It's about building solid relationships

“Great works and great folly may be indistinguishable at the outset.” That is one of the quotes from Dr. Adam Steltzner that has stuck with me from Project World 2014. He was talking about coming up with a radical idea for a Mars rover landing using the "sky crane" and his team was thinking outside the box to come up with a solution with tight tolerances and no room for failure.

I was thinking about the many things I had learned while attending the 3 day event and trying to find ways to change my approach to teaming. I belong to an organization that is dependent on our partners to help deliver to the customer. Sometimes our projects fall flat because we didn’t build the essential
relationships that would have led each of our teams to cooperate and succeed in delivering to the
customer.



Dr. Steltzner used his example of taking people from different locations that had a competitive
relationship and changed that into one of cooperation. He had 7000 people from 36 countries over
a span of 10 years to meet their business goals. They couldn’t have succeeded without building
relationships. Certainly, this required a lot of effort. They would fly to different locations to meet face
to face if that was an option instead of having a virtual meeting. They would have to be willing to have their ideas figuratively torn to pieces because ideas win, not people.

The corporation exists in the human capital. Keeping that in mind I will be finding ways to appreciate the people that I partner with so we can begin growing our pie instead of fighting over the pieces.

Friday Flicks: What The Jargon?

Sometimes the project management and business analysis world can feel like wading through an endless stream of jargon, especially for a newcomer. PM, PPM, IIBA, WBS, Gantt, PMBoK, Kanban and so on. Add in our twitter hashtags like #PMOT and #PMChat and you have another level of complexity. Yet we're always focusing on ways to improve communication, doesn't this jargon get in the way?

Well yes, I imagine sometimes it does, and for someone new to the field it may seem an insurmountable challenge to also learn a new language to go with your new skills, but one value that this language creates is that it allows for less ambiguity. Having widely agreed upon project management-specific words codified helps the process by putting team members on the same page. When you're on a tight deadline the last thing you want is to be tripped by up unnecessary misunderstandings. Take our piece last week on scrum meetings: one of the real benefits of the strict structure of a scrum meeting is that it is dictated how this meeting will go: no getting caught up in side conversations or derailed by interpersonal issues allowed.

Still feeling a bit lost? This week's video pick might help, in this video Jennifer Whit, Director of ProjectManager.com explains her Top 10 Terms Used By Project Managers. Check it out:

Do you struggle with jargon, or do you find that it helps understanding? Let us know.

Michelle LeBlanc is a Social Media Strategist at IIR USA and the voice behind the @Project_World twitter. She may be reached at mleblanc@iirusa.com

PM Insights: Communication Concerns

Over the next few weeks here on the Project World blog we're going to be featuring some of the insights shared at the 2011 Your Space session at the ProjectWorld® & World Congress for Business Analysts® event.

A repeat favorite, Your Space offers PW&WCBA attendees a chance to debrief on topics covered, come up actionable plans for their return to the office and share in the collective knowledge and expertise of other PW&WCBA attendees and speakers


 This week's topic comes from Table 6: Communication—between all groups 

So many projects are delayed or break down altogether due to miscommunications. Why is this?

Our team at Table 6 identified some common causes of communication breakdown, including:
- Silos: Left hand is unaware of what the right hand is doing 
- Over use of acronyms and terminology 
- Overlooking a communication need
- Problems with information data source and usability

As well as some steps towards improving communication:
- At the start of your project, identify your communication timing and details (how much/when)
- Find the appropriate use of technology and human touch for your stakeholders
- Remember the cost of not getting it right the first time
- Lead by example:
         - Define goals and set communication strategy. Ownership- Buy In continuous communication
         - Customize delivery approach and audience (explain how and why)
         - Train your team and direct to info source. Provide responsible leadership on usability
         - Use accountability, agreements and commitment
         - Encouragement, websites, develop, sharepoints, generic, servers, guidelines, byu in, WITFM,
           Support stories
- Use a stakeholder roster, org charts, or a communication tree

What would you add? What are your best practices for communication?

Michelle LeBlanc is a Social Media Strategist at IIR USA and the voice behind the @Project_World twitter. She may be reached at mleblanc@iirusa.com

Holidays Happier with Project Management?

