improvement in judgement, speed, and delivery reliability can have a disproportionate commercial impact.
That makes advanced PM development more than a training benefit.
It makes it a strategic business investment.
👉 If you’re interested in how faster PM capability building can strengthen delivery and protect commercial value, you can explore the full article here: https://high-techprojectmanagement.com/new-frontiers-high-tech-project-management-training/
#StrategicThinking #ProjectManagement #Innovation #HighTech #Leadership
A project manager can understand a method perfectly and still struggle to use it when the pressure rises.
That is the gap many training programmes fail to close.
Awareness is useful. It tells the PM that a better approach exists.
Understanding goes further. It explains why the approach works and where it may help.
But neither one proves that the PM can use it when the project becomes difficult.
Real learning starts with application in real or simulated situations.
That is the point where a PM has to take the method into a live situation:
➡️ Run the stakeholder meeting differently
➡️ Ask sharper diagnostic questions
➡️ Challenge an assumption before it becomes embedded
➡️ Apply strategic thinking while shaping the plan
➡️ Make a judgement while the information is still incomplete
This stage is rarely smooth.
The timing may be wrong.
The explanation may be too long.
A difficult stakeholder may react unexpectedly.
The PM may only realise afterwards which question should have been asked.
That is not failed learning.
That is the learning.
Application exposes the distance between understanding a principle and using it effectively under pressure. With feedback, repetition, and refinement, the method gradually becomes part of how the PM works.
That is how capability develops.
Not by hearing more ideas.
By putting the right ideas into practice until they can be used reliably when the project needs them.
👉 If you’re interested in how structured application can accelerate high-tech PM capability, you can explore the full article here: https://high-techprojectmanagement.com/new-frontiers-high-tech-project-management-training/
#StrategicThinking #ProjectManagement #Innovation #HighTech #Leadership
Can you compress 25 years of PM learning into 2-3 years?
Not completely,but to a significant extent.
No serious practitioner would claim that decades of experience can simply be replaced by a course.
But a great deal of the learning curve can be shortened.
The problem is that many project managers develop advanced judgement in the slowest and most expensive way possible:
They encounter a difficult situation.
They make a reasonable decision.
The project exposes the weakness in that decision.
They recover, reflect, and carry the lesson forward.
That process works.
But it can take decades.
Advanced training changes the route by giving PMs earlier access to the concepts, patterns, tools, and methods that experienced practitioners usually discover only after repeated exposure to difficult projects.
➡️ Common failure mechanisms become easier to recognise
➡️ Proven approaches become available before the crisis
➡️ Better questions are asked earlier
➡️ Lessons from many projects can be applied to the next one
This does not remove the need for practical experience.
It makes that experience far more productive.
Instead of spending years discovering every lesson from scratch, PMs can enter live situations with stronger reference points and a better understanding of what to look for.
That is the real purpose of compressing the learning curve.
Not to manufacture instant experts, but to progress at warp speed.
To help capable project managers reach advanced judgement much faster than trial and error alone would allow.
👉 If you’re interested in how advanced training can accelerate the development of high-tech PM capability, you can explore the full article here: https://high-techprojectmanagement.com/new-frontiers-high-tech-project-management-training/
#StrategicThinking #ProjectManagement #Innovation #HighTech #Leadership
A company can have decades of project experience and still keep repeating old mistakes.
That sounds contradictory, but it happens often.
The experience exists.
It just exists in fragments.
One PM remembers how a stakeholder crisis was recovered.
Another knows which process weakness usually creates late rework.
A senior engineer recognises a failure pattern before anyone else does.
But if those lessons remain personal, the organisation has not really captured them.
It has borrowed them temporarily.
That is why know-how transfer matters so much in high-tech project management.
The aim is not to document every event.
It is to extract the lessons that can help others act sooner and with better judgement.
That usually means turning experience into:
➡️ Clear principles
➡️ Repeatable frameworks
➡️ Real case studies
➡️ Training built around actual project situations
➡️ Practical tools that can be used under pressure
This is how a 25-year learning curve begins to compress.
Not by pretending that experience can be replaced.
By making the most valuable parts of that experience available earlier.
When that happens, PM development stops depending entirely on painful trial and error.
The organisation starts learning deliberately.
👉 If you’re interested in how decades of high-tech project experience can be converted into practical learning for other PMs, you can explore the full article here: https://high-techprojectmanagement.com/new-frontiers-high-tech-project-management-training/
#StrategicThinking #ProjectManagement #Innovation #HighTech #Leadership
Real projects have a way of teaching very specific lessons.
A process looked sound until pressure exposed the gap.
A stakeholder seemed supportive until priorities collided.
A technical assumption survived planning but failed during integration.
A recovery only worked because someone recognised a pattern from an earlier project.
These are the moments that stay with experienced project managers.
They are not always dramatic.
Sometimes the lesson is a better question.
A better review point.
A different way to approach a difficult stakeholder.
A stronger way to sequence the work.
Over a long career, those insights accumulate.
More than 200 light bulb moments across areas such as:
➡️ Project and product development methodology
➡️ Communication and leadership
➡️ Team building and stakeholder management
➡️ Risk, recovery, and problem-solving
➡️ Common project failure mechanisms
That accumulated know-how is valuable because it has already met reality.
