Category Archives: professional development

3 Ways Project Managers Can Anticipate, Avoid and Mitigate Problems

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Today’s comment came from a busy professional.

What separates the good, or the great, project managers (PM) from the just so-so?

The answer: How they handle problems when they arise and they prevent them from derailing deadlines and the budget. Some of the top issues projects frequently face are:

pm triangleProblem No. 1: Team members not knowing or understanding what their responsibilities are, not owning their part of the project.

Problem No. 2: Meeting deadlines.

Problem No. 3: Scope creep.

 

Problem No. 1: Team members not knowing or understanding what their responsibilities are, not owning their part of the project.

The PM is responsible for effectively conveying the project scope, goals and individual team member’s responsibilities. The best way to assure that your message has been conveyed is to ask each team member to paraphrase the goal and their part/responsibility/role in achieving the goals. They need to also paraphrase the consequences of not achieving the goals – not only for the company but for their careers as well.

Depending on one-way conversations like email and memos will not assure that your team understands their role. Creating presentations and status reports does not fully verify the team’s ownership.

Implementing one-on-one manager’s meetings will increase transparent communication between the employee and employer. Adding one-on-one project manager meetings with the various managers on the projects will do the exact thing for the project.

 Problem No. 2: Meeting deadlines.

Meeting deadlines is one of the critical skills of a PM. The first step, of course, is to create deadlines and milestones. Milestones are the mini-deadlines used to stay on course. It is critical to associate a customer-releasable deliverable at every milestone. The deliverable can be as simple as the requirement specs, a presentation, a prototype, a demo, an update, early alpha or beta versions, etc. By delivering early and often to the clients does several things:

  • Keeps the clients involved and gives you early feedback on how your features are matching your clients’ expectations. The product needs to match the client’s need and not your design. You are building the product for the client’s use; therefore, it’s imperative that you get the clients’ perspective along the way.
  • Forces the team to work on the quality of the deliverables all along the way.
  • Can continually provide the clients with their minimum requirements (to get them moving forward on their tasks) while you continue to enhance the product for future releases.

Another tool is risk management. There are various ways to manage risk. Risk Management and Risk Analysis incorporate contingency plans for high-probability/high-impact issues. Taking the time to visualize what “could happen” in the project, then sorting which items are most likely to happen with a high-impact to the project. Those items you put contingency plans in place.

Training every member of the time on good estimation skills will have a profound effect on accurate schedules. I have an article and presentation on the 12 Tips of Realistic Scheduling To download the article, register HERE.

Creating a Recovery Protocol Chart is also useful in meeting deadlines. The 12 Tips of Realistic Scheduling talks more about the Recovery Protocol Chart and Change Management in general. To download the article, register HERE.

Problem No. 3: Scope creep.

Change Management is the tool that you implement to eliminate scope creep. Once you have a well-defined feature set and requirement documents – any deviation of those requirements go through a Change Management process. CM outlines the consequences of the request including level of effort, resource requirements, delay in schedule, affect on other dependencies (identify any change reaction), quality issues or budget concerns. Once all these things are clearly outlined, the team can make a better decision in moving forward with the change.

Creating a Recovery Protocol Chart is also critical in reducing Scope Creep. The 12 Tips of Realistic Scheduling talks more about the Recovery Protocol Chart and Change Management in general. To download the article, register HERE.

I know your situation is different. Why don’t we schedule an appointment, where I get to know more about your unique situation? And then I will be happy to make recommendations on what your best steps are moving forward. To schedule an appointment, book it HERE.

With enough notice, it would be my honor to guest-speak at no cost to your group organization.

I have a monthly presentation on “how to say YES to everything but on your own terms”. To sign up for the complimentary course, go to www.lauraleerose.com/Say-Yes

 

 

How can you choose the most appropriate job title when wearing many ‘hats’ in your company?

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Hello, this is Laura Lee Rose.  I am a speaker and author. I am an expert in time and project management.

