People and Projects Podcast: Project Management Podcast

How to Change There's a change you've probably been wanting to make. It could be that you know what to do. The problem is doing it . Remembering it. Following through. And perhaps not beating yourself up because you haven't made progress. Whatever it is that you'd like to change, we have good news for you in this episode. Katy Milkman joins us to talk about her fantastic new book How to Change . I...

The ROI of Kindness Is it possible to be too nice? Is niceness the same as kindness? In today's discussion, we're going to drill in on that idea. I'm excited to introduce you to Brian Biro who wrote a book entitled The ROI of Kindness . In today's discussion, Brian will talk about the difference between being nice and being kind. He'll explain what a Kindness Value Proposition is and why you might...

Managing Projects and Teams One of my favorite voices in the world of leading and delivering is Johanna Rothman. I've had the pleasure of knowing Johanna for a couple of decades now and throughout that time she's been a clear voice in how I think about managing teams and projects. And her writing, coaching, and consulting have helped project teams around the world. In this episode, she joins us to...

How to Deliver Projects Let's say a boss comes up to you and says, "Hey, our senior leadership team just authorized this big new project. I'm assigning it to you and need it delivered in the next 14 weeks. We're counting on you. Good luck!" What's going through your mind at this point? Maybe you're excited about the opportunity, which is great. But a lot of times people are thinking, "How in the w...

Much Of How We Think About the Brain is Wrong Today we're having a discussion about the brain. Actually, it's more than that--we're going to talk about how a lot of what we think we know about the brain might just not be so! Science writer Annie Murphy Paul joins us today to talk about her remarkable new book entitled The Extended Mind: The Power of Thinking Outside The Brain . It's a book that ha...

Preparing for the Next Rogue Wave We're continuing a series of episodes on the topic of the future. It's hard to imagine that we can be effective at leading others if we're not forward-thinking. But after getting slammed by the COVID tsunami and subsequent recurring waves, the future can feel so unsure. So how do we prepare ourselves and our teams for the future despite the challenges of understan...

How much fun would you say you and your team have as you go through your day-to-day work? When you look back over the pandemic experience thus far, there are plenty of reasons for the word fun to not come to mind. There has been a great loss, much fear, and though working from home may have its advantages, it can definitely have an impact on how a group of people experiences the idea of being a te...

Leading Virtual Teams That Work Though many people are slowly starting to return to the office for at least part of the week, there's reason to think that we'll be leading teams and projects with stakeholders that are not co-located. And though we've gained some experience with that now since the global pandemic began, I continue to hear from people about the challenges they experience, both as a...

The Power of Trust A key aspect for us to grow in our ability to lead and deliver comes down to trust. It's difficult to follow someone we don't trust, right? Yet trust can be one of those topics that can be difficult to get our arms around. We know it when we see it and we know it's important. And we certainly know when it's lost. But how do we intentionally develop trust in an authentic and last...

The Working Project Manager Mom A common struggle I see is the challenges and expectations faced by working moms. I think it's challenging for any working mom, but since many of our listeners are in project-related roles, I wonder if it's even more difficult for you? Your days are filled with planning, task management, getting things done, being efficient, and my guess is that mindset doesn't shut...

Preparing for the Convergence It's hard to imagine that we can be effective at leading others if we're not forward-thinking. But the future is so unsure--clouded at times by apocalyptic visions of machines taking over and life ruled by algorithms. So how do we prepare ourselves and our teams for the future despite the challenges of understanding it? To help us on this journey, we're joined today b...

Strategic Project Management There's a good chance that right now, as you listen to this episode, you've been tasked with delivering something that feels big. Perhaps even intimidating. Even if this isn't you right now, it will be eventually, and today I can't wait to introduce you to an approach that can help lead you out of the fog. Terry Dean Schmidt is the author of Strategic Project Managemen...

Sustainable Project Management Insights One of my favorite voices on how to lead projects is Rich Maltzman. Rich contributed to A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) Seventh Edition in the areas of sustainability and value delivery. In this episode, Rich talks about what sustainable project management is (and isn't). Perhaps more importantly, he talks about what we can...

