The Cranky Middle Manager Show #311 Serial Innovators Claudio Feser
The Cranky Middle Manager Show# 254 Deasun Oconchuir Overview of PMBOK
Posted on 25. Sep, 2010 by Wayne in General, Podcast
Today we are joined once again by Deasun Oconchuir to discuss Project Management, in particular how it’s changed over the years,and whether you need to get PMI Certification or not. He literally wrote the book on the subject. We also talk Russian hackers and Friedrich Nietzche. Yeah, I’m in that kind of mood today.
2 new webinar workshops this month!
How to Create and Manage Remote Teams October 22
If you have questions about these workshops, group discounts or any Greatwebmeetings.com training program, contact me.
Get the schedule for the rest of 2010 by clicking here.
Show Notes
0:00 Welcome once again to the show. Project Management is one of our Four Disciplines of Highly Effective, Leadership Exhibiting, Project Nailing, Cheese Moving Managers, and a critical skill. Do you need to be fully certified, though? How has project management changed, especially internationally? Oh, and we dedicate this show to the Russian hackers who have been screwing up my life lately. I speak some Russian, get your father to tell you what it means.
3:13 The quote of the week is from Friedrich Nietzsche (and project management is all about constrained pessimism). You won’t learn everything before you start, but at least you’ll know it for next time.
3:54 Welcome Deasun Oconchuir back to the show. (You can hear his last interview with us here). He’s written a new overview of the PMBOK guide. Yeah there’s a book and a test, but it’s still left to your judgment. Enjoy that. What’s changed over the years? One is there were no standards before, and second was everyone felt like they were on their own. You’re not alone any more.
7:40 Things used to be done to completion then handed off. Now,thanks to technology, you can do things in iteration to check quality and assumptions. This is mostly a good thing, even when it’s annoying and seems like busy work.
10:30 Empowerment is one thing, but the role of a PM has changed. You are now responsible for the project, and that includes the people working on it.
13:00 When does PMP certification make sense for managers? If you’re working in an international environment, certification allows for a “universal language” that everyone working on the project can understand. At least that’s the theory.
16:00 If you manage projects all in one place with people who answer to you, you’re rarer than Panda poop. This matrixed organization makes it tough. According to Deasun’s research, there isn’t a single project at IBM where everyone works in the same room at the same time. It’s about “who can do it”?
18:46 How do PMs work with the boss of your teammates? You need to check alignment of the work environment. If there’s a problem, go through the sponsor of your project.
20:40 No big surprise,the hardest thing about project management is the people involved. Education and even PMBOK are now better at teaching this than it used to be back in the day. Oh,and it might be in many languages,because it was so easy before.
The Cranky Middle Manager #253 New Tech Trends For Managers Bess and Simon
Posted on 17. Sep, 2010 by Wayne in Podcast
Today we talk tech trends with HP Fellow Charlie Bess, who’s been with us before, and Phil Simon. Phil is the author of The New Small and talks about what small businesses know that managers even in big companies should pay attention to. Oh andwe talk about an innovative but failed weapons manufacturer and the creator of Frankenstein. Sounds about right.
2 new webinar workshops this month!
How to Create and Manage Remote Teams September 24
Web Presentation Basics- for those who have to present online and want to learn how not to suck at it on September 26 and 29
If you have questions about these workshops, group discounts or any Greatwebmeetings.com training program, contact me.
Get the schedule for the rest of 2010 by clicking here.
Show Notes
0:00 Welcome to the show. We dedicate this episode to James Puckle, inventor of the Puckle gun. 2 lessons learned: 1) documentation is the path to credibility 2) customization won’t get you the deal if your product sucks to start with you wind up with a custom product that still sucks.
3:58 The quote of the week is from Mary Wolstencroft Shelly. Invention doesn’t come out of a void, it usually comes when you’re trying to make sense of the chaos. Sounds like as good a description of this show as any…..
