PM-Interface

By Michael Adams, PMP®, PMI Otowi Bridge President Elect
Twitter: @MichaelAdamsPMP - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeladamspmp

Edited by Sarah Maxwell, PMI Chapter Administrator
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-maxwell-91b23a4b

Would you agree that communication is critical to success?

Do you feel you are an effective and successful communicator?

According to PMI’s December 2013 White Paper, “Communication: The Message Is Clear,” more than sixty percent of business owners and executive sponsors believe they are doing a good job at communicating strategic alignment and business benefits for their projects.¹ What do you think? Are you part of that sixty percent? Considering that only forty three percent of project managers agree with the assessments of leaders who claim to be effective communicators, who do you think is wrong?

No one in a position of leadership appreciates the notion that their communication skills are poor. We leaders prefer to see ourselves as one of “those people” who have communication handled. We collect evidence to support our assumptions and when challenged, we disagree and parade our evidence as proof against the charge. We do this at work, at home, and with our friends. Leaders dislike having our communication shortcomings highlighted, and when this happens, we tend to vigorously defend our status as expert communicators. This is all normal behavior which carries no cause for shame or embarrassment.

It does however, carry the cost of missing opportunities to enhance performance. It means we’ll continue to perform at the same level, a.k.a. on par with other leaders, rather than standing out. A question leaders might consider is, “do I want to accept typical behavior in myself, and with that, typical performance?” If yes, there is no need to read further. If the answer is no, and you wish to elevate your own performance and communication effectiveness, the next question gets personal. “Am I willing to humbly and honestly see where my communication falls short?” That question is key, and answering in the affirmative immediately confronts us with deep personal challenges.

For starters, let’s explore the traits or criteria of effective communication. According to the white paper referenced above, effective communication isn’t merely the transmission of facts. It must produce understanding among team members. It must engage everyone who is touched by the project, including managers, executive leaders, the project sponsor, and other stakeholders. Effective communication results in people understanding their role in the project.

If you consider yourself an effective communicator, take some time to consider your past projects from the context of the criteria listed above. Were any of those communication results missing in any or all of your projects? Did one or more of your projects experience misunderstanding on the part of the project team,  stakeholders, or management? Did everyone understand his or her role in the project? Did you have some level of engagement from any group touched by the project? This is an opportunity to honestly search for evidence in your own performance that exposes you as an average or poor communicator. If you’re like me, you wonder why you would want to see yourself as an average or poor communicator. The answer lies in your goal: this perspective leaves ample room to boost performance. Who has more room for growth, an expert, or a novice? The key to elevating performance lies in our own perceptions of our own performances. How much room are we giving ourselves to improve?

To that point, I’ll confess my own arrogance. Employing humility is often difficult and bitter for me. I prefer to see myself as an adept communicator, a likable leader, and a caring team member. These positive self assessments aren’t useless; in fact they are essential when developing my resume or interviewing for a job. However, when my goal is self improvement, they are a hinderance. Consistently, I experience rapid growth only when I perceive myself as having ample room for improvement. With a humble perspective, I identify new opportunities for communication more easily. I am more open to critical feedback from peers and team members. According to Professor Bruce Winston, “we should not view ourselves as a full cup—something that cannot receive more—but rather as an empty cup, always willing to learn more from others.”²

According to PMI’s 2013 “The Essential Role of Communications,” one in five projects is unsuccessful due to ineffective communication.³  If you know four Project Managers whose projects are running successfully, is yours the one in jeopardy? I understand statistics don’t really work that way, but it might be a valuable perspective, particularly if it encourages a bit of humility and self examination. We have the power, through our own choice in perspective, to view ourselves as having ample room for growth and development, or to take the less valuable approach of seeing ourselves as developed, with maybe some minor polishing of finer details. Which choice will better enable our own breakthrough success and that of our teams?

If we examine some basics of project management communication from the context that we are poor or average communicators, let's see what becomes available. Let’s keep an eye open for how we aren’t employing important communication tools and methods. Let’s consider how we could better apply communication concepts from the PMBOK guide, let’s consider investing a little time into developing a personal communication plan for career growth.

I’ve often heard people say that ninety percent of a project manager’s job is communication. That is a lot of communication! According to a 2011 Harvard Business Review article, managers who communicate the same expectations more than once, and in a variety of media, consistently have the best results.⁴ Contrast that with how often you’ve seen a PM or other leader simply email meeting minutes to everyone or assume that everyone took good notes. Maybe their idea of communication is to post all important information to the intranet site and assume the key team members will see that. I remember a manager at a small company saying, “it is everyone’s responsibility to take notes, I may or may not distribute my meeting minutes.” All of these behaviors are valid, the perspectives aren’t wrong, but none of them accounts for ninety percent of your job being communication. Do any of these scenarios roughly approximate your standard communication plan? Are you feeling a little defensive that I’m even bringing these up? If so, just sit with the discomfort, let it dissipate, and try to examine the results of your projects from a neutral standpoint.

