Shows
Project Management Happy HourPM Turf Wars: Sharing your projects with other Project Managers"Three PMs walk into a bar: a business PM, an IT PM, and a Vendor PM…" Sounds like a bad joke, but if you don't get it right - the joke will be your project. Very often, you aren't the "one PM to rule them all" on your project - you may have other PMs involved that you need to work with. But how do you decide who does what, and how do you prevent turf wars from turning your project into a slow-motion train wreck? In this episode, we ditch the corporate fluff to di...
2026-02-1023 minProject Management Happy Hour117 - Top Shelf Replay: Say No by Saying YesProject managers are constantly told they need to "learn how to say no." But in the real world—especially when the ask comes from a sponsor, executive, or important customer—just saying no often isn't productive, strategic, or even possible. In this Top Shelf Replay episode of Project Management Happy Hour, Kim Essendrup and Kate Anderson revisit one of the show's earliest "Appetizer" episodes: Say No by Saying Yes, originally aired in 2017. Short, deceptively simple, and still painfully relevant, this episode breaks down a technique that helps project managers protect scope, schedule, cost, and sanity—without soundi...
2026-01-3044 min
Project Management Happy HourHow to quit your job and completely fail as a PM contractorThinking about going contractor? Kate and Kim share how they each left corporate and made the leap—two very different stories (burnout vs acting early) with the same core truth: contracting is built on relationships, reputation, and value… not job boards and commodity rates. We cover how to know if you're ready, why sales is part of the job, what to watch out for (hello, 2008), and how to avoid racing to the bottom. Want us to teach the full process with scripts + steps? Head to http://pmhappyhour.com/be-free.
2026-01-1540 min
Project Management Happy Hour115 - Top Shelf Replay: Trust BricksAs project managers, we spend a lot of time talking about tools, processes, and delivery frameworks—but far less time talking about the invisible structure that holds projects together: trust. In this Top Shelf Replay episode of Project Management Happy Hour, Kim Essendrup and Kate Anderson revisit one of the show's earliest and most enduring concepts: Trust Bricks. Originally recorded in 2018, this short but powerful episode explores how trust is built—not through grand gestures or heroic saves—but through consistent, everyday actions that compound over time. The core idea is simple: trust is predictability. When y...
2025-12-1639 min
Project Management Happy Hour114 - Happy Hour Chatter: What PMs Really Do, Fear in Decision-Making, and Lessons from Going soloKim and Kate settle in for a classic PM Happy Hour episode — the kind where the drinks are metaphorical, the conversation is wandering in the best way, and the insights sneak up on you. This one covers three big themes that hit close to home for project managers, leaders, and anyone who's ever had to keep a project — or a career — moving forward despite chaos. It starts with a deceptively simple question: How do you describe what a PM actually does for a living? Kim brings his favorite one-sentence description, and Kate immediately pokes at it (lovingly) to rev...
2025-12-0942 min
Project Management Happy Hour113 - Top Shelf Replay: Stage direction in the boardroomWhat happens when you drop a senior project manager into a room full of attorneys, tribal leaders, political operators, and massive personalities? In this Top Shelf Replay, Kate & Kim revisit one of the most beloved—and re-listened—episodes in PM Happy Hour history: "Stage Direction in the Boardroom" featuring master facilitator Sheila Morago. If you've ever wondered how elite leaders steer complicated, high-stakes conversations without losing their cool (or losing six months of work with one careless comment), this episode is your new playbook. Sheila shares the tools, tactics, and emotional intelligence behind mana...
2025-11-201h 00
Project Management Happy Hour112 - Burnout: when a 500k job isn't worth it, with Norlander WilsonKate didn't plan to measure their burnout by the number of bags of pink-and-purple Mother's animal cookies consumed at their desk…but here we are. Kim's clue was a rotating cycle of stomach aches and "maybe these aren't panic attacks but the room is definitely spinning." And our guest, Norlander Wilson, talks about showing up to work without showering or brushing her teeth for days because she literally couldn't. This one is about burnout at work — not the "I need a weekend off" kind, but the kind that rewires your nervous system and convinces you you're the prob...
2025-11-111h 06
Project Management Happy Hour111 - Top Shelf Replay: How do you start a hard conversation?Ever freeze up in a tough project conversation? Or worse—blow it up? In this episode of Project Management Happy Hour, Kim and Kate revisit their all-time favorite: Crucial Conversations by the team at VitalSmarts (now Crucial Learning). This book completely changed how they lead, negotiate, and manage conflict. Learn how to spot when a conversation turns "crucial," stay in dialogue instead of defensiveness, and use "don't-do statements" and "start with heart" to navigate conflict like a pro. We're not sponsored—just obsessed. If you lead projects or people, this book will change your life. 🍸 Pull up...
2025-10-2951 min
Project Management Happy Hour110 - Are you defining project success wrong? Most PM's do! With PMI's Dave GarrettAre you defining project success the wrong way? Most project managers are — at least according to PMI's Dave Garrett. Project Management Happy Hour hosts Kim Essendrup and Kate Anderson sit down with Dave — Senior Advisor at the Project Management Institute (PMI) and co-founder of ProjectManagement.com — for a frank and real conversation about PMI's new definition of project success to talk about how realistic it is, and what it means for the future of our profession. For decades, project success was judged by the "iron triangle" — scope, schedule, and budget. But PMI has officially redefined it:...
2025-10-1547 min
Project Management Happy Hour109 - Top Shelf Replay: The Wolf - how to take over broken projectsEver been dropped into a troubled project that's already gone off the rails? Welcome to life as "The Wolf." Inspired by the fixer from Pulp Fiction, Kim and Kate revisit one of our most popular episodes—now a PMI Global talk! —and break down how to step in, take charge, and rescue a broken project without losing your cool. Kim shares his new 3-part formula for project recovery: People first – You aren't just fixing a plan, you're fixing an organization. Calm – Calm is contagious, and you can only control yourself. Clarity & Courage...
2025-09-3053 min
Project Management Happy Hour108 - Why Risk Management? Future You Will Thank YouWhy bother with risk management when you can just deal with problems as they happen? In this episode, Kim and Kate dig into the heart of that question—and the answer might just save your future self a world of pain. You'll hear: Hard-hitting stats: 1 in 6 projects go 200% over budget (Harvard Business Review), 17% of major IT projects threaten company survival (McKinsey), and why 69% of projects don't succeed. Firefighting vs. fire prevention: why controlled burns (boring, thankless prep) prevent disasters while the "heroes" just put out fires. ROI of risk management: the su...
