Randall Englund - UCSC Extension in Silicon Valley

When he does not get the results he desires, the singer of a classic song asks the question, “What kind of fool am I?”  Or when entering an unfamiliar structure or organization, a person may ask, “What kind of place is this?”  Both questions move the questioner into a new stage of learning or development. [...]

The “secret” code to success and advancement in any organization is to make yourself more valuable, align with organizational goals, attract like-minded individuals who want to make a difference, and take the initiative. Several recent indicators support this path. Testimonials from graduates of advanced project management programs state that as they apply the concepts and [...]

Success in the market place is the usual source of positive cash flow. Successful projects bring vitality into an organization.  As a key contributor to these outcomes, project managers are well advised to be aware of what is happening in the market and make appropriate decisions that positively influence the cash flow resulting from project [...]

Project leaders do not like change any more than followers do unless, of course, it is their idea.  Change is hard for everyone. You cannot move forward and stay the same at the same time.  People resist change for several reasons: People resist change because of personal loss.  A key obligation of a project manager [...]

Know that you are continuously in sales cycles throughout project life cycles. Be not a victim of lost sales or opportunities.  Embrace the sales process as the means to secure necessary commitments in a genuine manner worthy of a complete project manager. The classic sales approach, applicable to almost any environment, is to cover features, [...]

Complete project managers are a very special breed of people, requiring a complete set of skills.  However, they are not immune from conflict. Sometimes they may even welcome it, for it shows that people are engaged.  A lesson I learned about handling issues and especially risky ones came from working as a young man at [...]

Embracing a complete project management mindset goes beyond techniques to complete projects on time, scope, and budget.  Improving organizational performance depends upon getting more accomplished through projects.  Just what gets accomplished and how comes under the purview of power and politics.  Organizations by their nature are political.  The political process is always at work in [...]

The results delivered by projects depend upon what you negotiate.  Everything is negotiable, both at work and in everyday lives. It is in your best interest, and for your team and organization, that you embrace negotiating as a requisite skill…and implement it dutifully. Right up front in every project is the necessity to negotiate a [...]

A complete project manager realizes the organization is the place where all work happens and has an indelible impact on how work progresses. Seek alignment among strategy, execution, structure, cultures, and the portfolio of projects. An imperative facing complete project managers in all organizations is not only to embark on a quest to manage project [...]

More systemic and widespread progress is possible than in any other area when complete project managers focus attention on creating project-friendly environmental conditions. The same approaches applied by equally talented managers may have quite different outcomes depending upon the culture, operating principles, structure, customs, procedures, and values in place. I refer not to the physical [...]

Complete project managers build upon the foundation established by PMI’s Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge.  A needed contribution is to add insights and examples as aids for complete project managers in their quest to make sense of and apply the PMBOK®. While this guide provides a basic structure for projects, the rest [...]

Personal skills are those vital interaction competencies for dealing with people.  The complete project manager possesses the aptitude, attitude, and networking skills to interact with people and achieve results. Early in our careers, we demonstrated negative attitudes regarding our jobs and towards the projects we managed. That negative disposition generated more problems than advantages.  We [...]

The project manager walks into his boss’s office and says, “Here is the bottom line budget needed for the success of the project.” The boss asks, “What can you do for half the money?” The project manager says, “Fail.” The boss asks, “When can you get started?” The project manager says, “I think I just [...]

Leadership and management skills are those vital visionary and “can do” competencies so necessary when in a position to influence colleagues, team members, upper managers, clients, and so forth.  The complete project manager possesses the lead by example, delegation, charisma, teachability, respect, qualities of leadership, courage, listening, and relationship building skills to interact with people [...]

This week I preview material that has occupied much of my time over the last few months—writing about The Complete Project Manager—the title of the next book that Alfonso Bucero and I co-author.  Success in any environment largely depends upon completing successful projects, and successful projects get done by skilled project managers and teams, supported [...]

Upper management support is crucial for project success.  Their support in sponsoring projects, however, often falls short of what is necessary to ensure project success.  Why?  Is it ignorance, lack of knowledge about what’s required, distaste for the role, too busy, unwilling, …?  Well, maybe so, but a key ingredient is the ability of project [...]

One of the models proving valuable not only to myself but to many other people as well came out of the book I co-authored on Creating an Environment for Successful Projects.  The revitalization process describes states that we all experience in organizations. The model depicts how we move from the status quo or steady state [...]

With many thanks to Carrie Underwood for singing this beautiful song, it seems fitting during this holiday season to reflect upon the lyrics and apply them to our world of project management: What you got if you ain’t got love the kind that you just want to give away It’s okay to open up go [...]

What do Sisyphus, Attila the Hun, the Quakers, and early cartographers have in common with creating a project office? They all represent metaphors that guide modern managers to implement a project office for organizational change.  You may decide to become a POO–a Project Office of One, or your organization may need a SPO–a Strategic Project [...]

Political issues often thwart rapid advancement.  Organizations by their very nature are political.  How can you identify and characterize stakeholder traits that need to be addressed or accommodated if, as a leader, you wish to exercise influence and be more effective within an organization? One way to help turn potential victim scenarios into win-win political [...]

The results delivered by projects depend upon what you negotiate.  A “secret” employed by successful project leaders is that they explore a perspective, principles, tools, and recommendations to achieve better results through the power of negotiations. They avoid being set up for failure by recognizing and developing skills that lead to greater success. Every day [...]