Project Management

Retrospectives, when run effectively, are an invaluable tool for an agile team. However, these meetings can get stale and tiring if you have one every ten days or if you’re on the same project for multiple years. Keeping your team engaged is key for gathering feedback that you can use to improve moving forward. Here […]

The Road to Managing Corporate Innovation I started out at an ad agency in southern Indiana in 2002. Our clients were interested in technology and our agency helped them find their way. At the same time, I was building the web development and digital strategy team within the agency. We began doing things intentionally with […]

I like to look at projects as if they are puzzles. All the pieces are established, but as a project manager, you must figure out the most appropriate and logical sequence to complete the bigger picture. An Iteration Plan is a helpful tool that can help to organize and visualize the sequence of work. In […]

Reap the Benefits of Making Design an Integrated Part of Your Project If your project requires major design inputs, such as in a new implementation or a site re-design, making sure the design effort is synchronized with the development effort is one of the keys to success. The benefit of tight coordination between design and […]

Have you ever suddenly found that a person you depend on for a project is out on vacation? No matter your role on a team, a mitigation plan can be an ideal way to capture your expectations when it is your turn to take vacation. Your plan can provide guidance for how to handle certain scenarios, […]

Project go-lives can be intense and take hours or even days. Following a detailed plan can streamline your go-live to help avoid a rollback and allow everyone to shut their computers as quickly as possible. Let’s discuss how to create a solid Cutover Plan to set yourself up for success.  Why a Cutover Plan?  First, the […]

Most are familiar with the Five Ws for information gathering: Who, What, When, Where, and Why – adding in How for good measure (making it the Six Ws). Fewer are aware of the Five Whys which is a simplistic method of root cause analysis (RCA). This article explains the Five Whys, also known as a […]

Software delivery projects are most often organized into “Sprints” of work where the team is executing in what can feel like a never-ending loop of plan, execute, demo, repeat. This non-stop, fast-paced cycle leaves little breathing room for reflecting on or implementing unplanned improvements or technical debt which the team is bound to accumulate through […]

Goal Setting Options Abound There are many ways that businesses set goals, choose priorities, and ensure that their teams are rowing in the same direction. You’ve probably created SMART goals, been asked to use OKRs, watched KPIs, laid out Vision Boards, or updated Kanban Boards. These are all great tools to help keep team alignment. […]

Imagine you’re running a marathon – you’ve trained hard, your pace is great, and you’re feeling good. Finally, after many miles, you spot the finish line. Is that when you pump the brakes and lose focus? Of course not! You’d keep pushing through to the very end – you’ve come this far, you’re way too […]

Communication is the key to solving problems. Being an active listener is very different from ordinary interactions, and it’s an important skill for all leaders. Knowing how to listen to the people who turn to you in need will improve your bonds and increase a team’s productivity. Listening is not the passive act we usually […]

Have you ever said, “We should do this,” …and then you don’t? That is a lack of intentionality. Being Intentional Comes Easy to Some, Hard for Others The differences in people are beautiful – life would be boring otherwise. If you’ve read results from a personality test, you know each personality has its benefits (things […]