2025-09-1638 min
Project Management Happy Hour107 - Top Shelf Replay: The Closer - Avoiding Project Acceptance ExceptionPlease. Let it end. PLEASE! A defining characteristic of a project is that it ends. Finally. Just finish it, right? If it were only that easy! In another Top Shelf Replay, Kate and Kim revisit one of their classic past episodes, "The Closer." We play highlights from the original Closer episode as they talk about how to build up to a crisp conclusion to your project, making it a win for everyone. Then, Kate and Kim talk through their revised perspectives and learnings since the original airing of the Closer - and some of their hard l...
2025-09-0246 min
Project Management Happy Hour106 - Finish Strong: Why the End of Your Project Matters MostProjects aren't remembered for how they started—they're remembered for how they ended. In this PM Happy Hour episode, Kim Essendrup and Kate Anderson unpack why finishing strong is critical to your reputation and your project's legacy. Drawing on real project stories, they explore the axiom that people will remember your project the way it ended—and two key corollaries every project manager needs to know: Corollary 1: People naturally forget past wins and focus on the most recent problems. Corollary 2: People will redefine success to fit the outcome—if it gives them a win.
2025-08-2641 min
Project Management Happy Hour105 - Top Shelf Replay: How to Deal with Stupid Executive AsksAh, executives. They fund your project, cheer you on, and sometimes… ask for things that make you want to slam your head into your Gantt chart. Like: "The project's almost done—let's change everything!" "I read about [X] in CIO Magazine—can we bolt that on?" "Why are we doing it this way? Let's redo it completely differently… and badly." In this Top Shelf Replay, we revisit the best parts of this classic episode, then Kate & Kim reflect on what they've learned since—especially now that they're the execs...
2025-07-2255 min
Project Management Happy Hour104 - The one meeting that will make or break your project"Well begun is half done" — Aristotle (or Mary Poppins, depending who you ask) The beginning of a project is a time when all stakeholders THINK they know what they want, and maybe the team thinks they know what they are supposed to do. Or maybe they are just wondering, "what the heck is this new madness that I'm getting drug into?!" Regardless, it's a near certainty that your team, your stakeholders and your sponsors - someone is NOT on the same page. And if you launch your project with that misalignment, you...
2025-07-0244 min
Project Management Happy Hour103 - Lessons not Learned: State of Maine HR System Project DebacleThink your project's on fire? 🔥 Come hear how Maine tried to swap a 30‑year‑old COBOL HR/payroll system for something cloud‑friendly … and wound up with six years, two vendors, and ± $35 M spent—with no live system to show for it. (Psst—Love this kind of real‑world PM talk? Join our member community for templates, monthly problem‑solving Happy Hours with us, and coaching: PMHappyHour.com/membership.) 👋 Your Hosts Kim Essendrup – PM coach, speaker, project‑failure super‑fan Kate Anderson – coffee‑powered realist & co‑host of Project Management Happy Hour
2025-06-0451 min
Project Management Happy Hour102 - Kim's first day working for the Empire: Kate runs another Project Management role-playOur D&D-style project role play was such a hit, we did it again - in a different universe. One far, far away… This time, it's Kim's first day as a project manager working on a secret government project for the Empire. As he shows up, he finds that his predecessor… well, let's just say he didn't get-on well with his exec sponsor. Kim's new project is behind schedule, roadblocked with supply chain issues and is out of funding. Can he get the "RTDU" project back on track by the end of the day, or will...
2025-04-0140 min
Project Management Happy Hour101 - The Project Behind: Not Impossible Labs with Mick EbelingEver had a moment where you saw a problem in the world and thought, "Someone should fix that"? What if that someone was you? Mick Ebeling, founder of Not Impossible Labs, joins us to share how he turned a bold promise into world-changing innovation. From helping a paralyzed graffiti artist create art again to launching life-changing tech solutions, Mick's story is a masterclass in fearless problem-solving. In this episode, we dive into what it takes to commit to the impossible, build the right team, and use project management superpowers to change lives. If you've ever doubted your ability to...
2025-03-1150 min
Project Management Happy Hour100 - Retrospective: Our 100th EpisodeWe cannot believe it! It's been 100 episodes of PM Happy Hour! In this very special episode, we have a retrospective, looking back at when we first decided to do this crazy podcast, to our highlights, lessons, and favorite episodes. We are so filled with gratitude for our amazing community who have supported us these 100 episodes, and the many incredible leaders who have joined us as guests over the years. Note: we recorded this episode as a Linkedin livestream. If you want to watch the video version, it should be out there on Linkedin!
2025-02-2752 min
Project Management Happy Hour099 - The Iron Triangle of Getting a PM Job, with PM Career Coach, Kayla Quijas
2025-01-141h 00Project Management Happy Hour099 - The Iron Triangle of Getting a PM Job, with PM Career Coach, Kayla QuijasIf you are looking for a PM job or considering doing so, you are definitely not alone! The project management field has always had a good amount of mobility, but it sure seems like change has been accelerating the last couple years. And if you are in the hunt for a job right now, it can feel like the market is harder than ever! So what do you do? Focus on getting more certs? Get a recruiter? Submit 500 more applications through Linkedin? To help understand how to land a great PM job in toda...
2025-01-141h 00Project Management Happy Hour099 - The Iron Triangle of Getting a PM Job, with PM Career Coach, Kayla Quijas
2025-01-141h 00
Project Management Happy Hour098 - Don't Eat the Prickly Pears: Learning how to prioritize with James LouttitAs a professional in today's working environment, you are constantly bombarded by things that demand your attention, your action, the very limited moments in your finite life. (wow, heavy). OK, so there are infinite demands on our time, but finite time. How do we balance those? SWOT analysis?! Of course not! To help us understand how to effectively prioritize in today's crazy world, Kate and Kim are joined by James Louttit, author of Leading Impactful teams. We talk about prickly pears, paw-paws, and practical ways to prioritize in today's demanding world. Spoiler: It's not SWOT, M...
2024-12-2452 min
Project Management Happy Hour097 - PMO: Friend or Foe?AUDIO QUALITY NOTICE! Apologies, we have a little static on one of the mics during our recording - sorry for the occasional audio issue. As a project manager, an organizational structure that will have a big impact on your life is the PMO. But if you aren't used to working with a PMO, what should you expect? Are they going to make your life and projects easier, or crush you with red tape? If you are interviewing for a job where they have a PMO, what questions should you ask to get a better understanding of how th...
2024-09-301h 05
Project Management Happy Hour096 - Design thinking: don't take things at face value or you will face plant, with guest Erik RueterIn this episode, Kat and Kim talk to Erik Rueter about design thinking in our projects. What's design thinking, you may be thinking? Design thinking is a methodology that focuses on the end users of a system when we are problem solving. Erik will share 5 different design thinking methods for understanding user needs in a way that not only helps your project provide better deliverables but can also help build a better project team. About our amazing guest, Erik Rueter Erik K. Rueter, PMP, PMI-ACP, has over 20 years of experience in di...