With the holiday season fully upon us, I have to wonder, how many of our readers find themselves putting their project management skills to use for personal projects?

Be it planning your gift choices or organizing a holiday party, there are many moments during this busy season when those skills can come in handy. For example, do you find yourself identifying your holiday requirements say, sometime around Thanksgiving? What about having a daily scrum over breakfast with family members ("Yesterday I purchased stamps, today I'll be writing and addressing cards.")? Certainly project cost estimating and cost management skills can be extremely useful during this period and New Year's resolutions look a lot like retrospectives to me.

This post on Project Management Essentials links to a more in-depth exploration of this concept, with diagrams and all!

So, do you project manage your holidays? Or does the idea seem too cold to you, and you would rather use this time as an opportunity to relax and let go of the reins? Share with us in the comments and happy holidays to all of our readers here on the ProjectWorld® & World Congress for Business Analysts® blog!

Michelle LeBlanc is a Social Media Strategist at IIR USA and the voice behind the @Project_World twitter. She may be reached at mleblanc@iirusa.com

Project Management Software Embracing Social?

In the last issue of ProjectNews, our post visited on the ways in which a successful project manager communicates with their team. Do you email, text, or call? Do you prefer in person meetings? Do you rely on a project management software to document communication and tasks?

I put the question to our LinkedIn group and also posted on Quora to get some more opinions on the subject. Many who weighed in agreed that their is a certain level (over three emails?) where in-person or phone communication is necessary. However, there is also the sentiment that written communication using email or a portal provides back-up documentation of the process, tasks assigned and decisions made.

With this in mind, I was interested to read about the recent integration of CA Technologies Inc.’s project and portfolio management (PPM) software with Salesforce.com’s Chatter collaboration tool.

As reported in IT World Canada, this integration may help with the adoption levels of PPM software, and allow more stakeholders to view project progress. Ken Jochims, senior product marketing manager for PPM software at CA Technologies reasoned that "the integration means non-PPM users, such as stakeholders who are not part of the project team, can also monitor the project’s progression." Brian Bell, CA's general manager of service and portfolio management was quoted in this piece on enterprise APPS today as saying "Integrating Chatter with our PPM solution helps manage collaboration across the innovation life-cycle."

Similarly, this article in The Brainyard explored the evolution of Liquid Planner 3.0 and Mendix's Sprintr specifically and the rise of social streams as part of project management software in general.

Regarding Sprintr, a tool built around agile development concepts, the following feature sounds particularly useful "More specific modules like a tool for creating project "stories" (a technique for gathering requirements) also have a wall-like feel to them, including the ability to make comments on stories and sub-stories." Sprintr is currently only available in private beta, but it will be interesting to see the tool on its full launch.

Are you using any sort of social-style tools to manage projects? Do you find traditional project management tools to clunky for agile projects? Share with us in the comments, or go social and join the discussion on our LinkedIn group or twitter @Project_World.

If you're interested in learning more about social-style collaboration for project management, consider checking out our track on "The New Era of Social Communication,
Leadership & Collaboration" at this fall's PWWCBA conference. To learn more about this track, and the conference, download the brochure. Save 15% off the standard registration rate as a reader of our blog with code PW11BLOG.

Michelle LeBlanc is a Social Media Strategist at IIR USA with a specialization in marketing. She may be reached at mleblanc@iirusa.com.

ProjectNews - Keep it Simple to be Successful

I remember when Air Mail was the only option for sending mail quickly. Today, we communicate with a few keystrokes and the push of a button. Digital communication, such as email, instant messaging and texting allow us to stay connected and get things done quickly. But do communication devices help or hinder our business relationships?

Today's business landscape requires us to communicate with team members and business partners who are spread across town, the country, or around the world, raising new challenges for maintaining healthy, productive relationships.

Here are four simple email practices to keep virtual relationships focused and productive:

1. Be Concise. Do not make the message longer than it needs to be. Keep to the 1-minute rule. If your reader can't get through your message in 60 seconds, you are likely to lose his or her attention.

2. Deliver Quality. Use proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation; errors will discredit you in a heartbeat.