In considering past projects, and assessing my own communication, I’ve found it useful to consider how much stress I experienced, and how much stress my team experienced. I’ll ask myself if there were executive leaders expressing concern or regularly contacting me for updates. After thinking through these points, I consider whether modifying my communication plan to include alternate methods of reaching team members might have had a positive impact. What if I had identified people who really dislike email? Did I consider that some team members might have a reading disability or an auditory disability? Did I expect everyone to take notes, and if so, did I find out how many people knew how to take effective notes? Did I account for which people are better with organizing paper and which are better at organizing digital media? If my communication plan failed to account for these individual differences in how people receive information, could I have changed it to be more accommodating? Would that have made a positive difference for the project?

According to the PMBOK guide, a communications plan has four inputs:

1. project management plan
2. stakeholder register
3. organizational environmental factors
4. enterprise process assets.

Why do you think inputs to the communication plan include both stakeholder register and environmental factors? One obvious reason is that the stakeholder register provides a list of people who need to receive communications, while the environmental factors shed light on the expectations of communication within the organization. Could those inputs also help to ensure that a PM’s delivered message means the same thing when it is received? If I insist on communicating with team members in ways that specifically don’t work for them, are they likely to perform at their highest level? No one would disagree that a PM’s job is to deliver their projects on time, with sufficient quality, and within budget. Stated differently, they facilitate high performance among their project team. Wouldn’t that include communicating with team members in ways that encourage their best work?

An example that comes to mind is a contractor I worked for nearly ten years ago. He assigned me several small projects. He began each by giving me numerous detailed instructions describing what he wanted and how he wanted it done. I always had a notepad in which I wrote down my assignments. Feeling his time too short for my note-taking, the contractor looked at me, and said, “put that down...you don't need it, just listen carefully. You can write it all down after I leave.” What followed was a forty minute monologue with detailed explanations of the results he wanted and how he expected tasks to be completed. I couldn’t remember everything and ultimately, I failed to deliver on what he wanted. I’m tempted to lay this all on my boss. It would be easy; however, poor communication takes two. I was one of those two people, so while it is easy to see where my boss failed to provide good communication, I’ll instead focus on my own failures.

First, I didn’t let my boss know that I couldn’t remember forty minutes of detailed verbal instruction. Rather, I tried to save face by letting him talk and leave. I told myself that I would be able to succeed anyway. I didn’t let him know that while it might take a few extra minutes for me to write down his instructions now, it would pay off when I completed everything he wanted in the fashion he wanted; whereas, my failure to document his instructions would make success unlikely. In short, I let my ego get in the way of facilitating good communication, and in the process, I lost a job and very possibly hurt a local small business.

However, I did learn, and today, I will not proceed with a project while I lack confirmation that I understand expectations.

Beyond expectation, a PM who focuses exclusively on fulfilling the triple constraints of scope, schedule, and budget is a PM who fails to see how their project benefits the organization. This PM has not applied sufficient rigor to communicating with decision makers. They haven’t ensured their understanding of the business benefits that their project provides. How could a PM in this position effectively communicate their project’s benefits to stakeholders on their team, or throughout the organization? How could this PM know if their sponsor effectively communicates the project’s importance in the organization or to external customers? Wouldn’t an effective communications plan require the PM to understand their project’s strategic importance? Wouldn’t it include periodic reviews of project goals and anticipated benefits with the sponsor and other leaders?

Who is more valuable to an organization?

• A PM who understands the strategic context of her project, and is able to assess organizational impact as the project environment shifts.
• A PM who strictly manages to meet the defined scope schedule and budget, regardless of environmental factors, some of which may render the project irrelevant or of minimal value.

In his 2015 PMI Global Congress presentation, “The Promotable Project Manager: New Findings About the Leadership Behaviors of Successful Project and Program Managers NA15RES06,” Richard J. Heaslip presented data from studies about how project managers communicate. Specifically, he studied the level of leadership that PMs provide in various organizations.⁵ According to Heaslips findings, roughly fifty percent of executive leaders express a desire for their organization’s project managers to both conceive of and discuss their projects from the context of how those projects align with enterprise goals and how they will benefit the organization.

Even in organizations whose culture discourages PMs from communicating like this, your understanding of expected benefits will enable your communication with executives to inform their decisions about critical changes in scope. A result is that you and your team will be more valuable to the organization.

