Blog Posts
Working with a Disengaged Team
I have been watching a friend struggle recently as she tries to manage a team of people who were not engaged. Read… ‘they really didn’t care’. The result is demoralizing
Does Your Project Sponsor Know What They Are Doing?
Being a project sponsor is not easy. The role is often misunderstood, misrepresented, and misused – leading to a host of problems between the Project Manager (PM) and the Project
Now is the Time to Find Your Coach
Well, actually it was time to find your coach a long time ago. But that’s alright. There’s still time. They figured out many moons ago that professional athletes needed coaches.
Do You Ask Enough Questions?
‘The secret to life’ suggested my father, is to ask questions. Be inquisitive, he said, with everyone you meet and everything you see. Asking questions comes naturally to me –
3 Leadership Tips When Everything Is Going Well
Leadership training so often focuses on the hard stuff: managing people, managing stress, managing change, and so forth. We don’t seem to spend a lot of time thinking about what
Leadership is Earned – Not Awarded
Respect, trust and loyalty are earned over time. We have heard this many times before. And then in walks a new boss and within the first few months it becomes
4 Steps to Making ‘Plan A’ a Reality
Do have a vision of where you want to be in 5/10/15 years? I call this Plan A. I have always had a ‘version’ of Plan A. Many versions, in
What About All the Other Projects?
I ran into a colleague recently who talked about a disastrous office relocation. It seems that everything that could go wrong did go wrong. Knowing my passion for project management,
Are You Crisis Ready?
Are you ready for a disaster? Are you prepared to handle a crisis both personally and professionally? A few years ago, I had the pleasure of listening to Former Deputy
What Does Accountability Look Like?
A successful leader (organizational, project or otherwise) needs to “walk the walk” not just “talk the talk”. If you say you are going to do something, you do it. That
Project Managers Need to Think Beyond Their Projects
First published July, 2020 I was chatting with the senior project director at a large local organization recently and he made a very astute observation. When it comes time to
Who is Your Greatest Achievement?
I was talking recently about someone in my professional life who I am really proud of. Besides the fact that she is a friend and her success is great news,
What Makes You Different?
In today’s audio post, I address the need for all project managers out there to stand out in a very crowded market.
Plan Your Strategy in Sprints
Most strategic plans fail because the end goals are too far out in the future. When I wrote the book, ‘The 7 Elements of Strategy Execution’, with my friend, Mona
A Project Kickoff Is Crazy Important
In my last post, I referred to an article that was published in ProjectTimes.com called 11 Reasons Why My Project Manager Is Better Than Yours by Brad Egeland where he
Rely on Experience, Not Certification
First published July, 2017 ProjectTimes is a great portal for project managers from all walks of life. When I created it in 1997, it was a cute little magazine for
Leadership is Earned – Not Awarded
Respect, trust and loyalty are earned over time. We have heard this many times before. And then in walks the new boss and within the first few months it becomes
Check Your Ego!
We often hear the words “check your ego at the door”. Originally, I was thinking that this should be the title to this blog post. But leaders shouldn’t check their
Good Leaders Get and Give Constant Feedback
Whether you are a leader, a general manager or a project manager, feedback is critical to your success. We need to take the time to pick up the phone or
Tips for Great Virtual Presentations
Who would have thought that presenting virtually would become the new normal? Now that the pandemic has moved into a new phase, the requirement/opportunity to present virtually remains. Organizations now
How Do You Promote Your Brand?
Not all of us are interested in promoting our ‘brand’. We might be quite content on where we are, in our career or lives, and have no interest in growing
Persistence – The Key to Success
I have a friend who has been very successful in her life. When I asked about her perceived secret to success, I heard “education, experience, connections and the right place
5 Things a Leader Should Do to Set a Good Example?
Originally published in August, 2015 I was recently listening to a group of teenagers talk about their summer jobs and most of the talk was about the leadership style that
Managing Expectations – The Key to a Leader’s Success
As project managers, we are very good at setting expectations at the front end of the engagement. The more experienced we are, and the closer the project is to our
Are You a Project Manager or a Project Leader?
Let’s start with a different question… “What’s the difference?”. Among the many words that can be used to describe a leader, a few that stand out are: a strategic thinker
Strategic Planning is the Fun Part. The Hard Work Starts After That.
When leaders start thinking strategically, the creative juices flow. What are we capable of doing? How far can we take this? What could tomorrow look like? What would happen if…?
Are You a Consensus Builder?
I read an article recently that started with “Consensus building is a big part of leadership”. I agree. It is also a great label to have within our ‘brand’. Leadership
Passion Sells
I was working with my professional coach a few years ago during a time when things were going a little crazy in my life: I had way too many things
Do you Know Your Limitations?
A few years ago, I was attending the retirement party for Dave Toycen, CEO, World Vision Canada. As expected, he delivered an amazing speech at the end of the event