Manage This - The Project Management Podcast

The podcast by project managers for project managers. The number of projects initiated in all sectors has skyrocketed, yet why do project failure rates still remain alarmingly high? Antonio Nieto-Rodriguez, author of the Harvard Business Review Project Management Handbook: How to Launch, Lead, and Sponsor Successful Projects, emphasizes the value of senior leaders investing in the pursuit of better project management. Table of Contents 02:11 … The World Champion in Project Management03:53 … The Project Economy05:46 … Organizational Ambidexterity10:15 … Low Success Rate of Projects13:31 … Choosing Predictive or Adaptive Agile Methods16:05 … Introducing The Project Canvas18:44 … Three Dimensions of the Project Canvas20:07 … 1.Foundation21:05 … 2.People22:02 … 3.Creation23:20 … Senior Executives and Project Success26:15 … Challenge your Sponsors27:57 … Self-Assessment29:15 … Engagement Triple Constraint33:30 … Advice for Younger Project Managers35:32 … Contact Antonio37:33 … Closing ANTONIO NIETO-RODRIGUEZ:  Senior leaders are not there yet.  They’ve never invested in the importance of project management, building competencies.  Part of what we started here is that they did not appreciate it as a core topic.  They preferred to talk about strategy, innovation, and other things, and rather than project management implementation. WENDY GROUNDS:  Welcome to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  I’m Wendy Grounds, and joining me is Bill Yates.  Just a quick thanks to our listeners who reach out to us and leave comments on our website or on social media.  We always love hearing from you.  We know you’re also looking for opportunities to acquire PDUs, your Professional Development Units, towards recertifications.  And you can still claim PDUs for all our podcast episodes.  Listen up at the end of the show for information on how you can claim those PDUs. Our guest today is Antonio Nieto-Rodriguez.  He is an author, practitioner, and consultant who teaches strategy and project implementation to senior leaders.  His research has been recognized by Thinkers50, with its prestigious Ideas into Practice award, and he is featured in the 2020 Global Gurus Top 30 List of Management Professionals.  Antonio has served as chairman of the Global Project Management Institute, and in that role he launched the Brightline initiative.  He is also the founder of Projects & Co, cofounder of the Strategy Implementation Institute, and a member of the Marshall Goldsmith 100 Coaches group. BILL YATES:  Antonio has written several books, as well.  The one that we’re going to focus on today is the new “Harvard Business Review Project Management Handbook.”  You may hear Antonio or us refer to this as the HBR, the Harvard Business Review, in our comments.  And Antonio is joining us from Brussels. WENDY GROUNDS:  Antonio, welcome to Manage This.  We’ve looked forward to our conversation with you today, and so we’re so grateful to you for being with us. ANTONIO NIETO-RODRIGUEZ:  Thanks to you, Wendy.  I’m really happy to be here with you and look forward to this conversation. The World Champion in Project Management WENDY GROUNDS:  Yeah.  Before we get started, I do have a quick question for you.  If you look back, when was the moment when you knew project management was your thing?  How did you get into project management?  And you’ve just done so much in the field of project management.  I think I saw in LinkedIn you’re the world champion in project management, and I love that.  So how did you become that? ANTONIO NIETO-RODRIGUEZ:  Well, it’s a pretty sad story, Wendy.  I recognized that I wanted to work and specialize in project management when I was fired.  I was fired in the sense that I had this big idea in a big consulting firm where I wanted to become partner, and I said, “Let’s develop project management advisory service because everybody’s struggling with projects.”  This is like 20 years.

