UCSC Extension in Silicon Valley

Are you working with a ‘can do’ or ‘cant do’ project team?
We have all been in both kinds of teams.  The difference in potential energy is enormous.  And, what a difference that makes to team dynamics and project results!  ‘Can do’ teams seem invincible, welcome challenges and proudly talk about the battles fought and won.  [...]

Me – try to inspire – but why?
So, here we are – another Monday. Many of us traditionally start Monday on a low note. Back to the grind, back to the routine – same old. We will likely have the first of many project meetings on Mondays. Will you just go through the motions of [...]

We all have been in the situation where a customer or team member asks to add a feature or upgrade the quality of a certain item. We often agree to do these favors because we find ourselves unable to say “no”—driven by our desire to please or a preconceived notion that we do not have [...]

Where to Go From Here?
I realize that most of us will never face the challenges confronted by Gene Kranz, NASA Flight Director, on Apollo 13, but the mental exercise is worth doing.  If you haven’t seen the movie, or have seen it and view it as entrainment at the time, I suggest renting it and [...]

Process for Handling the Dips in the Road

The majority of unexpected situations that hit a project during its execution are dips in the road to closure; a leader can certainly prepare both themselves and a process for the team, to deal with these.
As the project leader you own the solution/decision process, like any of [...]

Are you prepared to cope when things go bump in the night?
As project managers we have become proficient in transforming the project charter (in whatever form we get it) into a project plan (hopefully, including some risk management) and then charging through plan execution to closure.  But, what happens when thing go bump in the [...]

All too often PMO Leaders immediately launch into design and set-up before understanding the FULL picture.  Here are some additional suggestions on what to know, do and think about to keep you focused and successful.

Dear Diary –
Well, it’s been quite a week.  After 7 days of heightened attention on my interpersonal communication skills I can’t say I feel I’ve made much progress.  Aside from some encouraging email from a few friends cheering me on in my (decades old) quest to improve myself, there’s no indication that a complete transformation [...]

Dear Diary -
Well, I might have gone overboard with my focus on possibility thinking and commitment to action in conversations…  So far this week I’ve envisioned 3 outrageous breakthroughs for myself, arm-twisted 7 friends or relatives to swear an oath to manifesting their own ridiculous goals, and committed myself to a half dozen preposterous projects [...]

The very first day of 2010 and of a new decade!! Wishing you an amazing, loving, successful and unforgettable year!!
During the past holidays I was staying with a friend of mine who has a six year old. Of course, we ended up watching a lot of children’s movies. One of them was Nemo which, as [...]

This is the very last week of 2009. Can you believe it? This year has gone by faster than any others. It was a year of extremes: extreme lows and extreme highs. Too many people lost their jobs, their houses, their loved ones or their spirit this year.  Every great project manager knows the value [...]