2024-08-201h 03
Project Management Happy Hour095 - The 5 Foundational Behaviors for Developing Informal Authority, with Kory Kogon of Franklin CoveyAlthough an essential part of our project-driven world, most project leaders didn't set out to be one. For many of us, our first steps into project leadership won't come with an official title. So, if we are not 'officially' project managers, how are we supposed to lead the project? There are a lot of answers to this question, but one approach all project leaders need to master is the art of managing with informal authority. Without being people's 'boss,' we need to pull a team of seemingly random people, give them common purpose, build a team...
2024-07-021h 11
Project Management Happy Hour094 - Agile vs Waterfall Smack-Down!For the first time, Kate and Kim find an Agilist brave enough to join them on the podcast to talk about some really hard questions about working Agile vs Waterfall. Let's get it on! We ask the questions that PM's want to ask - frustrated, annoyed PM's who are told to work "agile" by people who maybe don't even understand Agile - or Waterfall, for that matter. In this refreshingly honest talk about the reality of ways of working, Kate, Kim and their guest Agilist, David Asch, talk in real-world terms about Agile, Predictive and...
2024-05-141h 11
Project Management Happy Hour093 - Rising from Tactical PM to Strategic Advisor, with Gregg Richie and Ralph KliemProject Management is weird. You can have the same job title and be a very tactical execution-minded project manager - which is the way most of us start. Or you can be a strategic part of the leadership team, recognized for your ability to help executives make their vision a reality. So, how do you develop yourself from tactical implementer to strategic partner? This episode we are joined by two experienced leaders, Ralph Kliem and Gregg Richie, who have made this transition, and rose to provide pivotal strategic partnership roles with executive teams to help th...
2024-04-161h 08
Project Management Happy Hour092 - Goblins in the room! Managing meeting misbehaviors, with Rich MaltzmanMeetings. Love them or hate them, they are core to what we do as project leaders. We need to pull people together (real or virtually) to discuss, plan, check-in, and get things done. But as we know, when we get people together, sometimes their misbehaviors - "goblins" - tag along, too! Being able to manage effective meetings can make or break us as PMs. And learning how to manage these misbehaviors in meetings can make or break each meeting. Fortunately, we have help! This episode we are joined by Rich Maltzman of Boston University. Rich and his...
2024-02-161h 01
Project Management Happy Hour091 - The Perfect Status Report: How to measure percent complete"What percent done are you?" Status reporting is a core skill (and responsibility) of project managers. It is an opportunity for you to check in with your team, and to build rapport and engagement with stakeholders. But it's also something we often take for granted. In this episode, Kate and Kim talk about how to approach status reporting whether your project is big or small, and how to leverage this key communication point to help with overall project success. Why Status Reporting? Essential for communicating project progress and challenges
2023-12-2647 min
Project Management Happy Hour090 - How to tell other people what to doBeing a project manager is tough. You are assigned a team of people who may never have with each other (or you) before, and you need to lead them to accomplish a task, solve a problem, or create a new deliverable. And by definition, this is a unique task - so it hasn't been done before, at least not in this way, for these stakeholders. In among these challenges is perhaps the toughest one: you have to lead this group of people. As project managers, these people almost never report to us - someone else is their b...
2023-09-1942 min
Project Management Happy Hour089 - Reorgs and Restructurings: sailing the waves of organizational change chaosIt can be hard getting a project started correctly: getting the right executive and stakeholder sponsorship and support, getting them all to agree on the scope and approach, getting funding, approvals, and all the other things required to get a project off the ground. You negotiate with other departments and get committed resource assignments and timelines. You finally get your amazing project off the ground, you're humming along then, BOOM! The organization changes. Your stakeholders change. Your executive sponsors change. The structure or ownership of the organization changes. Your resources are all moved to different t...
2023-08-1047 min
Project Management Happy Hour088 - The CHAOS Report: Measuring project failureProjects are hard. And a lot of them - maybe most of them - fail to live up to their expectations. Missed timelines, quality issues, budget overages, customer dissatisfaction - it seems sometimes like projects miss the mark more often than they hit it. But why is that? What can we learn from all those past projects that can help us make future projects more successful? This is the question Jim Johnson set out to understand. In his years with the Standish Group, he and his team set the benchmark for one of the most respected analysis o...
2023-07-0641 minProject Management Happy Hour087 - Creative decision making: do you have the right 4 voices in the room? with Teresa LawrenceCreative decision making is key to what we do in all our projects. According to FourSight, there are 4 distinct voices in the decision making process. Do you have these voices in the room when you make decisions? Do you know when you need all 4 voices - or only a couple specific ones? We are joined today by Teresa Lawrence who gave one of the most fun and engaging talks at this past year's PMI Global Summit in Las Vegas. She talks us through the FourSight approach to creative problem solving, the 4 voices in decision making, and also r...
2023-05-171h 08Project Management Happy Hour086 - The project behind a Disaster Response, with the ITDRC"I know the world is ending, but do you have wifi here?" Sounds funny, but it's deadly serious. Natural disasters impact critical infrastructure that we depend on every day: shelter, fresh water, food distribution, and power. These are the ones we think about. But what about communication? How do relief agencies, police, fire, and government coordinate a disaster response when there is no power, no cell signal, no wifi? How do community members communicate with each other, find out where to get aid, or reach out to loved ones who are worrying about th...
2023-04-0746 min
Project Management Happy Hour085 - Deciding on how to make good Decisions, with Kandis PorterDecisions make or break your project - starting with the decision of whether or not to even do your project. Beyond that, we have planned decisions / phase gates and ad-hoc decisions that happen throughout the entire life of our project. And if you've been around long enough, you know that one bad decision can sink your whole project - or at least have it taking on water, fast. So, how should we approach decision making in a logical way which helps ensure that: The right decisions get made Decisions get made by the...
2023-02-281h 05
Project Management Happy Hour084 - OH, We Forgot About Change Management! What to do when you get caught with your ADKAR down, with Tim CreaseyYeah! One of our favorite guests, Tim Creasey, returns! This time we are talking about what happens if you realize, too late in the game, that you really didn't consider Change Management enough in your planning cycle. It's such a universal experience of a project manager to not have change management, and so many of us end up in these situations where we struggle to see the real benefits of a change we've implemented. We figured: why not start where most of us end up: in trouble! Join Kate and Kim as we talk with Ti...
2023-01-101h 00
Project Management Happy Hour083 - The 30 Minute Executive Meeting: Make it countAs a project manager, the time you get with an executive sponsor is critical: you don't get much of it and you cannot blow it! For many of our listeners, you may be new to executive meetings. But, how do you get the most out of these meetings and give a good impression so you can get the confidence of your executive sponsors? It's something we ALL struggle with and can all get better with. On today's show, Kate and Kim talk through how to win with these meetings. Jokingly the 30/60/90 minute plan (30 minute meeting after 60 hours o...
