Herding Cats

Project Site

I come across lots of commercial or semi-commercial project management sites. Here's one that offers some useful articles. The one that struck me was Earned Value and SOX. There is a discussion that erupts spontaneously on almost any forum -... Read more →

The Management in Project Management

A recent PMI meeting had a panel discussion on PMI-based processes and Agile PM processes. What struck me besides the confusion by both parties as to other's position, processes, and understanding was the absence (on both side) of the operative... Read more →

If you wanted project managers where would you get them?

In a planning meeting today someone piped up from the back - "we need some more planners." Good idea. We've got a 1,200 page Master Schedule, not many days to sort out all the horizontal linking and get it lined... Read more →

Mathematics of Communication

I've started a book I received for Christmas, The Road to Reality: A Complete Guide to the Laws of the Universe, Roger Penrose, 2005. This a mathematical physics book, but a phrase struck me today. Much of the communication style... Read more →

Mind Manager and IMP/IMS

Brian Kennemer posted a message on APM referencing Mind Jet's new Blogs. Hobie Swan's Mindjet Weblog and and Mike Jetter's weblog. I'm a big fan of this product having gotten in on the Beta testing cycle. But the critical benefit... Read more →

Anti Patterns in Project Management

The book AntiPatterns in Project Management cried out this morning to be thumbed through again. I had written a review when the book was first published and hadn't really looked through it until today. What struck me is how obvious... Read more →

Rechtin's Paradigm and Agile Project Management

The Agile Project Management discussion is built around a supposed paradigm shift from the past to the future. Although not as strongly worded recently, the notation that the processes of the past has failed us and we need to move... Read more →

Calculus of Project Management

We've had our hardwood floors refinished and had to move the office library out and back. In the move I came across a collection of text books from grad school. Several were on Real Analysis, better known as real number... Read more →

What does done look like?

David Anderson referred to a BLOG by Tom Evslin in which "done" was mentioned. "What does done look like" is the core process of the Integrated Master Plan / Integrated Master Schedule (IMP/IMS) used in aerospace. Add to IMP/IMS Technical... Read more →

Beyond Bullet Points

As a professional communicator (not matter what some here my think) I found Cliff Atkison's Beyond Bullet Points recently published book a joy. Our corporate proposal management training has many of the same ideas. In our vocabulary every sentence and... Read more →

Six Sigma and Critical Chain

Six Sigma and Critical Chain are not connected as far as I know, but they were observed in action in the same day. The proposal I'm working on is nearing the Red Team event. For those not familiar with a... Read more →

The DoI and APM

I was asked recently in a private email what I thought the connection was between Agile Project Management (APM) and the Declaration of Interdependence (DoI). Just as a reminder of the DoI: Increase return on investment by making continuous flow... Read more →

How big or small of a project is the target of APM?

On the drive home I had a thought about how big or small a project could be and still be the target of agile project management. The biggest project on the planet these days is the Joint Strike Fighter. There... Read more →

Is Agile Project Management, Project Management

I've got a bit of a break from my proposal work, so some thoughts on my disconnects with the current APM discussion. Although we use - and even practice - lean, agile, and adaptive in our everyday work, it's become... Read more →

More on APM

In a recent post in response to the assumptions of APM, other than restating I was "wrong," did not move the discussion forward. Can APM address things like long lead, design up front, target more than software development, perform cost... Read more →

Value Flow

The concept of managing value as expressed in the Declaration of Interdependence begs the question - how is the value identified, how do we measure it, and in what "units of measure." Project Management is interested in all three of... Read more →

Assumptions of Agile Project Management?

UPDATED a bit... Any good discussion of a technical or even non-technical subject needs to start with a set of assumptions. I've listened to and read many posts of recent about Agile Project Management, without the underlying assumptions being explicitly... Read more →

Agile PM amd Systems Engineering

I'm starting to close in on the concept that Agile Project Management as actually Systems Engineering. The picture here is the relationships between agile processes and Systems Engineering as defined at the Systems Design and Operational Effectiveness Program at Stevens... Read more →

On Time on Budget

I'm listening to the "Vision" audio downloaded from someones BLOG reference (I forgot). I heard Clark speak about project failure rates - NOT on time, on budget. If "on time, on budget" is the measure of project success no wonder... Read more →

Actionable Outcomes and the DoI

I our morning briefing (stand-up for a 100 or so team members) a quote was used to resonated with my desire to have the Declaration of Interdependence(DoI) have more meaning for me. Action is eloquence - William Shakespeare This was... Read more →