Featured Management Theory Posts
Change Management Starts with Project Leadership
People do not magically support the projects they lead. Their support is built via the same change management activities that apply to all stakeholders.
Stepping Back and Stepping Up
IT departments need to step back from leading on what technologies are used by organizations, and primary business unit leaders need to step up.
Recent Management Theory Posts
On Taking the Time to Do Change Management Right
Good change management does not always increase the quality of project deliverables, but it does increase stakeholder support for them.
When Experience Matters
Some consulting work can be successfully accomplished without extensive employment experience; change management consulting work cannot.
On the Selflessness of Selfishness
Staff who refuse to work unrealistically long hours should feel good about themselves for helping to stop the perpetuation of coercive and exploitative work environments.
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The Chess Game of Project Communications
The phases of a project’s communications effort mirror those of a chess match. If the project team plays its pieces well, all stakeholders will win.
Time Efficiency Gains are Intrinsically Worthless
Time efficiency gains are in and of themselves of no value to an organization, but the right types of time efficiency gains can be converted into things that are valuable.
Do Not Sell Your Organization’s Soul to Technology
The best organizations have a soul. The wrong technology can kill it.
The Case for Inefficient Communication
Support for organizational changes is primarily based on emotion, and it takes more than a few bullet points of information about the benefits and risks of a change to elicit an emotional response.
The Value of a Good Dedicated Project Manager
Good project managers are hard to find and expensive to hire, but not using one could cost your organization a lot more.
Rules Should Not Apply
Project teams working on critical initiatives often need to break a few organizational rules to be effective.
The Need for Enterprise Systems Engineering
Lack of adequate systems engineering often results in enterprise IT systems failing to operate as integrated wholes.
The Philosophical Underpinnings of Agile
While most people think of Agile as a software development methodology, it is really a philosophy about what is and is not valuable.
The Never Ending Treadmill of Chasing Best Practices
Organizations that continually chase best practices developed by others rarely become industry leaders.
The Demands Agile Makes on Management
Successfully implementing Agile often requires an organization’s management staff to significantly change how they work.
In Defense of the Humble Spreadsheet
Spreadsheets have a bad rap, but they are remarkably powerful and versatile tools that almost anyone can effective use with minimal training.
It is So Shiny! I Need to Have It!
Sometimes the best thing you can do for your organization is ignore the lastest industry trend.