PMcrunch

Whenever you need to introduce a new service, which typically is intended to take the form of a process, you need to create a project. This is much like building a bridge, setting up a new bank brankch, or implementing an IT project. There is an idea for a project end state, and the project is getting to that end state. All of this is particularly applicable to IT projects.

[Read more →]

Many professionals are either “knowledge seeking” or “problem solving” – but, to their detriment, not both. You can create a one-two punch for professional effectiveness by combining “knowledge seeking” and “problem solving”. Let me show you what I mean by looking at some details of some popular bodies of knowledge today.

[Read more →]

I have worked on all kinds of projects.  I’m well aware that project requirements will pit you against limitations of all sorts.  Indeed, we all recognize that we operate in a world of constraints; however, sometimes WE are the biggest constraint of all.   This leads me to the question, “Is your project bigger than yourself?”

[Read more →]

“Managing an IT project is like juggling chunks of Jell-O: It’s neither easy nor pretty.” So it says in an excellent article on IT Project Management is CIO magazine. The article goes on to say, very accurately I think, that “Information technology is especially slippery because it’s always moving, changing, adapting and challenging business as we know it.”

[Read more →]

In thinking about shareholder management or investor management, especially in today’s volatile environment, I see a big parallel with stakeholder management.  In essence stakeholders are the investors in our projects.  Stakeholders hold a “stake” in our projects.  Stakeholders, just like investors, have different levels of investment or interest in our projects.  We must think of [...]

[Read more →]

As a program or project manager, one must keep an eye on both the near term and long term.  Today, under tough economic conditions, we typically turn to more near-term thinking because the focus needs to be first on survival before considering future plans.  We need to be careful however to not take this near-term thinking too [...]

[Read more →]

Networking has always been an important activity for everyone – especially professionals on the move. The fact is, no matter where you want to go, you can probably get there faster, and more efficiently, if you have a good network. Networking can also be a great deal of fun.

[Read more →]

Both technology and the environment have always fascinated me.  Together they make quite an interesting combination.  Add financial viability to this cocktail and you have a real winner!  That is what clean technology is all about!

[Read more →]

What is Project Leadership all about? What constitutes leadership, and how can we measure it? Why is it important to us? These are some questions that arise for me when I think about what I call the “Menund’r'm Conundrum”.

[Read more →]

Depending on your environment, you may have some team members that seem like non-contributors, and in some ways actually get in the way. While I have never experienced this – or at least not for long – on the smaller more critical projects I have managed, I do see this on larger more matrix-oriented projects. The question is, “How can I handle this?”

[Read more →]