Archive for June 2008

So.  It’s the end of the week and I’ve shown you mine, now let’s take a look at yours!   Is your toolbox a treasure chest full of bright, shiny, valuable tools or is it more like Pandora’s Box, full of unreliable, outdated, more-trouble-than-they’re-worth tools?   Lowe’s Home Improvement has some good advice on the question: “If [...]

 I see no point in reinventing the wheel: I prefer to accessorize!  So to make the most of what I’ve learned already, I keep a basic set of templates and checklists in the toolbox, along with the inevitable expectation that they’re a starting point for adaptation and customization. 

Technorati Tags: Creative-Thinking, facilitation, meetings, project-management-tools, questions, templates

The second tray of my toolbox has two compartments, one for key components of various project management methodologies/ approaches, and one for facilitation exercises.  The number of variables per project ensures that every project will be unique: a standard methodology does nothing to change this, though most do their best to control them (control change? [...]

 The top tray of my project management toolbox has three compartments which hold my Chimes, Linked Lists and Open Channel.  Tibetan chimes (tingshas) are prayer chimes traditionally used to focus and clear the mind before and after a teaching or meditation.  I use them a bit differently as a way to attract people’s attention without having [...]

The first thing I see when I open my toolbox is the inside of the lid, so here’s where I post reminders of the things that will have the most overall effect on my work: my project management principles and mantra.  The project management principles define how my values are implemented on the job.  I [...]

I’ve been talking to folks lately about their favorite project management tools: the essential ones that they just can’t do without.  I expected much of what I heard and was surprised and delighted with the unexpected – like “my sense of humor”.  It got me to thinking seriously about the tools I rely on most [...]

I always wondered where you would find a PMO practitioner?  The width and breadth of a PMO covers many distinct and different components designed to meet the strategic needs of that enterprise.  The scope of each PMO may begin differently but with maturity and support over time, can be expected to evolve into a contributing [...]

If you are just tuning in, this week of blogs was about creating harmonious multi-generational communication, and better training. Rather then stereotyping people, it has been my experience that understanding needs and expectations of different age groups only enhances team efforts, especially in difficult times. This series was based on a true story of successful [...]

He decides to set up an “action learning” session to solve schedule issues. By focusing on the solution rather than problems, he moved the group into thinking differently in an ageless way. The goal was to appreciate what was working with scheduling and how to make it easier and easier. All members of his team [...]

Called the “Digital divide” when referring to countries, it can be even worse in projects. Today let’s explore how to build some bridges across troubled waters and the best ways to improve not increase communication. Tomorrow, we will talk more about individual communication issues as we age in our roles.
You cannot really achieve desired results [...]

Can you REALLY teach OLD DOGS new tricks? The answer is YES.         This piece contains the best ways to make TRAINING meaningful to all generations.    Welcome to part 2 of the series on generational factors in managing your project team. First, let’s get some facts straight according to Dept. of Labor stats, and other research [...]

This week we will assist Herman the wonder PM adapt to different age groups on his project.  Note:  Individuals may fit into these groups for non-age related reasons, but let’s visit the research that characterizes them this way.
Is your project Leadership or influence style REALLY multigenerational?

This entry is less on managing a team and more on managing yourself. To vary your hangouts is to go from place to place in order to keep things interesting. No I am not advocating job hopping, rather involve yourself in things that are outside of your core areas to round out your knowledge and [...]

Good habits come from the funniest places.
A little over a decade ago I started having problems with my right wrist. Thinking that the carpal tunnel had finally caught up with me I had a check-up. The doctor agreed and I went into therapy. Things got better for a while then steadily worst. My caring wife [...]

As I mentioned in an earlier entry, I recently started managing a QA team that tested multiple products. I was glad to find I had gained a good team that needed a few adjustments to get on track. Thru meetings, both one-on-one and in groups, I got to know the members and their habits and [...]

Recently my manager asked me if I wanted to attend a software conference in Orlando. Although it was all very last minute I was glad to take him up on it. When I asked if there was anything particular I should watch out for he said “learn all you can about Agile, we may be [...]

A while ago I was asked to take the position of QA manager of a product line that had run into problems. This line consisted of several different products including one that I had worked on for many years and managed for some time. Admittedly I was a bit reluctant to take to take the [...]

Probably everyone accepts that a business rarely has the same priorities during an extended period when performance objectives apply, whether it’s 6 months, 12 months, or some other duration, right? Unless you’re in a very long-established business (and even then, departmental priorities can change focus over such durations), it’s likely that what priorities you understood [...]

There’s been an oft-repeated observation that there’s a high incidence of classically trained musicians in the software industry. I’ve seen this myself; it’s not hard to identify enough people for a jam session or chamber ensemble in any association meeting here in Silicon Valley.
I had the good fortune to be trained in orchestral conducting at [...]

Dave Garrett recently wrote on the concepts expressed by Aaron Shanhar in his book, Reinventing Project Management. The gist is that the common triple-constraint model of managing cost, schedule, and scope is not enough. As I like to put it and in Goldratt’s words, necessary but not sufficient.
I have not yet read Shanhar’s book, but [...]

40 years ago this December, something extraordinary was offered to us. It became known as the “mother of all demos” (MOAD): Douglas Engelbart showed the world what collaboration could look like in this new world empowered by the technology that can connect each of us. He had not only seen the future decades before everyone [...]