I help busy professionals and entrepreneurs create effective systems so that they can comfortably delegate to others, be more profitable and have time to enjoy life even if they don’t have time to learn new technology or train their staff.  I have a knack for turning big ideas into on time and profitable projects.

At the end of the day, I transform the way you run your business into a business you love to run.

Today’s comment came from a busy professional.

How can you choose the most appropriate job title when wearing many ‘hats’ in your company?

As a very new small business, anyone I bring on to my team is going to be responsible for more than one area of expertise. How can I name or define their positions when they are going to be doing much more than one thing?

Regardless of the title – you should have a full job description and even a Personal Business Commitment (PC) Plan for each of your employees (SMART Goals for the coming year). Their PBC’s should be based off your PBC’s and shows specifically how their role and responsibilities will help you achieve your PBC’s or SMART Business Goals for the coming year. Then during your quarterly performance reviews, you can easily measure their performance against their yearly goals – and give the appropriate tweaks and encouragement. Explicitly spelling out their roles and responsibilities is slightly different that giving their position a title. If you need help creating PBC’s, lets chat.

 

When giving titles, I recommend select a title that best supports or helps achieve their business goals. Consider the end-user of their business cards.   For example – if you have a employee that is a developer, but he also goes on the road with the Sales Staff to setup the demos and man the trade-show booths; I would give him the title of Subject Matter Expert or Technical Sales Engineer. Something – when given to the customer assures the customer that he is knowledgeable about the client’s use of the product as well as encouraging the client to call them about making the sale.

What if your project manager also does the accounting and bookkeeping for your small business? This person also answers the phones and fills in as the receptionist.   Although this person wears many hats, the title on their business card should be Project Manager, because affluent clients receiving that business card are more apt to carry on business dealings and conversations with the Project Manager over a book keeper or receptionist.

If you only have one sales person on your team and they also man the tech support line, their title on their business card should be Sales Manager – because an affluent client feels more important talking to the Sales Manager – than either sales person or a technical support person. They feel that the Sales Manager can actually get something done in the company.

Think about your business goals – and which title (from their many hats) is going to support bringing in the money.

Also – there is nothing wrong with creating multiple business cards with the different job titles. Then you give out the appropriate card at the right occasion. I don’t recommend doing 1 business cards with all the titles like: Project Manager/Developer/Tester. You want to present clarity, confidence and expertise to your potential client. Showing them that you are a jack of all and master of none will defeat the purpose.

Don’t work through lunch — WORK YOUR LUNCH

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Hello, this is Laura Lee Rose.  I am a speaker and author. I am an expert in time and project management.

I help busy professionals and entrepreneurs create effective systems so that they can comfortably delegate to others, be more profitable and have time to enjoy life even if they don’t have time to learn new technology or train their staff.  I have a knack for turning big ideas into on time and profitable projects.

At the end of the day, I transform the way you run your business into the business you love to run.
Today’s comment came from a busy professional when discussing prioritizing a performance review process for his company.

What is the importance of taking a break for lunch during the day? What are the benefits of taking a break in the middle of the day? Why shouldn’t you eat at your desk? How can people prioritize their lunch time to get the benefits out of it — and how can they convince their managers it’s important?

I will be blunt. People that eat lunch at their desk are lazy. I know we use the excuse that we have too much work to do and we don’t have time, yadda, yadda, yadda. But the truth is that we’re being lazy. It’s easier to just eat at the desk, than do make that lunch break work for you.

As with any work break – lunch should be an actual break to rejuvenate and reduce work day stress.  Stress is the accumulation of frustration and anxiety.  The key to eliminating stress during the day is to take periodic breaks throughout the day to diffuse the frustration before it gets to the stress level.

A break merely means to do something different that you were doing 1 minute ago. It doesn’t necessarily mean to “do nothing”. It means do something different. And that “something different” can still be in performance of your career and your business.

