People and Projects Podcast: Project Management Podcast

Download the episode Over the years I've not only worked on a lot of projects. I've also sat through a lot of project management training and read plenty of books. Have you ever noticed that projects are a lot easier to manage in a class than in the real world? Unfortunately a lot of training and books are filled with theory that can be difficult to apply when you leave the material and run head-o...

Download the episode Let's face it: it's challenging enough to lead and deliver when your team is all together in one location! The problems compound when team members are distributed across multiple locations and perhaps even time zones. When is the best time to meet? How often? How can we help this team truly work together and feel like a team? It's a real challenge for those who desire to excel...

Download the episode "I don't have enough time!" It's a common refrain. Whether from participants in a workshop or over a cup of coffee with a coaching client, I'm constantly working with people who are struggling to stay on top of their commitments. Though I help others on the topic all the time, managing my own time is a continual challenge. The interview you'll hear in this episode was recorded...

So take a look around you. How engaged would you say the people are in your organization? Each workplace is unique but here's a dose of reality: Some research shows only 29% of North American employees are fully engaged. That's a lot of productivity being left on the table. Particularly during challenging economic times, it's essential for our teams to be fully engaged and committed to project and...

Download the episode You're presenting in a meeting or perhaps in front of a group. What is it that makes you more believable? More engaging? More trustworthy? The topic for today's cast is the key to charisma. Many people think you either have the charisma gene or you don't. Tony Robbins? He got it. Ben Stein in Ferris Bueller's Day Off ? Not so much! But is it purely a matter of genetics? Is the...

Download the episode Clearly we are a culture of jugglers. Whether working with my executive coaching clients or talking with participants in our keynotes and workshops, without a doubt most people are feeling overwhelmed with too much to do and not enough time to do it. So we multitask. Or so we think. One of my favorite books from last year is Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thrivin...

Download the episode How important is executive support to your ability to deliver? The answer is: probably even more important than you realize! Nearly every list of contributing factors to project success or failure has some mention of the importance of executive support or project sponsorship as a key factor. The idea is that if you have the support of your sponsor (or management chain), you're...

Download the episode A common theme across my executive coaching clients is related to networking. Often it comes down to the sense there's not enough time to network. "Nice idea but I'm too busy!" But when I, as a coach, push back on this bias, here's what I find: It's not a time issue. Rather, it's a perception issue. We prioritize those things that we perceive will provide the best return for o...