Guest Editor of GPMFirst

Smoothstone is extremely experienced and knowledgeable in all aspects of project management. He was instrumental and very helpful in structuring and scoping out a high-profile complex project with multiple partners, which included Oxfam. His friendly demeanour and people skills made working with him a pleasure and his teaching experience also made him a valued project management mentor.

Sunrise is a project jointly implemented by Oxfam GB, Oxfam Azerbaijan and Unilever. By introducing adequate project recording and tracking tools, Smoothstone Consultancy Ltd. helped us (Oxfam Azerbaijan) to document the multiple interventions, components and stakeholders of this complex project in a very professional way. Despite their broad experience and considerable knowledge, which we were fascinated with, the modest and decent attitude [of the consultant] during the sessions encouraged me to freely ask even the most basic questions and easily define my concerns that later on smoothed the challenges I encountered.

Smoothstone helped us reach a clear understanding of the challenges we faced in drawing up a comprehensive project plan. He was able to quickly identify the core issues and a way forward, offering useful techniques that really helped bring clarity to the situation. He was  adept in dealing with variety of  stakeholders from each of the different cultures represented in the project, both national and corporate.