The Project Chatter Podcast

In this week’s pod, we welcomed Adrian Pyne to discuss what project agility really looks like. Adrian is above all a project professional. He has led or rescued Transformation programmes widely from Telcos to eCommerce, Finance. Mining, Aviation, and the public sector. He has designed, built and operated P3 (project, programme and portfolio management) capability, PMOs, and Professional Services businesses. His key skill is the adaptation of best practice successfully. In the last 10 years his consultancy has focussed on two areas. Firstly, what he and colleagues call Organisational Project Management – the creation of an organisation culture that enables projects to Thrive and not merely Survive, or even die. Secondly, on Agile Project Management which too many organisations get badly, and expensively, wrong. He has written Agile Beyond IT, a book on Agile Project Management, showing how it both can be used well beyond the realm of IT Agile software development projects.. Adrian says he will also show that Agile projects can have any life-cycle they need. Adrian remains a frequent speaker around APM and elsewhere, including internationally, and is a visiting lecturer at Nottingham and Southampton University Business Schools, He is also a regular blogger, and he says, is still learning. Adrian is semi-retired and lives with his partner in Dorset. The main topics we discussed on the podcast were as follows: Agile or Agility comes from the Agile Manifesto 2001 (4 values). It was always intended to be used for Software Development Great project professionals are agile! We “do” projects to deliver value. Agile is focused on the delivery of value In the late 90s / early 2000s saw a realization that people deliver projects. If they are not engaged and focused, the project is likely to fail There is no point implementing agile projects if the organizational culture is toxic A hybrid approach between Agile and Critical Path methodologies is often challenging. When you adapt agility to Project Management, it is adapted to everything including planning / scheduling. This needs to keep pace in order for it to work Scrum is a purely software development approach – it is NOT a project management approach Some of the major agile certifications are heavily focused towards IT projects. This needs to be broadened to make it more relevant Agile projects should aim to make an audit trail of the value within a project For every project change request – does it enhance the value? Organisations that do not adopt agility are more likely to be commercial risk Here are links to a some of the topics we discussed: Agile Beyond IT: How to Develop Agility in Project Management in any Sector –  Adrian Pyne https://www.amazon.co.uk/Agile-Beyond-develop-agility-management/dp/1788603273 Manifesto for Agile Software Development - https://agilemanifesto.org/ Jo Lucas – Activating the Mycelium - https://sustainabilitypractitioners.org/rpm-ego-to-eco-in-conversation-with-jo-lucas/ Forbes: How to Succeed in a Project Economy - https://www.forbes.com/sites/rebeccazucker/2022/01/11/how-to-succeed-in-a-project-economy/?sh=668b222a28d9 Agile Beyond IT Newsletter - https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/agile-beyond-it-6922580439241007104/ Tune in next time when we’re joined by Spencer Easton to talk about Takt production vs Takt time.  For more information, blogs or to support our charities visit www.projectchatterpodcast.com  If you'd like to sponsor the podcast get in touch via our website. You can also leave us a voice message via our anchor page and let us know if there's something or someone specific that you would like on the podcast. Proudly sponsored by: JustDo - https://www.justdo.com/ PlanAcademy - https://www.planacademy.com/chatter/ ($75 off any course) InEight - https://ineight.com/ Prosci - https://empower.prosci.com/project-ch... (FREE resource kit) Stay safe, be disruptive and have fun doing it!