The podcast by project managers for project managers. How does the established project management approach fall short when managing complexity in projects? Kieran Duck wrote the book The Complex Project Toolkit that describes the use of design thinking to deliver your most challenging projects. Table of Contents 02:35 … The Complex Project Toolkit Book03:52 … Standard Project Management vs. Managing Complex Projects06:38 … Complicated Versus Complex07:19 … A Design-Driven Toolkit08:58 … Is Agile Not For Complex Projects?11:43 … Mindsets, Practices, and Skills13:27 … “Why” Before “What” in a Complex Project17:06 … Inspiring the Shift to a Complexity Mindset20:42 … Individuals Hold Themselves Accountable23:08 … Conversations25:13 … Sense-Making27:18 … Adaption29:50 … Words of Advice31:48 … Get in Touch with Kieran33:24 … Closing KIERAN DUCK: You know, in complexity, I go back to it’s all connected.  No one person knows the answer.  So pick a good one.  Create the context that works well for this team.  And if they’re having a horrible experience, change it. I really believe that these projects can injure people, won’t take your finger off, but it can really blow people up.  And so create the right context for doing well. WENDY GROUNDS:  Welcome to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  This is our bimonthly program where we like to talk about what matters to professional project managers.  And it’s our goal to give you some words of advice and to give you encouragement, where you can hear from other professionals and leaders in the field.  We’re glad you’re joining us.  If you like what you hear, please visit us at Velociteach.com and leave us a comment on our website. I am Wendy Grounds, and joining me in the studio is Bill Yates.  Our guest today is Kieran Duck.  Kieran is talking to us from Sydney.  He is an advisor and coach to senior leaders running complex projects and transforming organizations.  He has redesigned and rescued multibillion-dollar projects and led business transformations.  He’s also a global presenter on using design thinking to drive step changes in project and business performance.  He’s also recently authored a book called “The Complex Project Toolkit.” BILL YATES:  Yes.  The subtitle was “Using Design Thinking to Transform the Delivery of Your Hardest Projects.”  This is really intriguing to me.  You know, right from the cover he had me hooked.  And Kieran says, okay, look, I’ve seen this over and over and over in my career.  Maybe you guys can relate.  We have a way of managing standard projects, and it works well if your project is standard. But what if it’s complex?  What if there’s a level to this that just doesn’t fit that toolset?  And he gives the example of, you know, taking a hammer and trying to drive a screw into a board.  It’s ugly and doesn’t look very nice when you’re done with it.  So he makes the case for, okay, if you have a complex project, you need a different toolkit.  And then he describes the toolkit.  This is an intriguing conversation.  I think some people may even find it a little bit controversial. WENDY GROUNDS:  Yes. BILL YATES:  Because they don’t want to give up their standard tools. WENDY GROUNDS:  Yes, yes.  And Kieran welcomes that.  If you do find anything you disagree with, you’re welcome to reach out to him.  He’d love to hear your opinions, as well.  Kieran, welcome to Manage This.  Thank you so much for being our guest. KIERAN DUCK:  Thanks for inviting me.  Great to be here. The Complex Project Toolkit Book WENDY GROUNDS:  Yeah, we’re excited to talk to you.  I have enjoyed your book.  It’s an excellent book for project managers.  Can you just give us a little bit of background, and what sparked the book?  How did you come about writing this? KIERAN DUCK:  Yeah, that’s an interesting question.  I mean, over the years I’ve done a lot of work on project management, project rescues,

At age 20, Christelle Kwizera founded Water Access Rwanda in response to the dangerous conditions that Rwandans would face when collecting water from rivers and dams, including crocodile attacks and disease-ridden water. Listen in to an inspiring project story as Christelle shares her vision to eradicate water scarcity while creating jobs for young people. This team had a goal to look for solutions that intersect the impact on planet and profit.