2022-12-221h 00Project Management Happy Hour082 - The Project Behind a Tech Startup, with Pete Bernardo from PunchlistTech startups drive the technology around us, and a good bit of the economy. They use creativity, ingenuity and entrepreneurial spirit to solve problems and build the world of tomorrow. But how do they do that? Is it really like the "Shark Tank" or "Dragon's Den" tv shows? Today we are joined by a real-life tech founder who has successfully built his company and introduced a new tool to the market - a PM tool, no less! Pete Bernardo, founder of Punchlist tells us about the project behind founding a startup and bringing his product to market...
2022-09-2956 minProject Management Happy Hour081 - The Project Behind an Emergency Covid Vaccination Site, with Aaron Bellinger, PMPWhen the first Covid vaccinations were released, massive vaccination sites were launched, seemingly overnight, to vaccinate millions of people. If you volunteered or were vaccinated at one of these sites, you may have witnessed how huge, sophisticated and well run these sites were. But how did they do that? How (and who) planned, organized, stood up and ran these massive sites vaccinating thousands of people a day - at a time when you couldn't even hardly hold an in-person meeting? Kim volunteered at one of these early sites at a football stadium parking lot with dozens of l...
2022-08-3046 min
Project Management Happy Hour080 - First PM on the Beach: How to succeed when you are the first Project Manager in your organizationThis episode is based on feedback we've had from our member 1:1 coaching sessions, one of the benefits we provide our PM Happy Hour members. Many PM's find themselves in a position where they are the first project manager in their organization. Whether you are a newbie or an experienced pro, this will be a challenge. The organization probably has a low (or no) level of project management maturity, no organizational concept of what project management is or how to make projects succeed, and probably as many different expectations of what a PM should and shouldn't do as...
2022-07-1942 min
Project Management Happy Hour079 - Welcome to the Dungeon! Kate and Kim do Project Management RPG (D&D)OK, originally this was going to be an April Fool's goof podcast, but it turned out to be a lot of fun and maybe a bit educational. But, nope, it's not your usual PMHH episode, and DEFINITELY not your typical PM podcast. So, if you are looking for something serious and academic, this episode is not the one for you. Kate will be your dungeon master in this fun (and, yeah, weird) episode! Kate walks Kim through building his PM character, then takes him through a tabletop RPG (role playing game) of managing a project. Is it...
2022-06-1456 min
Project Management Happy Hour078 - Recommending Change Without Getting Chased out the DoorPMs are accountable for project success. As such, we are keenly aware when things are failing! And because most PM's are process and goal oriented, we can think of a lot of ways to improve an organization. But how do you propose a change in a way that gets support - instead of damnation? If you don't do it right, pitching a change can sound a lot like giving a bunch of other people more work to do, or telling everyone else that they've been doing it 'wrong' for the last 10 years, and you as a fresh-faced...
2022-05-2437 min
Project Management Happy Hour077 - Behavioral PM: the Feakonomics approach to project delivery with Dr. Josh RamirezWouldn't it be cool if everyone followed all the processes we built? If everyone on our team followed the PMBOK or SCRUM methodologies perfectly every single time and every estimate we ever received was perfectly accurate? Of course that doesn't happen. But did you ever stop to think - why? Well, our guest today has. Dr. Josh Ramirez has combed the scientific literature on human behavior and combined that with his love of project management to help explain why people do the things they do - and don't. Today he shares with us how to use human p...
2022-04-191h 18
Project Management Happy Hour076 - Imposter Syndrome: Diagnosis and Treatment"I am in way over my head." "I have no business doing this job" "I am totally not worthy of this role" "There is no way I'm qualified to do this" Have you ever told this to yourself? You may be infected with Imposter Syndrome! That's OK - all highly capable people, especially project managers, find themselves with this affliction at one time or another - and again and again :-) Not only can Imposter Syndrome take the fun and motivation out of your job, we see it holding man...
2022-03-0247 min
Project Management Happy Hour075 - Top Tips from a Project Management Coach, with Heather GatesThe same way sports teams have coaches to help optimize their performance, organizations can engage PM coaches to help their project management team win. In this episode, we are joined by Heather Gates, a PM coach who has worked to help develop project managers across many organizations. In this episode, Heather shares a few of her top coaching tips in some key areas: Self Awareness Communication Time Management Stakeholder Management Cross functional Collaboration About our amazing guest, Heather Gates Heather Gates is an entrepreneur, consultant and certified project manager who values collaboration, productivity an...
2022-02-0452 minProject Management Happy Hour074 - The Project Behind a MovieDid you ever watch the credits at the end of a movie and think, "wow, that's a lot of people?" You're right. Hundreds or thousands of people engaged to deliver a massive, multi-million dollar project that is a feature film. How do they do that? Our guest today walks us through the project behind a feature film: how do they plan a movie? How do they get funding? Who is really the PM in charge of pulling this thing off? (hint: it's not the director) This episode is a trial of a new format, "The P...
2022-01-121h 18
Project Management Happy Hour073 - A 12 Pack of Alignment Hacks with Tim Creasey - Part 2We are joined again by one of our favorite guests, Tim Creasey, Organizational Change Wizard. This time he shares 12 different methods for creating better alignment with your team and your stakeholders. In this first part of a 2 part episode, we share the first 6 of these hacks to help get two people on the same page. 7- Marathon Measures 8- Context and Contrast 9- Zoom 10- Top of Mind Not Top Priority 11- Progress Over Perfection 12- Time and Place If you missed part 1, you...
2021-12-0156 min
Project Management Happy Hour072 - A 12 Pack of Alignment Hacks with Tim Creasey - Part 1We are joined again by one of our favorite guests, Tim Creasey, Organizational Change Wizard. This time he shares 12 different methods for creating better alignment with your team and your stakeholders. In this first part of a 2 part episode, we share the first 6 of these hacks to help get two people on the same page. Pivot around Purpose "To What End?" To _____ By_____ statement Name it to tame it Matching Matters Solution Laps About our amazing guest, Tim Creasey An author, researcher, change expert and human, Tim focuses on the people-side of change with process, wi...
2021-11-231h 10Project Management Happy HourThe Project Behind an Ironman Triathlon with Paul Huddle, Senior Regional Director for the Ironman GroupThe Ironman Triathlon. Without exaggeration, it is truly one of the most epic endurance events that a mortal human can participate in: 140.6 miles covered in a single day by swimming, biking and running. As epic as it is to participate in an Ironman, it may be even more daunting to plan and manage one. 140+ miles of race course. 3 totally different disciplines (Swim, Bike, Run). As many as 2,000 - 3,000 participants. Literally tons of food and drink to get out across the course. Thousands of volunteers. City permits, police, medics, media... By any measure, each and every Ironman event is...
