"What creates trust, in the end, is the leader's manifest respect for the followers" - Jim O'Toole, Leadership Change.
A leadership void exists when the goals of the leaders aren't embraced by the followers. Respect, or lack of it plays a big part in helping to create this void.
Some leadership principles I have come to believe are:
Be consistent in what you say and do. Inconsistency shows a lack of focus. Being inconsistent will undermine your credibility with others.
As a leader you will need to provide focus, constancy of purpose, and clear direction to your team. The problem with many leaders isn't a lack of personality or charisma, it is a lack of focus and follow-through.
When leading remember "beware of no man more than thyself" - Thomas Fuller. Ask for feedback from others. Remember the higher the leader is in an organization the more blind spots he or she will experience.
A good leader is a master of the big picture and is knowledgeable of the details. A leader that isn't willing to get involved in the details is just plain lazy and won't have the respect of the team they are leading.
Be careful about negative assumptions. Leaders that are high achievers know their behavior tells the truth about their assumptions.
Leaders ensure that their followers know where they fit into the big picture.
Leaders who underestimate the intellect of others tend to overestimate their own.
Other things that are always displayed by a leader are the ability to:
Create and nurture a vision
Laugh!
Leave your ego at the door
Think before acting (not quick to criticize)
Be a risk taker
State and meet commitments
Be a role model
Have a can do attitude
Encourage success
and finally...BE VISIBLE
Monday, December 14, 2009
Thursday, December 10, 2009
10 Most Important Things
Florida Power and Light management came up with the list below of the ten most important things they think helped them complete the St. Lucie 2 Nuclear Power Plant on schedule, within cost, and without major quality issues.
- Management Commitment
- A realistic and firm schedule
- Clear decision-making authority
- Flexible project control tools
- Teamwork
- Maintaining engineering before construction (design before build)
- Earlsy start-up involvement
- Organizational flexibility
- Ongoing critique of the project
- Close coordination with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (strong, fair oversight)
This is an awesome list that can be adapted to any environment and project. Do you have a top ten list of things you need for your project to be successful?
Tuesday, December 08, 2009
Keep IT Simple! - Redesigned
There was a popular survey some time ago that asked leaders in several mid-sized companies about their success. One of the main reasons that many were successful is they focused on simplicity in everything they did. The study concluded that simple, focused companies were more profitable.
The Pareto or 80/20 Principle can help us realize the power of keeping things simple.
Some popular statistics that relate to the Pareto Principle are below:
80% of beer is consumed by 20% of the beer drinkers
80% of classroom participation comes from 20% of the students
80% of traffic jams occur on 20% of roads
20% of your clothes will be worn 80% of the time
80% of sales are generated by 20% of the sales staff
80% of problems are generated by 20% of the employees
80% of problems come from 20% of the customer base
Now that we know this, how do we make things simpler? Try looking at your business processes to eliminate waste and complexity.
Questions to ask yourself and your organization when seeking to simplify your business processes:
What are our processes?
Who are our customers?
What systems do we use? Do we have the right systems in place to support our business?
What services do we offer internally and externally? Are they still valuable today?
Look for the 20% that adds value and eliminate or redesign the rest.
We are looking to automate, minimize, isolate, reduce, redesign, throw away, reinvent, rejuvenate, refresh, retire, or reallocate those things that are not helping us to achieve simplicity. Achieving simplicity can be hard, but the rewards are worth the effort.
Keep it Simple!!!
Free Christmas Music
Want some free Christmas music? Head over to this page on Amazon.com and download 29 free holiday songs.
Sunday, December 06, 2009
Doing Things!
Another short, excellent Tom Peters Video - Click Here
Tom is one of my heros. I have posted several of his videos here in the past. Check out his website at Tompeters.com for more stuff
Monday, November 30, 2009
Good Project Estimating is an Art and a Science
I have been burned more times than I can count by bad estimates. What can a project manager do to help ensure the accuracy of estimates? First we should understand the basics behind the estimating process (there are many more than I have listed here). Some items to consider are:
The more unique the project, the more of a challenge it will be to get good estimates
Estimates are only as good as the estimator is at predicting the future
Padded" estimates are not always bad as long as the padding is communicated (... and as long as the Project Manager is the one doing the "padding")
An estimate is not a bid
Estimates using sound estimating practices, performed by experienced estimators from clear specifications should never be negotiated
Ballpark estimates are guesses and should be treated as much by the project team, management, and the project sponsor
Other items to consider when estimating are:
Ensure the statement of work or contract is clear and understood by the person(s) doing the estimates
Ensure that a schedule or mandated date doesn't drive the estimating thought process
Include Risk Management in the estimating process
Ensure that estimates take into account the skill level(s) of the person(s) that will do the work
If your work breakdown structure (WBS) is flawed, your estimates will be inaccurate
Accurate estimating is an art and a science. The estimator (or team) must take into account historical data from past projects, the team's knowledge and experience, the project risks, the statement of work and other project information to make the best estimate possible.