The podcast by project manager for project managers. We take a look at company culture, transforming remote work to and improving workplace productivity and efficiency.  How to Work Better Together. Hear about a new software company, Hive, which claims to have the first-ever democratically built project management platform. Table of Contents 03:05 … Hive History04:07 … Core Hive Philosophy05:38 … Democratically Built Features07:17 … Launching Hive09:22 … Challenges Today for Project Managers11:01 … Addressing Recurring Meetings15:17 … Applying Hive17:21 … Team Size Suited to Hive19:56 … Hive Innovation21:57 … Company Culture24:12 … Transforming a Team to Remote Work29:18 … New Hive Features30:01 … Who Influenced John32:47 … Get in Touch with John33:17 … Closing JOHN FURNEAUX: A brilliantly run meeting is a work of art and very, very impressive to those around you.  And I would encourage all of us to put 100% into our soft skills and how we manage the projects and the people around us. WENDY GROUNDS:  Welcome to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  I’m Wendy Grounds, and joining me in the studio is Bill Yates.  I just want to let you know that you can still claim your free PDUs by listening to this podcast.  We have instructions on our website where it shows you exactly how you can claim your PDUs at PMI.  We still get listeners who struggle with that, and so we just thought we’d make sure we mentioned it.  So we are very excited that it is now Happy Birthday to Manage This, and we’ve been broadcasting for six years. BILL YATES:  That’s amazing, isn’t it?  Every month we have two podcasts.  We’ve been doing that for six years now.  Incredible authors, speakers, tools, and then people in the trenches doing projects, leading projects in diverse environments.  And it’s been a pleasure to bring this information to the community and just share it and let people pick up on new perspectives and get more advice on just how to be a more effective project manager. WENDY GROUNDS:  And we’re very grateful to our guests... BILL YATES:  Yes. WENDY GROUNDS:  ...who’ve made it possible.  We really appreciate all that they have brought to our podcast. BILL YATES:  Mm-hmm.  There’s no compensation.  We don’t pay them.  We just thank them and deeply appreciate the preparation and then their time in recording with us. WENDY GROUNDS:  And thank you to our listeners.  We value you, and we appreciate your support. BILL YATES:  That’s right.  Keep those ideas coming because that’s what spurs us on. WENDY GROUNDS:  Our guest today is John Furneaux.  John is the CEO and cofounder of Hive, which is the world’s first democratically built project management platform, used by many teams at places such as Comcast, Toyota, Starbucks, and many more.  A couple of times in the past we’ve brought you tools that are very useful or platforms that project managers can use.  And we just need to let you know we’re not getting any pay for this.  We’re not getting a free use of Hive.  It’s really... BILL YATES:  Right. WENDY GROUNDS:  ...the product comes across our eyes, and we think, gosh, this would be something interesting to tell you about.  And that’s why we’re here. BILL YATES:  Exactly.  As our listeners reach out to us with tools that are helpful or things that they want us to explore, just keep sending us those ideas because that’s where this one came from.  One of the things that appealed to me with Hive, too, is their mantra is “The first project management platform built for users, by users.”  And it kind of reminds me of our mantra of Manage This, “The podcast for project managers by project managers.”  So we’re going to talk about tactical aspects of this tool and how it can be used.  Then we’re going to back up and talk broadly about company culture, not just how Hive can influence that, but how John’s been influenced by different company cultures,

The 7th Edition PMBOK® Guide “represents the most disruptive redefinition of project management in my lifetime,” according to Jesse Fewell. Jesse was part of the core team writing this 7th Edition. We ask Jesse to explain the principles-based approach in this edition, as well as why, and how frequently, PMI releases a new edition. Jesse clarifies what has changed and what has not changed in the 7th Edition.

Great leaders are built from the inside out. Leadership training typically focuses on the externally visible behaviors of leadership; however, in this episode, we consider the parallel journey a leader should take internally to become an authentic leader. Darren Reinke is the author of The Savage Leader, a book which provides a blueprint for becoming a great leader through the adoption of 13 Savage Principles.