2021-09-231h 10
Project Management Happy Hour070 - Change Management Mic Drops with Tim CreaseyProject Managers are agents of change. Whether your project changes organizations, technologies, infrastructure or processes, the success of your project likely depends on *people* actually using your deliverables. But how much of your project is really focused on those people and helping them understand and make those changes? Spoiler: Kate *totally* nerds out on this one :-) After we recorded this, Kate and Kim quoted Tim to just about everyone they met. Mic drops! In this podcast we are joined by one of the most influential thought-leaders in Change Management today, Tim Creasey, the CIO of...
2021-08-161h 10
Project Management Happy Hour069 - Project Management in an Alien EnvironmentYou're a PM and you have landed on a strange new world where you don't know the industry, the organization the people or the subject matter. How do you get oriented enough to intelligently deliver a project? How do you succeed in this alien environment? In this episode, Kate and Kim talk about how to approach getting up to speed when you are faced with leading a project in a new department, new company, new domain or totally new industry where you don't know the subject matter. In summary: Get a head start where you...
2021-06-2240 minProject Management Happy Hour068 - Interviewing PM's: Inside the Mind of a Hiring Manager with Matt HendersonWhether you are hiring project managers or hope to get hired, do you know what hiring managers should be looking for? What's going on in a hiring managers mind when they look at your resume and when they interview you? In this episode we are joined by Matt Henderson - a long time PMO manager who has hired hundreds of project managers. In fact, at one point he managed both Kate and Kim. How on earth did he manage two such unruly PMs?! We'll maybe cover that in another episode. In this episode, Matt shares tips on i...
2021-05-1752 min
Project Management Happy Hour067 - What the heck is ITSM? And how is it like Improv?If you are a PM working in or with a large enterprise, you may have heard of ITSM, or the ITIL framework. And you may well have been asked to create additional deliverables and go through some processes to support ITSM. But what is it? How does it work? Why is it good for organizations? And as a PM, what do I typically need to do to support it? And, what's the difference between ITSM and ITIL? To help us better understand ITIL and ITSM, we are joined today by one of the most respected experts in t...
2021-04-061h 04
Project Management Happy Hour066 - How to be a consultant: Dealing with customers without having a nervous breakdownIf your project customers are external to your organization, you have a lot more to worry about than the success of your project. You also have the carry the weight of building and maintaining a relationship with your organization's customer. And if you do it wrong... you are toast! In this episode, Kim shares some points from training that he gives to new Project Managers that are transitioning from "internal" facing projects to "external," customer facing projects. Follow along and learn how to be a PM consultant! JOIN THE HAPPY HOUR! Get...
2021-03-0938 min
Project Management Happy Hour065 - Can you keep a secret? Managing confidential informationAs PM’s we are often privy to confidential information. How do you manage that info, even when you know it will impact your friends and colleagues? This week Kate and Kim share some of their experience managing confidential information - how to do it, and how to react when you or someone else inadvertently lets the cat out of the bag JOIN THE HAPPY HOUR! Get access to all podcasts, PDU certificates, bonus content, exclusive member Q&A webinars and more from our membership! https://pmhappyhour.com/membership
2021-01-1242 min
Project Management Happy Hour064 - Getting into - or out of - Project Management, with Ben Aston of The Digital Project Manager podcastAre you trying to get into the field of Project Management? Or, are you ready for the next step and to move out of the PM field? This week Kate and Kim have a very special guest, Ben Aston, the host of The Digital Project Manager podcast - one of our favorite PM podcasts. Kate, Kim and Ben talk about how to break into the field of Project Management, and talk about what may lay beyond project management. In either case, we share our experience and some examples to help you with your transition. Cheers! OU...
2020-12-011h 26
Project Management Happy Hour063 - Candid Conversations with a Project Management Recruiter, with Norma GutierrezAre you looking for a PM job? If not now, one day you may be. So, why not talk to a pro who knows the market and help you find the right job? A Project Management Recruiter! Building a relationship with a recruiter can be a gateway to a great PM career, or to your next step in that career. In this episode we speak with Norma Gutierrez, an experienced Project Management recruiter who shares with ous what you can expect from a recruiter, how they can help you, and what they look for. ...
2020-10-0950 min
Project Management Happy Hour062 - Do I really need a PMO? (Part 2 of 2)Do I need a Project Management Office (PMO)? Does anyone REALY need a PMO? Why, aren't those all going away because of Agile? What value can a PMO give to an organization? And when does it not make sense to have a PMO? We go through all this and more on this 2 part podcast - check it out! JOIN THE HAPPY HOUR! Get access to all podcasts, PDU certificates, bonus content, exclusive member Q&A webinars and more from our membership! https://pmhappyhour.com/membership STUMP THE PM'S!
2020-08-1840 min
Project Management Happy Hour061 - Do I really need a PMO? (Part 1 of 2)Do I need a Project Management Office (PMO)? Does anyone REALY need a PMO? Why, aren't those all going away because of Agile? What value can a PMO give to an organization? And when does it not make sense to have a PMO? We go through all this and more on this 2 part podcast - check it out! JOIN THE HAPPY HOUR! Get access to all podcasts, PDU certificates, bonus content, exclusive member Q&A webinars and more from our membership! https://pmhappyhour.com/membership STUMP THE PM'S!
2020-08-0153 min
Project Management Happy Hour060 - Say-Do-Say: Fundamentals of Project CommunicationWe get asked a lot about what project management is about, what it's like to get into the profession, and what are the most important things to do as you get into the field. There are so many things to think about, so many considerations that it can be hard to think of a simple answer to 'what is project management like?' But one answer we fall back on often is that Project Management is about: Saying what you are going to do Do what you said you did, Say what you did
2020-06-2326 min
Project Management Happy Hour059 - Crying HappensProject Management can be tough - full of stress, emotion, passion and… more stress. You, your team and your stakeholders are trying to make big changes happen in the intense pressure cooker that is a project. And if you've been around long enough you will know that tears sometimes happen in the workplace. But how do we handle that - if we work with someone and they shed tears, or if it's us? In this episode, we get real and honest about tears in the workplace - that it's not a sign of weakness, and talk about ho...
2020-05-1244 minProject Management Happy Hour058 - Shut-in but not Shut-down: Managing Projects and Teams from HomeMany of us are suddenly finding that we - and our teams - are working remotely from home. While this is normal for a lot of our workforce, it can represent a very big change for a lot of teams. How do we stay focused and stay productive - and help our team stay focused as well? And how do we do that in a way that keeps us all sane? In this webinar, Kate and Kim talk through this process from how to setup a productive workspace from home, what tools you can use to optimize c...
