PM Discipline Integration in the Federal Government
PM Point of View
Dive into the future of project management within the U.S. government in this engaging and insightful interview with key players from the USDA and NOAA. Hear from Jason Traquair, Kellie Cenzano, Daryl Frazier, and Joe Giraldi as they unveil their pioneering efforts and collaborations aimed at enhancing program and project management disciplines across their respective organizations. Discover the innovative strategies, such as building vibrant communities of practice and leveraging integrated value networks, that are set to redefine how government agencies achieve mission success and tackle...
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Risk and Resilience at the UMD PM Symposium (Revised)
PM Point of View
Risk-- again! This episode with guests from the upcoming UMD Project Management Center for Excellence symposium is a thought-provoking discussion that takes a closer look at a crucial aspect of project management – risk management. We've gathered a dynamic trio of experts from diverse backgrounds to share their insights, experiences, and groundbreaking strategies on tackling risks head-on, making your projects more resilient and successful. Joining us from the realms of technology, clinical research, and literary scholarship, our speakers, Lakshmi Sowjanya Uppala from Amazon, clinical...
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People in Projects at the UMD PM Symposium 2024
PM Point of View
Heralding the annual arrival of the flagship UMD Project Management Center for Excellence symposium, this episode has 3 of the presenters in the People and Projects track: Kevin Coleman, a visionary leader and the founder and CEO of KMC Empowerment, John Eskandar, a seasoned professional in project controls at Exelon and graduate of the UMD PM program, who brings a wealth of experience managing large-scale construction projects and Abbigail Meah-Ali, a manager of construction services at the National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago. From Trinidad to Maryland to Virginia, our guests span a...
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Program Value Management
PM Point of View
Challenged by the hosts, Kendall Lott and Mike Hannan, returning guest Steven Devaux takes his value break down structure (the "Golden Triangle") to a new level, looking at quantifying value of project within programs. That’s the obvious, the less obvious is looking at the need for this view point in critical areas such as public health, emergency response and national security. He emphasizes the need to prioritize or sequence projects within a program to optimize the schedule for maximum impact, where the focus is on delivering outcomes rather than just producing products. What might...
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Asteroids
PM Point of View
In this podcast episode, co-hosts Kendall and Mike are joined by guest Roy Mazel, a retired NASA project leader and guest lecturer. They discuss the Project Management complexities of asteroid missions, specifically, the OSIRIS-REx Psyche missions. As you might guess, the successful implementation of risk management strategies and the importance of technical integrity in the face of schedule pressure is the litmus test of getting these missions completed on time, on budget, and without failure. And what you might not expect, Roy highlights the importance of a strong organizational...
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Let it Flow, Success without Force
PM Point of View
In this episode, Kendall, Mike, and Wolfram Mueller discuss strategies to improve business workflows using the Theory of Constraints (TOC) and Critical Chain Project Management, focused on two things: underloading system constraints and buffer management (having a signal that our flow is or isn't working). One thing that pops out is the importance of calculating business cases and recognizing growth potential--that becomes the compelling case to get middle management on board with the change needed. Getting a team to underload (reduce the non-critical work) of key resources, while having other...
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Getting Out of Our Own Way
PM Point of View
The crux of any success? It isn't the plan, it isn't the desire, not even the WIIFM, its EXECUTION. And organizational change is no different. Today's episode discusses the difficulties that organizations face when it comes to executing change. Once again guest and change management author and guru April Mills comes to us on the topic of change…but this time it isn't how to do it, but how she has seen managers institutionally throw up their own barriers to change even as they try to change…starting with outsourcing on the thinking to…professionals. It may be that we are so good at PM...
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PM Faceoff: Process vs Principles
PM Point of View
So there we were at the 10th annual UMD PM Symposium, having the Great Debate of Process vs principles. Facing off were Crystal Richards, CEO of MindsparQ and Laura Barnard, CEO of PMO Strategies. One hour of back and forth and audience questions. In sum: From the debate between Laura and Crystal,It's clear that project managers should grab the handle.Be a business leader and ask good questions,Embrace risk and change with no exceptions.