Keep in mind when planning your project that estimates aren't hard and fast numbers. They are guesses, however they should be very good guesses if you have good estimators and are following tried and true estimating practices.
The more unique the project, the more of a challenge it will be to get good estimates
Estimates are only as good as the estimator is at predicting the future
Padded" estimates are not always bad as long as the padding is communicated (... and as long as the Project Manager is the one doing the "padding")
An estimate is not a bid
Estimates using sound estimating practices, performed by experienced estimators from clear specifications should never be negotiated
Ballpark estimates are guesses and should be treated as much by the project team, management, and the project sponsor
Other items to consider when estimating are:
Ensure the statement of work or contract is clear and understood by the person(s) doing the estimates
Ensure that a schedule or mandated date doesn't drive the estimating thought process
Include Risk Management in the estimating process
Ensure that estimates take into account the skill level(s) of the person(s) that will do the work
If your work breakdown structure (WBS) is flawed, your estimates will be inaccurate
Accurate estimating is an art and a science. The estimator (or team) must take into account historical data from past projects, the team's knowledge and experience, the project risks, the statement of work and other project information to make the best estimate possible.
Keep in mind when planning your project that estimates aren't hard and fast numbers. They are guesses, however they should be very good guesses if you have good estimators and are following tried and true estimating practices.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Deming and Project Management
Continuous Improvement is the output of a good Quality Management process, and Continuous Improvement requires the proper application of quality tools and techniques. One of the most recognizable Quality Tools is the "Deming Wheel". The Deming Wheel is a simple diagram that focuses efforts around four processes: PLAN, DO, CHECK, and ACT (PDCA Cycle). While this diagram may seem simplistic at first sight, it is a very powerful tool when applied to projects. In fact, Project Management is dependent upon the PDCA Cycle to deliver effective results.
A quick summary of the PDCA Cycle follows.
Plan is the initial phase of the PDCA Cycle. High levels goals and objectives are agreed upon and resources are acquired. In this phase we are identifying a particular problem or problems and breaking them down into manageable tasks. We want to decide specifically how we will solve the problem and establish metrics to measure progress.
Do is executing the Plan. Also, reporting is done in this phase to check progress. Do can be prototyping in the IT world, designing experiments, constructing a building, building a model, etc.
Check is the evaluation phase. Did we do what we said we were going to do? Did we meet the project's objectives? What does the data tell us? This is where are metrics are analyzed. We are looking at our KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) and making recommendations for action.
Act is the adjustment phase. What are we going to do to get back on track or to make improvements? Should we continue or cancel the project? Do we need to re-plan and start the cycle over again? Here we are acting on our findings from the Check phase. We want to make sure we are acting on the right information at the right time.
The PDCA Cycle is a great tool to help us be successful in Project Management. Using proven Quality Management tools that support Continuous Improvement will help project managers to do a better job managing their projects.
Remember the Four Principles of Quality Management are:
Customer Satisfaction
Plan Do, Check, Act (PDCA) Cycle
Management by Fact
Respect for People
Combining these Quality Principles with your Project Management Processes will lead to powerful results for your customers.
A quick summary of the PDCA Cycle follows.
Plan is the initial phase of the PDCA Cycle. High levels goals and objectives are agreed upon and resources are acquired. In this phase we are identifying a particular problem or problems and breaking them down into manageable tasks. We want to decide specifically how we will solve the problem and establish metrics to measure progress.
Do is executing the Plan. Also, reporting is done in this phase to check progress. Do can be prototyping in the IT world, designing experiments, constructing a building, building a model, etc.
Check is the evaluation phase. Did we do what we said we were going to do? Did we meet the project's objectives? What does the data tell us? This is where are metrics are analyzed. We are looking at our KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) and making recommendations for action.
Act is the adjustment phase. What are we going to do to get back on track or to make improvements? Should we continue or cancel the project? Do we need to re-plan and start the cycle over again? Here we are acting on our findings from the Check phase. We want to make sure we are acting on the right information at the right time.
The PDCA Cycle is a great tool to help us be successful in Project Management. Using proven Quality Management tools that support Continuous Improvement will help project managers to do a better job managing their projects.
Remember the Four Principles of Quality Management are:
Customer Satisfaction
Plan Do, Check, Act (PDCA) Cycle
Management by Fact
Respect for People
Combining these Quality Principles with your Project Management Processes will lead to powerful results for your customers.