Great Practices

In this episode of Great Practices, I’m talking with Bill VanCuren, a highly experienced executive, technology advisor, and former EVP and CIO for NCR Corporation. Bill is going to be discussing the pros and cons of agile vs. waterfall and the benefits of moving towards a more product-centric model. You’ll find out the steps necessary to move from Agile to Product methodologies, some common mistakes that are made (and how to overcome them) as well as an idea of how long such a transition will take.

Plus, find out about Bill’s non-AI generated Technology Leadership Playbook courses and how you can make the most of implementing a product-centric model in your organization.

Want to get in touch with Bill?  

·         LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-vancuren-3a76b61/

·         Website: https://www.bvcadvisorsllc.com/

-or-

·         Register for the Technology Leadership Playbook Certificate

In this episode of Great Practices, I’m talking with Lisa Godwin, global HR and employee relations leader and owner of Powerhouse HR Consulting. Lisa is going to apply her extensive Human Resource and Employee Relations experience to PMOs and Project Managers and discuss the importance of managing conflict within teams, the GROW model for resolving disputes, and great practices for setting expectations and ways you can make sure once conflict is resolved it doesn’t rear its ugly head again.

Plus, find out how by doing ER right (employee relations), you can avoid a trip to the ER (emergency room!) and how laying the proper groundwork up front for conflict resolution will make your life so much easier as a project leader.

Want to get in touch with Lisa?

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisaygodwin/

Email: [email protected] or [email protected] 

In this episode of Great Practices, I’m talking with Melissa Fink, Owner of Franchise Marketing Network. Franchise Marketing Network, you may ask? Yes. Melissa is going to apply her decades of marketing experience to the project management industry and discuss the importance of personal marketing for PMO professionals, 4 strategies you can start using today to keep you top of mind with your stakeholders and potential employers, and what mistakes you can avoid. Plus, find out what your grandmother has to do with the content that you post. And, how doing something uncomfortable (like marketing yourself) becomes easier the more you do it.

Want to get in touch with Melissa?

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissa-fink/

Website: https://www.gofmn.com/

In this episode of Great Practices, I’m talking with Nicole Pietrangelo, a project management consultant who specializes on translating complex business needs and project management methodologies into seamless technological solutions. Listen in as Nicole talks about the differences between Project Management and PPM tools, the symptoms that you need one or the other, and the process for choosing the right tool (hint: it starts with just one question). Nicole also covers the non-negotiables and nice-to-haves when it comes to features and helps us avoid the common mistakes she’s seen over the years. Plus, we’ll put to rest the age-old question “Is Excel a real project management tool?”

Want to get in touch with Nicole? 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicole-pietrangelo/

In this episode of Great Practices, I’m talking with Bill Clark, Senior Business Intelligence Analyst and avid data analysis practitioner. Listen in as Bill talks about his definition of a dashboard, what must be on every dashboard, how to start the process of putting a dashboard together, and what pitfalls you need to make sure to avoid. Bill also uncovers some simple methods to determine if your dashboard is doing the trick (or not) Plus, you’ll discover what Sesame Street has to do with your dashboard is laid out…and, he introduces the concept of a data ink ratio. Do you know what yours is?

In this episode of Great Practices, I’m talking with Tom Clement, Global Vice President of Sales with OpenText. Listen in as our first repeat guest (back by popular demand, of course) talks about how the Internet of Things (or IOT) projects are transforming the Project Management and PMO landscape. You’ll discover how companies are implementing and benefitting from IoT projects, the challenges it brings to the PMO and project management profession, and 4 areas you need to make sure you are proficient in to successfully ride this wave.

Plus, uncover the one skill you need as a Project Manager or PMO Leader to ensure you can successfully ride this next wave of projects without falling off the board and getting washed out.

Want to get in touch with Tom?

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ptcii/

In this episode of Great Practices, I’m talking with Melvin Phan, the Founder and CEO of JJPH – a Program and Project Management Service Company in Sydney, Australia. Listen in as Melvin talks about how to recover distressed projects. Learn some of the signs and symptoms of projects that are in trouble…before it’s too late. And, if it is too late, you’ll also discover how to get projects back on track by creating quick wins and rebuilding trust.

Plus, find out what canaries and coalmines have to do with troubled projects, as well as a harrowing story of how Melvin and his family ended up in Australia from Vietnam.

Want to get in touch with Melvin?  

In this episode of Great Practices, I’m talking with Neha Shingane, a Social Impact consultant who is passionate about inclusion and storytelling. Today, we’re going to focus on the storytelling side of things and how this can be applied in a PMO and Project Management environment. We’ll find out what a story is, and what it’s not, and why it’s more important than ever to be able to tell stories effectively. Neha also discusses different scenarios where stories can be used, the steps necessary to put an effective story together and what traps to avoid.

Plus, find out the meaning of a cool new world (the word is miasma) and how this fits perfectly into the need to tell great stories.

Connect with Neha on LinkedIn  

In this episode of Great Practices, I’m talking with Mark Wyssbrod, CPA turned principal NetSuite Consultant about the symptoms, challenges, and successes of making a change if you feel like you’re stuck in a rut. Learn the startling statistics of how many people like (or don’t like) their jobs, an equation of professional happiness he’s calculated out over the years, and why you’ll never be starting from scratch if you decide to do something new. Plus, find out what the entrepreneurial spirit has to do with navigating change and transition and how choosing between red and blue will produce…green.

Want to get in touch with Mark?

In this episode of Great Practices, I’m talking with Rich Maltzman and Jim Stewart, co-authors of the book Great Meetings Build Great Teams. We’ll discuss why meetings are such an important part of building a strong project team, the benefits of doing them well and the consequences of doing them poorly. You’ll also find out what Kano Design Theory (very interesting, by the way) has to do with people expecting more and more out of your meetings and what you can make sure to deliver.

Plus, find out what it means to be “large and in charge” and understand what poor driving habits have to do with understanding bad behaviors in meetings.

Want to get in touch with Rich and Jim?