In this Issue:
*allPM Co-publisher's Letter, Judy Umlas
*From the Co-publisher's Desk, Frank Saladis, PMP
*allPM February Poll Results and New Poll Question
*Theme of the Month – Motivating Your Project Team: Go, Teams, Go!
By Steven P. Blais, PMP
*Building High-Performance Project Teams
By Jolyon E. Hallows, CMC
*It takes six steps to build a Cross Generational Team
By Elizabeth Kearney, Ph.D.
*Ways to Motivate Your Team
By Anitha Ramakodi, PMP
*The Power of Acknowledgment as a Catalyst for Great Project Team Performance
By Judith W. Umlas
*Project Management and Parenting Parallels
By Tresia Eaves, MHR, PMP, RGS
*Communications Toolbox™: The Project Management Skills of a Mouse
By Laura B. Moore, PMP
*Ask Harry! What’s the Difference between a Six Sigma Green Belt and a Six Sigma Black Belt?
By Harry Rever, PMP – Director of Six Sigma, IIL
*Excel 2007 Feature: Tip for indenting text in Excel 2007
By Bob Umlas, Microsoft® Excel MVP
*PM Crossword Connections™: Presentation Pointers
By Frank Saladis, PMP
Past Issues- Archives |
 |
|
|
| Support Our Sponsors:
|
|
From the Co-publisher's Desk— Judy Umlas
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
I’m scared, and I need your help! Now, I have been scared of a lot of things in my life, but I think this is the first time I have ever been scared of an upcoming allPM.com Theme of the Month! It’s the one for April that is giving me the shivers! Here it is:
Read more >>
|
 |
|
|
From the Co-publisher's Desk - Frank P. Saladis, PMP
“Energizing people to achieve high levels of performance and overcome barriers to change.” This is a definition of motivation found in the PMBOK® Guide 3rd edition in the section about inter-personal skills. In Vijay Verma’s book, Human Resource Skills for The Project Manager, PMI, he relates motivation to the internal drives within a person that cause the person to willingly devote extra effort in a specific, goal-driven manner.
Read more >>
|
|
|
|
February Poll Results
Does your company value visuals in presentations?
a) Always - they must be stunning - 43.48 % (80)
b) Not really, we don't always use them - 23.37 % (43)
c) Indifferent to the way they look - 11.96 % (22)
d) Just want accurate information - 21.20 % (39)
Total votes: 184
The March poll question is:
How do you motivate or inspire your team?
a) Incentive or reward
b) Co-location
c) Self-management
d) They motivate themselves
If you have not already done so, please stop by allPM.com and add your opinion today. |
|
|
|
Theme of the Month – Motivating Your Project Team: Go, Teams, Go!
By Steven P. Blais, PMP
If you have had any experience as a project manager, or have had any experience working on a project or, for that matter, if you’ve ever been part of a team, any team, you know about motivation. It’s the carrot. It’s the stick. It’s the “win one for the ‘Gipper’” speech. It’s the “We’re Number One” chant. It’s the lovely pictures with poignant sayings posted on the walls, usually of the HR department. It’s the pat on the back. It’s fear. It’s love. It’s boredom. It’s status. It’s peer pressure.
© 2008 allPM.com
Read more >>
Steve Blais, PMP is a consultant and educator living in Sarasota and Key West Florida. He has worked for 40 years in the field of computing. He is currently working with companies to create and improve their business analyst processes. He is the author of the IIL Business Analysis series of courses, and the forthcoming book, "The Beginning and End of Software Engineering: a guide for the Business Analyst." |
|
|
|
Building High-Performance Project Teams
By Jolyon E. Hallows, CMC
Every project manager I have ever met has spoken about “our team.” I consider this to be a communal delusion because I have rarely seen a team; what I mostly see is a bunch of people working on roughly the same thing. There is a difference between a bunch and a team—some authorities have suggested that a team can outperform a bunch by a factor of two or three. Think what this means. Even if the “team factor” is only two, this means that the same work can be done by half the number of people.
© 2008 allPM.com
Read more >>
Jolyon Hallows, Certified Management Consultant (CMC) has over thirty years experience in IT with a focus on project and portfolio management. He is the author of Information Systems Project Management, (First and Second Editions), and The Project Management Office Toolkit, both published by the American Management Association. He has given numerous seminars on project management, he is a faculty member for the Diploma in Applied Project Management offered by Simon Fraser University, and he conducted the Project Management Boot Camp at a recent New York Technology Forum. He is based in Burnaby, British Columbia. |
|
|
|
It takes six steps to build a Cross Generational Team
By Elizabeth Kearney, Ph.D.
Project Managers are expected to ensure that their company’s pre-defined objectives are accomplished within set guidelines and time limits, and it takes teamwork to accomplish this. So, what’s new about that? Well, Millenials are now part of the mix, and new approaches are needed to ensure success. Those approaches must be based on an understanding of this group and an awareness of how to manage and motivate them to ensure that their many talents are successfully tapped.
© 2008 allPM.com
Read more >>
Elizabeth Kearney, Ph.D. is on four boards, publishes a monthly newsletter, writes for a newspaper, and is the founder of Kearney & Associates: The Experts’ Alliance. She and Alliance members design and deliver programs and provide consulting services. Liz specializes in strategic planning, generational issues, and effective leadership, is an award-winning author and professor. Three of her books were Fortune Book-of-the-Month Club selections, and her latest book, Women Who Paved the Way is already in its second printing. For four consecutive years, she was selected as Businesswoman of the Year, was honored in Washington, D.C., and was presented with the Ronald Reagan medal for her work with small businesses and their related issues.
|
|
|
|
Ways to Motivate Your Team
By Anitha Ramakodi, PMP
In our current cost savings world where even some free lunches are being cut (in addition to workers being laid-off and projects being sent offshore) to save some money, it is extremely difficult to convince the bosses to recognize the hard work that the team put in to launch a project. In the current world, some of the things like overtime, giving up vacation time, being on a conference call during the son’s baseball match, etc. are taken for granted.