5:00 Welcome Charlie Bess back to the show (you can hear an earlier conversation with him here) along with Phil Simon. They’re here to discuss new technology trends that will make or break us managers. Things like Software as a Service (SaaS), Open Source, Cloud, Mobility and Social Media/Networks. Apparently the big trend will be edge computing, as well as data management. Mobility will replace the desktop if it hasn’t already. Is lack of data really the problem for most of us?
8:45 Pattern recognition will be a big deal- something needs to identify when a person needs to be involved and when can you just let the computer handle it? Collaboration is going to be a much bigger deal as well and there’s no one right way. It’s going to be our challenge to identify HOW to respond to a piece of information (as in which tool) as it is what your response should be.
12:45 Do large and small companies work differently from each other? Well, they have the budget to actually get together for a while. One thing HP is doing is alot more video conferencing. What’s the middle ground between big Cisco type holodecks or down and dirty Skype? What’s emerging as the compromise?
15:50 Small companies are much better at jumping into technology because they can jump out earlier. Why do so many big projects fail? Politics, resentment, lots of reasons that have nothing to do with whether something works. It’s easier if you’re not tied into a 5-year license to call it quits. Perfection is the enemy of the good.
18:55 One paradox of technology- oftenwhat you buy it for is not what you use it for. Charlie walks us through an example of webinars and webmeetings- they have to become different than live presentations to be effective.
20:00 It’s very easy to rag on big companies but what do larger companies do well when it comes to technology? For one thing they can actually budget and plan to complete projects with a longer view. Smaller companies tend to focus on immediate ROI.
21:30 What is the bare minimum technology that managers need to function? Mobility is key. Some form of instant messaging is critical. PLEASE NOTE: EMAIL IS NOT A SYNCHRONOUS TOOL!
24:00 The consumerization of IT is a huge issue for companies and small companies do it better than large ones. The biggest complaint is the dreaded VPN. Overcoming security concerns is the biggest hurdle you’ll have to overcome.
28:36 What’s are some of the best practices for getting people to use technology. Phil says, don’t put a square peg in a round hole. Short-term agreementsare better than multi-year licenses.Be prepared to bail on what doesnt’ work. Charlie points out that you need to have company-wide expectations that people will use tools- wisely or not you need to be able to point out what should be happening.
Resources
Charlie’s Next Big Thing blog at HP
Phil’s Book: The New Small (it’s not at Amazon yet)
The Cranky Middle Manager Show #252 Getting To the Top Kathryn Ullrich
Posted on 10. Sep, 2010 by Wayne in Podcast
Today Wayne Turmel talks to Kathryn Ullrich about her book “Getting to the Top- Strategies for Career Success”. She’s a very smart person and heads up alumni career services at UCLA so she works with people way smarter than me. We also discuss Korean generals who decide to become admirals and quote Oscar Wilde. Just another day in the Cranky salt mines.
2 new webinar workshops this month!
How to Create and Manage Remote Teams September 24
Web Presentation Basics- for those who have to present online and want to learn how not to suck at it on September 26 and 29
If you have questions about these workshops, group discounts or any Greatwebmeetings.com training program, contact me.
Get the schedule for the rest of 2010 by clicking here.
Show Notes
o:00 Welcome to the show, kids. One of the 4 Disciplines of Highly Effective, Leadership Exhibiting, Project Nailing, Cheese Moving Managers is Business Acument, that includes career savvy. We present today’s case study, Admiral Yi Sun-sin of the Korean navy. Sometimes a lateral move is the right move, especially when you have no choice in the matter.
Don’t forget to click the link and check out the PDUCast, we love our sponsors!
3:55 The quote of the week is from Oscar Wilde. Experience is another word for mistakes huh? Better intentional ones than unexpected ones, I say.
4:51 Welcome our guest Kathryn Ullrich to the show. A lot of us have gotten where we are by accident. Also, “the top” is hard to define. What’s the biggest challenge people have with career planning? Most of us have “career by happenstance”.
