If you are a professional project manager, you have been through this many times. You get a project to run, receive a list of specialists assigned to the project, start making your calls – and see that the team that you will have to spend a better part of your life with in the coming months […]
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Improve Your Email Nonverbal Communication Skills
Imagine entering your office in the morning, coffee in hand… You open your Outlook and among numerous unread emails you see a message from your boss that you have not seen, which reads like this: Subj: org ch Pls come see me ASA{. What was the first thought that crossed your mind?..
What Do You Do as Project Manager?
“What is the purpose of your visit to the United States of America?” The US Custom and Border Protection officer was a big guy. He asked the usual questions in a deep and hoarse voice and was sitting on a rather tall chair behind his counter, which made him look somewhat dominating if not menacing. […]
How to Keep New Year’s Resolutions Using Project Management
If you are like 50% of Americans, you must have made your New Year’s resolutions recently. And if you are one of those “new-year-resolute” folks, then you could use some help right now: over 40% of new year’s resolutions do not survive past one month.
When Ethnic Jokes Can Be Exchanged and Enjoyed
Once upon a time, well before Obama and Trump as we know them, and when pretty much everybody still smoked tobacco, I was having a lunch break with guys from the Lab and Production. And it must be noted that our frontline workforce was more diverse than the United Nations has ever been. In the […]
Humble Leaders and Other (Oxy)morons
In the summer of 1941, Prime Minister Winston Churchill summoned Sergeant Ward, a New Zealand recipient of the Victoria Cross, to congratulate him on his exploits. The fearless pilot was struck dumb with awe by the experience and was unable to answer the Prime Minister’s questions. Churchill regarded the reluctant hero with some compassion. “You must […]
Project Management Master Class: the Fifth Project of Heracles
Storytelling is an effective coaching technique, but it is rarely used in project management. Fortunately, the history of mankind is replete with wonderful examples of projects delivered by individuals who lived long before project management as we know it was born, so we can learn from their mistakes.
Positive Reinforcement for Engineers
A young manager in a major industrial company, trying to explain their reporting procedures, had trouble pronouncing the word “hierarchy.” When I did it for him after his third attempt, he was grateful – but not at all uncomfortable: “I am an engineer, you know, long words is not really my cup of tea.” Indeed, […]
The ROE: Return On Engagement
A traveler passes a construction site and sees three men working. He asks the first man what he is doing and gets a reply: “I am laying bricks.” The second says: “I am building a wall.” Finally, the third man answers: “I am building a cathedral.”
PMP Certification: Facts and Thoughts
A couple of weeks ago, I asked fellow PMs in three LinkedIn groups to share basic data on their academic background. I received 280 responses, out of which 268 contained meaningful data. As promised, I am sharing some results with you.