AJ Lavender

I am the Director for Portfolio and Project Management Office with Administrative Information Technology Services at the University of Illinois. I manage the Project Management Office, Business Process Improvement Office and Records and Information Management Services office.  Throughout my 10 years here at the University I have managed both projects of various sizes and different groups. The skills I learned as a project manager were very helpful when I transitioned into a management role. As a 2018 graduate of MGRdev, I learned skills I was able to implement immediately to help me elevate my team. Over the past several years I have been intentional in improving my leadership and management skills and each time I attend MGRDev as a coach I learn something new from the both the facilitators and attendees.

I am excited to be a coach as a part of MGRdev. As an attendee of MGRdev I saw the power of what a positive coach and a willingness to grow and learn can achieve. I have strong desire to help people solve problems and help eliminate obstacles that stand in the way of their goals. I am looking forward to help others achieve their goals as well as continuing my journey of improvement.