Technology Evangelist: Leadership Role Understood

Are technology evangelists engaging and empathetic? This survey thinks so. Understand what makes these folks tick. ...

... "Technology evangelism requires a commitment to the product or service being sold, as well as to the company and its management. A technology evangelist is attached to a cause that embodies a vision, makes people feel better, generates impressive effects, initiates selfless actions, and polarizes people to act positively. Evangelism also requires specific attitudes, strategies, and techniques that are quite distinct from those found within sales or marketing environments. " ...

Via Growth Resources, Guy Kawasaki: Technology Evangelists: A Leadership Survey (PDF) ...

Project Team Morale Makeover

Does your workplace and/or project team suffer from morale issues?
You may need a morale makeover. This article suggests the following:
1) Become clear on what you can control - you can control your attitude and set an example, when and how you communicate, etc.
2) Love the ones your with - appreciation is the #1 motivator (remember my blog on making a big deal out of being 50% complete - find a reason, any reason, to say thanks and good job and please make sure you are sincere or don't bother)
3) Communicate - listen up! Try saying, "tell me more". Listen to ideas for improvement. You might be surprised.
4) Create meaning, purpose and passion. Einstein observed we are the happiest when we are doing something exciting and meaningful. Happy people = productive team members. Make sure people know why their hard work matters.

Thanks to the Childcare Business for the great article, Morale Makeover and to http://schwendt.com/html/einstein.html for the photo!

Project Team: The Ideal Collaborative Team Members ...

Recent survey favors project team members with an open mind and natural curiosity over familiarity and reputation. ...

Project Team: The Ideal Collaborative Team Members ...: Via How to Save the World: A New Survey Suggests that Attitude is More Important than Experience in Collaborative Work ...

... "Two criteria, enthusiasm for the subject of the collaboration, and open-mindedness and curiosity, are rated as the most important criteria by virtually all segments of respondents. " ...

Lessons from Hackers for Project Manager's

The New Hacker's Dictionary defines management as follows: "Corporate power elites distinguished primarily by their distance from actual productive work and their chronic failure to manage (see also suit)."


Hackers, on the other hand, exhibit five distinct attitudes:

1. The world is full of fascinating problems waiting to be solved.
2. Nobody should ever have to solve a problem twice.
3. Boredom and drudgery are evil.
4. Freedom is good.
5. Attitude is no substitute for competence.

These five attitudes provide excellent guidance for project managers, and indeed for all managers. But how does one apply them in the real world?

Read this article to find out!

How NOT to build a Project Management Office

If set up "properly" (which I believe is different for each organization) and if led by the right person with the right attitude, a PMO can support a culture of empowerment, entrepreneurship and accountability.

This article suggests that PMO's can do more harm than good. Don't let that happen to your PMO! Start with the end in mind and design it properly, unlike poor Henry and the CIO that appointed him...

Beneath the Buzz: Project Management Office - Beneath the Buzz - Leadership RC - CIO: