Thu, 08 Dec 2011 08:29:41 -0700 http://www.allpm.com/ Copyright © 1998-2011 by allPM - The Project Manager's HomePage en-us http://www.allpm.com/images/logo.gif http://www.allpm.com/ admin@allpm.com http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2605 Tip #5: Prospect Theory Wednesday 1 February For many decades, economists have held to the theory that people make economic decisions (like those made on projects on a regular basis) in a rational, selfish, and unchanging manner (economic utility theory). In the 1970s, two psychologists, Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky, developed Prospect Theory, which, while using economic utility theory as its basis, supplemented some of its important tenets. What Kahneman and Tversky found (see either the 1979 Econometrica article available on-line, or read Kahneman’s important and recently published book, Thinking, Fast and Slow -Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, New York, 2011) is that, rather than decisions being made in absolute and rational terms, many decisions are based on relative starting points (or reference points to use Kahneman’s terminology). Thu, 08 Dec 2011 08:29:41 -0700 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2603 Introduction: Coaching is listed as one of the 37 essential competencies for Project Managers in IIL’s 360 Degree Competency Assessment Model, the PMCA™ (http://www.iil.com/360pmca). The competency model was developed after extensive consultation with PMI®, IPMA® and the IIBA®, and incorporates essential thinking from each. As a model, it is designed to measure the knowledge and expertise of management and project delivery team members to determine training and development needs. Coaching (Competency 20 in the illustration below) is one of the seven Leadership competencies, and it is this that we will explore in this article. Thu, 08 Dec 2011 08:19:53 -0700 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2602 In the face of fluctuating business behavior and culture, project management remains a litmus test for measuring strong leadership practices. In this article, I will reflect on leadership in project management through the lens of a coaching mindset. I believe that in our knowledge intensive economy, project-based work is increasingly the way to cope with complex, non-routine tasks that require the balance and collaboration of diversely skilled specialists. Thu, 08 Dec 2011 08:16:58 -0700 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2601 Coaching is a process of facilitating a client’s progress towards defining and achieving their desired outcomes. In relationship systems coaching, the system is the client, and the “system” is a system of relationships including all the people and the relationships between them. A relationship system could therefore be a partnership, team, group or organisation. Thu, 08 Dec 2011 08:12:48 -0700 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2600 Many years ago, I was co-managing a Project Management Office that was made up of around 40 project managers. Many of those project managers inherited their projects, and so they became managers of projects. Many of those project managers were really engineers who lacked proper project management training or experience. I found myself thinking of training courses for these folks, until someone suggested that I coach those project managers. “Oh, coaching?” I said. Thu, 08 Dec 2011 08:08:46 -0700 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2599 This article is a short summary of research done for HEC Business School concerning the coaching approach and the added value it could bring to Lean Six Sigma, and more precisely, to the Lean Six Sigma project manager. Thu, 08 Dec 2011 08:05:00 -0700 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2598 During a monthly employee development meeting, an internal Six Sigma Black Belt, Will, has a discussion with a young Project Manager and Six Sigma Green Belt, Lane, about a project leader’s responsibility to coach and mentor the team. An interesting discussion ensues. Thu, 08 Dec 2011 08:00:46 -0700 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2597 Project management has become a key factor in the achievement of organizational objectives in every type of business regardless of size and industry. Over the years, project management has evolved and now includes several distinct functions or disciplines. These functions, Project Management, Program Management, and Portfolio Management each require a similar set of skills and competencies to survive the pressures of the position and its responsibilities. These functions are not new and have been included in business management for decades, but they are becoming more complex and each function requires a continuous enhancement of managerial skills. Thu, 08 Dec 2011 07:57:00 -0700 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2596 How many times have you heard the phrase, “Think outside the box?” Usually, when this phrase is used it is to encourage someone to create a solution or solve a problem by thinking differently. In this article, I want to show that in order for you to think outside the box, you are going to have to get out of the box. This article is designed to give you some quick and easy, but useful techniques for getting out of the box, so you can think out of the box. Thu, 08 Dec 2011 07:52:56 -0700 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2595 Introduction There are a number of project management approaches available that offer business and process choices for companies. The following is not an exhaustive list, but it does provide the most of the major approaches: Thu, 08 Dec 2011 07:49:33 -0700 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2563 Tip #5: The Importance of Building Relationships Wednesday 7 December "Plays well with others." "Uses time wisely." "Shares materials." "Is courteous and considerate." My nephew’s kindergarten report card reads like a mini-scorecard for Emotional Intelligence skills. He ranks well on everything, but he is off the charts with his social skills. His teacher writes, "Kade is the 'mayor' of our classroom - he is friendly with everyone, is very caretaking with the shyer children, and always makes an effort to be inclusive in his play." Without a doubt, Kade is a natural-born leader. Wed, 12 Oct 2011 11:27:27 -0600 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2559 A revolution in urban and rural redevelopment is at hand, as new Web 2.0 tools enable the creation of comprehensive, ongoing green/sustainability/Smart Growth/regeneration programs. It’s no secret that the creation of green, sustainable, and regenerative plans has grown spectacularly in recent decades. What’s not so well known is how seldom such plans are actually implemented, and how seldom those that are implemented achieve their objectives. As a result, projects often founder, due to insufficient political support, insufficient stakeholder engagement, and/or insufficient integration with other projects. Wed, 12 Oct 2011 07:46:36 -0600 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2558 This is the fundamental question we are asked, and we enjoy answering each time we write a post on our blog EarthPM. Whether the subject of the post is about garbage powered garbage trucks, or an environmental disaster of epic proportions, we are really answering the question “What is green project management?” The fact that we are always answering that question may be a stretch, but our posts do have a