The Cranky Middle Manager Show #312 The Future of the MBA Ken Starkey
The Cranky Middle Manager Show #012 Decisions, Decisions
Posted on 25. Aug, 2005 by Wayne in Podcast
The Cranky Middle Manager Show #012
Hello everyone. Thanks for coming back for more of the Cranky Middle Manager Show.
0:00 A big challenge for us all is making good decisions. It was easier when we were the ones “doing the work” instead of managing. Now the stakes are higher but we have less firsthand knowledge. What do we do about it? And let’s face it, every manager longs for the days of yore, when we just had to do whatever we were good at and let someone else take the heat. Plus at least one good tip for dealing with the Head Sales Weasel…
1:35 Our quote of the week… Change happens, according to Marcus Aurelius. Makes more sense than worrying about those stupid mice in “Who Moved My Cheese…”
3:25 Welcome our guest Rick Wells of Business Processes Inc. He talks about having to make decisions with too much data and none of it first hand.
6:29 Making the move to management- it would be so much simpler if it weren’t for the other people.
8:41 Decisions made for the wrong reasons are as bad as bad decisions…here’s an example.
13:00 How being good at your old job can mess up your decisions now.
21:30 How people problems differ from systems problems…. machines are easier
27:30 I stump Rick. Didn’t mean to, but he makes it up. He got back to us with a list of resources:
The Goal by Eli Goldratt - a business novel following how a plant manager saves his job and his plant by thinking differently and acting on his new insights.
Also by Goldratt, Critical Chain – a business novel applying the concepts from The Goal to projects.
TeamWork (What must go right / What can go wrong) by Larson & LaFasto - identifies the 8 critical success factors to high performing teams based on a three-year study.
Executive Leadership A Practical Guide To Managing Complexity by Elliott Jaques & Stephen D. Clement – very clear thinking about authority and accountability.
Basic Economics by Thomas Sowell – great introduction to cause-effect thinking and thinking traps while discussing issues of economics. No charts in the book and no jargon.
Any book by Robert Fritz
Just a quick mention of a podcast that I became part of by sending an email. Heidi Miller does a show called “Diary of a Shameless Self Promoter”. In her latest show she talks about an email I sent her and then follows up with some research I wish I’d done! It debunks the old myth that only 7% of your message’s impact is because of the content.
That’s it for this week’s show. I’m going to be out of touch for about 2 weeks, but I’ll return. Please post, subscribe and tell your friends.
Wayne
The Cranky Middle Manager Show #011
Posted on 18. Aug, 2005 by Wayne in Podcast
The Cranky Middle Manager Show #011
Project Management with Dave Po-Chedley
Welcome to another Cranky Middle Manager Show. Today’s obsession is project management, and we’re talking to the guru of No Bull Project Management, Dave Po-Chedley.
0:00 Welcome to the show. Project management is not just Gantt charts, timelines and critical paths. It’s about communication. I’m obsessed with the study that 60% of IT projects fail because of bad communication. Since 80% of IT projects are communication installations that just drips with irony so I figured I’d talk to someone smarter than me.
2:50 The quote of the week is from Seneca- the politician not the city. Project planning is a complete drag and only slightly more fun than “Take a Fire Ant Home In Your Shorts Week” but how else are you gonna get where you’re going?
3:45 Welcome Dave Po-Chedley of Cambridge Consulting…
5:25 4 words you don’t want to hear… “oh by the way…”
10:50 What’s the balance between systemic problems and communication problems? Don’t run out and buy Microsoft office just yet.
13:30 What are the competencies a manager needs to have? It involves finding and feeding gorillas, believe it or not…
19:30 To certify or not to certify…
28:00 Resources…take a look at these:
Project Management Links
the Project Management Institute
What is PMBOK and why do I care?
and if you’re in the UK you might be interested in the Association For Project Management
29:00 Before you run out and buy project management software…
33:00 Dave talks about the importance of getting executive support. I’m going to be leading a web seminar on “Influencing Upstream- Mastering the Science of Persuasion”. Wanna listen in?
Thanks for listening to the Cranky Middle Manager. If you know training departments or companies that are willing to put a link on their intranet, drop the guys at The Podcast Network a line.
Hey, catch me at my day job….
Posted on 13. Aug, 2005 by Wayne in General
Hey, if any of you are interested in finding out what I do for a day job as a middle manager at Communispond, I’ll be leading a webinar on “influencing upwards” (read, getting on the boss’s agenda) on August 30.
It’s called “Persuading Upstream- Mastering the Science of Persuasion”.You can find out more details here….
I’d love to hear what you think.
Keeping the weasels at bay for now…..
Wayne
The Cranky Middle Manager Show #010
Posted on 11. Aug, 2005 by Wayne in Podcast
The Cranky Middle Manager Show #010
Welcome to The Cranky Middle Manger, everybody. This week it’s about Practical Leadership
0:00 The Quote of the Week from Georg Brandes- adding new meaning to the word Stale Danish. Lead but not so far that nobody can follow you. It’s designed to help you with those “Wile E Coyote” moments…and we all have them. I’ve copyrighted the idea for the “yikes” sign, don’t even think about it.
1:56 Promo for Matt, Freak and the Fat Boy… you’ve been warned. The things I do for the TPN family….
3:25 Welcome Jim Clemmer of Practical Leadership
5:45 The difference between Management and Leadership. Here’s the link to his email newsletter which is pretty good, check it out…
8:00 The email vortex and how it leads to micromanagement.
12:38 I’d rather hear that promo again than hear that we need more meetings. Is this guy nuts?
16:00 Have you lost the “leader lottery”?
21:18 The concept of “Leading from the middle of the pack” was NOT created by a Canadian, we know that much.
24:00 2 things to work on- Process Management and being engaged with your team…as opposed to being engaged TO your team, which I’m pretty sure is a violation of HR policy.
Who would you like to hear interviewed on the show? Do you know anyone who’s an expert on managing in Asia, particularly China? Do you just want to chew me out without incriminating yourself? Drop me an email .
Also, check out my website at www.achismarketing.com to get a look at my book, a Philistine’s Journal- an Average Guy Tackles the Classics.