The Podcast by project managers for project managers. Hear how to approach complex modern projects by spending less time discussing the past and more time focused on the future. Eddie Obeng says we should: “take the learning back to the work place” by analyzing our past performance, and rapidly applying what we’ve learned to deliver perfect projects. Listen in for practical advice about facing your fears, organizational culture, and dealing with the challenges of change management.  Table of Contents 01:25 … Meet Eddie02:00 … QUBE – Learning and Transformation04:30 … QUBE for the Project Manager07:05 … Qubots08:00 … Delivering Projects by Looking Ahead11:06 … How do We Intentionally Mess up Projects?13:39 … Choosing the Right Project leader15:18 … Four Things We Mess up18:09 … Organization’s Culture Affecting a Project21:36 … Subconsciously Sabotaging Our Projects23:08 … Sabotaging Projects by Remaining Silent24:28 … Reporting Your Doubts and Fears27:58 … Change Management32:31 … Get in Touch with Eddie33:42 … Closing EDDIE OBENG: I’m asking you to look forward through the windscreen as opposed to the habit of let’s make a guess of what’s through the windscreen, and drive and manage, coordinate through the rearview mirror.  Completely different mindset. WENDY GROUNDS:  Welcome to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  I’m your host, Wendy Grounds, and joining me is Bill Yates.  Just a quick note.  If you’re looking to acquire PDUs, Professional Development Units, towards your recertifications, you can still claim those PDUs for all our podcast episodes.  Just listen up at the end of the show for information on how you can do that. So today we have a really interesting guest.  This is Professor Eddie Obeng.  Professor Obeng was born in Ghana but has lived most of his life in the U.K.  He’s a world-class educator and has a passion for helping project managers. BILL YATES:  Yeah.  I’m going to give a quick preview of some of my favorite pieces of the conversation we’re going to have.  Eddie talks about recognizing the project environment and then choosing the best leadership approach based on one of four types of projects.  I think people are going to find that very useful and helpful.  Another thing, very practical advice that Eddie gives is facing your fear.  We talk about that, pretty straightforward.  And the teaser there is it’s okay if we don’t have all the answers in the moment.  I think that’ll be quite helpful to those listeners who are like me. Meet Eddie WENDY GROUNDS:  Hi, Eddie.  Welcome.  We’re looking forward to talking with you today. EDDIE OBENG:  Hello.  Delighted to be here. WENDY GROUNDS:  I want to know who is Eddie Obeng.  Can you tell us a little bit about yourself? EDDIE OBENG:  Just to give you some background, I teach.  I’m an educator.  I teach businesses, I help them transform, I do this based on material that I research myself.  And I built a virtual business school with a different way to teach people to deal with the complexity of the world.  And I’m also an entrepreneur because I took that business school, and I’ve made it digital, and I’ve got lots of people in the team and so on.  So that’s probably me.  I’ve written books, couple of bestsellers and stuff. QUBE – Learning and Transformation BILL YATES:  So tell us more about QUBE.  It’s Q-U-B-E.  Now, tell us more about this other environment. EDDIE OBENG:  Yeah, so QUBE is my shortcut to learning and transformation.  From the point of view of the person who is experiencing QUBE, literally everything you need to be able to do, which you’re struggling to do right now.  So for example we are on Skype, but you’re scribbling your different bits of paper.  Maybe if we’re in the same room we could write on a whiteboard.  And it would stay there, and you could come back later, and if we had lots of room, people could have offices to move around in.  And when I’m teaching you.

The podcast by project managers for project managers. The largest infrastructure project in the history of the Seattle Public Utilities is the Ship Canal Water Quality Project. Keith Ward talks about the lessons learned overseeing this 11-year initiative. Hear about estimating and revising a $570 million budget, and building strong relationships with multiple stakeholders and project teams. Table of Contents 01:37 … Keith’s Current SPU Role02:26 … Ship Canal Water Quality Program06:47 … Using Tunnels Instead of Tanks08:37 … A Tunnel Boring Machine11:39 … MudHoney15:12 … Project Stakeholders18:08 … Challenges with Multiple Teams22:06 … Project Funding23:20 … Federal Consent Decree25:31 … Budget Estimating for a Megaproject28:59 … When Costs Change31:44 … Budget Setting Lessons Learned32:54 … Monte Carlo Analysis38:47 … Tracking a Lengthy Project39:53 … Final Words of Advice41:10 … Get in Contact with Keith43:44 … Closing KEITH WARD: ...because I want people to learn from our lessons learned here. There’s a lot.  I’ve learned a lot personally, and it’s been a really eye-opening experience.  And I want to clarify, this is a megaproject.  This isn’t a $2 million project; right?  This is in another category.  So, and I think that’s one of the lessons learned is when you move into this megaproject, like over a half billion, the degree of uncertainty is huge, and you need to account for that.  That’s one of the kind of I would say über lessons learned. I’ve learned a lot personally, and it’s been a really eye-opening experience.  WENDY GROUNDS:  Welcome to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  I’m Wendy Grounds, and in the studio with me is Bill Yates.  I want to say a big thank you to our listeners who reach out to us and leave comments on our website or on social media.  We love hearing from you.  And it was actually from a listener that we have today’s guest.  Chris Stoll reached out, and he recommended our guest who we’re talking to today.  