What happens if you don't do this? Maybe nothing, but let's explore another construction project I worked on more than twelve years ago. I was assigned a high profile sub-project on a multi-million dollar job. My manager clearly identified what he wanted me to do, who I could communicate with, and what his expectations were. I asked clarifying questions about tasks, my team, and appropriate communication channels. I focused on and delivered exactly what my manager requested, and I felt good about my work. But when I checked in with the manager, he didn’t seem very happy. Apparently, there were unspoken expectations that I didn’t identify, and which weren’t met. I failed to account for the fact that my project was taking place at the ranch manager’s residence, and that his wife would be home all day every day. I didn’t consider risks associated with interpersonal communications between my team and the manager’s wife. I ensured project completion in strict adherence to the triple constraint, however, when my manager reviewed the project with me, he said, “well, you did exactly what I asked, but the property manager isn’t very happy.” I asked what went wrong, but he was hesitant to give me any specific feedback. I shrugged and moved on. I didn't press for details on how I could improve my performance or if I needed to straighten something out with the property manager. I didn't understand the context inside of which my project existed and it hurt both me and my employer.

Today, when I begin a project, I often start with what the Harvard Business Review calls a premortem.⁶ I ask each team member to imagine that we’ve just wrapped up the project, and it went horribly wrong. Everything fell apart, and we’re all on the verge of looking for new jobs. Then I ask the team to tell me, what exactly went wrong, and how could we have addressed it? I ask people to avoid changing their answers based on preference for someone else’s. I really want a diverse list of what could go wrong.

In my experience, this exercise does a few things. First, it causes each team member to see how others think, and what their concerns are. Sometimes it exposes risks that were overlooked. But most importantly, it causes everyone to examine the project for obstacles and problems, and causes them to consider how they can individually affect project failure. This exercise causes team members to develop a sense of ownership for project success, and they begin exploring their internal communication requirements as a team. As the PM, I see a little of how each person thinks, and I gain insights into how I should communicate with each individual.

As the project proceeds, my communication relies on a mixture of personal interactions followed by an email summarizing agreements and deliverables. All meetings of more than three people require an agenda and succinct meeting minutes, which include action items, accountable parties, and due dates. Emails are best when they are short. Every email requires editing before distribution. The best emails are composed of short descriptions followed by bullet points and due dates. Emails should never be seen as an opportunity to fulfill on regrets for a missed career as a novelist.

Contrary to what most people think, it is difficult to over-communicate.⁷ It is easy to overwhelm people with verbose and irrelevant communication, which is not over communication, rather it is over-indulgence or laziness in editing. Communication is engaging, succinct, it tells a story, gives people context for what they are doing, and it is the key to success in business.

As you ponder your communication style, and how you want to develop a communication plan for your next project, maybe you’ll consider the following questions:

1. What are your experiences with communication on projects? (Either as a PM or a team member.)

2. What sorts of things have you overlooked in your communication?

3. What do you tend to overlook repeatedly, and how can you avoid doing it again?

4. What ideas do you have for how communication can be improved in our profession?

In closing, let’s reflect on the words of George Bernard Shaw, followed by Jim Rohn:

“The single biggest problem with communication is the illusion that it has taken place.”

--George Bernard Shaw

“Take advantage of every opportunity to practice your communication skills so that when important occasions arise, you will have the gift, the style, the sharpness, the clarity, and the emotions to affect other people.”

--Jim Rohn

[1] https://www.pmi.org/~/media/PDF/Knowledge%20Center/Communications_whitepaper_v2.ashx

[2] http://stephenblandino.com/2012/09/role-humility-personal-growth.html

[3] https://www.pmi.org/~/media/PDF/Business-Solutions/The-High-Cost-Low-Performance-The-Essential-Role-of-Communications.ashx

[4] https://hbr.org/2011/05/defend-your-research-effective-managers-say-the-same-thing-twice-or-more

[5] http://congresses.pmi.org/NorthAmerica2015/program/educational-areas-of-focus/area-of-focus-sessions/session/2015/10/13/default-calendar/the-promotable-project-manager-new-findings-about-the-leadership-behaviors-of-successful-project-and-program-managers

[6] https://hbr.org/2007/09/performing-a-project-premortem

[7] https://hbr.org/2013/01/three-elements-of-great-communication-according/

By Mike Adams, PMP®, President Elect - PMI Otowi Bridge
Twitter: @MichaelAdamsPMP, LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeladamspmp

Edited & Reviewed by Sarah Maxwell, PMI Chapter Administrator
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-maxwell-91b23a4b

November 13, 2015, a new tragedy. I worked late that Friday and left my office in a hurry to meet my wife at a local Chinese restaurant for a quick dinner. We had plans to attend an Israeli-Palestine study group, which had been organized by a mutual friend. Neither of us much wanted to engage in a heavy topic at the end of a long week, however, the topic had serious potential to be interesting, and this friend is important to us both. Our attendance was important!

