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Viewing Posts by Richard Maltzman
Doc Brown Would Be Proud (Part 1 of 2)
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Most of you are probably familiar with Dr. Emmett Brown. That’s a photo of him at the top of this post. He is not a famous psychologist from the University of Chicago, nor is he the leading cardiologist at the Boston Medical Center. He doesn’t even have a PMP(R) credential, and he’s not even a real doctor. Well, he is a real doctor character, the ‘mad scientist’ in Back To the Future, played eloquently by Christopher Lloyd. And he uses an interesting device to power his Delorean electric vehicle: a flux capacitor. See the sign below. Watch out!
Of course, there is no such thing. Or… is there? I have encountered two recent articles which, while not using the term “flux capacitor” are using the term “supercapacitor”. The articles are not from science fiction magazines, either, they are from IEEE Spectrum and from New Scientist. To me, the irony of the story is very sweet, because this is about using two ancient materials - concrete and carbon – to create capacitors which can be built into the environment to power houses and potentially vehicles. Here’s the paragraph that got my attention – in an article from New Scientist magazine, August 2023: A mixture of cement and charcoal powder could enable houses to store a full day’s worth of energy in their concrete foundations. This new way of creating a supercapacitor – an alternative to batteries that can discharge energy much faster – could be incorporated into the foundations of both buildings and wind turbines. When paired with renewable energy sources, it could also someday let concrete road foundations wirelessly recharge electric vehicles as they drive along. This is striking in several ways, not the least of which is the idea that the power source for homes, businesses and vehicles could be built into the environment, which smacks of the whole concept of The Built Environment, for which PMI now is offering a credential (the PMI-CP™). Indeed, I am working with industry professionals and academics to work this into our curriculum at Boston University. The Supercapacitor But let’s get back to this supercapacitor – the project that led to its development and the projects it will undoubtedly launch – projects that would make Dr. Emmett Brown quite proud. Here’s an image of the supercapacitor in the lab (courtesy of IEEE Spectrum):
Let’s start with the ingredients. This is another irony. To power the modern world in an environmentally-responsible manner, requires the generation and storage of electricity without the need for fossil fuels, without hazardous or rare-earth chemicals (like those used in batteries). You would think that some brand-new whiz-kid material would be invented to do that. Not so. One of the main ingredients in this supercapacitor is carbon black. To give you an idea of how new this material is – it was used to write the Dead Sea scrolls. So: not new. The other material is concrete, also ancient. The trick is in the surface area. To make the material for their supercapacitor, the team at MIT (see story here) stirred up a paste made of cement and water, and then introduced carbon black, a fine, charcoal-like form of carbon which is highly conductive, into the paste. As this cement mixture cured, the water was absorbed, and when evaporated, left behind a veinous network of tunnels when ended up being filled by the carbon black. The resulting material is now a latticework ... with a large surface area of conductive, winding, branching tunnels, without expanding the overall volume of the material, which can now serve as an electrode for the capacitor. The Capacitor I suppose I should digress here for a moment and tell those who don’t have an electrical engineering background about capacitors. There is controversy over who developed the first capacitor, and there’s even controversy over the invention of the predecessor of the capacitor, the Leiden (or Leyden) jar. This was invented nearly simultaneously by German cleric E. Georg von Kleist, but was followed up with more research and intent by by Pieter van Musschenbroek at the University of Leiden in the Netherlands in approximately 1745. In effect, they layers of foil separated by an insulator (called a dielectric). You can see them in action in this video:
they are classically represented by this symbol, a quite logical one, two plates separated by a gap (air, glass, plastic, or other dielectric).
