I started this series discussing where AI use might create bottlenecks. The more people work solo on anything, the more likely they become bottlenecks for the team. When each person works solo with AI, they reinforce resource efficiency, where everyone is busy, but the team can’t seem to finish anything when anyone wants it. Instead, […]
This is Johanna Rothman’s June 2026 Pragmatic Manager Newsletter. The Unsubscribe link is at the bottom of this newsletter. Most of us have worked with managers who guided our careers. But managers aren’t the only ones who can support other people’s growth. Sometimes, technical leaders who are not “people managers” can have just as much
My podcast this week is from the Continual Planning book. Enjoy! (You might not see the podcast in the frame below, depending on how you read my feed. If you see a blank space or a white box, do click through to the post itself. Thanks.) The Podcast: The Transcript: This is 60 Seconds of
In How to Use Value Stream Maps to See Where AI Creates Bottlenecks Part 1, I described three teams that used LLMs. However, those teams only used LLMs as individuals, reinforcing resource-efficiency thinking instead of flow-efficiency thinking. (Resource efficiency makes everything take longer because of the focus on the individual. Flow efficiency allows the work
My podcast this week is from the Continual Planning book. This is my first draft of the description, the text that goes on the back of the book. It’s a first draft because it doesn’t get to the point fast enough. But as a first draft, it can guide my writing, which is why I
So many people (and some teams) work under mandates to “use AI.” While I am a fan of these two functions for the current LLMs: The ability to create fast prototypes for human assessment and judgment. And the ability to gain new insights into you, your team’s, or your organization’s data. (This often requires a
I am so pleased to announce that my newest book, Effective Public Speaking: How to Use Content Marketing With Stories to Show Your Value, is out everywhere. If you write books or consult as part of your income, this is the book you need to up your content marketing game. I wrote this book because
I had a wonderful time with Nigel Rawlins on his Wisepreneur podcast: Johanna Rothman Independent Consulting: Principles That Outlast Every Trend. We had a wide-ranging conversation about many aspects of consulting. But I seemed to intrigue him the most with the ideas in the image above. (Yes, that’s in Successful Independent Consulting and I offered
My podcast this week is from the Continual Planning book. Enjoy! Note: if you read via an RSS reader, you might see a black box or white space instead of the podcast player below. If so, please click through to either the podcast or the video. Or listen to the podcast in your podcast app
Have you ever negotiated a consulting proposal or a new job? If so, you might have heard the (untrue) problem that there is not enough money for your proposal or what you want for salary. There is almost always enough money. (Self-funded startups might not have enough money, but those companies rarely want to hire