Golden rules of project management

Google translation from Meine goldenen Regeln des Projektmanagements

My golden rules of project management

Hi All,

Recently I have reported in our company intranet on the golden rules of project management.

Each rule, I could not agree more! Stable project team, good planning and controlling, clear structures and authenticity are crucial. I still think it would add a few personal [...]

Quote – Peter Drucker

There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done [...]

My PM blogroll

Several people have asked me how to get on the blogroll. Here is my curmudgeonly view of how that is accomplished:

Ask me

Surely it is not as simple as that? Well, it is, but…I read upwards of 1000 blog posts per day in order to keep up with things (i.e., not just project management). Consequently, I only [...]

Governmental Dead Horses

The tribal wisdom of the Dakota Indians, passed down from generation to generation, says that when you discover that you are riding a dead horse, the best strategy is to dismount.

In the Public Service, however, a whole range of far more advanced strategies are often employed, such as:

Change riders.
Buy a stronger whip.
Do nothing: “This is the [...]

Twitter posts for January 2010

Reading: Project Risk: Is It All Bad? http://bit.ly/bzPhS3 #PMOT
RT @ericfdouglas: Never mistake activity for achievement. #PMOT
RT @califgirl232: Project Certifications Matter..Why? Customers want experienced credentialed PMs | http://bit.ly/5paSYm #PMOT
Reading: Herding Cats: Navy Seals are Project Managers http://bit.ly/aKuq1T #PMOT
Reading: Is Project Management a Core Skill and No Longer a Niche Capability? http://bit.ly/aYzQ2J #PMOT
Reading: AtTask – Successful Project-Based Work [...]

Twitter posts for December 2009

Reading: Certified vs Competent – PM Hut http://bit.ly/57yxh9 #PMOT
Reading: Project Management Certifications Compared- A Preliminary Comparison | pmStudent http://bit.ly/6chCm3 #PMOT
Reading: Weak Matrix Syndrome | Kareem’s Blog http://bit.ly/8EsIfW #PMOT
I’m still upset it’s no longer daily: Best. Gift. Ever. http://bit.ly/7vA8XS
Reading: Project Management Best Practices  » Contribute to the Project Management Knowledge Base http://bit.ly/4UGdOZ #PMOT
Reading: Herding Cats: What is [...]

Twitter posts for November 2009

Reading: Setting and Managing Expectations | Mike Cohn’s Blog – Succeeding With Agile® http://bit.ly/7KBT8v #pmot
Reading: Quote – Harvey Levine http://bit.ly/53pF7j #pmot
Herding Cats: Can this really be true? http://bit.ly/6oZY9m #PMOT
Planning Is Not A Project Life-cycle Phase – PM Hut http://bit.ly/7iuXL3 #PMOT
Leadership Series: Oh, I get it – it’s all about Leadership OR that PMP is not Enough [...]

Why Experts Never Stop Learning

Why Experts Never Stop Learning

Several years ago, we conducted a study analyzing the knowledge of professionals with 15 years or more of experience to those with less than a year of experience. One of the questions we asked was this: “On a scale of 0 to 10, with 0 representing no knowledge at all and [...]

Open Educational Resources

A new Web site, Open Educational Resources Center for California, brings together information on free and open textbooks and course materials in one location. Though the Web site was designed for California’s community-college faculty members, it could be a useful resource for anyone trying to find learning materials in the public domain.

The site links to more [...]

Quote – Derek Huether

Remember, there are two kinds of people – Project Managers, and everyone else who wish they were Project Managers.

From The [...]

STUPID Goals

SMART goals? Nope. How about STUPID goals?

Long ago, Deming warned managers of target setting through his 11th point of leadership: “Eliminate numerical goals, numerical quotas and management by objectives. Substitute leadership.”

So, if SMART goals are stupid, let me introduce you to STUPID goals:

Sincere: attack issues you really care about. Don’t waste time where is heart isn’t
Transparent: [...]

Project Management Proverbs

It takes one woman nine months to have a baby. It cannot be done in one month by impregnating nine women.
The same work under the same conditions will be estimated differently by ten different estimators or by one estimator at ten different times.
Any project can be estimated accurately (once it’s completed).
The most valuable and least used [...]