I arrived at the restaurant, and waited a few minutes for my wife. When she arrived, she looked upset. She sat down, soberly looked me in the eye, and asked, “Did you hear what happened?” I shook my head and braced for some bad news about one of our kids getting into trouble, or similar. She continued, “Paris has been targeted by a coordinated series of terrorist attacks, and there have been more than one hundred people murdered.” I was silent and immobile for a few moments. I then asked, “Do we know who did it? Do we know why?” She said no one had claimed responsibility. Shaking my head, I looked down, stared at a spot on the table until my wife interrupted by asking, “Are you OK?” I looked back at her and responded, “I miss the cold war!”

My mind flooded with images of the Berlin wall being dismantled by masses of people, who had finally won freedom. They jubilantly took to the streets and actively unified a broken Germany. There was laughter and crying. Families were reunited, and celebration was alive in the air. I sat in my college dormitory rapt by the history unfolding on my television screen. College seemed comparatively trivial. Perestroika ()¹ was on everyone’s tongue, and the world had become a charmed oasis, gushing possibility and excitement.

Only a few years earlier, humanity’s future looked bleak. The US and the USSR had a combined nuclear arsenal large enough to destroy the planet several times over, and the political rhetoric between the two global superpowers was aggressive and fevered. It seemed our world would likely end with a series of nuclear explosions, which would render this planet incapable of supporting human life. But on November 9 of 1989, masses of ecstatic citizens joined together to dismantle the most potent symbol of nuclear annihilation that my generation had come to know.

The Peace Dividend…

As I sprang from the protective care of my parents’ home, the world changed, and I ventured forth in high hopes of fashioning a new world, free from the nightmares of yesteryear. We would all cash in on the “peace dividend,” and create a better world.

Naiveté, optimism, youthful hope, no matter how you categorize my attitude, those dreams never materialized. Instead the sociological fallout from the tactical decisions of cold war leaders fundamentally altered today’s geopolitical landscape, and now we’re left scrambling to solve problems we don’t understand, while we ask how everything became so ugly, so fast.

Quick action, and a failure to assess!

During the cold war, we failed to assess the consequences of our actions, and in the ensuing decade we continued that trend. Today we continue to fail at assessing the sources of, and solutions to the conflicts in which we’re engaged.

According to an article in the Harvard Business Review’s November 2015 edition,² people have a bias towards taking action, even when it would be better to do nothing and wait for a thorough assessment. What if, ever since the destruction of the Berlin Wall, we’ve collectively been acting, when we should have been assessing? Why was the anticipated “peace dividend” so elusive? Why does today’s world seem less stable than only a few decades ago? Why are domestic and international terrorists a part of daily news and concern for so many people? How did this all happen and what, if anything, can we do about it?

After September 12, 2001, the USA emerged from stunning attacks with unprecedented goodwill. The global outpouring of solidarity and support was unmatched, and we capitalized on that goodwill, by mustering a full-scale invasion of Afghanistan, and later Iraq. Our collective bias towards action was insatiable, and our response, unconsidered. We committed to a course which has created a whole generation of adults, who can’t remember a time when the US was not at war on foreign soil.

But we had to act, and we had to act decisively!

I agree! However, we didn’t have to act blindly, or from anger. We should have conducted a thorough assessment of the situation. We should have considered the tactical relevance of the US training, provided to Al Quaeda fighters when they resisted the Soviet invasion of the 1980s. We should have examined Soviet failings as they attempted to conquer Afghanistan. We should have thought through the long term effects of destabilizing the region by destroying Iraq’s government. Rather we jumped into action, and today, we’re dealing with the consequences of that hasty decision with the formation of daesh, and their hatred for everyone who isn’t daesh, especially Muslims. It isn’t far-fetched to claim that things are worse than they were, and we’re the cause.

Poor assessments create strategic failures and portfolio blunders!