As current (excuse the pun) electronic components, they often look like one of these:
However, now, the concept of this small electronic component , with this innovation, is expanded into the very construction material itself. In part 2, I will continue with the possible implementation ideas for this technology. References:
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PM and Sustainability - Symbiosis - Part 2
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As a reminder, the theme for this two-part blog post is symbiosis. In the first post I illustrated symbiosis with the example of the clownfish and the sea anemone. This time: another example – the acacia tree and a species of aggressive, stinging Pseudomyrmex ferrugineus ants Once again, I don’t mean to infer that sustainability is represented by the tree and project managers are pseudomyrmex ferruginei. It’s just an an-t-alogy. Learn more about this with this academic paper from SciencDaily. Or, watch this 2 minute video from National Geographic: The symbiosis to which I am referring is about the mutual benefit that the CSO (Chief Sustainability Officer) department of an organization can (and should!) have with the project managers. To take this idea to another level – an important level, I decided to see what this meant in terms of careers and jobs. I entered what I thought would be a very helpful prompt into ChatGPT, and here is what came out. My Prompt: Acting as a talent acquisition manager, identify the connections between project management and the positions of Chief Sustainability Officer or Director of Sustainability or ESG Director. ChatGPT’s response (highlighting is mine): As a talent acquisition manager, it's essential to recognize the connections between project management and positions like Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO), Director of Sustainability, or ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) Director. Understanding these connections will help you identify suitable candidates with the right skills and experience for these roles. Here are the key connections:
When recruiting for positions like Chief Sustainability Officer, Director of Sustainability, or ESG Director, it's important to look for candidates with a strong background in project management, excellent communication and collaboration skills, and a passion for sustainability and environmental stewardship. These candidates will be well-equipped to lead sustainability initiatives, drive positive change, and align sustainability efforts with the organization's broader goals. OK. Now that you have seen that, I know that at least my students of my Project Value Strategies class will recognize much of what is taught there. It could almost be the Syllabus of the course. So the lesson here is that the intertwined needs and outcomes of good project leadership and sustainability professionals means that opportunities for holistic, long-term, value-based project leaders (I stay away from the word ‘managers’ here, because… well, because this is leadership) will be the ones that are in highest demand in the near future, especially with the advent of AI. With that in mind, I asked ChatGPT what those skills would be to see if I was at all on target, or more like an ant climbing up the wrong tree. My prompt: Responding to a project manager concerned about losing their job to AI, what particular skills should they work on which will make them more resilient to the advent of AI in project management?
Chat GPT’s ant-ser: To become more resilient to the advent of AI in project management, project managers should focus on developing specific skills that complement and go beyond AI capabilities. Here are some particular skills to work on:
By concentrating on these skills, project managers can position themselves as indispensable assets in the AI-driven project management landscape. Remember that AI should be seen as a tool to augment your capabilities, not a direct threat to your expertise and contributions. Being adaptable, innovative, and focused on adding value will ensure your resilience in the face of AI advancements. Notice the connection here? The more you focus on holistic, long-term thinking, the more secure your career, and the more you can do well by doing good. Bottom line: when it comes to integrating sustainability thinking into your project management work, remember – that’s going to make you more resilient. Think: Project Leadership, not Project Management. |
PM and Sustainability - Symbiosis - Part 1
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Photo: National Geographic I’d like to start this post off with a very brief biology lesson. It’s about “symbiosis”. From National Geographic’s article, The Art of Living Together Sea anemones live attached to the surface of coral reefs. They trap their prey with stinging cells called nematocysts, which are located on their tentacles. Nematocysts release toxins when a small animal contacts an anemone’s tentacle. This paralyzes the stung animal, allowing the anemone to easily bring the animal into its mouth for ingestion. While other fish succumb to these toxic stings, clownfish secrete a substance in the mucus covering their bodies that suppresses the firing of nematocysts. This allows the clownfish to swim comfortably between the tentacles of anemones, creating a protected environment in which potential predators are killed off by anemone stings. This clearly benefits the clownfish, but how