The strapline on the back of this book is ‘becoming a systems thinker’. The authors have taken a practical approach to systems analysis describing the fundamentals of systemic thinking including problem definition and problem solving. How to do Systems Analysis covers the six main phases of systems analysis: determining system goals, establishing a process and…
One Saturday in 2008 I made Monica Enand, CEO and Founder of Zapproved, get up extra early to demo her new software for me. It was 8am on the Pacific Coast, and she didn’t sound like she was sitting in her pyjamas in front of her PC. Given that it was the weekend before launch,…
You will need: One department store One friend wearing flat shoes (ideally someone with better dress sense than you) The underwear you will be wearing under the dress Optional: The shoes you will be wearing. Cocktail dresses are short, so any height of heel will be OK. If you are adapting this method for a…
This is the last in a four-part series on how project management is facing up to the challenges of the 21st century business environment. I am noticing a shift towards working in a more 21st century way. The focus for many recruiters is now on people who can demonstrate emotional intelligence (read more about that…
If you weren’t able to attend the APM winter conference, you can get all the presentations and session notes online. APM have set up an impressive one-off blog to make everything available. They have also put all the official conference photos on Flickr here. There are two photos of me waving my arms around to…
This mini-series is looking at how project management is facing the challenges of 21st century business practices. Missed last week’s article on how project management is responding to those challenges? Catch up here. Today’s economy and business culture is not the same as the one that most of our project management tools were designed for….
Last week I wrote about the challenges facing project management as a result of evolving business practices. So, how is project management responding to these challenges? Frankly, I don’t think that we are. 71% of projects fail each year Projects achieve 93% of what they set out to deliver… … and take 84% more time…
At the APM conference last month I spoke about the challenges facing project managers working in a 21st Century business environment. I first got interested in this as a topic when I started working in healthcare about 18 months ago. The speed of advancements in healthcare technology is incredible, and every week there’s something new…
Women play an active role today in most occupations, but it hasn’t always been easy, especially in technical fields. Women in Science, Engineering and Technology is an overview of the UK initiatives since the 1970’s designed to encourage girls and women into non-traditional jobs. The book begins by describing the changing socio-political and economic climate…
OGC launched guidance last week on managing Portfolio, Programme and Project Offices (that’s P3O® for short). It was a low-key launch event at a great venue south of the river, just along from Tate Britain, which looks beautiful lit up at night. Frances Scarff, head of best management practice for OGC did the introductions, including…
I spoke at the Association for Project Management (APM) conference in London yesterday. My presentation was on equipping project managers to work in ways that reflect the challenges faced by modern businesses: the credit crunch, outsourcing and offshoring and the role new technology has to play in 21st century ways of working. I arrived just…
PMI has decided that it needs a New Media Council and I’m one of seven “influential voices” (yes, they really called us that!) in the world of online project management that they have brought together for this. It’s good to see that a professional body is moving to embrace new media and Web 2.0 –…