3. Use Structure. Since reading from a screen (and especially a tiny device) is more difficult than reading from paper, structure is very important. Use succinct sentences and short paragraphs.

4. Be Emotionally Clear. Email does not convey emotions as well as face-to-face or telephone interactions. Are you serious, kidding, frustrated, or euphoric? Always re-read your email before hitting the "send" button to make sure it represents your tone.

Need to capture someone's attention immediately? Send a text message. It commands attention and produces results. Texting is the only way I get the attention of my teenagers these days - imagine the possibilities in business!

Keep it simple to be successful.

Now its time for you to join the conversation - Share your ideas, suggestion and thoughts on what the successful project manager looks like on our LIVE discussion on LinkedIn.

Contributor: Lisa DiTullio (Lisa DiTullio & Associates)

If you have not yet subscribed to our complimentary ProjectNews newsletter, please click on the following link to subscribe: http://www.iirusa.com/optin. To catch up on old issues, or learn more about our PWWCBA conference, click here.

Special ProjectWorld & WCBA 2010 Registration Offer for IT Portfolio Managers

There's less than one month until ProjectWorld® &World Congress for Business Analysts® - have you signed up yet?


Special Offer for Past IT Portfolio Management Conference Attendees!

Receive a complimentary copy of Susan Cramm's 8 Things We Hate About I.T.: How to Move Beyond the Frustrations to Form a New Partnership with I.T. when you register with code ITPM2010.

Register Today


With 2 pre-conference summits, 3 full day workshops, over 45 sessions and 40+ speakers, it's the most comprehensive event covering all of your project management needs. PW&WCBA gives you the knowledge, skills and insights you need for project success. Plus, earn up to 36 PDUs in just one conference package!

Sessions that may be of interest to you include:
• Just In Time Project Management: From Paper to Paperless EHR in 8 Weeks
Samuel W. McDowell, Ph.D., Director, Program Implementation, Vermont Information Technology Leaders
• The Future of IT Isn't What it Used to Be
Susan Cramm, Acclaimed IT Leadership Coach, President, ValueDance, HBR Blogger, Author, 8 Things We Hate About I.T.
• IT Leadership Panel: The Skills You Need to Advance Your Career
David King, Chief Information Officer, WellDyneRX
John McGuthry, Chief Information Officer, Armstrong Atlantic State University
• Cloud Risks: Managing the Risks and Rewards of Cloud Computing
Drew Bartkiewicz, VP, Cyber and Technology Liability, The Hartford

Download the brochure for the complete agenda and session details.

The industry's leading companies will be attending- don't get left behind- gain the skills, insights and techniques you need to be more valuable to yourself and your organization.

We hope to see you in Orlando this November!


PS: Sponsorship & Exhibition Opportunities Available - Please contact Jon Saxe at jsaxe@iirusa.com or or call 646.895.7467

Resolving conflicts within your team

No matter the project size, when the going gets rough, conflicts seem to rear their ugly heads. As a Project Manager, its your responsibility to ensure that the projects get through on time and on budget, and sometimes the only barriers to this success is your team. Blame egos, blame bad reporting structures, blame whatever you'd like - conflicts are unavoidable. Thankfully, we have a reminder today on how to resolve these conflicts with Gina Abudi of ProjectSmart.co.uk. Abudi writes, that a great starting point is to sit down with the team members and listen to their complaints.

Check out Abudi's outline for the discussion:

Schedule a first meeting with the individuals who are having the conflict to discuss:

• What is (are) the issue(s)? Get it all out on the table - let them vent.
• What are their perspectives?
• Work with the parties to develop criteria for solutions to their conflict.
• Ask them to think about what they can do to get past the issue, or put it aside, based on the criteria for resolution they agreed to, in order to move forward with working together. What alternatives exist? This should happen overnight - let them sleep on it.

Abudi offers that subsequent meetings may be needed in order to resolve this conflict within your team. Be sure to check out the article for details.

Resolving Project Team Conflicts

How do you handle conflicts within your team? Let us know on Twitter @Project_World

Improving meetings when you're not in charge

EstherDerby.com's recent post, "How to Improve a Meeting When You're Not in Charge" is a helpful list of ways that you can improve a meeting even before you accept the invitation in your Outlook.

