Project Management and the Art of Confrontation

I have been brushing up on my negotiation skills to ensure my sanity lately, and came across a fantastic presentation deck about confrontation that I am sure every Project Manager on the planet can benefit from. I have summarized in my own words the highlights below, including some personal thoughts regarding the conclusions and comments made. If you would like to review the entire deck, please access the following link: http://www.pmipr.org/html/presentaciones/confrontation%20skills.pdf In terms of background on this “tool”, there are a few different confrontational types of behavior: Aggressive; Non-Assertive & Assertive – the “preferred” method. Assertive behavior involves face-to-face, respectful... Read More»

The "Secret" Code: a Toolkit of Skills

Proman was at a crossroads. The large program had just concluded. What was next? He noticed how engaged he’d felt during the process. Each day he threw himself into the proceedings with renewed vigor. He seemed to know instinctively what to do. People looked to him for direction, even people smarter than he was and higher up in the organization. Sure, there were many moments when he felt like he wanted to strangle someone who would not cooperate. But even these moments challenged him to reach inside himself for an appropriate response that would elicit a positive reaction. He had... Read More»

Are You “In the Game”?

In a recent discussion about additional costs being added to my home build project, I made a comment to our builder that “I don’t want to play that game.” He took offense at that comment. I believe he thought I was trivializing the situation and not honoring standard industry practices. The conversation did not go well. To prevent future misunderstanding, I am compelled to clarify the meaning of my statement. I argue that this thinking and use of words are valuable tools in the complete project manager’s toolkit. A context for using this terminology is selecting color for a concrete... Read More»

Has Anyone Seen Fluffy?

How many personality types do you have? If you've ever worked for a large organization, you've probably gone through at least a few different workshops, like DiSC, Enneagram, MBTI, and Keirsey, to name just a few. Depending on who you ask, there may be two, three, four, nine, or sixteen different personality types. (One wag I know likes to say there are two kinds of people: People who believe people can be classified into different types of people, and people who know better.) In my experience, these workshops are a lot like most lessons learned meetings: We attend, document the... Read More»

Be What's Missing. A Simple Way to Help Your Team Thrive

Improve project team performance and morale by figuring out what's missing and taking the accountability to bring it to the table. Read More»

Being our Best - New Insights on Changing Sub-Optimal Habits at Work and Beyond Habits.

HABITS. Good ones and bad ones - I imagine we all have some of both. Some manifest at work; some at home; some in both settings. Our personal habits determine whether we are effective at what we do and achieve the results we want – or not. I want to recommend a great book that has given me some new tools for being my most effective self in both venues -- and also prompted some unexpected insights about dealing with certain habits (ours, and those of team members) that can cause aggravation and other issues on our projects. The book... Read More»

Project Manager's Guide to Office Holiday Parties

Due to the recession, it is reported that many companies will forego the office holiday party this year to cut costs. If your company is one of the few hosting a party, consider yourself lucky. Go ahead, smirk at that statement, and even groan loudly (but please do it before you arrive at the party of course), and then consider yourself fortunate and do plan to attend and take advantage of this fast disappearing perk while it lasts. With some careful planning, anyone can survive this sometimes grueling event, which for some can turn into a career ender if not... Read More»

Black Friday the Project Management Way

Just like approximately 200+ million people each year, I am a Black Friday shopper. It has become a tradition. After the yearly Thanksgiving dinner with friends, a cross section of the women sit down with the flyers from the Thanksgiving edition of the paper, and map out the "plan of attack". This year we had a "Black Friday Virgin" decide to join the experience, and was stunned by the "Project Planning" process that I go through (once it was mentioned, it got everyone torturing me, as I apparently take Project Management to the extreme - is that even possible??). We’re... Read More»

You Are What You Integrate

I marvel at the wonders created by nature and modern chemistry. We constantly see new products emerging as a result of molecular combinations and increased miniaturization. Vitamin and drug pills are extremely potent yet come in small packages. These marvels are possible because of molecular complexity. A complex molecule can bind tightly to various targets because it can form lots of interactions. Infinite varieties appear possible due to various combinations within the molecules. Development of project, program, and portfolio managers can follow a similar path. Integrating skills from multiple disciplines allows for increased potency. Yes, individuals can be effective by... Read More»

Managing With Consultants

If you have been managing for more than a few years, you have been in the situation where you needed some outside help to complete a project. Sometimes you request the help yourself but sometimes your management supplies the help without asking you - how uncomfortable is that? That can create the perception with the consultant that they are there to clean up your mess and they show up with “the attitude.” If you value your team, check with them before you hire consultants to help them and make sure consultants know where they fit in the organization. I knew... Read More»