about the sea anemones? The brightly colored clownfish attract other fish looking for a meal. These unsuspecting would-be predators are then caught and eaten by the anemones. Now, I am not saying that ESG leaders are clowns, nor am I saying that project managers trap prey with stinging cells. Or vice-versa This is not that strong an analogy. What I am saying (and have been since 2010 with our book Green Project Management) is that there is a much stronger relationship between sustainability and project leadership than previously thought. So, I was very pleased to see a pair of articles right here on Projectmanagement.com that talk to this symbiosis of sorts. My favorite part of Andy Jordan’s feature story on The Rise of the CSO is this gem: “…every project committed to by an organization will ideally be developed and approved with sustainability in mind. I mentioned above that the approach to delivering a project should be subjected to a sustainability assessment, and that should be built into the organization’s overall project methodologies. But there should also be a review of each proposed initiative to ensure that the specifics of it are aligned with an organization’s sustainability goals.” The symbiosis: projects that embed sustainability will be better aligned with company mission, and thus more successful in the true sense of the word, and sustainability professionals will get ESG-related projects done more effectively. Do well by doing good. Do good by doing well. In Andy Jordan’s excellent post, he talks about the general role of the CSO but importantly says that some of it is project work, such as:
The other article that gave me increasing hope about this symbiosis was from Antonio Nieto-Rodriguez, called The 10-Step ESG Health Check for Project Managers In his article, Antonio details 10 steps (you really should read the article) for PMs, because the transitions and changes and initiatives needed to achieve sustainability goals ARE PROJECTS and REQUIRE PROJECT LEADERSHIP. The 10 steps are highlighted below: 1. Align ESG Goals I am encouraged by the momentum developing in this symbiosis. In Part 2, I want to make this as real as possible to you by (ironically) introducing artificial intelligence into the mix and to focus on jobs and careers for project leaders related to ESG, or supporting ESG efforts. Thank you to Andy Jordan and Antonio Nieto-Rodgriguez for their excellent posts and the spark for this two part-blog post! |
Negotiating Plasticity
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Those two statements are not incompatible and in fact, they’re quite intertwined. Projects to reduce plastics, to increase the effectiveness of recycling and to remove plastics from the oceans (for example) are numerous and frankly insufficient in number. I’ve already blogged about the Boyan Slat’s Ocean Cleanup and other such efforts. A quick update on that amazing initiative is here: This post is about the negotiations which, hopefully by the end of 2023, will result in significant reduction of the amount of plastics produces and to ‘clean up’ the supply of plastic, not the removal or recycling of existing plastic. From this recent article, we learn that “Humanity produces more than 430 million tons of plastic annually, two-thirds of which are short-lived products that soon become waste, filling the ocean and, often, working their way into the human food chain” Yes, you read that right. As you read this and snack on ____ (fill in your favorite guilty-pleasure food here), you are probably ingesting some plastic. Not good. Despite efforts to curtail this, according to that same article, “Plastic waste produced globally is set to almost triple by 2060, with about half ending up in landfill and under a fifth recycled, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.” As project managers know, stakeholder identification and engagement is key. In this negotiation, there are several powerful, interested, and opposing stakeholders that need to be engaged. A recent article from Reuters goes through the debate, the support, and the opposition for this negotiation – in fact, the quotes below, in green, come from that article.
"The United States is committed to working with other governments and stakeholders throughout the INC process to develop an ambitious, innovative and country-driven global agreement," a U.S. State Department spokesperson said in a statement. Washington has said it wants the pact to resemble the structure of the Paris climate agreement, in countries set their own greenhouse gas reduction goals and action plans. "Although in the minority, there are some powerful opponents of global rules and standards, which risk potentially weakening obligations on countries to take action,” said Eirik Lindebjerg, WWF global plastics policy lead.
Norway, alongside Rwanda, is leading a self-named High Ambition Coalition of more than 50 countries pushing for an ambitious global plastics treaty aimed at ending plastic pollution by 2040.Environmentalists, like the World Wildlife Federation (WWF)
Industry representatives at the talks touted the essential role of plastics in daily life, calling for the treaty to focus tackling waste rather than measures to sap production. "At the end of the day, we hope the committee comes to the same conclusion we do, which is that increasing recycling offers the best solution to reducing plastic waste," said Matt Seaholm, president and CEO of the Plastics Industry Association.