Portfolio management is the centralized management of one or more portfolios, which includes identifying, prioritizing, authorizing, managing, and controlling projects, programs and other related work to achieve specific strategic objectives.³

On September 20, 2001, nine days after terrorists had hijacked planes and crashed them into New York’s twin towers, destroying the World Trade Center, President George W. Bush delivered what would arguably be the most important speech of his life. Before Congress, as the globe tuned in to his broadcast, Bush said, “Americans are asking ‘Why do they hate us?’” he paused and continued, “They hate what they see right here in this chamber: a democratically elected government. Their leaders are self-appointed. They hate our freedoms…”⁴

President Bush had answered a question of fundamental importance to Americans and to our future. In saying, “they hate our freedoms,” President Bush singled out a foundational aspect of American identity, freedom, and told us the terrorists attacks were motivated because of that freedom. His answer gave stakeholders an emotionally palatable answer, which later turned into justification for invading two countries. Bush didn’t provide useful and considered information. He communicated no vision and failed to point us towards a strategic goal. The requisite conditions for portfolio success were absent, and today, a new generation struggles with the consequences of a shallow assessment as we try to right this ship before it sinks in the storm.

Is proper assessment easy?

Some will bristle at my assertions. “We had just been attacked, we had to do something. We couldn’t appear to be passive or afraid” These are all valid points. They tug at our limbic system’s sense of truth, however, they are wrong! According to the Harvard Business Review article referenced above, a study of goalie performances during soccer penalty kicks demonstrate that goalies should never dive to the left or right, but instead, stay on their feet and try to block the shot from the center. Statistically, this improves their chances of success by thirty three percent. 

Why then do goalies, especially professional goalies, consistently dive to the right or left when facing a penalty kick? Could it be due to the fact that no one wants to be the goalie who let a game winning ball fly by, without even attempting to dive? Does it seem better to fail while looking good than to fail while doing the right thing, even if it doesn’t look as good? Researches say this is exactly why, and the real consequences of losing an important game are outweighed by the emotional consequences of doing the right thing, and possibly being vehemently criticized for a publicly ignorant perception of inaction.

But terrorism isn’t soccer, and people’s actual lives are at stake!

That is exactly my point. Making a hasty and emotional decision doesn’t improve our chances of victory in a soccer game. Neither does it improve our chances for international political success.

On Saturday, November 14, after the Democratic debate concluded, I sent a tweet to @PMInstitute suggesting that we could fix Washington by replacing our leadership with a series of competent PMPs and PgMPs. My tweet was intended as humor, however, I think it contains a great deal of validity. 

Analysis, coupled with a measured response is responsible leadership!

The PMs whom I know veer away from impassioned, reflexive action, and steer towards considered and thoughtful plans. We know that collective wisdom is better than individual genius, and that innovative solutions sprout from the synthesis of divergent ideas and opposing points of view. Any competent PM can recognize that Bush’s 2001 address before congress was a well scripted message aimed at a particular stakeholder demographic, and geared towards creation of a unified response to an unfolding crisis. My criticism does not rest in Bush’s effectiveness at leading the US in a single direction; rather I condemn his thorough failure to skillfully assess the situation and consider the components of what had contributed to creating the crisis, and what would be necessary to navigate a perilous course to its resolution.

The evolution from reactive leadership to Pause And Learn...

In 2003, NASA’s Columbia Accident Investigation Board issued a report with suggestions for how NASA should move in the direction of becoming a learning organization. The first suggested process in the report was titled, Pause And Learn (PAL). PAL is described as “the critical foundation for learning from projects.” A PAL is a discussion of project participants in which they explore what went right and what went wrong. These discussions take place shortly after the event, to minimize the bias of hindsight and maximize accurate recollection. PALs bridge the gap between individual learning and team learning.⁵ They are based on the US Army’s practice of After Action Reviews.⁶ They allow a team to share knowledge, so that the team learned a lesson, rather than lessons being held by any single individual.

In our current position, where ideological extremism has resulted in recent terrorist attacks being perpetrated against civilians in Paris, San Bernadino, Beirut, and Colorado Springs. How might a meaningful Pause and Learn point us in a better direction than our natural bias towards immediate and emotionally fulfilling vindictive action? Internally, and internationally, we are identifying enemies, making lists of targets, and planning a response. What if our knee jerk reactions are setting us up for a continuation of failures, similar to what we've perpetrated over the past twenty five years?

An Inappropriate strategy may result in disaster.

According to a Harvard Business publication from July 1963, few companies invest the necessary time into “analyzing environmental trends and using the intelligence as a basis for managing their own futures.”⁷ Is this problem so ingrained in our behavior that we’re doing the same thing in national and international politics?

In 1957, the Ford Motor Company launched the Edsel. With confidence high, the company spent 250 million dollars on extensive consumer polling, a year long pre-sales advertising campaign, specialized marketing for men, distinct from the advertising aimed at women. Ford lost 350 million dollars on this business blunder, according to the September 2015 Business Insider edition, Ford’s gamble cemented Edsel’s position as an icon of spectacular failure.