common theme: managing scarce resources. That is what green project management is all about. Wed, 12 Oct 2011 07:44:48 -0600 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2557 In the United States, the beginning of the green movement is attributed to John Muir, Teddy Roosevelt, David Thoreau and Rachel Carson among several others. Increased awareness continued through World War II with the 1970s seeing numerous legislations like the Clean Air Act, the banning of DDT, and debacles like the Love Canal disaster and the Three Mile Island incident. While the 1980s had its fair share of oil spills, Exxon Valdez, the most noteworthy, the 1990s led to radical environmentalism. The 21st century has been plagued by appalling weather patterns, visible impact of global warming and the inability of industry to handle disasters that have catastrophic bearings on our surroundings. As these visible consequences terrified the public in some instances, they were also responsible in spurring genuine interest to leave the earth a better place to live in for future generations. Wed, 12 Oct 2011 07:40:38 -0600 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2556 Green Project Management integrates environmental thinking into all of the project management decisions. It is a way to ingrain “greenthink™” into every project management process. The point about green project management is not that you make every decision in favor of the one that is most environmentally friendly. The point is that you start to take the environment into account during the decision-making process. You might make most decisions the same as you do today. But there might be some decisions you would make differently. Wed, 12 Oct 2011 07:39:17 -0600 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2555 I have been doing a lot of driving recently, which I enjoy as it gives me a lot of time to myself to think. One of the topics that I have been thinking a lot about is “Green” project management and sustainability in general. Wed, 12 Oct 2011 07:37:45 -0600 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2554 It is brutal out there, isn’t it? This economy is simply awful and it doesn’t look like it will turn around any time soon. Job security seems to be a thing of the past; people are losing their jobs every day, and businesses are going under left and right. And those businesses which are left are struggling to survive. They are struggling to be sustainable in these tough economic times. The bottom line is you have to do more with less; your business must be as efficient and productive as possible. But improved productivity and efficiency doesn’t just happen, and it certainly isn’t accomplished by some leadership declaration. Wed, 12 Oct 2011 07:35:27 -0600 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2553 If you are a fan of rock music you may recall a song by the group Extreme. Their song “More Than Words” was about expressing oneself in more than just a simple phrase that is easy to say. The feeling and emotion behind the words was the important part. The subtle message here is that words are only one part of effective communications and that emotion, body language, and other non verbal factors are also very important. Most project managers understand the importance of strong communications skills and attempt to use those skills to build teams, solve problems, update stakeholders, and minimize conflict. Wed, 12 Oct 2011 07:29:57 -0600 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2552 The implementation of project management is frequently undertaken by organizations as a strategic and an organizational change initiative. Leading organizations recognize the merits of establishing Project Management Best Practices as a standard operating practice. The implementation of Project Management is an Organization Change Initiative which is managed as a “Project.” The key components of Strategic Planning, Organizational Change, Project Management and Sustainment are necessary to ensure the Project Management Processes established during the “Project” are sustained as standard operating practice. Wed, 12 Oct 2011 07:27:38 -0600 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2551 Based on a recent study in Harvard Business School Working Paper and the author’s own experience, this article explores approaches that will help to embed improved project and program management practices in the organization, including the role of the PMO as a part of this. Wed, 12 Oct 2011 07:25:06 -0600 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2489 Tip #5: Mother Hen Monday 10th October, 2011 And we will finish this week of bad news tips with some good news. Many years ago, I used to do some training in the UK for the computer company, Digital Equipment Corp, usually referred to as DEC. They had an excellent project management manual, which, amongst a great deal of really practical tips and advice, were some suggestions concerning this problem of bringing a new team member into the project. The suggested method (and it can only be a suggestion, as not everyone will have the resources to do it) is to appoint someone to take the day-to-day responsibility for this team induction task, and the DEC manual referred to this role as that of 'Mother Hen.' Wed, 20 Jul 2011 08:55:13 -0600 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2487 Today projects are growing in complexity with project managers often being asked to satisfy requirements of global business. The various nature of projects has made difficult the ability for project managers to successfully perform in this challenging environment. Successful project managers recognize these challenges and have utilised project management standards to improve project delivery. Wed, 20 Jul 2011 08:46:23 -0600 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2486 Introduction This paper explores some of the primary differences and potential synergies between International Project Management Association (IPMA) and the Project Management Institute (PMI), and how they approach projects. I have explored these differences, and some additional gaps, in my book International Project Management: Leadership in Complex Environments. Here the intention is to provide a general overview of the differences, and see how an alliance could leverage the synergy between PMI and IPMA and enhance the global approach to Project Management. Wed, 20 Jul 2011 08:40:45 -0600 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2485 “There have been some changes to the PMBOK® Guide in the Fourth Edition. Since the PMBOK® Guide is an ANSI standard, PMI must assess it every 4-5 years to determine if an update is needed.” (Cyndi Stackpole). “The increasing acceptance of project management indicates that the application of appropriate knowledge processes, skills, tools and techniques can have a significant impact on project success. The PMBOK® Guide indicates that subset of the project management body of knowledge generally recognized as good practice.” (PMBOK® Guide 3rd Edition, 2004) Wed, 20 Jul 2011 08:30:01 -0600 http://www.allpm.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2484 Project managers (PMs) in pursuit of the prestigious Project Management Institute’s (PMI) Project Management Professional (PMP®) credential often think the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) is supposed to be “all and end all”. Credential‑eligible candidates often look for a “cookbook”, i.e. step‑by‑step approach to earning the credential. Wed, 20 Jul 2011 08:23:50 -0600