Just as the world begins to realize the dangers of plastic pollution and take action to reduce it, industry is poised to invest billions in expanding plastic production. Over 99% of plastic is made from chemicals sourced from fossil fuels, and the fossil fuel and plastic industries are deeply connected. Indeed, the shale gas boom in the United States is fueling a massive build-out of plastic infrastructure in the US and beyond. In as little as five years, these investments could increase global plastic production capacity by a third, driving companies to produce ever greater volumes of plastic for years to come. If this plastic is produced, companies will find markets to consume it. Production will drive demand. This wave of investment increases pollution risks to frontline communities throughout the plastic supply chain and directly undermines efforts by cities, countries, and the global community to combat the growing plastic crisis.
It’s an interesting case study in progress that project leaders may do well to watch and from which they may be able to learn – and perhaps even in which they can participate Here’s a quick, short, recent (less than 2 minute) summary of the treaty in progress:
I'll be keeping an eye on this for People, Planet, Projects, and Profits.
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People Bigger Than Cars?
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woonerf
Categories: woonerf
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No, this is not a science fiction thriller about 20-foot humanoids, although...that would be a good follow-up! If you look at the featured picture for this post, it's a street sign for the topic of the post. And in that street sign, people (even kids!) are bigger than cars. The reason for this will become evident if you just read on. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately about The Built Environment and what that means for people in general, but also very special people – project leaders. So let me start with the term, “Built Environment”(there will be more terms as well here, some in other languages, so fasten your linguistic seat belts). What is The Built Environment? Some may say it’s just another word for ‘construction’ or for buildings. That’s a partially correct answer but it is nowhere near fully correct. Here, from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is the definition: (The Built Environment encompasses) the buildings we live in, the distribution systems that provide us with water and electricity, and the roads, bridges, and transportation systems we use to get from place to place. It can generally be described as the man-made or modified structures that provide people with living, working, and recreational spaces. So, not just buildings, it’s anything that we humans make or modify to make our lives comfortable, productive, and fun. I’ll be posting about this topic a lot in the next few months – its an area of focus that project managers will need to learn about because of the amount of money business and governments are applying to infrastructure projects. And PMI knows this, having recently introduced the PMI-CP® certification. My first post in this vein is a concept that has begun to catch hold worldwide, although it started about 70 years ago in Delft, The Netherlands. I told you – you’d learn new terms in this post, and here is one I am not only going to define, I am going to get you to pronounce it properly! Respect language! The term is Woonerf. It is a mashup of two Dutch words, woon and nerf (literally ‘living’ and ‘grain’) Together, however, the word woonerf becomes “living yard”, and practically, it describes a ‘shared space’. Let’s get the pronunciation right, though.
Listen to it pronounced in Dutch here: https://www.howtopronounce.com/dutch/woonerf A woonerf is a place where cars, trucks, bikes, kids, dogs, people share a space and in which the motorized vehicles do NOT have the right of way, and in which there is less demarcation between the road and a ‘sidewalk’, and in which the roadway is often either narrow, populated with barriers (not speed bumps, but pieces of art, for example) that prevent fast driving. The four principles of a woonerf (see pic below) are:
From a project management perspective, there is a very interesting angle – one that involves culture and communications and stakeholder engagement. A very good example is this one, which compares the introduction of a woonerf in two different Canadian cities. It’s a short video. But watch it -very interesting to note the project management lessons learned here.
Below is a photo of the successful woonerf in Banff. I find it amazing how one word – in this case, woonerf – in effect, killed a project because it carried the ‘baggage’ of a Euro-centric culture that ‘won’t work here’, according to some key stakeholders. But the second part of the video shows how the woonerf concept did work in Banff. And it’s catching on all over the world in the past decade. This article from Bloomberg talks about six examples, from the USA, New Zealand, Germany, England, Sweden, and, of course, The Netherlands. And that’s from 2015. Since then, it’s become much more popular, with woonerf projects taking place everywhere. Here’s a recent example of a woonerf in Singapore:
And I close with a great summary of how a woonerf works in The Netherlands.
Stay tuned to this blog for more upskilling in linguistics and the Built Environment! We’ll be covering software platforms that facilitate planning and executing building projects with sustainability in mind. |