Despite Ford’s extensive polling of consumers, and their reams of consumer preference data, Ford relied on gut instincts and board-room posturing to guide their product development and product marketing. This resulted in decisions which ignored data and steered away from a data-driven strategy. Ultimately, the product failed, and the company was lucky to survive.⁸

Is it possible that the Edsel would have failed even if management had proceeded with a strategy grounded in data? Sure; however, as with professional soccer goalies, Ford’s chances for success would undoubtedly have improved with a data-driven strategy. This is where competent project managers could make a difference. PMs, as a group, tend to rely on facts for their business decisions and recommendations. This is why PMI has enjoyed fantastic success and has grown its industry influence over the course of a few decades.

A project or program manager who is guided by a strategic vision while monitoring progress and accounting for team perspective, is a leader who can guide projects towards success and see where adjustments are needed to correct course.

How might this sort of grounded assessment have impacted US actions after 9/11? How might they prescribe a course in our current predicament? At every level, assessment; based in fact, and guided by a dispassionate review of available information, indicates the path most likely to result in success.

How do you think actions might have been different in this world after the events of 9/11 had our reaction been measured and tactical rather than emotional and driven by outrage?

How could we apply these lessons as we proceed with our response to recent terrorist attacks in Paris, Beirut, Colorado Springs, and San Bernadino? 

What could we learn moving forward, and how does this impact your thinking about business?

[1] http://www.britannica.com/topic/perestroika-Soviet-government-policy

[2] https://hbr.org/2015/11/why-organizations-dont-learn

[3] http://www.pmi.org/certification/~/media/pdf/certifications/pfmp_faqs_v3.ashx

[4] http://edition.cnn.com/2001/US/09/20/gen.bush.transcript/

[5] http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/about/organizations/OCKO/pause/#.Vk9SUnarTmE

[6] http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/army/tc_25-20/tc25-20.pdf

[7] https://hbr.org/1963/07/how-to-evaluate-corporate-strategy/ar/1

[8] http://www.businessinsider.com/lessons-from-the-failure-of-the-ford-edsel-2015-9

By Mike Adams, PMP® 
President Elect - PMI Otowi Bridge 
@MichaelAdamsPMP

Holy smoke, the closing speaker was incredible! She earned her standing ovation, and gave us all something to think about as we head out into our respective jobs back home.

However, before the closing speaker, we had one final day of PMI X-change, where I met with two folks who discussed innovation from the context of working within the confines of forwarding a specific strategy. One of the most interesting ideas put forth was that innovation can be encouraged by simplifying complexity into categories, which allows people to spend less time sorting out the complexity and more time imagining how to apply what is already there in new ways. Aside from that, a safe environment is essential, and the willingness to take a chance and fail.

After breakfast, I checked in at the PMI Community Area for "Ask an Expert Sessions." The experts were busy, and discussions for me ranged from working with unwilling team members to exploring scheduling software options with the manager of a PMO. I always pause when someone asks for a software solution to their problem, because so often, process can fix what software will never touch. This situation may have had some of that, but our PMO director is also in need of some robust software. At the close of the hall, and the last "Ask an Expert" session, we got a group picture of the experts, this is no small feat. Experts like to wander around and are easily distracted, so getting them all together to take a photo is challenging, but being project managers, we were able after much effort to accomplished even that task!

Then a few of us experts attended "Scaling Agile" by NK Shrivastava. He discussed some implementations of Agile in huge organizations, which require more structure than most Agile teams appreciate, but when you scale that stuff big, you need controls. I asked a few questions about risk management and planning for mitigation, but decided to leave him alone, as I don't have experience with agile. After the presentation, I asked about Agile in my workplace, particularly with regards to running a software implementation on a fixed budget. He paused, and then said he wouldn't typically employ agile for that sort of project, unless there were a great many unknowns. We all discussed his presentation, along with various ways to scale agile, and somewhere in the back and forth, he let us know that it is a requirement for every person presenting at PMI Congress to have published a white paper on their topic. This prompted me to ask if it is easier to write a white paper than it is to read one...appropriate laughter ensued and we parted ways.

There was time yet in the day for one more session, so I stopped in on "The Promotable Project Manager," by Richard Heaslip, author of "Managing Complex Projects and Programs." His presentation was great. He the findings of studies into the expectations of leadership from project managers in varied organizations. The studies presented the hypothetical situation of an executive encountering a project manager in the hall and saying something like, "I am worried about a specific aspect of your project, and think that this ...may be a solution."

The question being studies was how most PMs respond:

1. Arrange a meeting between the executive and the project's SME accountable for that specific area
2. Listen carefully and communicate the executive's suggestion to the SME
3. In addition to #1 or #2, discuss how the SME might react to the suggestion
4. In addition to #1-#3, the PM discusses their own perspective on the issue
5. In addition to #1 - #4, the PM explores the team or organization's perspective on the issue.