In this week’s pod, we welcomed Ed Van Der Tak to discuss the future of Project Planning and Technology trends. With over 30 years of experience in planning and scheduling, Ed has worked in various positions and areas within Project Planning & Management. He lives and works in The Netherlands but has also worked and trained in the Middle East.In the early 1990s Ed started his career as a planning engineer in major turn-around projects. Between 2000 and 2009, Ed was co-owner of a Dutch consultancy and training company. In 2011 he founded the Dutch Planning and Scheduling institute to promote the profession and develop new skills and techniques.Ed currently works as a planning manager on a €1bn infrastructure programme in The Netherlands and is a lecturer at the University of Applied Science in Rotterdam.Ed has always been interested in new techniques and future ways of working. He follows trends in technology and automation to start to use these techniques and change our mindset.The main topics we discussed on the podcast were as follows: A good planner needs to be a good storyteller A planner should approach the from different angles e.g. cost impact or risk impact Many infrastructure companies are already collecting data to enable machine learning on projects The rise in the use of AI on project may lead to the role of a project planner becoming more generic and turning into an analyst type role Will AI create or prevent creativity? For more information, blogs or to support our charities visit www.projectchatterpodcast.comIf you'd like to sponsor the podcast get in touch via our website.You can also leave us a voice message via our anchor page and let us know if there's something or someone specific that you would like on the podcast.Proudly sponsored by:  JustDo - https://www.justdo.com/  PlanAcademy - https://www.planacademy.com/chatter/ ($75 off any course)  InEight - https://ineight.com/  Prosci - https://empower.prosci.com/project-ch... (FREE resource kit)Stay safe, be disruptive and have fun doing it!#ProjectManagement #Blockchain #PMO #ProjectControls #Leadership #Culture #ProjectCertifications

In this week’s pod, we welcomed Russell Willis and Johnny Hepworth to discuss their project from Project Hack 15 – How good is my team at Risk Management?Russell is an infinite Learner with 20+ years of experience in Project Controls, PMO, Data Analytics and Business Intelligence. He now specialises in the catalisation of all these fields into a holistically cohesive and coherent source for dynamic data driven insight and business optimisation.Johnny’s academic background is material chemistry for renewable energy and environment. He works for Brook Green Supply which operates in the L&C space and excited for the prospects of industry 4.0.The main topics we discussed on the podcast were as follows: The Johnny & the Beards project team were formed at Project Hack 15 – see links below for more information Project Hack ensured that project challenge teams had a diverse range of backgrounds in order to make it effective People become data aware, then informed, then gradually literate Data is powerful, though people should be vigilant on cookies that track internet movements If you’re not sure where to start with data just give it a try! Here are links to some of the topics we discussed: Project Hack 15 - https://www.projectdataanalytics.co.uk/projecthack/ Project Hack 15 – Johnny & The Beards Team Presentation - https://youtu.be/RppbJJsOSgU Project Data Analytics Apprenticeship - https://projectingsuccess.co.uk/project-data-analytics-apprenticeship/ Brier Score - measures the accuracy of probabilistic predictions https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brier_score Tune in next time when we’re re-joined by Adrian Pyne to discuss Creating value from adapting agility to project management.For more information, blogs or to support our charities visit www.projectchatterpodcast.comIf you'd like to sponsor the podcast get in touch via our website.You can also leave us a voice message via our anchor page and let us know if there's something or someone specific that you would like on the podcast.Proudly sponsored by:  JustDo - https://www.justdo.com/  PlanAcademy - https://www.planacademy.com/chatter/ ($75 off any course)  InEight - https://ineight.com/  Prosci - https://empower.prosci.com/project-chatter (FREE resource kit) Stay safe, be disruptive and have fun doing it! #ProjectManagement #Blockchain #PMO #ProjectControls #Leadership #Culture #ProjectCertifications

In this episode Dale and Val talk with Dr Alexia Nalewaik about expanding our social and climate responsibility beyond financial incentives. Noting the influence of projects on local infrastructure, business and environments, in some cases creating thriving communities. Have we moved into social measures for projects? What's holding us back? Are we ready to introduce other ROI measures? Dr Alexia talks with us to discuss some of the exciting work she is involved in and how this may shape projects in the future.  Dr. Alexia Nalewaik FRICS CCP CCA has over 25 years of internationally recognised experience in audit, systemic risk, project analytics, governance, and cost estimating. She holds degrees in physics, civil engineering, and project management. Her focus on risk, stakeholders, transparency, and assurance continue to prove valuable to major clients in utilities, transportation, infrastructure, scientific facilities, petrochemical, pharmaceutical, and manufacturing. She is a professorial lecturer at American University, and the host of #PMChat weekly. Dr. Alexia has written two books on project-related topics (“Project Cost Recording and Reporting” and “Project Performance Review”), and published over 100 research papers and technical guidance. She is a Fellow of RICS Americas, AACE International, the Guild of Project Controls, and ICEC; she is a Past President of AACE International, and a Past Chair of ICEC. For more information, see ResearchGate and www.pellucidprojects.com. We also say thank you, as we complete our fifth season of the Project Chatter Podcast. Thank you to all our guests for their value and insight into several topics of interest. You've helped us pay it forward.  Proudly sponsored by:  JustDo - https://www.justdo.com/   PlanAcademy - https://www.planacademy.com/chatter/ ($75 off any course)   InEight - https://ineight.com/   Prosci - https://empower.prosci.com/project-chatter (FREE resource kit)Stay safe, be disruptive and have fun doing it!