Another reason to get away from your desk at lunch is to use that time to business network with others.  Use that lunch time to meet the right people that can propel your career further.   Eating at your desk or even with the same people All The Time – actually keeps you in the same place (at this same desk and position). Instead, use the lunch hour to network with the people that can get you to that skip-level promotion.

 

Don’t work through lunch – INSTEAD WORK YOUR LUNCH.

 

Some things to make your lunch work for you are:

 

  • Change your environment at lunch. Have lunch with different people. Have lunch in a different location so that you can meet new people – the right people for your career.
  • Use the lunch to innovate and create with mentors, advisors and heroes. Initiate lunch time brainstorming session on revenue-generating proposals.
  • Use the lunch hour for self-improvement such as attending a ToastMasters.org chapter to shore up your presentation and speaking skills.
  • Invite experts and speakers to your Brown Bag Lunch series on the next generation technology or process improvement techniques that increase revenue and reduces expenses
  • Regularly invite your manager, your sibling department managers, leaders on the next generation projects, and other important stakeholders. The more people that know who you are and what you bring to the table – the better is will be for you.

 

These are just a few things that will get your lunch working for you. Continue to use your imagination to make your lunch work for you. Now you can see that eating at your desk is a lazy-man’s lunch.

 

p.s. How can you convince your managers it’s important? Just continue to be transparent in what you are doing at lunch and invite them to your lunch presentations, brainstorming meetings, mentoring meetings, etc. When they understand what you aspire to accomplish with your lunch time, you will be seen as a leader in his/her organization.

For more information on these techniques, contact LauraRose@RoseCoaching.info
Take that first step and setup an appointment: https://www.timetrade.com/book/WFSFQ

I know your situation is different. Why don’t we schedule an appointment, where I get to know more about your unique situation? And then I will be happy to make recommendations on what your best steps are moving forward. To schedule an appointment, book it HERE.

With enough notice, it would be my honor to guest-speak at no cost to your group organization.

I have a monthly presentation on “how to say YES to everything but on your own terms”. To sign up for the complimentary course, go to www.lauraleerose.com/Say-Yes

Does Lack of Involvement Cause Employees to Behave Unethically?‏

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Hello, this is Laura Lee Rose.  I am a speaker and author. I am an expert in time and project management.

I help busy professionals and entrepreneurs create effective systems so that they can comfortably delegate to others, be more profitable and have time to enjoy life even if they don’t have time to learn new technology or train their staff.  I have a knack for turning big ideas into on time and profitable projects.

At the end of the day, I give people peace of mind.
Today’s question came from a busy professional interested in freeing some time and space to advance in his career.

There is a new research from the Univ. of Georgia that shows “what happens when employees feel excluded at work”:
http://phys.org/news/2014-09-cheater-employees-excluded.html

While this article attempts to explain why some workers do unethical things in the workplace, it does not actually highlight the actual internal source.   What is your opinion?

In general – it’s easier for employees to rationalize unethical behavior when they feel resentment, unrecognized and under-valued.   Although the employee is the only one that can “cause themselves to behave unethically”, there are various circumstances that individuals use to rationalize their own behavior.

1) If they feel they are being overworked.
2) If they feel others in the organization is getting inappropriate bonus, rewards, promotions.
3) If they feel they are not getting the recognition they feel they deserve.

The feeling of “resentment” comes from the “victim” mentality.  Or the feeling that someone else is creating these difficult situations around you. But regardless of the external stimulus – you are totally responsible for your own behavior.

There are both ethical and unethical responses to the exact same situations.  The company does not “cause” the employee to behave in any certain way.  It’s the individual that will and can gravitate in either direction.  Since all employees are different, it’s not the company’s responsibility to create environments that increases their chances that all their employee’s will act ethically.  The training and development needs to come from within the individual and not external.

My recommendation is not to change the external workplace to “create ethical behavior”.

