#PMChat

As a project manager, when I am assigned a new project I quickly dive into the “what” associated with the project. What is the product we are building? What is the scope of the project? What is our budget? What is the target date? Equally important, but often overlooked, is the “who” component of the project. Read More »

Season’s Greetings and a helping hand from Unlike Before Our way of saying thanks to our loyal readers this season is by making a financial contribution through Kiva; an organisation whose mission is ‘to connect people through lending to alleviate poverty’. Our contribution will help provide microfinance to those striving to create opportunity and better lives for themselves and their families. We found Kiva when we were given a Kiva card and realised the good work they do towards anti-poverty; helping others helps all of us. Kiva is a gift that has the potential to change lives. Click here to view the Unlike Before donation page Read More »

Being involved with initiatives such as PMTV (Project Management TV) and WIPM (Women in Project Management) are great for two reasons: 1. I get to meet and interact with many genuinely nice people I otherwise wouldn’t come across; and 2. Together we get to share our combined experiences and expertise in a variety of ways for the benefit of others.  This is exactly what happened when I joined forces with Jon Hyde , Bernardo Tirado and Naomi Caietti for PMTV on October 16th.  PMTV is the brainchild of Jon and Bernardo . They have ‘created PMTV to bring you the inside story on project management from the trenches of austerity.’   Broadcasting every 3rd Tuesday at 12noon GMT / 7am ET, past episodes can be replayed on demand. Our episode went out live Tuesday 16th October with the topic of discussion being ‘Why Some Project Managers Suck!’.  It may not be a very p.c title but we all know it’s a very real problem. Why should anyone or any company put up with PM’s or leaders who suck? If you haven’t listened to the replay set aside some quiet time and enjoy Read More »

When interviewing potential project management candidates there are certain qualities, skills, and experiences you are looking for that are part of the DNA of a successful project manager. These qualities, skills, and experiences define the capabilities of a project manager, and their ability to consistently deliver positive project outcomes. These capabilities represent a point in time “snapshot” of where they currently are in their career. I try to look at the “real” potential of a project manager by assessing the impact additional experience and professional development can have on some of their capability shortfalls. You need to consider the candidate’s current capabilities, potential capabilities, and the perceived desire to achieve their potential when making hiring decisions. In this blog I touch on what I consider to be the key capabilities of an effective project manager. Read More »

There’s a song titled ‘History Repeating’ . It’s performed by Dame Shirley Bassey and the Propellerheads . As noted in the Wikipedia entry on the Propellerheads, “the term ‘propellerhead’ is slang for a nerd”. This will make sense to anyone who’s ever worked on any initiative involving technology. But it’s not the band name or even Dame Shirley Bassey that’s triggered this post; it’s the title of the song and in particular the chorus .  and I’ve seen it before and I’ll see it again yes I’ve seen it before just little bits of history repeating In our daily work as managers, leaders and change agents we must stop being surprised when we see and experience time and again the same underlying problems, issues, challenges (call them what you will) with projects and change initiatives. We’ve seen it all before and we’ll see it again, it’s just bits of history repeating. Read More »