It has survived schedule pressure.
It has been tested against weak processes.
It has been refined through success and failure.
This is the part conventional training often struggles to provide.
It can explain what good practice looks like.
Real project experience shows what still works when the environment becomes difficult.
The next step in advanced PM development is to transfer that know-how faster, so people do not have to learn every lesson through pain.
👉 If you’re interested in accelerating the transfer of advanced high-tech PM know-how, you can explore the full article here: https://high-techprojectmanagement.com/new-frontiers-high-tech-project-management-training/
#StrategicThinking #ProjectManagement #Innovation #HighTech #Leadership
There is only a single word difference between those two terms, but their capability difference can be dramatic. Get in touch with us, tell us more about your situation, and discover the pathway towards transforming your project management capability to a world class level.
SCARL: the framework that turns project stories into applied learning
The strong economic case for faster PM capability building
Why application is where real PM learning begins
Can you compress 25 years of PM learning into 2-3 years?
High-tech know-how is gold - but only if it can be transferred
200 light bulb moments: what real project experience teaches that training often misses
The 25-year learning curve high-tech PMs cannot afford
Why high-tech companies need high-performance PMs, not just qualified PMs
Welcome to the Parachute Club: why experienced PMs still need to hit the ground running
Reviews are how high-tech teams often transfer know-how
The hidden ROI of review systems: quality, cost, and speed
Reviews are not bureaucracy - they are acceleration tools
From training courses to capability systems
Advanced PM training should build judgment, not just knowledge
Carousel: How to speak to management without drowning them in detail
Inside the workshop: building stronger project managers through real-world discussion
Pricing depends on the structure of the programme, the level of tailoring required, delivery format (online or face-to-face), duration, and group size. The training is high value at moderate cost. Every training is designed for quick ROI and offers an excellent entry point for high-tech project managers and companies. The ballpark is between $150 and $250 per attendee, per day. It depends on location and circumstances. Getting started is free, whether it be companies or individuals.
No – the training and coaching is suitable for most high-tech companies developing new products and systems! Engineering disciplines particularly relevant include silicon chip, electronics, embedded software, applications software, mechanical design, IT, PLM and CAE and complex systems.
Currently, our training is focused exclusively on high-tech businesses. This is our niche, based on decades of experience. It’s built around the unique challenges and scenarios they face, so it’s not designed for companies outside this sector.
Currently, we offer a free 2-hour training session (on-site or via webinar) for project managers. This session is designed to deliver quick wins in managing high-tech projects more efficiently. Get in touch with us and claim it for your business! It’s a steal!
The training is designed for groups of 4 to 12 project managers, which from our experience is the most effective group size. This allows everyone to contribute, ask questions, share ideas, and progress together.
Yes. Upon completion of the training, you will receive a certificate as proof of participation. This certification can be added to your CV or professional portfolio to showcase your commitment to continuous learning and improvement.
Yes, we can deliver both training and coaching sessions either onsite or offsite, depending on your needs. We are based in the UK and can conduct onsite sessions within the region. For clients located elsewhere, online or hybrid formats can be arranged through direct coordination for sessions less than one day.
The training is generally designed for teams of at least four participants to ensure maximum engagement and effectiveness. However, our coaching sessions are primarily one-on-one and fully tailored to your individual goals and development needs.
We take over where conventional training leaves off. The training is:
The main differentiator is that it is applied, rather than pure project management. Applied methodology is more powerful and effective than pure project management.
Electronics, Embedded Software, IC/ASIC, Advanced IC Package Design, Applications Software, CAD/CAE, Mechanical Design, PLM, IT, Complex Systems – over the full project lifecycle, from concept to production or deployment.
Consumer Electronics, Mobile, Datacoms, Telecoms, Defence, Space, Marine, Oil & Gas, Microelectrons, Mult-Media, HPC, Cloud Hardware, Trading Systems, IT, Hearing Aids, Automotive, Telecoms, Datacoms. The methodology is tried and tested in those industry sectors.
Well over 20, serving as a contract Project or Program Manager.
he training comes in two mainstream categories:
The expands into 13 subject areas or pathways.
Training per subject can be 30 minutes, 1 hour, 2 hours, 4 hours or 1 day. The training elements can be combined in any configuration to give longer training courses. How do I determine what I need? Try our Acceleration Day, covering 8 individual skill areas. Alternatively, to accelerate and improve project management at the organisational level, try our Quantum Leap Capability Day. Your investment is just $2,500 per group of attendees, irrespective of the group size. Don’t forget our offer of an introductory 1 – 2 hour session free of charge.
Transforming high-tech project managers and systems to accelerate product development by up to 20%.
Navigation
Newsletter signup
All rights reserved High-Tech Project Management, Made in Outgrow
A Super Project Manager isn’t just any project manager—they’re the driving force behind high-tech innovation. They navigate complex projects, tackle tough challenges, and lead with precision and impact.
Gain a competitive edge with our FREE Ebook, packed with proven strategies to accelerate your career and boost your organization’s efficiency.
Learn about:
Download your Ebook here