Since employees today average 4.6 years at any given job, my recommendation is to coach employees on how to positively respond to any situation and environment that they encounter.  That is really the way to succeed in any work environment.  With the proper professional development, training and coaching, individuals can be made aware of more ethical responses to the current workplace environment. This training will start a chain reaction such that when the executives, managers, and employees start implementing this training; when they are openly executing at a higher level and when they are transparent with their goals and procedures. – the entire work environment culture experiences an ethical transformation.

I know your situation is different. Why don’t we schedule an appointment, where I get to know more about your unique situation? And then I will be happy to make recommendations on what your best steps are moving forward. To schedule an appointment, book it HERE.

With enough notice, it would be my honor to guest-speak at no cost to your group organization.

I have a monthly presentation on “how to say YES to everything but on your own terms”. To sign up for the complimentary course, go to www.lauraleerose.com/Say-Yes

How to handle uncomfortable networking events

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Hello, this is Laura Lee Rose.  I am a speaker and author. I am an expert in time and project management.

I help busy professionals and entrepreneurs create effective systems so that they can comfortably delegate to others, be more profitable and have time to enjoy life even if they don’t have time to learn new technology or train their staff.  I have a knack for turning big ideas into on time and profitable projects.

At the end of the day, I give people peace of mind.
Today’s question came from a busy professional interested in freeing some time and space to advance in his career.


We all understand the importance and value of business networking. How do we handle networking events in a proper and professional manner?

One of the best ways to break the ice at a networking event is to pretend or put on the persona of a host. Focus your attention on “your guests”. Put the spotlight onto them. Allow them to shine and talk about themselves. Most people are there to talk about themselves, anyway – why to against the flow?

  1. Ask them questions about “What brought them here tonight?” “What are they hoping to gain or what are their goals for this meeting?”
  2. If they share that they are looking for referrals on XYZ or people that they can work with on ABC – connect them to someone that you just met at the same meeting that shares those goals.
  3. Don’t stay too long with any one person. Like a host, make sure you mingle. You can say “I know you want to meet more people, and I want to respect your time. I would love to stay in contact, why don’t we exchange contact information and make plans to call each other on Thursday.   How does that sound?”

If you really want to stay in contact, take out your calendar and then move on.

But what if you are shy or is an introvert? Are there any other special tips for us?

Normally what makes shy people uncomfortable is having the spotlight shined on ourselves. So – much like the above advice, shine the spotlight on other people. Instead of worrying about what other people think about you – focus on learning more about the other person. People love to talk about themselves and it takes the pressure off you to carry the entire conversation.

Also, look around to see if anyone is sitting alone or hiding in the corner (make sure it’s not you doing the hiding as well). Then go up and visit them. They may be feeling uncomfortable, so be a good host and go up and introduce them to some other folks.

For additional articles and videos on tips for introverts, check out these artifacts:

 

I know your situation is different. Why don’t we schedule an appointment, where I get to know more about your unique situation? And then I will be happy to make recommendations on what your best steps are moving forward. To schedule an appointment, book it HERE.

With enough notice, it would be my honor to guest-speak at no cost to your group organization.

I have a monthly presentation on “how to say YES to everything but on your own terms”. To sign up for the complimentary course, go to www.lauraleerose.com/Say-Yes

What’s in a job title?

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Hello, this is Laura Lee Rose.  I am a speaker and author. I am an expert in time and project management.

I help busy professionals and entrepreneurs create effective systems so that they can comfortably delegate to others, be more profitable and have time to enjoy life even if they don’t have time to learn new technology or train their staff.  I have a knack for turning big ideas into on time and profitable projects.

At the end of the day, I give people peace of mind.
Today’s question came from a busy professional interested in freeing some time and space to advance in his career.


jobtitleWhat’s in a job title? How does one pick the appropriate job title? What does a title say about us?

A rose given any other name still smells as sweet. So – what’s in a job title anyway? How important is it?

If you had asked me this question several years ago, my answer would be very different. My answer would probably center on individual prestige or associated with the number of years and experience associated with a particular job role or responsibility. Today, my recommendations lean toward looking at what we are trying to accomplish with that title.