7:00 How do you know when to stay the course with your dream and when it legitimately needs to change? It all starts with “do you like what you’re doing or do you hate it?”. What are the key questions you need to ask yourself? It depends on your skills, values and interests.
10:33 Kathryn gives us an example of an engineer making some conscious choices. Sometimes you can get promoted into a job that’s entirely wrong for you. Moving from “rewarded for doing” to “rewarded for getting it done” is a huge step. Communication skills and delegation are core skills.
13:00 When do you know you’ve taken a wrong promotion and how do you make a change that doesn’t kill your career? You have to figure out where you want to go long term, not just right now. Seek out mentors and role models in those areas you need to develop. Take classes (like webinar workshops for example…)
16:00 To really get to “the top” of an organization you will have to do sales at some point, and early in your career is better (the stakes are lower). Kathryn gives us some good examples of people moving out of their comfort zones. Still, our moves impact other people like spouses and families.
19:45 Does working remotely negatively impact your career? Can you still have a great career when you don’t work at headquarters? Get in front of important people, either be willing to travel or take high-profile projects that get you noticed. Relationships matter. Some of those internal projects are more crucial than you think.
24:00 What skills do most people need to develop? They fall into 5 buckets (strategic vision, customer perspective, communication skills, team leadership and master functional skills). How do you communicate and how is it perceived by others? Take some kind of assessment. Here’s a silly article about my own assessment.
Kathryn’s Resources
The Cranky Middle Manager Show #251 The One Minute Negotiator- George Lucas
Posted on 02. Sep, 2010 by Wayne in General, Podcast
Today Wayne Turmel talks to Dr. George Lucas about the role of negotiation in being a manager. Oh sure, you might not be a sales weasel, but if you need resources from another department, that’s a negotation. We also look at the Louisiana Purchase, quote Adam Smith and welcome The PDUcast as a sponsor.
Welcome George Lucas, co-author of The One Minute Negotiator to the show.
2 new webinar workshops this month!
How to Create and Manage Remote Teams September 24
Web Presentation Basics- for those who have to present online and want to learn how not to suck at it on September 26 and 29
If you have questions about these workshops, group discounts or any Greatwebmeetings.com training program, contact me.
Get the schedule for the rest of 2010 by clicking here.
Show Notes
0:00 Welcome to the 251st edition of the show. Today we talk negotiating, which means that our show is dedicated to James Monroe and Robert Livingston, who negotiated the Louisiana Purchase. Trust me, your project team probably doesn’t have nearly as many hidden agendas or egos involved and they pulled it off, so you can too.
2:50 The quote of the week is from Adam Smith, who said that man is basically a bargaining animal. You don’t see dogs swapping bones do ya?
3:30 Welcome George Lucas, co-author of The One Minute Negotiator. We will define it as “the process through which two parties whose initial positions don’t match, work in an effort to reach an agreement. If you’ve ever tried to get extra time from your boss, you’re negotiating.
5:10 Many of us (okay, me) suffer from “Negotiaphobia”…we are terrified to engage in negotiation or just avoid it altogether. There is no one right way to do it. There are 4 styles of negotiation and you need to know how to use each properly: accommodation, avoidance, competition and collaboration. And don’t confuse collaboration with accommodation because you can bleed to death. You can’t accommodate someone who’s competing with you or you’ll be a doormat.
10:00 One of the biggest challenges for negotiaphobes is the concept of power and over/underestimating the balance of power between the parties. I use my landlord as an example.
14:06 You can negotiate with your boss if you know what is non-negotiable and where there’s wiggle room. Listen very carefully to their word choices, and be careful with your own.
17:00 Why are North Americans such lame negotiators? George blames the scanner at the super market. When in doubt, blame the technology I guess. I think this has a lot to do with power…and you can’t negotiate with someone who has no authority.
21:54 The acronym for the One Minute Negotiator is EASY Engage, Assess, Strategize, YOUR One Minute system.
22:55 Good tip: when someone says “of course there’s an extra fee…”. That’s a clue that it’s negotiable. They’re trying to run you over.
George’s Resources