Cooperation, Competition, and Productivity

Event Date & Time

May 19, 2026
6:00 PM

Location

Liverpool Holiday Inn, 400 7th North St, Liverpool NY 13088

Registration Fees

Chapter Members: $25.00

Students: $10.00

Event Overview

Join the PMI Syracuse Chapter for an engaging discussion with John Mandujano, Senior IT Project Manager in the Office of Information and Technology at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Membership Director for the Chapter.

John Mandujano will explore the nuanced and often counterintuitive relationship between cooperation, competition, and productivity in modern organizations. While cooperation is often viewed as inherently positive and competition as potentially harmful, real-world outcomes reveal a more complex dynamic.

This presentation examines how healthy competition can drive productivity, innovation, focus, and accountability. When individuals and teams are motivated by clear goals and measurable performance, both output and quality often improve. However, excessive cooperation—especially when it weakens ownership, reduces accountability, or prioritizes consensus over results—can slow decision-making and reduce effectiveness.

At the same time, competition without appropriate boundaries can become counterproductive. When rivalry overshadows shared purpose, it may damage trust, collaboration, and organizational culture.

Attendees will gain practical insights into:

• Balancing cooperation and competition within teams

• Designing effective team structures and incentives

• Encouraging accountability without creating toxicity

• Improving productivity while maintaining morale and integrity

Speaker Biography

John Mandujano is a Senior IT Project Manager with extensive experience delivering complex technology initiatives across healthcare, government, and enterprise environments. He currently supports performance analytics of mission-critical systems serving millions of veterans worldwide through the Office of Information and Technology at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

John attended Boston College, where he was recognized as Top Freshman Debater and New England Novice Debate Champion.

He began his career as a software engineer, contributing to initiatives for organizations including:

1. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

2. Northeastern University

3. Gillette

4. Duke Energy

5. AdventHealth

6. Agway

He later transitioned into project management leadership roles supporting organizations such as PharMerica, the South Carolina Medicaid System, and the State of Texas Laboratory and Infectious Disease Services.

A certified Project Management Professional (PMP) since 2011, John also holds credentials as a Certified Scrum Master and Certified Professional in Health Information and Management Systems. He is also a published contributor to The Handbook of Continuing Professional Development for the Health Informatics Professional published by HIMSS.