Today, I would go back to the company’s goal or the directive. If – for instance, your job is to influence high-profile, high-paying client – then your job title needs to be prestigious enough to warrant their time and attention.

A high-profile client may schedule time with a Director of Research versus a Software Engineer.   But having the owner of the company be the one to install the product at their test lab – may have the opposite effect. It may put unwanted exposure that you are a one-man show versus a long-established company. In that situation, you might want to underscore your founder/owner status and just state that you are here to install their new software.

An unhappy customer may feel better heard if the Customer Advocacy Manager is working with them, versus Tech Support Staff (even though the Tech Support person is handling all the customer advocacy issues).

The audit team might feel better talking to your Division Audit Officer versus your QE Manager (even though the QE Manager is also the one handling all the Audit and Process issues).

Since business cards are inexpensive and you can create your own, having several cards with different titles is useful. To avoid fumbling through which card to give out – have your goal and purpose in mind before the networking event or meeting. Then only bring those cards to the event.

So, in general – my recommendation is to directly associate the job title that will make it easier to achieve the results that you want. Don’t focus on the “years of experience” or “conventional title hierarchy”. Get creative in your job titles – and focus on what you really want to achieve with them.

If your target client values creativity and inventiveness, get creative with your titles. If your target client is more procedural and strategic, then more conventional titles would appeal to them. Focus on the goals and what would attract the target clients.

I know your situation is different. Why don’t we schedule an appointment, where I get to know more about your unique situation? And then I will be happy to make recommendations on what your best steps are moving forward. To schedule an appointment, book it HERE.

With enough notice, it would be my honor to guest-speak at no cost to your group organization.

I have a monthly presentation on “how to say YES to everything but on your own terms”. To sign up for the complimentary course, go to www.lauraleerose.com/Say-Yes

How can I keep activity/participation high around slower demand seasons like the holidays?

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Hello, this is Laura Lee Rose.  I am a speaker and author. I am an expert in time and project management.

I help busy professionals and entrepreneurs create effective systems so that they can comfortably delegate to others, be more profitable and have time to enjoy life even if they don’t have time to learn new technology or train their staff.  I have a knack for turning big ideas into on time and profitable projects.

At the end of the day, I transform the way you run your business into the business you love to run.
Today’s comment came from a busy professional.

The success of my mobile app relies heavily on the activity of users being high and consistent. We have seen a drop in participation which I believe is correlated to it being Thanksgiving weekend. I am predicting the same drop in activity around Christmas and New Year. What are some marketing techniques I can undergo to build up activity and keep my audience interested?

 

Without knowing what your “mobile app” does – it’s hard to give a specific answer. But one way is to provide apps for those specific holiday or natural slumps. For instance, if your target market are parents with small kids – providing a mobile app that tracks Santa’s activity level between Nov – Jan, incorporates the season’s activities.

If you mow lawns, offering leaf-blowing and snow shuffling for the fall and winter months (when the lawn is not growing) are some additional services designed for the natural “mowing-lawn” slumps.

If you own a greet card company, offering CARE packages (Congratulations, Appreciation, Recognition and Encouragement) packages for the slumps between busy holidays card-giving seasons is a way to up-turn the down-turn of business.

Once again – without understanding your target audience, it’s hard to answer this question. Let’s chat so that I can better understand your unique situation. Then I will be able to better recommend your next steps.  It’s really easy to setup an appointment directly into my calendar with this link: https://www.timetrade.com/book/WFSFQ

Are there career risks a person should never take?

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Hello, this is Laura Lee Rose.  I am a speaker and author. I am an expert in time and project management.

I help busy professionals and entrepreneurs create effective systems so that they can comfortably delegate to others, be more profitable and have time to enjoy life even if they don’t have time to learn new technology or train their staff.  I have a knack for turning big ideas into on time and profitable projects.

At the end of the day, I give people peace of mind.
Today’s question came from a busy professional interested in freeing some time and space to advance in his career.