2020-03-251h 16
Project Management Happy Hour057 - ADKAR: It's not a trap! Change Management can save your missionProjects are about change - but what are you doing to manage that change in your project? Fortunately, there's an entire field of practice to make changes stick - Organizational Change Management Today our guest walks us through the Prosci ADKAR model for implementing change - one of the most well known and popular methodologies for managing change. OUR AMAZING GUEST AND PM HAPPY HOUR MEMBER Kornelia Homewood, Kori for short, is passionate about all things project management. She is a certified PMP, Professional Scrum Master (PSM), and most recently a Prosci Certified C...
2020-02-251h 08
Project Management Happy Hour056 Don't buy the bias! Managing bias in project managementWhether we realize it or not, we all have bias in the way we think about things. Maybe you have a bias to be overly optimistic in your estimates, or under estimate the impact of risks. Planning fallacy, illusion of control, confirmation bias - the list goes on of different ways bias can mis-shape our perceptions and our decisions This week's amazing guest, Jennifer Chandler, brings her depth of experience as a project manager and expertise in organizational leadership to help us understand bias and how to manage it OUR AMAZING GUE...
2020-01-2150 min
Project Management Happy Hour055 - A slice of Thankfulness from Kate and KimHiya listeners, in this episode we share what we've been up to and why we've been a bit quiet, some amazing PDU stats and share some things that we're thankful for. Cheers! And thanks to our amazing listeners JOIN THE HAPPY HOUR! Get access to all podcasts, PDU certificates, bonus content, exclusive member Q&A webinars and more from our membership! https://pmhappyhour.com/membership STUMP THE PM'S! We love to hear about your tough PM issues, so please hit us up at podcast@pmhappyhour.com...
2019-12-0832 min
Project Management Happy Hour054 - How to be a Project Manager: Kate and Kim get interviewed by a PM student about breaking into the fieldFor this episode the tables are turned - Kate and Kim get interviewed! Arizona State University student Krystal Ebadi contacted us and asked if she could interview us for her PM class about the realities of studying PM and getting a job. Of course we said yes! And Krystal let us share that interview with our listeners. Thanks Krystal! Join us as we talk about studying project management in a University, how to prepare to get a PM job, and how to break into the field. This episode covers some of our most frequent listener questions
2019-09-171h 10
Project Management Happy Hour053 - What if I told you that you were a PM all along?This episode we talk with one of our amazing listeners, Josh Mildren, who shares his story about how he became a project manager - or rather, how he realized he was a project manager all along. Like a lot of our Happy Hour listeners, Josh was looking for new ways to address challenges his organization was struggling with, and found that a pragmatic approach using Project Management principles has a huge impact - so much so, that it propelled him to employee of the year! Congrats Josh! Join us as Josh shares his journey - one that w...
2019-08-0451 min
Project Management Happy Hour052 - Who owns this baby when I'm done? Planning for deliverables handoverThis episode we talk about that make-or-break moment in project closing: handing over your project deliverables. If you plan your project right, this can be a moment of victory for your team, your stakeholders, and for yourself. But if you don't plan for it, handover can become a never ending death march to nowhere. Kate and Kim talk about how to setup this key transition for success, and talk about some pitfalls you are going to want to avoid! JOIN THE HAPPY HOUR! Get access to all podcasts, PDU certificates, bonus content, exclusive member Q...
2019-07-0729 min
Project Management Happy Hour051 - They told me I'm "Too Nice?!" Dealing with inactionable feedbackWe love our listeners, and we love to answer your questions! In fact, this episode comes straight from a call for help we received from one of our listeners. She shared with us that her manager told her that she was "too nice" with her project team, and asked us for help in how to deal with this ambiguous feedback. Most of us have received ambiguous feedback like this. "You need to be tougher," "you are too abrupt," "You need to present better to executives," or something else like that. But how do you turn that vague fee...
2019-06-2439 min
Project Management Happy Hour050 - Project Financials 101: A quick and dirty overview of how money affects projectsEver have a project that costs money? Well, this podcast is for you! In this episode, Kate and Kim give you the quick and dirty rundown of basic project financials - not just within your project, but how money gets to your project, and how your finance team may view those financials. In a study Kim's company did at PMO symposium, they found that tracking project financials correlated with success by every measure of project success - scope, schedule budget (obviously), resource management, customer satisfaction and ability to get the project done. So, financials are important! Check...
2019-05-3057 min
Project Management Happy Hour049 - How to Call BS without getting Sh#t uponCommunication is a critical part of a Project Manager's job, and perhaps no aspect of comms is more important than ensuring that what is communicated is correct and truthful. But when someone is not being truthful - to themselves or others - how do you call that out? Or, as we say, how do you "call bullsh!t" on someone without it wrecking your relationship or the support you need from that stakeholder? This episode Kate and Kim get really, really real about calling out BS when you see it - why it's our jobs as PMs...
2019-05-2039 min
Project Management Happy Hour048 - Brand Yourself with Sonia MundraMany Project Managers are on a trajectory that takes them from a more technical or tactical focus to a more leadership focus in their career, possibly transitioning from Project Management eventually to the Board Room. But how do you do that? How do you make the transition from being known for technical execution to strategic leadership? Well, one of the main things to consider is how you brand yourself. To help us learn about personal branding and growing from a tactical role to a strategic one is our special guest on this episode, Sonia Mundra...
2019-05-0153 min
Project Management Happy Hour047 - Project Management at Burning Man: Managing Volunteers, with Kayla GlennBurning Man is a famous event held in a temporary city the middle of the Nevada desert, dedicated to self expression and artistic freedom with 80,000 people. Can you imagine managing a project there?! One of our very own PM Happy Hour members does so every year! This episode we are joined by Kayla Glenn, a project management consultant and a project manager for a camp at Burning Man. Kayla will share her lessons learned from managing a team of volunteers - lessons which translate very well to any project. Our favorite: "Everyone has a Tuesday." Check it...
2019-03-1242 min
Project Management Happy Hour046 - Process, Data & Maturity: is it BS or does it really matter?We all assume that following process, better data and improved maturity will fix all our PM issues. That make sense, but is it true? What does the data say? This was our question last fall going into PMO Symposium. Then we realized, we'd be surrounded by hundreds of amazing Project and PMO leaders who could help us understand this better! So, we engaged with 65+ Project and PMO leaders to collect data measuring different aspects of project success, what processes & tools they used (or didn't) and what data they used. Some of the answers were just as you m...
2019-02-1841 min
Project Management Happy Hour045 - Entrepreneurial Project Management with Rolondo TalbottToday we are joined by Rolondo Talbott who gave an amazing presentation at this year's PMO Symposium. He is going to share with us an amazing story from his time in the military which inspired him to come up with the concept of Entrepreneurial Project Management. If you've heard about us contrasting "box checker" PM's with being the CEO of your project, Rolondo takes it to a whole new level. With this approach, we look past the obvious or even stated goals of our project and engage at a deeper level to drive value. If you have stakeholders (and w...
