Understanding Projects

My discussion today is with Matthew Black. Matthew has a great deal of  experience in systems engineering and development in a variety of  industries including defense, aerospace, and financial services. He has  combined Agile tools with classical Waterfall delivery methods so that  what is delivered uses the best tools and processes to meet the needs of  the business partners and clients. For more information about Matthew: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewblack2015/ This then was the basis for our conversation – that is the environment  where both agile and waterfall projects are employed. We talk about how  these two worlds may coexist and when it’s necessary to bend some of  the processes. We also talk about his being a self-proclaimed “data guy”  and how being technically curious can help organize information  effectively for the project.  This is an episode of the Understanding Projects podcast which consists   series of discussions with PM academics and   practitioners about the   real world aspects of projects and project management. The podcast is   based on the text Understanding Project Management - A  Practical Guide   by Dave C. Barrett.

My discussion today is with Colleen McCann. Colleen’s background  includes managing robotics and automation projects, she’s the founder of  a consulting and training website, and is a published author. She is  also a colleague as she is a research project manager at Conestoga College. For more information about Colleen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colleenmccannpmp/ We talk about a number of topics related to the people side of projects,  including balancing the PM’s responsibility for the project’s results  with their level of control, managing vs leading, and creating a  positive environment for the team. We also talked about communication  and the use of Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) techniques when  interacting with others. To learn more about the approaches outlined by Colleen in this podcast, her book can be found here: https://amz.run/54WY. This is an episode of the Understanding Projects podcast which consists  series of discussions with PM academics and   practitioners about the  real world aspects of projects and project management. The podcast is  based on the text Understanding Project Management - A  Practical Guide  by Dave C. Barrett.

This podcast features a discussion with Lily Viggiano, a 2013 graduate of the inaugural Conestoga College Bachelor of Public Relations program. She credits the PR program for fine tuning her relationship building and project management skills. She’s spent the bulk of her post-college career managing volunteer projects and programs in the non-profit sector, with the majority involving youth stakeholders. A primary approach is to “Invest in relationships!”. For more information about Lily: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lilyviggiano1989/ The interrelationship of PR and Project Management is an important one and we talked about this throughout our discussion. This is an episode of the Understanding Projects podcast which consists  series of discussions with PM academics and   practitioners about the  real world aspects of projects and project management. The podcast is  based on the text Understanding Project Management - A  Practical Guide  by Dave C. Barrett.

This podcast features a discussion with Derek Hemington. I’ve come to know Derek over the past year as he has a similar role at another college. That is, he’s the program coordinator of Fanshaw College’s Project Management program. For more information about Derek: https://www.linkedin.com/in/derekhemington/

During our discussion, Derek described his experience as an external consultant, working with organizations to define the scope of the project. During this process, it is necessary to define which organization will develop each deliverable – that is, will the deliverable be within the scope of the consultant’s project or will it be within the scope of the customer’s project. Derek describes a number of strategies that he has used to ensure that this is effectively managed.

And while the the discussion focused on projects where an external consulting organization was involved, the processes discussed could also be applied to internal projects.

This is an episode of the Understanding Projects podcast which consists  series of discussions with PM academics and   practitioners about the  real world aspects of projects and project management. The podcast is  based on the text Understanding Project Management - A  Practical Guide  by Dave C. Barrett.

This podcast features a discussion with Don Kaluzny. I’ve worked with  Don for a few years now – and we co-teach a number of engineering  project management degree courses. Don has a wide range of experience in  what I’ll call large scale engineering projects and installations. He  also developed the eBook “Make Your Robot Move”. For more information about Don: https://www.linkedin.com/in/donkaluzny/

During out discussion we covered a wide range of topics including the  challenges of managing large-scale projects, including the assessment of risk and achieving quality. We talked about the differences and  challenges of being involved in military projects and some thoughts  around how the size of organizations impacts projects.     

This is an episode of the Understanding Projects podcast which consists  series of discussions with PM academics and   practitioners about the  real world aspects of projects and project management. The podcast is  based on the text Understanding Project Management - A  Practical Guide  by Dave C. Barrett.

This podcast features a discussion with Chris Pugh. I’ve known Chris for  many years and we first met during a systems integration for a  financial services company. Chris has a wealth of business experience  with a focus on Capital Markets and Retail Banking. His experience  includes consulting, PMO Lead, Program Director, Project Director,  Systems Engineer and others. For more information about Chris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrispugh/

The theme of our discussion is what  Chris calls “The Anti-PM Project Manager” which tends to represent  Chris’ philosophy of project management and I’m sure, management in  general. We talked about a range of topics about the role of the project  manager but the overall theme was the need for the project manager to  lead rather than just manage the project.

This is an episode of  the Understanding Projects podcast which consists series of discussions  with PM academics and   practitioners about the real world aspects of  projects and project management. The podcast is based on the text  Understanding Project Management - A  Practical Guide by Dave C.  Barrett.

This discussion features Hayley Press. Hayley has extensive experience in the field of Public Relations including Event Management, Partner Relationships, Fundraising, Community Engagement, and Volunteer Coordination. She is also a graduate of Conestoga’s Public Relations program. For more information about Hayley: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hayleypress/

Our discussion focuses on a specific type of project – events and event management. We talk about a number of aspects of events, including how they differ from a typical project, the characteristics of successful event managers, virtual events, and managing event teams.

This is an episode of the Understanding Projects podcast which consists series of discussions with PM academics and   practitioners about the real world aspects of projects and project management. The podcast is based on the text Understanding Project Management - A  Practical Guide by Dave C. Barrett. 

This discussion features Nickesha Welch. Nickesha is a graduate of the Project Management program and has since been working at a local marketing agency, first as a Project Coordinator but now as a Project Lead. For more information about Nickesha: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickesha-welch/

Throughout our discussion, she provides advice to prospective project managers on topics such as networking, certifications, and interviewing strategies. As will be evident during the discussion, her approach is determined and purposeful, and is very useful advice for anyone looking to enter the project management profession.

This is an episode of the Understanding Projects podcast which consists series of discussions with PM academics and   practitioners about the real world aspects of projects and project management. The podcast is based on the text Understanding Project Management - A  Practical Guide by Dave C. Barrett.

This discussion is with David Blake-Dickson. David is a graduate of the Bachelor of Public Relations program and has since worked at a number of agencies delivering projects to clients. For more information about David: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-blake-dickson/

A number of topics are discussed, including the challenges of managing projects in an agency environment, tips for working with clients and teams, and managing time zone differences while working remotely.

David is also an avid cyclist and during the podcast, project management is compared to cycling.

This is an episode of the Understanding Projects podcast which consists series of discussions with PM academics and   practitioners about the real world aspects of projects and project management. The podcast is based on the text Understanding Project   Management - A  Practical Guide by Dave C. Barrett.

This episode features Josh Cronk. Josh has worked primarily within the high-tech industry in the Waterloo region within the marketing function and working on marketing-related projects. For more information about Josh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshcronk/

The topic of this podcast is the use of project management within non-PM roles - that is, rather than as a full-time project manager. As Josh points our during our discussion, this tends to be very common in small to medium sized organizations. 

This is an episode of the Understanding Projects podcast which consists series of discussions with PM academics and   practitioners about the real world aspects of projects and project management. The podcast is based on the text Understanding Project   Management - A  Practical Guide by Dave C. Barrett.