In this episode, Martin and Val talk to Santosh Bhat in detail about the lesser-known  Time-location method and how it can be applied on projects. The main topics we discussed on the podcast were as follows: Time chainage is a form of presenting activities from a project schedule. It differs from a Gantt chart by the addition of a second dimension i.e. location. It allows you to plot where activities are occurring Time is shown on the vertical axis which can often confuse people! Location is presented on the horizontal axis. It uses start / end dates and location information that already exists in planning software Time chainage charts are not a new concept. It first originated in the 1800s! The Empire State Building was built using a version of this After educating Project Managers about how to use a time chainage chart, it enabled better conversations around the schedules and stakeholders became more engaged as a result It doesn’t require any specific training to operate, it relies on the programme being fully logic linked The colours on the chart tend to represent project disciplines. It allows discussion on production rate estimates by visualizing activities into shapes Baselines can be assigned 4D is a snapshot of a schedule at a point in time. Time location charts is more appropriate for live scheduling. Both visualization tools are complementary rather than competing The software is particularly useful for what-if scenarios and visualizing the impact of changes Time location charts are not directly linked to time risk allowance in Primavera, it can be used to visualize risk analysis outputs People have the impression time location charts are too complex to implement and too difficult to explain to stakeholders which has prevented major projects from implementing it Tune in next time when we’re re-joined by Dr Alexia Nalewaik to talk social value as a key project ROI criteria.For more information, blogs or to support our charities visit www.projectchatterpodcast.comIf you'd like to sponsor the podcast get in touch via our website.You can also leave us a voice message via our anchor page and let us know if there's something or someone specific that you would like on the podcast.Proudly sponsored by:  JustDo - https://www.justdo.com/  PlanAcademy - https://www.planacademy.com/chatter/ ($75 off any course)  InEight - https://ineight.com/  Prosci - https://empower.prosci.com/project-ch... (FREE resource kit)Stay safe, be disruptive and have fun doing it!

In this week’s pod, we were re-joined by Paul Goodge and Warren for the second innings of the philosophy of Project Management. Paul is internationally regarded as a Programme Management and Change Management specialist. He is noted for his ability to swiftly and accurately diagnose issues and evolve solutions both from a technical and a behavioural point of view.Over his career he held a variety of roles both in line leadership and a number of functional responsibilities, providing him with insights across the whole of the enterprise. He has chaired or sat on a wide variety of internal and external committees and steering groups. An ex-Board member of the Association of Project Management he has continued to work very closely with the organisation and was in the first cohort to achieve Chartered Project Professional status. He is an avid long-distance walker, and worldwide traveller, and greatly enjoys music, reading, sport, fine food and wine in his spare time. He has recently commenced studying for a PhD. He lives in Wiltshire. Warren has 25 years of experience within the construction-related insurance industry. Three years ago Warren made a decision to reset his career. He joined a consulting practice offering specialist risk, internal control and assurance advice to large-scale construction and professional service providers. He also opted to return to university and read a mid-career MSc in Project Management, Finance, and Risk. Graduating with distinction in late 2020, and invigorated to bring a fresh challenge to the long-standing project paradox that plagues our industry. The interim conclusion of this ongoing research is that Partnerships were never truly there. And that this is deemed no different in our wider construction endeavour. The suggested answer to the paradox is that projects are either set up to collaborate, or they are set up to fail. That is what he is here to discuss...The main topics we discussed on the podcast were as follows:·        Time-bound intended change (TIC) can be used as a definition of a project in order to challenge the existing definitions that usually encompass time/cost/quality·        Association for Project Management (APM) / Project Management Institute (PMI) have a role to play in leading the discussion around challenging the existing thinking around projects·        Organisations such as the Infrastructure and Projects Authority should be leading and challenging lessons learnt on major projects. Are the right people in the room?·        How do we understand what knowledge is?·        There is clear evidence that if there is enough leadership interest in personal agendas, it creates a long-term issue for the people who have to work under the leader·        Clarity of vision and priority is key for a leader to be successful over a period of time·        Information exchange is now immediate due to technology. This makes it more difficult to·        Tragedy of the Commons (link below) is the perfect example of whether we will be successful from a sustainable standpoint in the 2020sHere are links to some of the topics we discussed:·    Jo Lucas - Human-machine interoperability: What can we learn from the invention of the washing machine?  - https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/human-machine-interoperability-what-can-we-learn-from-jo-lucas/·    Karl Jaspers – The Origin and Goal of History https://www.amazon.co.uk/Origin-Goal-History-Routledge-Revivals/dp/0415578809·    Projects Within Projects Blog