© 2008 allPM.com
Read more >>
Anitha Ramakodi is a Project Manager in the Pharma Industry and has been in the computing industry for more than 11 years. She has an expertise in Web Project Management, Marketing and Process Improvement. Her strengths are Initiation, Team building and Motivation.
|
|
|
|
The Power of Acknowledgment as a Catalyst for Great Project Team Performance
By Judith W. Umlas
Republished with permission: MundoPM Journal, Edition 16th, www.mundopm.com.br
“What actions would you take if you knew with absolute certainty that a simple action you could take every day for no cost and little effort would change your world, and the world at large, dramatically and profoundly for the better? What if this ability is something every person on this planet possesses, yet few use much if at all? What if using it regularly would transform your relationship with your husband or wife?
© 2008 IIL Publishing, New York, a division of International Institute for Learning, Inc.
Read more >>
 |
Judith W. Umlas is the publisher of IIL Publishing, New York and is the Sr. Vice President of Learning Innovations at International Institute for Learning, Inc. (IIL). She is also Director/Secretary of Small Companies United for Global Disaster Relief, Inc., a not-for-profit organization. In addition, she is the Co-Publisher of a global Web portal (www.allPM.com) for over 42,000 project managers, in 90 countries. She has worked in television production, marketing and corporate business development for 30 years, at CBS, PBS cable television and IIL. Her writing credits include articles published in Working Woman magazine, The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, and many other newspapers and magazines.
For more information on The Power of Acknowledgment by Judith W. Umlas, go to www.iil.com/publishing. Visit the blog, www.thepowerofacknowledgment.com |
|
|
|
Project Management and Parenting Parallels
By Tresia Eaves, MHR, PMP, RGS
A belated happy New Year to all of you! As we consider what our goals and objectives are going to be for the rest of the year, let me help you through this process with an article that will focus you on setting some goals and objectives for you and your family using skills we all use in our project management work on a daily basis. Someone invented the “Keep It Simple, Silly” (KISS) concept and I follow this avidly in my life.
© 2008 allPM.com
Read more >>
Tresia Eaves, MHR, PMP, RGS is the Technology Integration Group Vice President and Program Manager for IRS Report Generation Software Program of the SENTEL Corporation. She exemplifies superior project management performance and methods. She is a seasoned professional with experience including technical/business management of global teams, a certified expert in IT product/service development, quality assurance, security, and process improvement; she has worked in an international marketplace; built company development, quality and project teams, processes and services from scratch; she is also an internal IT SysTrust Auditor; and established/enforced quality standards for a $50 million data center. She is Chair Emeritus of the PMI ISSIG, and winner of the 2007 Kerzner International Project Manager of the Year Award. |
|
|
|
Communications Toolbox™: The Project Management Skills of a Mouse
By Laura B. Moore, PMP
Picture a place that has millions of people moving around its many areas every day; including making every guest feel like a prince or princess, food service, guest facilities, trash management and miscellaneous grounds keeping requirements, all done with seamless precision. If you haven’t guessed, I am talking about Disneyland in Southern California. My family went on our annual Disneyland trip in December, and knowing I owed Judy an article, I started noticing
© 2008 allPM.com
Read more >>
Laura Moore (PMP, M.A. Social Psychology) has an eclectic background that includes not only project management, but clinical research and social work as well. Currently, she works as a Senior Project Manager in the telecommunications industry and does, what her team calls "guerilla project management", that is, taking urgent, high impacting issues and resolving them within a matter of days. Laura lives in California with her husband Lorin, and their two amazing daughters Lily Faye and Layla Blue. |
|
|
|
Ask Harry! What’s the Difference between a Six Sigma Green Belt and a Six Sigma Black Belt?
By Harry Rever, PMP – Director of Six Sigma, IIL
For those somewhat unfamiliar with Six Sigma, a common question is, “What is the difference between a Six Sigma Green Belt and a Six Sigma Black Belt?” Often I’m asked by PMPs, “For my next certification, should I pursue a Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt?” There are a few important distinctions between the two Six Sigma roles. It is important, however, to first understand the fundamental concept and purpose of Six Sigma. Simply put, Six Sigma is a methodology to help businesses improve results.
© 2008 allPM.com
Read more >>
If you have a question you would like addressed, send an e-mail to Harry at harry.rever@iil.com
Harry Rever is Director of Six Sigma for International Institute for Learning. Harry has trained thousands of employees on Six Sigma, process improvement, and project management and he frequently presents at conferences and seminars. He has certifications as a Six Sigma Black Belt, Quality Manager, Quality Consultant, and Project Management Professional. Harry earned his MBA from St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas and has Bachelors degrees in Marketing and Management from Texas Tech University. |
|
|
|
Excel 2007 Feature: Tip for indenting text in Excel 2007
By Bob Umlas, Microsoft® Excel MVP
Suppose you have an excel sheet which looks like this:
© 2008 allPM.com
Read more >>
Bob Umlas has been a Microsoft® Excel MVP since 1995. He has been a beta tester for new versions of Microsoft Excel since version 1.5 (on the Macintosh)! He has led several sessions at Microsoft's Tech-Ed: Maximizing Excel development using Array Formulas, and Excel Tips and Tricks. He is also the author of “This isn’t Excel, it’s Magic!” The second edition of this book is now available (www.iil.com/publishing).
|
|
|
|
PM Crossword Connections™: What’s Your Motivation?
By Frank Saladis, PMP
(Click here or the image above for a crossword in a new window. )
© 2008 allPM.com
|
|
|
|