Here are a few of our favorites:

Ask for an Agenda Ahead of Time
When you receive a meeting notice, ask for an agenda. Make your request in the spirit of the best use of everyone’s time: “Knowing the agenda will help me come prepared to participate.” You can also say, “Knowing the purpose of the meeting will help me determine whether I can contribute.”

Facilitate from Where You Sit
A well-timed question or comment has saved many a meeting. Here’s a sampling of tactics that I use to facilitate from the back of the room. One word of caution about facilitating from the back of the room: Do this only if you genuinely want to be helpful. If you’re feeling snide, it will come across in your voice.

Help Others Participate
You can help the meeting when you help others participate. If you see a quiet person trying unsuccessfully to break into the conversation, say “I think Jennifer has something to say.” Don’t force her to speak, but make an opening if she wants to take it. You can also help when a speaker is interrupted: “I think we may have cut Josh off before he had a chance to finish. Josh?” Then Josh can finish his though if he wants to, and the interrupters will be a bit more aware of their behavior.

The article offers a number of other ways that you can help a meeting to be a success and ensure that you're work doesn't pile up at your desk. Check the article and pass it along - this may be a new era for meetings.

What other tips do you have for improving a meeting? DM us @Project_World

ProjectNews August Edition: Creating a Rescue Plan in Chile

August Challenge:
Rescuing the Chilean Miners

Each month we will present you with a HOT TOPIC CHALLENGE that will generate real-time discussion within the PW&WCBA community LIVE via the Discussion Module in our LinkedIn Group.

We'd then like YOU (the ProjectNews Community) to talk about, criticize, share and develop suggestions and improvements with your peers based on each monthly challenge. If you are interested in participating or would just like to hear what others are saying - join the conversation.

August Challenge:
How will Chile's national copper company, Corporación Nacional del Cobre, work to remove the 33 trapped miners from the mine?

Stakeholders:
Chilean government civil-defense and mining specialists, other government officials, Corporación Nacional del Cobre, Cia. Minera San Esteban Primera (the mine operator), rescue workers, drilling engineers

Topic for Discussion:
33 miners, trapped a half a mile underground in a San José mine since August 5, are still alive and currently waiting to be rescued. They are currently communicating and receiving nourishment through two holes drilled by rescuers. The miners themselves seem to be in good health and have hope to be extracted. The rescue effort is an ongoing process and is expected to last months.

There are many factors that need to be taken into consideration before attempting to extract the workers from the mine. Because the mine is an unstable environment there are far more risks that need to be analyzed and execution of this project must be done carefully to have all the men removed safely. Project factors that need to be evaluated include equipment to be used by rescuers, conditions of the mine, safety and health of the trapped miners and the rescue workers.

For the full story on the trapped miners in Chile, click here.

Now It's Your Turn:
If you were in charge of rescuing a group ,
• What factors would you consider before starting?
• Who would need to be involved in the process?
• How would you organize operation of this project?
• What steps would you take to try and prevent similar accidents from happening in the future?

Now its time for you to join the conversation -
Share your ideas, suggestions and thoughts on our LIVE discussion on LinkedIn.

Conclusions based on the articles, "Chile Prepares for Long Rescue Effort" from The Wall Street Journal..
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Your contributions are welcome!
We are always interested in hearing about new best practices, case studies or lessons learned. If you are interested in sharing your story in the next ProjectNews, please submit your ideas here.
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"What we've got here is a failure to communicate."

Your project's success will depend heavily on stakeholder communication. Though we can't all be as smooth as Paul Newman in Cool Hand Luke, we can avoid project failures by simply implementing a communication strategy. Technology News writes, that as Project Manager, it is your job to keep a number of people well-informed. It is essential that your project staff know what is expected of them: what they have to do, when they have to do it, and what budget and time constraints and quality specification they are working towards.

It is also your job to keep the Project Board informed of project progress. The Project Board usually includes the Executive (person ultimately responsible for the project), and representatives from the User and the Supplier.

What communication fails have you experienced? What advice can you give to new project managers in the art of communication? DM us on Twitter with your tips @project_world

Learn more: The Importance of Communication in Project Management