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Listener Questions Revealed!
PM Point of View
Elevating the Conversation about Project Management, with a twist. In this episode cohosts Mike Hannan and Kendall Lott take on some Listener Feedback. A running theme in the show is the actual and delineation of project manager, product manager, and program manager--so we jump on that! Of course, our main theme of its all about value, adding value and understanding projects as investments is once again threaded through the answers. But new things lurk--how do you agile on a fixed-price contract? What's the danger and opportunity in cross-functional teams and accountability when managing...
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UMD PM 4.0 AI & Future for Project Managers
PM Point of View
No Luddites here! Episode 3 of the UMD PM Symposium prequal and guests Al Zeiton, Marissa Brienza and Bill Brantley chat about the role of AI in Project Management and the potential risks and benefits of using it as PMs. We discover the logic and importance of maintaining human interaction—turns out its not fear that makes us think “it will never replace us” but rather AI’s limitations in the larger PM discipline. Ah! But what potential magic AI may bring if we use it as augmenting project management, driving improved risk assessment, and being our outsourced memory! All in service of...
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Risk is an organizational problem that reaches into our ability to make sound business decisions. We should think of stakeholders (and activating them to be positive and helpful), remember to check assumptions, and recognize that risks shift as priorities and the external environment do. Beyond the project-level risks, and past even basic quantification of risk and impact, we need PMs to consider the ultimate business value of their projects – and whether the project should even be done. Yep, even for a project, risk is an organizational concern that has a perspective shaped by the very organizational culture. Listen in to this episode and hear influencers Andy Jordon, Beth Spriggs and Bruce Harpham describe their insights and their approaches to handling risks and consulting with others about it.
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PM Point of View® (PM-POV) is a podcast series produced by Final Milestone Productions and PMIWDC. PM-POV allows our membership and the public at large to listen to brief and informative conversations with beltway area practioners and executives as they discuss various perspectives on project management -- its uses, its shortcomings, its changes, and its future. Listeners can send comments and suggestions for topics and guests to [email protected].
PM Point of View® is a registered trademark of M Powered Strategies, Inc.
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About the Speakers
Andy Jordan
Andy Jordan is President of Roffensian Consulting Inc., an Ontario, Canada based management consulting firm with a strong emphasis on organizational transformation, portfolio management and PMOs. Andy has a track record of success managing business critical projects, programs and portfolios in Europe and North America in industries as diverse as investment banking, software development, call centers, telecommunications and corporate education.
Andy is an in demand speaker and moderator who delivers thought provoking content in an engaging and entertaining style, and is also an instructor in project management related disciplines. He always strives to provide thought provoking presentations that drive his audience to challenge accepted norms while providing actionable content that can be applied in the real world. Andy’s first full length book ‘Risk Management for Project Driven Organizations’ is now available.”
Beth Spriggs
Beth Spriggs, PMP, is an experienced coach, trainer and speaker. Currently she serves as the vice president of technology at Leadership for Educational Equity (LEE), a major nonpartisan organization. For more than 16 years, she’s solved unsolvable problems, tamed unruly projects, and pulled off the impossible for organizations by deploying technologies that work for customers while positioning clients for what’s coming next.
Her extensive portfolio consists of everything from bite-sized undertakings to years-long overhauls that impact every aspect of the organization, but her focus has always been technology project management. Some of Beth's contributions include delivering webinars for ProjectManagement.com and NTEN, speaking at NTEN's Nonprofit Technology Conference and DC Web Women's Conference; and attending PMI's Global Congress NA 2015 as an Expert. Beth was PM.com's member of the month August 2015.
Bruce Harpham
Bruce Harpham is the author of the forthcoming book "Project Managers At Work," (Apress) which showcases the career paths and lessons learned from project professionals from NASA, Google, Apple and other leading organizations. Bruce Harpham is also a columnist with ProjectManagement.com and runs the ProjectManagementHacks.com blog. Bruce lives in Toronto, Canada.