Archive for March 2007

Alright, I’ve had it with project leaders who think that the whole job can be done from a keyboard! I recently helped one of my client companies hire a project manager for a professional services business. The CEO told me they wanted help because “The last 3 project managers didn’t work out.” [...]

Mike Witley, PMP at Fireman’s Fund in Novato notes that “Often times life as a project manager seems more like crisis management rather than project management: ”
So at the PMI Breakfast Roundtable meeting this morning Mike invited us to share “the phrases, philosophy, and places of strength” that we latch onto to keep us going [...]

Bob is consistently late to meetings.

Sara’s tasks are always doing “just fine” up until the last minute: then suddenly there is a crisis and it can’t be done on time.

Your overall team effort seems to be losing momentum compared to your pace at the beginning of the project.

Michael and Susan are strong team players and [...]

A couple of days ago I adamantly asserted that people working on projects sometimes know what needs to be done but don’t do it for various reasons. This behavior is typical of those stuck in the gap between KNOWING HOW to do something and actually DOING it.
How can project leaders enable people on our [...]

When I ask project management students to list actions that are key to successful projects, the overwhelming majority of things on the list are related to planning.
We actually spend most of the time and energy in execution and control rather than planning. So, what’s going on? I think the students’ lists reflect frustrations – struggling [...]

If knowing “HOW” to do something were enough we’d all be rich and thin. There’s always some reason why well-intentioned, educated, experienced professionals are doing the opposite of what they know makes sense. Frequently it’s because they are really busy, and can’t possibly do what needs to be done until someone ELSE changes [...]

In a previous post long ago I urged setting priorities even though everything SEEMS to be #1. Why don’t people set priorities? I think it’s because they don’t understand how to use them properly and fear they will result in critical work being back-burned forever. Not so – priority lists actually INCREASE [...]

Hi everyone, this is the end of my tour of duty as guest blogger.  I wanted to end with some thoughts about the importance of the relationships we develop with peers, bosses, customers, vendors, team members and anyone else with whom we have contact.  It’s all about how people feel they are being treated by [...]

A short while ago, our fearless leader, Kimberly, wrote about the six hats.  I thought I’d add a little to her suggestions.  The technique, called “Six Thinking Hats”  comes from a book by the same name written by E. deBono. (Boston, Little, Brown & Company, 1985)
The beauty of the technique is that it helps participatns [...]

I had dinner tonight at the Cheesecake Factory.  I sat at the bar ’cause it was so crowded and next to me sat a very lovely lady who was obviously in distress.  We chatted.  Her Project Manager had yelled at her so rudely (in her opinion) that she was seriously considering quitting a job she [...]

Mordred – the ultimate betrayer – like the serpent in the Garden of Eden, Mordred turned people against each other.  We were talking about Mordred, betrayal, and Camelot at a meeting tonight of the Silicon Valley Innovative Institute’s Society.  During the discussion, I realized that the two people I’ve caused to be fired in all [...]

We tend to expect others to behave as we do and are either uncomfortable or punitive when they don’t.  We rarely take into account that people come from many backgrounds and cultures and the “social” behaviors they were taught at home are not necessarily the same as those you were taught. 
Realizing how this effects people [...]

Hi everyone, this is my first actual blog on this website.  I wanted to talk with you about the issue of trust in distant teams.  Let me start by telling you that as a former psycho-therapist, I often dealt with the issues besetting people in relationships both at home and at work.  Trust – that [...]

If you’ve never played in a drum circle you really owe it to yourself to find one in your local area and check it out. It’s a fabulous metaphor for shared control in project management. You see, a drum circle is a self-organizing system and is usually without a recognized leader. I [...]

Why are we so afraid of disagreement?  Do we always have to “go along to get along” even if we think our team is making a bad decision?  How can we constructively disagree without being labeled “a bad-a..”?   I believe, as did Andy Grove, in constructive criticism.

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