Are there any career risks that a person should never take?  These career risks may be on the job, during a job search, while networking, or some other aspect.

Everyone is different, so it’s difficult to say what absolute career risks different people should never take.  Career risks are relative to each person’s tolerance to financial security, family obligations, and debt/credit issues.
But there is the adage of “The bigger the risk, the higher the reward”.

The general rule of thumb is – if you are proactive with your risk-management activities, then no career move is off the table.  Take the time to do a risk analysis (determine the probability and impact of the risk) on your career decision. If the probability of it actually “falling apart” is low and the impact is insignificant, then simply go for it.
If the Probability of it “actually falling apart” is HIGH AND the Impact of the situation is significant/major – make sure you have a contingency plan in place.  If you have an appropriate contingency plan in place, it’s still a feasible path.

For example – What if you are considering giving your manager an ultimatum to give you a raise or you will walk?  What is the career risk of this action?

1) Since you have been the top sales person, was responsible for single-highhandedly responsible for 60% of the company’s profits, MVP for the last 3 year and is currently making lower than 10% of your sales – the probability of you getting fired is low AND the impact of moving on is low because you can easily find another job based on your past performance and client connections.  In this scenario – go for it.
2) But what if you are already being paid more than you bring in and are in debt (which is why you need to ask for a raise)?  At the same time, you have been getting Average and Below-Average performance ratings in the last 3 years. Well then the probability of you not getting the raise is HIGH and the impact of you losing your job (via this ultimatum)  is significant (because you are currently in debt and have not savings).  So – should you avoid asking for the raise? Is this a career risk that you can’t afford to take?  Not necessarily.

My recommendation is to find another way to accomplish your goal.  The real goal is to increase your income. Propose a change in position in the company that is salary based (versus sales commission).  It may be a better match to your talents, allowing you to get higher performance ratings and a higher, consistent income/salary.

So – take that time to do a risk assessment on your significant decisions, regardless of the situation (professional, personal and private).

I know your situation is different. Why don’t we schedule an appointment, where I get to know more about your unique situation? And then I will be happy to make recommendations on what your best steps are moving forward. To schedule an appointment, book it HERE.

With enough notice, it would be my honor to guest-speak at no cost to your group organization.

I have a monthly presentation on “how to say YES to everything but on your own terms”. To sign up for the complimentary course, go to www.lauraleerose.com/Say-Yes

Resumes that Lie and How Small Business Owners Can Detect Truth, Fluff, and Con Artistry

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It is difficult to filter out the lies and exaggerations in some resumes.

One way is to arm your screening staff with adequate questions AND acceptable answers.

1) Some companies provide qualification tests on the basic skills for the job.

2) Provide Scenario-Based interview questions, in which you provide a problem or issue that they need to resolve.  Then ask them how they would solve it.

3) Select a solution off their resume, and ask them how they specifically achieved that goal.  Ask specifically for references regarding that specific resume action item – and call that person up (versus just calling the people on their reference list).

There are several ways to detect inconsistencies in a resume.  These are just a few.

You may be a micro-manager, if you ….

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Often times, people think a micro-manager is someone that stands over the employee’s shoulders every hour. But that’s not totally true.   There are other traits to a micro-manager that you may be falling into without knowing it.

 

  • If you haven’t taken vacation, you may be a micro-manager
  • If you haven’t delegated the lead of some of your staff meetings, you may be a micro-manager
  • If you haven’t allowed your team to run the show, you may be a micro-manager.
  • If you are afraid of taking a day off, you may be a micro-manager.
  • If you are afraid of what will happens when you are not there, you may be a micro-manager
  • If you haven’t allowed your team to fail, you may be a micro-manager

 

Instead of being afraid of what happens when you are not there — allow things to happen by not being there. You may be pleasantly surprised.

If you don’t allow people to try these things on their own, you miss the opportunities for growth and excellence in both them and YOU. If you are too busy taking on other people’s responsibilities, you don’t have the time for your growth and promotions.