And we are very grateful to Chris, and we appreciate it when any of you reach out to us and send us ideas of guests. So our guest today is Keith Ward.  He is currently the project executive of the Seattle Ship Canal Water Quality Project, and he’s going to go into some detail on that. BILL YATES:  We’re going to talk about tunnel boring machines, federal consent decrees, and MudHoney.  Are you ready for this? WENDY GROUNDS:  I’m ready for MudHoney.  Hi, Keith.  Welcome, and thank you for joining us today. KEITH WARD:  So nice to be here.  Thanks, Wendy. Keith’s Current SPU Role WENDY GROUNDS:  We saw that you have been with the Seattle Public Utilities since 2002.  Can you tell us about the services they provide, and your role in the company? KEITH WARD:  Sure.  So Seattle Public Utilities is kind of four utilities in one.  And I’ll kind of use the term “SPU” sometimes.  I’ll bounce back and forth.  We deliver essential water and waste services to about 1.5 million people in the Greater Seattle area.  So really our four services are drinking water, drainage and wastewater, and solid waste services.  I’ve had a variety of roles, mostly in project delivery, at SPU since coming onboard 2002.  My current role is the project executive on the Ship Canal Water Quality Project, which is the largest infrastructure project in the history of the organization. Ship Canal Water Quality Program BILL YATES:  Now, that we want to get into.  This Ship Canal Water Quality program, why was this initiated?  What’s the problem that it’s trying to address? KEITH WARD:  Yeah.  It’s a problem that’s common to many kind of older cities.  We don’t think of Seattle as always an older city.  But a lot of our infrastructure was built over a hundred years ago.  So this project was initiated in 2014 to solve the problem of what we call “combined sewage overflow.”  So back a hundred years ago there was no treatment for sewage,

The podcast by project manager for project managers. “Why you work determines how well you work.” Finding our Why impacts how well we lead a project, and enables team members to stay focused and motivated to finish the project successfully. Listen in for valuable advice on resilience, motivation, and “growing your grit” to help project managers envision their potential and build stronger teams. Table of Contents 03:25 … Finding Your Why: A Look at Past Guests06:58 … Prepare To Roar Expeditions08:32 … The Riverbend Group09:18 … Embarking on a Major career Change11:08 … Doreen’s Story: Identifying Her Why12:48 … The Impact of Your Why14:01 … Relating the Why to Projects16:27 … Project Teams: Aligning Your Whys19:27 … Making it a Priority21:43 … Goals vs. Whys24:34 … Cultural Drivers Affecting our Choices30:35 … Resilience and Long Term Goals32:26 … Misconceptions about Motivation34:19 … Becoming Motivated36:39 … Key Factors of staying Motivated37:57 … Our Differences and Growing Grit39:34 … Are You at a Crossroads?42:40 … Get in Touch with Doreen44:01 … Closing DOREEN LINNEMAN: ...and because of that the world is just reeling with change, and change is happening all the time.  And as scary as that is, the beauty about that is people’s postures are open for change.  Normally as humans we resist change.  But people are expectant for change.  They have just been forced to do it.  It’s like, oh, what’s coming next?  And with that is a gift.  It’s a huge gift for all of us.  If we laser focus here on just being your professional legacy, very rarely do you get the opportunity to change it, or to change a trajectory.  Really the only time you get to do it is when you leave a company.  Right?  And you get to start over and build up reputation from scratch. What’s beautiful about the situation of moving past and through COVID is that, again, everybody is expectant to change.  And quite frankly, if you’re a leader who doesn’t change, I mean, shame on you.  How could you not go through what we’ve just gone through and not lead differently?  Right?  Your people want you to.  They’re ready for you to.  It’s just such a perfect opportunity to put a stake in the ground and be like, what do I want to be remembered for?  Who do I want to serve?  How do I want to be?  What is the legacy I’ll want to be?  And to start to make that shift.  And if it seems daunting, then you go back to those micro goals. ...but now is the time, because what you will not regret are making the changes. WENDY GROUNDS:  You’re listening to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  I am Wendy Grounds, and joining me is Bill Yates.  We’re so glad that you’re joining us today.  And if you enjoy this episode, please visit us at Velociteach.com.  You can leave a comment for us on our Manage This Podcast page.  We always like hearing from you. And remember you can still claim your free PDUs.   Our PDU claim page has the new instructions.  Make sure not to use the autofill, but type in “Velociteach” and the title when you are submitting your PDUs.  So I’m very excited.  Today we have a guest in the studio with us. BILL YATES:  Yes.      WENDY GROUNDS:  And we always love getting to personally meet our guests and not have to talk on Skype all the time. BILL YATES:  Right. WENDY GROUNDS:  Doreen Linneman is a keynote speaker, she focuses on management consulting, professional development team building.  She really takes leadership and professional development out of the boardroom and into nature, doesn’t she. BILL YATES:  Yes, she does.  That’s an understatement.  She’s got three companies that she started, and one’s called Prepare to Roar.  We’ll hear more about that.  But that involves taking leaders out of the boardroom, out of the conference rooms and  all the coffee and doughnuts, and putting them in nature and having them face some of their biggest fears, like these gorillas or sharks or different things like that....

