What Is the Most Important Role of a Project Manager?
David Barrett Blog
by David Barrett
1d ago
Most people will say… “Produce great schedules!” As project managers, we all know that is not the case.  So, what is the answer?  What is the most important role of a project manager? I always like this answer: “While it’s important for project managers to create a solid, achievable schedule, more importantly, their key role is to control the schedule. Track it, manage the changes throughout and continuously make sure that everyone is on track.” Not bad but… A student approached me after the first four days of our Master’s Certificate in Project Management program at Schulich Executi ..read more
Visit website
Working with a Disengaged Team
David Barrett Blog
by David Barrett
1y ago
I have been watching a friend struggle recently as she tries to manage a team of people who were not engaged.  Read… ‘they really didn’t care’.  The result is demoralizing for everyone: infighting, poor quality work, absenteeism, poor customer service and more. Admittedly, this is a very large corporation where the bottom line is far removed from this team.  If you asked them what drives them at work, the answer would inevitably be ‘my pay cheque’, and ‘the weekend’. For big corporation or small business, this is not an uncommon hurdle that leaders or managers face today.  ..read more
Visit website
Does Your Project Sponsor Know What They Are Doing?
David Barrett Blog
by David Barrett
1y ago
Being a project sponsor is not easy.  The role is often misunderstood, misrepresented, and misused – leading to a host of problems between the Project Manager (PM) and the Project Sponsor (PS).   The key issue is the lack of a clear agreement between both parties up front.  Both parties make assumptions about the role of the other without confirmation or discussion and thus the trouble begins.  Unfortunately, this relationship cannot be standardized across projects. It all depends on the environment, the people and the position of the project in the larger portfolio of wo ..read more
Visit website
Now is the Time to Find Your Coach
David Barrett Blog
by David Barrett
1y ago
Well, actually it was time to find your coach a long time ago. But that’s alright.  There’s still time. They figured out many moons ago that professional athletes needed coaches. Why wouldn’t the same be true for all of us in the business world?  It is the same thing – but not all of us have figured it out. To be clear, I am not necessarily talking about a ‘professional’ coach. I am talking about someone in your life who you can turn to for advice on a regular basis. Someone who can guide your growth and help you through the difficult times, like many of us are going through right no ..read more
Visit website
Do You Ask Enough Questions?
David Barrett Blog
by David Barrett
1y ago
‘The secret to life’ suggested my father, is to ask questions. Be inquisitive, he said, with everyone you meet and everything you see. Asking questions comes naturally to me – much to the chagrin of my children who often cringe as I would meet a new friend of theirs and ask way too many questions. But setting aside my kid’s new friends, my inquisitiveness upon meeting someone new would produce a host of potential topics to talk about and sometimes, more importantly, that all important ‘common thread’.  In fact, we have a very close friend who recently revealed the fact that she was taught ..read more
Visit website
Leadership is Earned – Not Awarded
David Barrett Blog
by David Barrett
1y ago
Respect, trust and loyalty are earned over time.  We have heard this many times before.  And then in walks a new boss and within the first few months it becomes very apparent that he or she did not read the manual. Frankly, it never ceases to amaze me that this mindset still exists.  That you can walk into any environment with a new leadership-type title and demand respect and trust and loyalty, just because of the title. The betting-person will see this and wisely give them less than two years.  Leaders must earn our respect.  Once they earn our respect, the other two ..read more
Visit website
What Makes You Different?
David Barrett Blog
by David Barrett
1y ago
In today’s audio post, I address the need for all project managers out there to stand out in a very crowded market. The post What Makes You Different? appeared first on David Barrett ..read more
Visit website
What About All the Other Projects?
David Barrett Blog
by David Barrett
1y ago
I ran into a colleague recently who talked about a disastrous office relocation. It seems that everything that could go wrong did go wrong. Knowing my passion for project management, and everything related, our conversation naturally moved to ‘what could have been’ and ‘where did we go wrong’. Of course, my first question was “Who was the project manager?”.  There was no project manager in charge.  This project did not fit in under the Project Management Office responsibilities and thus, it did not receive the attention it deserved. There was, however, an office administrator in cha ..read more
Visit website
Finding Those Dotted-Line Resources
David Barrett Blog
by David Barrett
1y ago
A recent interview with Eric Bloom helped me understand the term ‘dotted-line resources’ and how to find them. The post Finding Those Dotted-Line Resources appeared first on David Barrett ..read more
Visit website
Are You Crisis Ready?
David Barrett Blog
by David Barrett
1y ago
Are you ready for a disaster? Are you prepared to handle a crisis both personally and professionally? A few years ago, I had the pleasure of listening to Former Deputy Assistant Secretary General US Colonel (retired) Matthew S. Klimow as a fellow keynote speaker.  The title of this presentation was “Human Excellence in the Face of Crisis”. He told us an amazing story about one day in his life: from the moment he arrived work at 5:15 AM to the time he walked back into the front door of his house very late that evening. The day was September 11, 2001 and he was working as a senior adviser i ..read more
Visit website

Follow David Barrett Blog on FeedSpot

Continue with Google
Continue with Apple
OR