2019-02-1049 min
Project Management Happy Hour044 - Dear Project Diary: Project (b)logging to keep your head straightIn today's world we are bombarded with more information than ever before - it's on our mobile devices (social email, etc.), daily stand-ups, 24 hour news networks telling us about how the world is collapsing every day, so much going on. That's a lot of information coming in - so how do you sort through it? With that much information coming in and going out, it can be hard to really feel like we are on top of our projects. Especially in two circumstances: We have a large number of projects we are managing at the same...
2019-02-0342 min
Project Management Happy Hour043 - How to be "The Wolf" - Taking over broken projectsA natural stage in PM professional development is when you become the 'fixer' - the one called in to take over or fix 'broken' critical projects. This is hard, stressful work, and you may wonder why you get (or keep getting) the 'dirty' jobs. But these assignments mean your management team has a lot of confidence in you. Embrace it! In this episode, Kate and Kim talk through how to approach taking over broken projects, and take you step-by-step through the remediation process. Kate and Kim share their experiences, tips and survival strategies to get you through a...
2019-01-0746 min
Project Management Happy Hour042 - The Closer: Avoiding Project Acceptance ExceptionsA defining characteristic of a project is that it ends. Finally. Just finish it, right? If it were only that easy! This episode Kate and Kim talk about what it means to close a project, and walk through some typical scenarios where closing can be really tough, and then share some practical tips on how to get to done. JOIN THE HAPPY HOUR! Get access to all podcasts, PDU certificates, bonus content, exclusive member Q&A webinars and more from our membership! https://pmhappyhour.com/membership STUMP TH...
2018-12-1737 min
Project Management Happy Hour041 - Witness me! Justifying Project ManagementHave you ever had to justify the value of Project Management in your organization? Doh! So do we. Listen in as we share our best responses to, "is PM really needed?" You don't have to justify the existence of the Finance team. Or Sales & Marketing. Or Executive Management. So why do we have to justify the existence of Project Management? This week we explore this question and share some of our favorite responses to help educate our stakeholders and show the value of what we do. JOIN THE HAPPY HOUR! Get access to...
2018-11-2243 min
Project Management Happy Hour040 - I'm a WHAT?! What's the point of personality assessments?Many companies employ personality assessments to help their team members understand their strengths or communication styles. Are these a waste of time? Or do they have value we can leverage as PMs? Today we are joined by Fai Mo, long time project manager and manager of project managers. Fai will share his experience in leveraging one type of assessment, Strengthfinders, and how he helps his team leverage this tool to improve their management skills. ABOUT OUR AMAZING GUEST, FAI MO Fai Mo is an accomplished project management and technology leader with a background...
2018-11-1248 min
Project Management Happy Hour039 - Burning Questions: A Trick or treat bag of listener mailAs we gorge on our kid's leftover Halloween candy, we answer a number of Listener questions left on our Facebook and Linkedin pages. What are some good ways to describe PM-ish duties on a resume/CV? What are some tips on holding someone accountable? How do you create a timeline for a project with a new technology you don't know about? When and how do you call out a team member who is not doing their job? What are some tips on working with an external IT vendor PM? And more! Got your own questions you wish...
2018-11-0551 min
Project Management Happy Hour038 - Charter? Huh! What is it good for? (absolutely every project)"What are we even doing in this project?" If you've ever asked yourself (or been asked) this question, go back to your Project Charter right now! The Project Charter is a keystone project artifact, authorizing the very existing and base assumptions and structure of your project. It can be called many things - a statement of work, a project initiation document - but whatever, if you don't have some kind of document that authorizes your project, you may be in trouble! In this episode we talk about charters, what they are, what should be in...
2018-10-2844 min
Project Management Happy Hour037 - Transform from Project Manager to Project Leader - with Naomi CaiettiThis episode we are joined at Happy Hour by prominent PM thought leader, Naomi Caetti. We chat with Naomi about what it takes to transition from being "just" a Project Manager to a Leader - both for your project and your organization. Check out this episode to learn how to take your game to the next level! OUR AMAZING GUEST NAOMI CAIETTI Naomi Caietti is an award-winning business woman, widely respected global virtual thought leader in the project management community for over 25 years, and an honoree of the 2017 #CelebratingWomen Project from Dr. Kirstin F...
2018-10-2243 min
Project Management Happy Hour036 - PMO - What is it really? And how do I run one?This episode, we get the great opportunity to speak with Hussain Bandukwala, PMO Coach and founder of the PMO Virtual Summit this October. Hussain helps us understand what a PMO really is (and should be), then shares some great insights into the career path of someone who wants to be a PMO leader. Some great tools Hussain shared are linked here: Article about co-existence of product & project management for startups: https://www.parwaazcc.com/5-reasons-why-project-management-is-a-no-brainer-for-your-rapidly-growing-startup/ Introspection Attribute Analysis (direct file download) https://drive.google.com/uc?export=download&id=165cCFwnYRGB3TJIQ07_PCAAUcu0ZbXKs CHECK OUT THE...
2018-10-1146 minProject Management Happy HourPM Happy Hour Membership - Helping new PMs "How to PM"Whether you are an "accidental" Project Manager or eager to get into the field, the PM Happy Hour membership can help you with your "How to PM" questions! We focus on practical advice and tips and make it easy (maybe even fun) to listen to! Promo warning - This episode we share a bit about our PM Happy Hour Membership! What the heck are you waiting for?! Join the Project Management Happy Hour Membership and be part of the community! If you join by October 9, you can still get in on the launch membership special...
2018-10-0706 minProject Management Happy HourPM Happy Hour Membership - Painless, easy PDU's!Project Management Happy Hour means Painless PDUs and dare we say, "FUN!" PDUs! Check out this video podcast to find out more. Promo warning - This episode we share a bit about our PM Happy Hour Membership! What the heck are you waiting for?! Join the Project Management Happy Hour Membership and be part of the community! If you join by October 9, you can still get in on the launch membership special, and lock the price in for life at $4.99/month or $49.99/year. Check us out at pmhappyhour.com/membership
2018-10-0505 min
Project Management Happy Hour035 - Kickass Martial Arts Lessons for Project ManagersThis episode, Kim shares some lessons from his time studying martial arts studies with some amazing instructors that apply to Project Management! And no, they do not include giving that troublesome stakeholder a spin-kick to the head :-) But they do include lessons on how to assert yourself, how to focus on the important things in the moment and how to approach mentorship. Join the journey from white belt to kickass PM black belt! From the Filipino stick fighting art of Balintawak Eskrima to American Kenpo, we talk through just a couple of life lessons you can...