The podcast by project managers for project managers.  Project managers or people managers? In this episode we talk about leadership development and the project manager’s role in creating self-sustaining and cohesive teams. Hear about steps for building high-performing teams that function independently and effectively, and how to create a healthy culture and strong team alignment. Table of Contents 01:37 … Leadership Development Areas for Project Managers03:00 … Adapting Leadership to Evolving Teams07:40 … Behavioral Differences in High- and Low-Performing Teams09:26 … An Agile Approach10:05 … Healthy Culture in Hybrid Environment11:52 … Being Intentional about Equity and Inclusion13:27 … How do I Know They’re Doing Their Work?16:13 … Creating Project Team Alignment17:58 … What is Getting in Your Way?21:01 … How Do You Get People Aligned?24:00 … Reward and Recognition Systems27:13 … Providing Constructive Feedback29:22 … Strengthen Relationships with Senior Manager or Sponsors33:06 … Get in touch with Ken33:23 … Closing KEN WAGNER: ...the more information that people have about the bigger picture, the more they can connect their piece to the, not just to the overall mission, but also their piece of the overall outcome, the more they are to contribute in ways beyond their specific function. WENDY GROUNDS:  Welcome to Manage This, the podcast by project managers for project managers.  I’m Wendy Grounds, and in the studio today with me is Bill Yates. I must apologize, there are a few gremlins in the audio for some reason.  So we apologize if the audio is not quite as clear.   Today we’re talking with Ken Wagner.  Ken is a senior principal for ALULA.  ALULA is a management consultancy.  And he’s talking to us from Jacksonville, Florida.  Ken has a passion for helping leaders be successful. BILL YATES:  Yeah.  Ken is an expert.  He’s even got his Ph.D. in Behavioral Science.  And we know project managers have to get things done through people.  And people are complex beings.  Right?  Some days I’m excited about working.  Some days I’m not as excited about it. WENDY GROUNDS:  It’s a complex thing. BILL YATES:  Yes, yes.  So not only does Ken have expertise in an area that’s of keen interest to me and project managers, but he’s also worked across all industries.  He’s coached managers and C-Suite level executives in all different industries, and I know he’s going to be able to add a lot to our conversation about managing projects and managing people to get things done. WENDY GROUNDS:  Hi, Ken.  Thanks for joining us, and welcome to Manage This. KEN WAGNER:  Well, good morning.  Thank you for having me. Leadership Development Areas for Project Managers WENDY GROUNDS:  We want to pick your brain on leadership and leading project teams today.  What leadership development areas are important for project managers? KEN WAGNER:  Ah.  Boy, that’s a great question.  You know, many project managers are certainly skilled at change technology and project technology.  But much of that job, as I see it, is about influence, and ultimately about positive influence skills.  And so when I think about the most effective project managers, I notice that those that give direction in objective terms, can clearly describe what they want people to accomplish, what they want them to do, tend to have more success.  Those who frequently do alignment checks, so they ask probing questions to make sure that people are hearing what they think they’re hearing, or understanding what they think they’re understanding, they provide lots of feedback – feedback not only on outcomes, but on what people are doing and how they’re doing it.  And they do that in ways that are timely, and they do that in ways that are actionable. And then the last skill that is often overlooked is that they tend to be good at positive reinforcement, meaning they attend to the things that they want more of, things that add the most value.