Given those options, most PMs elected to arrange a meeting or relate the executive's comments to the SME. There were some who might also discuss the SME's perspective, but very few who would discuss their own point of view, much less the team's or organization's perspective. It turns out 50% of executives in the same organization want their PMs to respond using #5, while 50% believe this is overstepping their appropriate bounds. The suggestion was for organizations to meet and discuss the level at which they want their PMs to operate, and then communicate that to their PMs and hold each other accountable to it. In terms of a PM, his suggestion is to develop the ability to contextualize your projects from an organizational perspective, but be prepared to craft your answer, based on the audience, and their expectations.

At the close of the congress, we were treated to a presentation by Stacy Allison, author of "Beyond the Limits: A Woman's Triumph on Everest," who gave an incredible presentation about her adventure and lessons in becoming the first American woman ever to reach the summit of Mt. Everest. Stacy did a masterful job of contextualizing every aspect of her journey within the framework of building a team, or making important decisions. Her's may have been one of the best presentations I've ever seen. It wasn't the most funny, or entertaining, but it was real, and pertinent and applicable. I will be thinking about her presentation for months to come. Click here for a short video of her speaking at another event.

After that, we team of PMI experts went to Disney Springs and treated ourselves to Cuban food, and then we wandered around and I found this fifteen foot tall statue built with LEGOs.

This was my first trip to PMI Global congress, and it was great. I enjoyed everyone I met, I loved the speakers and the breakout sessions. I especially enjoyed being a member of ProjectManagement.com's expert brigade. We all expressed the hope that we'll have the opportunity to attend future PMI Congress events as experts.

Thanks for the memories, for the friendships, for the wisdom and for the experiences. The 2015 PMI Global Congress was spectacular!

In the upcoming weeks, the experts will convene to figure out what we'll propose for next year. We'd like to host a panel discussion on Saturday morning, followed by an invitation to book a fifteen minute consulting session with one of us. I'm curious what sorts of sessions would you be interested in from us? We considered exploring how business material is presented. Currently, we all agree that it is generally rather *BORING*

Would you be interested in attending a session, where we explore ways of presenting business and project management material in a more entertaining fashion? Leave your comments and let me know. We will have to write a white paper on it...which I promise won't be boring!

By Mike Adams, PMP® 
President Elect - PMI Otowi Bridge 
@MichaelAdamsPMP

I've never been to a PMI Global Congress before, however, I can say it is something I'll try to attend in the future!

Bright and early this morning, I attended the "Young Professionals Breakfast," which was really enjoyable! Several of us "seasoned" professionals stood at tables to discuss career paths and opportunities with younger PM professionals. As usual, I talked up the benefits of volunteering for your chapter. This has been one of the best and most enjoyable things I've ever done, and it has propelled my career in ways I couldn't have imagined.

After the breakfast, we 'experts,' received VIP seating for today's key-note addres by the Scott Brothers. I don't know what planet I've been living on, but I had never heard of them prior to this morning's presentation. I linked to their "about us" page just click "Scott Brothers," if, like me, you don't know who they are. My excuse is that my wife and I have abandoned television service in favor of internet delivered entertainment, which is a long way of saying we watch Hulu, and don't know what is happening on TV these days.

The Scotts talked about the importance of treating your team with the same level of respect and graciousness that you would any customer. They pointed out that your business is only as good as its team, and that you have control over how appreciated and motivated your team feels. I could sum it up for project and program managers with the phrase, "Give 'em some love!" Just be sure your mind is out of the gutter when you're giving the love, otherwise your employees may NOT feel appreciated and HR WILL NOT appreciate you!

After the Scott brothers very entertaining and practical presentation, I saw another fully engaging talk offered by non other than the famous Jack S. Duggal, a passionate speaker, who loves his work. Jack really wants to make a difference. Today, he explored how management has evolved over the past 100-150 years, and then talked about where he sees it going. He started with a quick overview of the major breakthroughs in efficiency that were seen about one hundred years ago. Industry saw automation and an effort to get people out of the way, and find efficiency through repetition and automation. Next we saw a revolution in effectiveness, where businesses got interested in collaboration and getting the person back as a decision maker, and effective team member. Finally, Jack discussed what he sees as the current revolution in managing people's experiences. This is where we measure the experience that people have and tune performance in real time, giving teams the opportunities to experience immediate correction and form good habits while they learn, rather than correct bad habits later.