In this episode Val and our special host guest Jo Lucas, go down the rabbit hole with Kate on many subjects related to her studies and fantastic work to help communities through informal networks and leveraging technology. Kate talks about people 'doing the right thing' after her thesis and book and how technology and qualitative community data is helping to change policy and inform us more deeply about changes, concerns and feedback. Kate has 25 years as a social entrepreneur in East Africa and the UK. Her multidisciplinary approach to strategy and scholarship is informed by her PhD in human and organisational systems and her theory of ‘Doing the Right Thing’ - how people resolve the dilemma of being responsible citizens in uncertain times. Her research and consultancy practice builds a critical mass of child protectors in East Africa, and uses mobile technology to learn from them how to resolve violence against women and children. Kate has an extensive professional network across corporate, government and civil society settings in the UK and East Africa who draw on her expertise as a strategist, researcher, advocate, coach and facilitator. If you would like to help, work with or support Kate she can be reached here. www.drkatemcalpine.co.uk www.citizens4change.net www.connectgo.co.uk @katemcalpine Proudly sponsored by:  JustDo - https://www.justdo.com/  PlanAcademy - https://www.planacademy.com/chatter/ ($75 off any course)  InEight - https://ineight.com/  Prosci - https://empower.prosci.com/project-ch... (FREE resource kit)

In this week’s pod, we were joined by Bojan Tasevski to discuss how to turn your schedule into effective communication and delivery tools.For over 12 years, Bojan Tasevski has been a noteworthy leader in the project management technology space, primarily focusing on creating software products that ease the life of project teams of all sizes. Many people may know him as the Managing Director of Synami, the company behind Seavus Project Viewer, ScheduleReader, and ScheduleCleaner software products. The main topics we discussed on the podcast were as follows: ·        Project schedule information is often sent as a PDF and not communicated to those executing the project ·        Planning software is more important than the project management methodology due to the complexity of projects ·        Many organisations do not have tools that can be built around Primavera P6 ·        In-depth planning can be passed down to the Project Manager. This can be in the form of breaking down activities into steps. The project planner should be focused on simplifying the plan and communicating this with the various stakeholders ·        There isn’t a specific KPI to measure schedule effectiveness. The main measure will be whether stakeholders can understand the data ·        Most people focus on minimization waste when discussing lean project management, we should be focusing on maximizing value ·        The role of a project planner is unlikely to change in the next 5-10 years. Technology will become more prevalent in major projects but planners are likely to still be using toolsets such as Primavera ·        It is a question of how fast the industry will adopt and accept new planning technologies rather than a question of how fast the technology solutions become available ·        Many companies are exploring solutions that can include all project staff in schedule based communicationsTune in next time when we’re joined by Kate McAlpine to talk about Data design & behavioural intelligence that equips Social Purpose Organisations & ESG investors to make sense of & communicate the change that they create in the world for more information, blogs or to support our charities visit www.projectchatterpodcast.com If you'd like to sponsor the podcast get in touch via our website. You can also leave us a voice message via our anchor page and let us know if there's something or someone specific that you would like on the podcast. Proudly sponsored by:  JustDo - https://www.justdo.com/  PlanAcademy - https://www.planacademy.com/chatter/ ($75 off any course)  InEight - https://ineight.com/  Prosci - https://empower.prosci.com/project-ch... (FREE resource kit)

