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Johanna’s Books
Monthly Archives: February 2004
What Managers Do
I’m editing a chapter in my hiring book, and the original sentence reads: …managers amplify the work of other people … The editors have suggested that amplify is the wrong word, and suggested “facilitate.” I’m still thinking about this. … Continue reading
Project Managers, Don’t Be Fooled
We were on vacation last week in Breckenridge, CO. I enjoyed it, although it did take me a few days to acclimate to the 9600 feet altitude. Returning on I-70 East, we saw some great road signs: Truckers don’t … Continue reading
More on Inch-Pebbles
Just in case you hadn’t heard enough from me about inch-pebbles, here’s an article I wrote for Computerworld.com. Bloglet readers, it’s possible I have finally convinced Bloglet there’s nothing wrong with my blog. You’ve missed a couple of weeks … Continue reading
Looking Back at One Year of Blogging
I’ve been at this now for a year, and here’s my mini-retrospective on my blogging: What did I do well that I don’t want to forget? I learned that even a small entry that helps me to think more is … Continue reading
Posted in blog, retrospective
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Kill Canceled Projects
I’m on vacation, so I’ll be blogging very little this week. In my last Pragmatic Manager email newsletter, I wrote about killing canceled projects. Here’s the summary: Explain why you’re canceling the project. Give people time to clean up … Continue reading
Lifecycles and Reading
I spoke at a joint meeting of the RI PMI and ASQ last night. My presentation was “Predicting Project Completion.” I offered a simulation for people to try: predicting the time it would take and then sorting two decks of … Continue reading
PMO: Tactics, not Strategy
At first, when Hal posted State of the Art of Project Management — Underlying Theory is Obsolete I wasn’t sure what he meant by #9: “Project portfolio management is an excuse not to manage each project. Each project team … Continue reading
Posted in portfolio management
Tagged leadership, management, project portfolio management, project team
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Applying the Rule of Least Surprise to Projects
I just read Jim Coplien’s paper about teaching design called “Close the Window and Put it On the Desktop”. He references the “Rule of Least Surprise,” which is to do the “least surprising thing.” In design, it means the … Continue reading
Posted in project management
Tagged project management, project success, project team
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Project Rhythms and Working Your Own Project
I’m writing an article about defining the rhythm or cadence of your project and how to increase that, if you want to finish the project faster. I’m a little stuck — at least, if rewriting the whole thing three … Continue reading
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