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Welcome to the Mindavation online project
management newsletter.
Our commitment is to share news about events in
the world of projects, tips & tricks of
the trade, recommendations for reference and
inspirational materials, and Mindavation course
offerings.
The morning chill has given way to a
beautiful day: the
sun is shining and birds are chirping. Yes,
Spring is
in the air, and as the weather turns, we all
have a
tendency to daydream while looking out the
window.
Unfortunately, our focus needs to be inside,
so to help
you stay on track, we bring you Mindavation's
April newsletter!
| Free Template of the Month - Level-type Communication Table |
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Each month Mindavation will offer a
template from our Project Templates CD free
of charge. Don't miss out on this opportunity!
This month's download is the Level-type
Communication Table. This template
assists the project manager in determining
how to best manage a given project team
member based on their level of experience for
their project assignments and their behavior
preferences (such as Action oriented,
Planner, etc...). This template is a
fantastic aid to help the project manager be
a more effective leader.
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| Book Recommendation of the Month - The Art of the Long View |
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The Art of the Long View - Planning for the Future
in an Uncertain World by Peter Schwartz
Good project managers typically are also good
storytellers - they can sell the benefits of their
projects; and project status, to a demanding senior
management team. The Art of the Long View takes
this a significant step further, using "scenario
building" - a form of story writing - as a way of
preparing for future possibilities and increasing our
ability to prepare for them. Although not written
specifically for project managers, the technique of
building scenarios can help us envision possibilities
for the changes our projects inflict upon our
sponsoring businesses.
Using the concepts Schwartz calls driving forces;
predetermined elements; and critical uncertainties,
we can derive a variety of scenarios that address
project possibilities, allowing us to position our
businesses for success. With these we can ask the
intriguing question; what would have to happen for
scenarios to (or not to) come true? The alterations we
make to our projects through the answers to this
question can save thousands of dollars, and bring
difficult projects to a successful conclusion.
Written in 1991 and updated in 1996, this book
includes stories that are dated, but their concepts are
still quite valid. As a means of understanding different
viewpoints and new approaches to driving projects to
success, this text is a quick read that can be quite
helpful.
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| Article of the Month - Getting to Know "No" |
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By Bob McGannon, PMP
Certainly, project managers don't want to make it a
habit to say "no". However, it is often the exact thing we
need to say as a means of protecting the project's
integrity, the sponsor's reputation, and the finances of
the sponsoring business. So, how can we say "no" in
an effective fashion? Often, it is not by saying "no"
ourselves, but helping our customers down the "no"
path. For those cases where we need to "defend the
project", here are some effective ways we can "get to
no".
· Ask questions of the project's customers or sponsor
At times the ramifications of an idea are not fully
understood by the proposer. What may seem like a
great idea often is a pathway to greater costs and
major scope changes. Often, the best approach the
project manager can take is to pose questions that
cause our project stakeholders to review the
considerations behind their "proposals' or
expectations. An example: We can add that function to
the product, however it will cost an additional
$200,000. Do you have a means to increase the
project budget to accommodate the incremental
funding? This can yield the "no' a project manager is
seeking, without having to be the contrarian. It protects
the project, as well as protecting how the project
manager is perceived. In instances where the budget
might be available, and the function would support a
positive business case, asking the question to verify
this, is a good path for the project manager to take.
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| Mindavation Project Templates CD Available |
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Mindavation offers more than 30 customizable project
templates and tools to make your life easier!
The CD includes full project lifecycle templates
and tools.
Documents are in MS Word, MS Excel, MS Project
2003 (and Adobe). Modify each template to suit
YOUR business and project needs.
Price (including shipping & handling):
USD$100
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Mindavation at 2008 Rocky Mountain Project Management Symposium |
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PMI Mile Hi will hold the 10th Annual Rocky
Mountain
Project
Management Symposium Friday, April 11th, at the
Colorado Convention Center. The theme of
this year's
symposium is "Failure Is Not An Option." In
addition
to
a number of breakout sessions and workshops, the
keynote speakers will be Apollo 13 Captain James
Lovell Jr. and Apollo 13 Flight Director Gene
Kranz.
Mindavation's Jayne Gnadt will present a
breakout
session entitled "How to Turn Project Meeting
Disasters into Motivating Opportunities"
and, fresh
from
Australia (they land the night before!),
Denise & Bob
will be attending the Symposium as well.
Please stop
by the Mindavation vendor booth to say hello.
Bob
will be presenting on Mindavation's new (and
very fun and cool!) project management
electronic
self-paced
course. Learn how this tool is different
from any other project management self-paced
course to-date!
For more information or to register for the
symposium, click
here. For more information about all of
Mindavation's keynote presentations, click
the link
below.
Mindavation at PMI Central Virginia
Chapter
Jayne Gnadt will be delivering two keynote
presentations for PMI Central Virginia Chapter's
Dinner Meetings in April. On April 16th
Jayne will
present "How to Turn Project Meeting
Disasters into
Motivating Opportunities." On the 17th Jayne
will
present "Increasing Your Perception As A
Leader - A
Guide for Project Managers." For more
information
and to register for either event visit PMI Central
Virginia
Chapter's web site.
Mindavation's Keynote Presentations |
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