Lessons in Project Leadership One of my favorite voices on how to lead projects is Kiron Bondale. He joined us back in episode 92 for an In the Trenches episode, and I've been a fan of his writing ever since. Kiron recently launched a new book entitled Easy in Theory, Difficult in Practice: 100 Lessons in Project Leadership . It's a book packed with insights to help you lead and deliver. Learn mor...

Two Interviews in One I've been looking forward to sharing this interview with Dana Brownlee for many weeks. In many ways, it's two interviews wrapped up into one. We start by talking with Dana about her book entitled The Unwritten Rules of Managing Up: Project Management Techniques from the Trenches . It's a book packed with insights to help manage those who manage us! But I didn't want to miss t...

Building Resilience After a Pandemic For most of us, living through a crisis like a global pandemic has taken a toll. As leaders, we not only have to navigate difficult times well ourselves—we also have a responsibility to help those we lead. Jim Harter is Chief Scientist of Workplace Management and Wellbeing at Gallup. He joins us here in episode 324 to talk about his new book entitled Wellbeing...

Leading in Anxious Times In this episode, we're taking on the subject of anxiety at work, and I'm excited to welcome Adrian Gostick to the conversation. Adrian and his co-authors Chester Elton and Anthony Gostick have written an insightful and timely book entitled Anxiety at Work: 8 Strategies to Help Teams Build Resilience, Handle Uncertainty, and Get Stuff Done . The book is filled with practica...

The Rules Have Changed World-renowned CEO coach and business thinker Ram Charan joins us to talk about new rules for the digital age from his book Rethinking Competitive Advantage: New Rules for the Digital Age . It's a discussion that will help guide how you see your business through the lens of the digital giants while helping you prepare for the future. Learn more about Ram and his work at http...

Asking Instead of Telling Dr. Ed Schein returns back to the podcast, along with his son Peter, to talk about the recently released Second Edition of their book Humble Inquiry, Second Edition: The Gentle Art of Asking Instead of Telling . It's a book about asking questions--for sure. But it's a remarkably good book about how to have conversations--real conversations--instead of two people talking a...

Making Sense of Weak Signals Greg Githens joins us to talk about his insightful book How to Think Strategically: Sharpen Your Mind. Develop Your Competency. Contribute to Success.  Greg's book is packed with ideas to build your ability to think more critically--more strategically--and develop your ability to lead teams and projects. Learn more about Greg, his book, and his coaching practice at htt...

The Head of Certification from PMI Joins Us Sierra Hampton-Simmons joins us in this episode to talk about the recent changes to the PMP exam. In addition, she gives us a glimpse at what to expect with certifications in the future. In the discussion, she mentions the following handbooks: PMI website: pmi.org PMP Exam Content Outline CAPM Exam Content Outline I would love to help you earn your PMP o...

You Can't Advance If They Don't Know About You I'm joined by John Stepper to talk about his new book entitled Working Out Loud: A 12-Week Method to Build New Connections, a Better Career, and a More Fulfilling Life . It's a great read and in today's discussion, you're going to learn specific strategies for developing relationships and future-prepping your career. Learn more about John and the Work...

Managing Up is Not Sucking Up I'm joined by Mary Abbajay to talk about her book entitled Managing Up: How to Move Up, Win at Work, and Succeed With Any Type of Boss . It's a great read and in today's discussion, you're going to learn specific strategies for dealing with different types of bosses. Learn more about Mary and her company at ManagingUpTheBook.com/ .   Let's Stay In Touch! I hear from l...

The Power of Levity for Project Teams We're talking about humor today and I'm joined by Jennifer Aaker and Naomi Bagdonas. They're the authors of a new book entitled Humor, Seriously . It's a great read and in today's discussion, you're going to learn how bringing more levity to your team pays back in a big way. Learn more about Jennifer and Naomi at HumorSeriously.com/ .   Accelerate Your Ability...

Evidence-based Ways to Stop Ruminating and Worrying After working with hundreds of coaching clients from around the world through our Leadership Fast Track Program , I can confidently say that I probably know who your worst critic is. Yep, it's probably you. People leading teams and projects typically have plenty to worry about. We ruminate about the past and can stay awake at night about risks th...