This reminded me of an article I recently read from the Harvard Business Review, where the research team actually gave team members badges which had sensors in them. These sensors could tell how intensely someone was talking, which direction they were pointing. In short, they could sense body language, and the Harvard research team was able to predict with incredible accuracy how effective a team would be in their project execution simply by how well the team's chemistry came together, based on sensor data. WOW! So that means, we'll soon be able to collect data on how well teams get along and build teams that will be high performing, or what I think Jack was getting at, is we'll be able to give teams feedback on how they're acting, so that they can make adjustments to their interpersonal skills to enhance team performance, and optimize engagement, fulfillment, and success.

This can be a mixed bag, in that I don't know if I want my employer monitoring me with body sensors to see if I'm in the "right mood." However, it does have the capability to alerting me to my mood, so I can try and impact it. I don't know if it is too much big brother or a beautiful enhancement in personal monitoring. I guess we'll see!

Then, I was off for my favorite session of the day, "nap-time." I'm beat! after three days of a PMI LIM, I had to decompress and I slept like a baby. Then I met my co-experts for mingling with Congress attendees and invited them to sign up for "Ask an Expert" sessions with the ProjectManagement.com experts, who have been brought to Orlando to mingle and promote involvement with the online community.

After that, a group of us ProjectManagement.com experts went out for dinner, and this may have been my favorite part of the day! I got to know a group of truly amazing people, who have recreated themselves, accomplished incredible things and who are all down to earth, and fun to be around. I think my favorite thing about this is that they all treat me like a colleague. I think if we were to compare resumes, they'd all have a "deep bench," while mine would be "hmmm...ok!" But they are all here to help others find success and fulfillment. If you haven't checked out the list of experts from ProjectManagement.com, who are here at PMI Global, check it out now. These are some great people, whom I'm really glad to know! Click here to see whose been invited to participate in "Ask an Expert."

Once again, it is way too late for me to be up blogging, but I do want to keep covering what happens at PMI, so I'll have to sleep later.

You can count on my upcoming article encouraging you to volunteer for PMI, because I'm here to tell you that it is absolutely true, "Good things happen when you get involved with PMI!"

I have to also throw a shout out to Rebecca Braglio, who is both brilliant and incredibly talented! While she's not a volunteer for PMI, she is on staff for ProjectManagement.com, and we're lucky to have her. I linked to her profile on her name...check it out!

Feel free to share your experiences with volunteering, and I'll double what I pay you, if you leave some positive feedback on my post! :-)

By Mike Adams, PMP® 
President Elect - PMI Otowi Bridge 
@MichaelAdamsPMP

Well, this has been an amazing few days. The speakers have been fantastic, the workshops have been worth while and the people have been...

wait for it...

amazing! Yes I said it again. I love PMI volunteers, they're some of the coolest folks you could ever hope to meet.

This morning brought my LIM experience full circle. I've been walking around a bit upset about my experience with Southwest Airlines on the way out, and this morning's speaker was a guy named, Jason Young, author of a book named Culturetopia. He got his start as a customer service manager for Southwest Airlines, and he talked about the values that were so important to the organization and that have pushed it to the success it now enjoys.

My reaction to this was mixed. I had a good flight and the crew were fantastic, I was unhappy with how the gate personnel acted, and at the lack of care for giving my seat away when I ran to the restroom. My twitter interaction wasn't helpful either. I guess I'd have to say, "yeah fly Southwest Airlines, BUT #DontGoToTheRestRoom"

Later, I attended the PMI award Gala, where I met PMI region mentors from around the world, don't ask my how I ended up at that table...I just saw the outgoing Region 7 mentor, Tony Appleby and asked if I could join him. Tony's a good guy to sit with, not only because he is fun, but because he sits with people you want to know!

The award ceremony was really fun too, I love seeing people receive awards. I love how their faces light up and I appreciate hearing about their accomplishments. It was a great evening.

I'll throw a shout out to my new friend, Mike Frennete, whom I've known on here on ProjectManagement.com, but whom I met in person at the LIM in Orlando. Mike is a great guy, and a new graduate of PMI's Leadership Institute Masters Class, where he spent the last year developing his leadership skills and honing his servant leadership abilities. Canada is lucky to have him!

I also got to see my original PM mentor, and a previous manager of mine, Mr. "Skippy" John Jones graduate from the Masters Class. It was invigorating. Congratulations John, and best wishes as you progress in your career and life!

My blogs for the rest of this week, will be about the PMI Congress. The LIM is over and now I enter into a new adventure, as an "expert"  for ProjectManagement.com. If you are here at congress, please say hi if you see me, also, feel free to sign up for an "ask an expert session." They should be interesting, and I'm looking forward to them!

Thanks PMI for a great 2015 LIM, I'm looking forward to the PMI Global Congress, and I'm looking forward to getting some sleep too.