#PMTV pilot show with Bernardo Tirado PMP

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Project management TV (#PMTV) is a 30 minute show devoted to project management.  In this pilot show for the series I talk to Bernardo Tirado (@thePMObox) about industrial psychology and its relevance to project management.  Among other things, we also discuss how to deal with under-performing colleagues, and when it is appropriate to escalate issues to line managers.

Bernardo is a Six Sigma Blackbelt, certified PMP, and Industrial Psychologist.  He’s the Founder and CEO of The Project Box where they provide the latest information on Project Management Leadership.

If you’d like to appear on the show or have any feedback or suggestions, please drop me a line

Podcast: Introduction to agile project management

I was honoured to guest on Robert Kelly’s #pmchat pre-game show on Friday 11th May.   The subject was ‘Intro to agile’, and in case you didn’t catch it, I’ve embedded the show below.  If you’ve never heard my voice before, this is your big chance :)  We talked about:

  • our experiences of agile to date
  • the state of agile in the UK and the US
  • what advice we’d give to project managers switching from a waterfall environment to an agile approach.

As always I’d love to hear your take on things.  I also produced this mindmap while prepping for the show.

Listen to internet radio with KellyProjectSolutions on Blog Talk Radio

Full tweet stream below:

klkazMay 11, 6:20pm via TweetDeck#pmchat I got tied up just after joining & couldn’t stay today. Will catch up later, would like to learn more about Agile. Happy Friday.

Moving Into Contracting by Ken Burrell

Moving into contracting – becoming a lone wolf

Hi! My name is Ken Burrell, and I’m a freelance PMO Manager. I’ve recently made the transition from permanent employment to working as contractor, and Jon has asked me to share some of my experiences with you by writing this guest slot on his blog, in the hope that you will find my observations useful if you’re planning a similar move.

I’m starting from the assumption that you’ve already made the decision to make the move, or you are at least seriously considering it. Everyone has their own reasons for moving into contracting, and you need to be certain that for you the (very real) risks are worth the (hopefully real) rewards. Continue reading

South West P3M Season of Sharing

Merlin and I are very excited to announce the launch of the South West P3M Season of Sharing (SoS).  The SoS is a series of informal unconference style events happening across the South West UK between now and Spring 2012.

Bristol and Cheltenham have already confirmed that they will be hosting events, and the organisers Merlin and Jon are now looking for other organisations to step up and host events in their locality… Come on Devon, Cornwall, Somerset, Dorset… SHOW US WHAT YOU’VE GOT ;)   Venue nominations are needed by 7th October. Don’t be shy, get stuck in.

The Cheltenham event will focus on business change with sessions on systems thinking, portfolio management, agile project management and more.  If you’d like to host an event in your area, please get in touch so that we can help you make it happen.

Watch this space for details of dates, venues and how to get your tickets.

Agile business conference

If you’re into agile (or just curious), you can’t afford to miss the DSDM consortiums upcoming conference:  Agile Grows Up: Coexistence ~ Scalability ~ Governance.  It’s on in London on the 4th, 5th & 6th October at the Inmarsat Conference Centre.

The theme this year focuses on the maturity and acceptability of Agile – as evidenced by the recent significant successes and developments across the Public and Private Sectors.

  • Day One will provide low-cost entry to Training, Workshops and Clinics prepared for individuals, teams and organisations who are new to Agile or who have recognised the potential and are looking to “up their game”
  • Days Two and Three: UK Agile Business Conference and Exhibition incorporating Real-world Keynote presentations from experienced Agile Practitioners plus 4 Conference Tracks: Agile First Steps; Agile Inspect and Adapt; Agile at Enterprise Scale; Agile for Public Sector

The programme provides the choice of more than 30 sessions for organisations and individuals across the full Agile adoption spectrum – from those with little or no experience through to those with established Agile practices.

In this year’s specially extended 3 day Agenda, the 2011 Agile Business Conference provides the single source of information to understand how Agile will benefit you, your teams and your organisation.

Visit the conference website to hear interviews with inspirational presenters past and present.  Links to booking forms can also be found on the conference website.

Publicsectorpm.com has managed to secure a small discount for readers of this blog.  To obtain your discount, send me a message including your email address, job title, employer and the words ‘ABC discount’.  I will then forward your details on to DSDM so that your discount can be applied.

I look forward to seeing some of you there!

Sack the Prince2 fundamentalists

Seriously.  These guys (and girls) are costing you a lot of money.  The prince2 fundamentalist will:

  • agonise over superfluous documents such as: quality logs;  configuration management plans; configuration item records.
  • insist you employ a configuration librarian
  • generally fiddle around with doomsday-book-esque wads of documentation rather than do some management.  The only thing they are managing is the destruction of the rain-forest.

#pmteacamp, Cheltenham, UK

Dr David in the Skype Hotseat

The point is to share ideas, solve problems, learn something new

#pmteacamp is an informal gathering of business change professionals, digital communicators, web developers / designers, and social media specialists who are passionate about improving the way that organisations work.

Fabulous regular attendees include Sue Pritchard, Paul Naybour, Helen Reynolds, Tom Howlett, Chris Cox, Jane Stone, Emily Davis, Jonathan Pollinger and  me :)

Check out the write up from the September 2011 gathering.

We usually meet every two months in Monty’s cocktail bar.  Event tweets are on the #pmteacamp hash tag.  Keep an eye out for future event dates which will be published on www.publicsectorpm.com

We’re always on the lookout for new Experts for The Skype Hotseat.  If you’re up for it, please let me know.

Tom’s planner

The Lord works in mysterious ways.  Imagine my face as it became apparent that I needed to produce a Gantt chart just after I’d totally kicked off against them.

Some time ago, a nice man called Tom gave me free access to Tom’s planner which claims to be ‘Project Planning Software with drag and drop simplicity‘.  It was time to give it a bash.

OH MY GOD it’s gooooood.

I knocked out this little beauty in 10 minutes.

Tom’s planner:

  • is light weight
  • has nailed the pareto principle - 80% of the benefits of Gantt charts are acheived with 20% of the effort (when compared to the king of bloatware – MS project)
  • is web based – yes you can even knock out your charts while sunning yourself in the med
  • lets you share your Gantt charts online (rapid communication with your global team!), and has lovely print and export features

Most importantly it’s a zero training tool.  You just open it up and get on with it.  There’s no need for an instruction manual.

I’m totally smitten with this little package and I’m starting to feel the love again for Mr Gantt.  With this tool I can stick to my golden rule of spending no more than 1% of my time on Gantt charts.  Thank you Tom, you ROCK.