7 Things a Project Manager Should NOT Be Doing

There is no shortage of information on the activity, processes, and tasks that project managers should be performing. It is more difficult to find information on those activities project managers should not be doing. Add value by NOT doing these 7 things. Read More»

Portfolio Management: Is Modern Management Practice Compatible?

I sat anxiously in the PMO Director's office waiting to present my proposal for an organizational portfolio management process implementation. I had spent the previous several months drafting the process and holding reviews with several key company stakeholders. My homework was done and I knew I would hit this one out of the park. The presentation spanned the next thirty minutes. What seemed like an eternity of silence had passed, but in reality was probably only 10 seconds, the PMO Director finally spoke his verdict. "Am I the only one that has major heartburn with this process," he stated. My... Read More»

Meetings and Process - How Much Is Enough?

Over the past several months, I must admit that I've not been my usual self. In the interest of being liked, I put aside some assertiveness and have bowed before the whims of others. I've been working with a company recently where the culture welcomes meetings in all shapes, forms, and sizes. Meetings are very commonplace. I suspect you may be thinking that I work at your company. As project managers, we are often tasked with leading and implementing projects that will usher in change. We must be able to stand up and support positive change. I have never been... Read More»

From Commander to Sponsor

In the action and historical drama film Master and Commander, Captain Jack Aubrey (played by Russell Crowe) of the British frigate HMS Surprise, faces a problem about how to make his ship appear invisible in pursuit of the French privateer Acheron, a cutting-edge ship both heavier and faster than his own. His mission is to "burn, sink or take her a prize." He walks into the cabin where the ship's doctor Stephen Maturin (played by Paul Bettany) studies strange creatures that reside on the isles of the Galapagos Islands. The doctor and his young assistant describe the rare phasmid, stick... Read More»

Applying Marketing Wisdom to Project Management

Project Coach, Your Clear Next Step I had the chance to listen to marketing guru Drew McClellan speak at a BIZ event in Des Moines this past week, and although his message was targeted towards marketing for businesses, one of the comments he shared applies to project managers in a fundamental way. He made a statement that was something like "the time is now". His point, as I understood it, was that when something happens - and he was specifically talking about something bad...a crisis even...in today's world, there is really no time to delay before reacting. Businesses need to... Read More»

Getting Prepared to Negotiate

As I'm in Milan, Italy presenting a paper on "Negotiating for Success: Are You Prepared?" for the PMI Global Congress EMEA 2010, I'm reminded that in a previous blog about "Negotiating for Results," I referred to ten rules of negotiating. In this blog I present examples of applying those rules. First some background.... It is important to embrace a mindset that everything about a project is negotiable and that a project leader needs to be a skilled negotiator. Right up front is the necessity to define project success and establish desired outcomes. With an intention to negotiate in mind, review... Read More»

Managing an Unexpected Windfall

We tend to spend a lot of time thinking about how to learn from bad situations, but there's just as much to be learned from our success stories. This one, relayed recently by a colleague, illustrates just how important it is not to take anything for granted, and to apply the tools we've been taught no matter what! Sharon had a pipe-dream project. It was something she had proposed off and on for months, but the necessary resources were never available. Specifically, there was no money or time in Marketing for non-essentials, and this idea, while compelling, was considered a... Read More»

Assumptions: Your Get Out of Jail Free Card?

"The worst mistake of first contact, made throughout history by individuals on both sides of every new encounter, has been the unfortunate habit of making assumptions. It often proved fatal." -David Brin "What a man believes may be ascertained, not from his creed, but from the assumptions on which he habitually acts." -George Bernard Shaw You must stick to your conviction, but be ready to abandon your assumptions. -Denis Waitley I really enjoy quotes if you haven't already ascertained that fact. Above are three quotes about assumptions that I really enjoy and hit the mark-especially from the project management perspective.... Read More»

Intelligent Disobedience

It's often stated that leadership can occur at any level in the organization. What's your opinion, do you believe this is true? If so, have you witnessed it? Leading is not for everyone. It takes courage and guts. During my career, I have worked for many leaders that were outstanding. I have also worked with others that are leaders in title only. To lead effectively, leaders simply cannot always make the popular decision or easiest choice. This is especially true when attempting to drive change. For an individual, project team, or organization, change occurs through dissonance. Some level of discomfort... Read More»

Managing with Impact

I've recently been thinking about many lessons learned while working in high tech new product development. With regards to management, leadership, and team building in a project environment, please allow me to share some of those lessons. * It is important for PMs, and leaders in general, to lead and manage all stakeholders, often requiring them to manage up the organization. Successful PMs are the ones who take the initiative ("This IS my job"), realizing they still do not have control over stakeholders, but nevertheless they seek to influence and guide them for the sake of the project and the... Read More»