In this episode, Dale and Val talk to Al Simmonite and Alexander Shakespeare from Advance on what is Professional Collaboration. This touches on a subject close to all of us. When it comes to projects what is needed from leadership? how do we establish the right cultures and values? According to our guests, Professional Collaboration is the ability, license, and courage for teams to openly discuss and resolve contentious subjects not only in a collaborative way but also as a mechanism to reinforce the collaboration between them.  Al Simmonite is a dynamic and experienced leader with a proven track record in delivering complex programmes and change initiatives of significant value in a multi-functional and dynamic environment in both the public sector and in a FTSE 100 global company. Able to simplify complex issues and identify clear value drivers. A skilled and highly confident presenter, communicator and facilitator, experienced in managing diverse (culturally and geographically) stakeholders and motivating teams to deliver the best value. Significant experience in safety-critical and quality management environments. A pragmatic and decisive individual who thrives on challenge and change and demonstrates innovation and vision. Always on the lookout for new ideas and fresh thinking. • Leadership at up to Board level with a focus on accountability and empowerment • Leadership of large teams, small teams, virtual teams, cross-functional teams • Portfolio, Programme and Project management (qualified MSP, APM(Q), Prince 2) • Change and transformation management • End-2-End collaborative working (Supply chain through to Customer) • Risk and opportunity management as an integral part of business operations • Developing pragmatic project control, compliance and governance environments • Stakeholder development and management. • Communication and engagement strategies • Performance and process improvement • Customer and Supplier Relationship Management Alexander Shakespeare is a leader, manager and business consultant with a proven record of achievement and high performance in Leadership Development, Transformation and Change Management. MBA, Project Manager and Business Coach qualified with Board level exposure to developing relationships and managing stakeholders, risk and strategic analysis to plan, implement and succeed in complex multi million-pound projects and demanding environments. Driven, committed and innovative. An empathetic leadership style to build successful relationships, coach and mentor teams; creating fun, vibrancy and a positive, business winning culture. Key Skills: • Strategy development: delivery of innovative and dynamic solutions. • Transformation and Change: assessing the impact of change, developing solutions and creating plans tailored to needs of the programme or project. • Leadership Development: improving and developing talent agendas to support operational performance. • Programme & Project Management: project planning, scheduling and implementation. • Business & Personal Coach: Developing team and individual performance, aligning business strategy and success with people Proudly Sponsored by:  JustDo.com InEight.com  PlanAcademy.com (discounted training) Prosci.com (free resources) 

In this week’s pod, we were joined by Bahar Maghsoudi to discuss when governance can be too much.Bahar is a passionate chartered Civil Engineer who, for the past 20+ years, has worked on fantastic projects across multiple sectors. She has an idea or two about what it takes to deliver successful projects, working as a team, and pulling together to deliver.The main topics we discussed on the podcast were as follows: ·        Governance is the framework for how project decisions are made ·        If it doesn’t add value, it shouldn’t be there ·        There is a risk that Project Managers will play the system to pass governance approvals ·        Businesses need to empower and give confidence to Project Managers to deliver major projects ·        In order to be effective, governance needs to be done at the right time and the right amount ·        Joint ventures can build more risk into a project due to the differing ideologies of the businesses ·        Listen to your project teams! Delays can be discussed and managed if the management team are aware of the real level of progress ·        Politics can drive the key dates for major government projects. This can lead to poor expectation management if target dates are unrealisticTune in next time when we’re re-joined by Al Simmonite to talk about professional collaboration in complex projects.For more information, blogs or to support our charities visit www.projectchatterpodcast.comIf you'd like to sponsor the podcast get in touch via our website.You can also leave us a voice message via our anchor page and let us know if there's something or someone specific that you would like on the podcast.Proudly sponsored by:  JustDo - https://www.justdo.com/  PlanAcademy - https://www.planacademy.com/chatter/ ($75 off any course)  InEight - https://ineight.com/  Prosci - https://empower.prosci.com/project-ch... (FREE resource kit)Stay safe, be disruptive and have fun doing it! #projectmanagement #governance #assurance