“You are not in the room for the conversations that impact your career.” Farley Price I was having dinner with an old friend and colleague. We were talking about the arc of our careers and the events that brought us to this point. Farley remarked that […]
Well facilitated brainstorming sessions are amazing. A creative, sharing atmosphere is built. Numerous ideas are generated. Participants feel productive, valued, and are enthusiastic. By contrast, poorly run meetings are horrible. Little is accomplished. People feel frustrated and that they wasted their time. Brainstorming is a […]
I believe each of us has our own, undiscovered inspirational story. We have not recognized our own accomplishments. We have not verbalized our achievements into a personal narrative. Or, we may be uncomfortable talking about ourselves. We consider heroes or great people to be innately […]
Years ago, I begrudgingly took my project management certification (PMP®) exam. I passed. Almost a decade later, I now teach PMP® preparation classes and see the value of the Project Management Book of Knowledge® Guide (PMBOK®) and the rigors of the PMP® certification. When I […]
There has been a tectonic shift in how software is developed. Terms like Agile, CI/CD, DevOps, BDD, and TDD are new additions to the IT vocabulary. These new practices and related tools promise to significantly reduce the time and effort required to build, test, and […]
It is a common phenomenon. Something happens, usually something bad. Daily meetings are organized. Anyone connected with the event is there—from senior executives to junior staff. There is incredible focus. Then, the triggering issue is resolved. But the meetings continue. This has happened to all […]
Time is the dominant constraint on all projects. There is a constant race against the clock. Many projects have fixed completion dates determined by external forces. Projects that fall behind schedule, struggle to catch up. I have never met a project manager who said there […]
Projects sometimes feel like the movie “Ground Hog Day”—endlessly revisiting the same decision hoping to get them right. This cycle is frustrating, time consuming and unproductive. Instituting structured decision-making processes improves the project flow and the team’s morale. Here are six easy steps to make […]
Status reporting is one of the most important functions performed by project managers. The profession strives for objective reporting and metrics. However, by its very nature, status reporting is subjective. To be more effective, project managers should: Accept and recognize that status is subjective; Recognize […]
Leadership is the holy grail of project management. According to CEB Global, project managers that possess entrepreneurial (leadership) skills are 40% more likely to deliver project outcomes, but only 30% of project managers have these skills. A recent article in the Project Management Journal, “What […]