Project Managers are Motivators

Many times you may need to be the team’s top motivator. Projects are hard. They all have their challenges. So, here is a lesson from history in persistence. Feel free to share with your team members who need it…

"He failed in business in ’31. He was defeated for state legislator in ’32. He started another business in ’33. It failed. His fiancée died in ’35. He had a nervous breakdown in ’36. In ’43 he ran for Congress and was defeated. He tried again in ’48 and was defeated again. He tried running for the Senate in ’55. He lost. The next year he ran for Vice President and lost. In ’58 he ran for the Senate again and was defeated again. Finally, in 1860, Abraham Lincoln was elected 16th president of the United States."

“Those who envision greatness, usually achieve it.”

- Dare to Soar: Your Attitude Determines Your Altitude, Byrd Baggett

SpinOff and Divestitute IT Projects

Not all IT projects are growth, efficiency, or talent enablers. Periodically, IT needs to support divestiture or spin-offs. These types of projects often can involve segmenting / securing the divested business in the existing enterprise systems, so that temporary IT services can be extended for a grace period. At some point, the divested business is fully separated from the systems. These types of IT projects are quite complex business projects that are interesting and offer IT project managers a great learning experience. ...

... "It was much more than an IT project. In practice it meant 1,800 users, 7 languages, 3 factories and interfaces with 100s of suppliers, customers and logistics providers! " ...

Via Personnel Today: Birds Eye Independence

IT Project TCO Perspectives

Dell and the London School of Economics are collaborating to study practices and perceptions of IT decision-makers on creating enterprise efficiency. One of the findings brings emphasis on the impact that project investments have on on-going operating budgets and the need to minimize that impact, so that "run the business" operating costs do not balloon over time and threaten an enterprise's desire to fund further investment. ...

... "* 40 percent of IT leaders see better IT project management as driving more efficient use of technology.

* Dell Perspective: This was one of the largest current concerns of CIOs and decision makers according to the LSE survey. The need for companies to invest in technology that shifts IT spend away from labor costs that lock companies into a keeping the lights on approach is a significant focus. Further, the research addresses the need for greater implementation of simplifying technologies that drive datacenter efficiency, which can inherently reduce risk while also unlocking resources that can drive innovation. " ...

Via Dell: First Results of Multi-Year Study on Enterprise Efficiency

IT Project Business Impact

IT project failure makes list of business slayers along with poor customer service and lack of business evolution. ...

... "Make a mess of a major IT project. I have seen companies hit the rocks because they spent fortunes on computer systems that did not function properly. " ...

Via Financial Times: Murder a business

People - Love'em or Hate'em?

Are you the type of person that comments on a regular basis, “you know, I really can’t stand people!” Perhaps you should consider whether or not this view impacts your success as a project manager and/or leader. I argue that it does.

I was just checking out Pete DeYoe’s blog and he has two recent entries that led me to this post. In his entry titled “Flock or Fleece”, he quotes:

Effective leaders are those interested in the flock – the people they are leading. They see their role as that of a giver – to get behind their people and support them in ways that bring out their best.

Ineffective leaders are interested only in the fleece and couldn’t care less about their flock – they’re takers…

The lesson here is to be a giver and show an interest in your flock. If you do, your flock will respond in ways that will guarantee your success as a leader.

Instant Turnaround, by Harry Paul and Ross Reck

The other article is called "Why Being a 'Good' Manager is 'Great'", which he posted after reading the book, “Lead Well and Prosper” by Nick McCormick.

I believe that being a good project manager who cares about people IS great. We all know that projects are hard and often involve strange hours and/or time away from what we really care about. If you are in a job where you aren’t sure you are doing as much for the world as you had hoped, look around. If you are genuinely interested in and care about people and their success and do everything you can to help them be successful while simultaneously understanding that sometimes people actually have lives outside of work, you are doing a GREAT thing for the world! You are doing your part to help to create a healthy work environment for people. When they feel good about coming to work, it truly is a gift that keeps on giving - for them, for you, for the project, for the company, for the world.

Do your team members feel good about working for and/or with you? What even slight change can you make right now, to bring out the best in people even more? Let me give you a hint…it’s not by “sheering“ them when they walk into your office…

Military IT Project Cycle Times

IT systems purchasing and development integrated with weapons system procurement processes results in glacial cycle times for solution delivery in the military technology space. Defense leaders are considering actions for improvement, but organizational complexity could be an insurmountable barrier. ...

... "Lynn said that it is unacceptable that, on average, it takes 81 months from the time a major DoD IT project is funded to the time its operational ... " ...

Via Information Week: IT Acquisition Reforms