2018-10-0237 min
Project Management Happy Hour034 - PM Superhero Smackdown! Kate and Kim share lessons from their favorite movie PMsThis episode, Kate and Kim talk about their favorite Project Managers from the big screen and small screen - and what lessons we can take away from them. From big-screen capers to everybody's favorite movie PM (who is "here to put you BACK on schedule, commander"... because the sponsor is not as forgiving as he is… :-) ) Laughs aside, media are a big part of everyone's lives, and these characters and plots are part of our culture - as should be project management. So, get some popcorn, listen to OUR pics for best movie PMs, then join th...
2018-09-2544 min
Project Management Happy Hour033 - Lessons from Interviewing 50 Women PMs in 50 days - a chat with Elise StevensThis episode, we are excited to have Elise Stevens, podcaster, speaker and PM thought leader join us on our show! Elise shares what she learned in undertaking the task to interview 50 women in Project Management over 50 days, and gives us some great tips to help us support our fellow PM's ABOUT OUR AMAZING GUEST, ELISE STEVENS For over two decades, Elise has worked closely with project managers to positively impact and innovate effective management processes. She has collaborated with a range of organisations including Queensland Urban Utilities, Ipswich City Council, Coca-Cola Amatil, Hutchinson Telecoms and...
2018-09-1739 min
Project Management Happy Hour032 - Project Management Thunderdome! Internal versus External Project ManagersProject Managers can be categorized as "internal" project managers, who deliver projects for stakeholders within their own organizations, or "external" project managers, who delivery projects to customers outside their organization. Although both are project managers, there are some very important differences between the skill sets they use. But which is better? Which role fits you best? What skills are most important for each role? Having each lived in both worlds, Kate and Kim take opposite sides of the debate and have a friendly discussion about which is best. FIGHT! JOIN THE HAPPY HOUR! ...
2018-09-0358 min
Project Management Happy Hour031 - Crucial Conversations part 3 - Stepping in and taking the leadOne of the toughest - and most important jobs - of a PM is having difficult conversations. These can be with sponsors, stakeholders, team members or other PMs. And the ability to successfully manage these difficult conversations can make the difference between success and failure - for your project, and your career! Continuing our deep dive into the concepts in the book, Crucial Conversations by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan and Al Switzler, we wrap up our 3 part discussion on this keystone resource by talking through how to have and succeed with that difficult discussion, including...
2018-08-2758 min
Project Management Happy Hour030 - Crucial Conversations part 2: Oh, man it just got difficult!One of the toughest - and most important jobs - of a PM is having difficult conversations. These can be with sponsors, stakeholders, team members or other PMs. And the ability to successfully manage these difficult conversations can make the difference between success and failure - for your project, and your career! Continuing our deep dive into the concepts of Crucial Conversations by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan and Al Switzler, we pick up where we left off in our first Crucial episode where we started our conversation, and now talk about the author's concept of "...
2018-08-2046 min
Project Management Happy Hour029 - Stop the Scope Creep! Using Change Control to keep the monsters at bayControlling your project scope is one of the most important things we can do as project managers - but so easy to let slip. Don't let Scope Creep sneak up on you! In this episode we talk about scope creep and discuss ways to keep your scope on track - and how to handle it if your scope needs to change. JOIN THE HAPPY HOUR! Get access to all podcasts, PDU certificates, bonus content, exclusive member Q&A webinars and more from our membership! https://pmhappyhour.com/membership STUMP THE PM'S! W...
2018-07-2930 min
Project Management Happy Hour028 - Embracing the Escalation: raising visibility without raising your blood pressureManagement escalation, oh, no! When issues get escalated to our managers and executive stakeholders, our hearts sink, a sweat breaks out and we start to freak out. But should we? Maybe we should "flip the script" and think of escalations as good and even necessary - when done correctly. In today's show, Kate and Kim talk frankly about management escalations, and how, in some circumstances, a PM isn't doing their job if they don't raise some issues for management attention PLUS, Kate gives Kim a brief Improv lesson! JOIN THE HAPPY HOUR!
2018-07-2939 min
Project Management Happy Hour027 - Crucial Conversations: Part 1 - Oh, man it just got crucialOne of the toughest - and most important jobs - of a PM is having difficult conversations. These can be with sponsors, stakeholders, team members or other PMs. And the ability to successfully manage these difficult conversations can make the difference between success and failure - for your project, and your career! In this episode, Kate walks us through some key concepts and real life examples based of one of her most influential business books, Crucial Conversations by Joseph Grenny, Al Switzler and Ron McMillan. This book has a lot of content, so this episode we're going...
2018-07-2245 min
Project Management Happy Hour026 - Mastering the Mastermind: facilitating small groups for big resultsWhile the term "mastermind group" was coined in the 20's, it has been used by business leaders, writers, artists and philosophers going back much further to develop new ideas, themselves and accomplish amazing things. In this episode, we get some coaching from a Mastermind Master, J.R. Russell on how to facilitate a mastermind group - and we do one live on the air with PM Happy Hour members! Also, for the first time, we have video of a Podcast session! Come to our web site at pmhappyhour.com to watch us go through the process
2018-07-111h 01
Project Management Happy Hour025 - The Last Move - a little bit of game theory for your projectsHere's a short episode inspired by the mathematical study of Game Theory! Not only can "moving last" (or latter) put you in a strong strategic position, but can also make you a better listener. We'll also talk about some of the downsides of "sequential" turns in meetings, and how to keep that from stifling honest feedback using the Delphi method. JOIN THE HAPPY HOUR! Get access to all podcasts, PDU certificates, bonus content, exclusive member Q&A webinars and more from our new membership! https://pmhappyhour.com/membership STUMP THE PM'S! ...
2018-06-2730 min
Project Management Happy Hour024 - How to Run a Meeting - and not waste everyone's timeA lot of Project Management is about communicating and managing people. And one of our most frequently used tools for this is the meeting. In this episode we share some tips our best practices for making meetings productive - and not wasting yours and everyone else's time. Based on popular demand, Kate and Kim share some of their top productivity tips for running an effective meeting that doesn't waste everyone's (including your) time JOIN THE HAPPY HOUR! Get access to all podcasts, PDU certificates, bonus content, exclusive member Q&A webinars and more...
2018-06-181h 01
Project Management Happy Hour023-Learning to Swim: Getting oriented in a new organization without going underGetting started in a new organization, new customer, or new parts of your current org can be tough, especially since managing a project usually means you need to navigate all those waters like a pro - out of the gate. But how do you do that? How do you "get to know" the organization quickly and effectively so you can get the show on the road? This episode we talk with a Change Management specialist, Dilerjit Oberoi, who will help us learn to "swim" in a new organization - or to new parts of your current organization...
2018-06-1151 min