There is a very good discussion on PMStudent.com about an article by Jennifer Bedell titled “Do testers goldplate too?”.
Jennifer says in her post:
Goldplating by a tester can occur when a tester goes beyond the stated requirements in an effort to produce a “quality” product. A tester may feel that their suggestion would improve the customer experience [...]
Do you make these 7 test planning mistakes?
Being respectful does not mean being a doormat
Kareem Shaker wrote a very good blog post about RED Leadership, a term he coined for his 3 leadership pillars: Respect, Empathize, and Develop.
I particularly liked what he said about respect:
“Do not expect people to respect you because you are higher in position, even though they may try to show respect whenever they see you, [...]
What software projects and battlefields have in common
Stephen Cohen wrote a wonderful blog post on 10 analogies for managing software projects. One analogy that really resonated with me is # 7 “Battlefield management”.
He wrote:
While I don’t mean to in any way belittle the heroic efforts and significant risk to those in real battlefield situations; software, particularly large complex solutions, required a level [...]
Let’s say “No” to groupthink and stop quoting the Chaos Report
A project manager asked on LinkedIn:
We know that IT projects are almost always failures in the sense that we never hit our dates nor budget. Are there metrics that prove PMPs do a better job?
Here is my response to this question:
We need to be able to examine the underlying data and measurements methods used as [...]
How not to be intimidated by Project Audits
It is extremely frustrating for us Project Managers when auditing and quality assurance folks forget that quality actually has a cost. And in projects, unlike in normal operations, this cost has to be accounted for in the project’s budget and schedule from the start of the project.
There is nothing worse than to be asked to [...]
There is no such thing as a dysfunctional organization
What is the best piece of advice you have ever received about managing projects?
For me, the best advice is:
“There is no such thing as a dysfunctional organization, because every organization is perfectly aligned to achieve the results it gets”.
This quote is from the book “the Practice of Adaptive Leadership” by Ron Heifetz, which I highly [...]
Connecting through conversation
Susan Scott, author of the acclaimed book Fierce Conversations, has these recommendations to help us connect through conversation:
Come into the conversation with empty hands. Bring nothing but yourself.
Set aside your own agenda and ask, “What is the most important thing we should be talking about today?”
When you ask, really ask. One of the greatest gifts [...]
The “Emotional Wake” of terminated projects
In today’s limited resources and competing priorities, terminating a project which no longer advances the organization’s objectives, is a sound business decision. It takes courage and should be celebrated as success. The resources saved can be deployed where they will matter the most for the organization in the long term.
Unfortunately, terminating projects leaves behind what [...]
Are your blind spots holding you back?
A project manager asked: What do you think are some key reasons why even good project managers sometimes miss getting great projects or even great career advancements?
Here is my response:
Being Economical with the truth
When it comes to reporting project status, project managers have to make tough decisions about what to report, when to report it, and how to report it. These decisions are more challenging during crisis situations, when careful crisis communication becomes a very sensitive component of any status reporting.
You feel the sensitive nature of crisis communication [...]
