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Welcome to The Critical Path--the home for community happenings and events on ProjectManagement.com! This is where you'll find community news, updates, upcoming events, featured member posts and more. We'll also be showcasing hot topics in the project management arena and bringing you interviews with industry experts. The Critical Path is our primary way of getting news out to members, so be sure to check back for updates!

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Viewing Posts by Carrie Dunn

July Book Club

Categories: community, book club

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We are excited to announce the ProjectManagement.com July book club!  The book club provides an opportunity to participate in webinars and discussions around selected books relevant to the overall practice of project management.  The book club occurs in three parts:

  1. Opening pre-recorded webinar which will be used to introduce the book. During this 30 minute pre-recorded webinar, the author will provide a high level overview of the concepts in his/her book, familiarizing participants with the information.
  2. Discussion thread on ProjectManagement.com with input from the book club host and author.  During the last week of the discussion, questions will be collected to present to the author in the closing webinar.
  3. **Premium and PMI-member exclusive** Closing Q&A live webinar with the author responding to questions submitted both through the online book club discussion thread and during the webinar.  The webinar will be a panel style discussion with open dialogue between the moderator and the author.

The first 25 PMI Members registered for the closing book club webinar will receive a complimentary copy of the book and will be notified via email.  Additional participants will have the opportunity to purchase a copy of the book at their own expense.  All community members will be able to view the book club opening webinar and participate in the discussion forum.  PMI members and ProjectManagement.com premium members will be able to participate in the book club closing webinar.  We will evaluate the content of each opening and closing book club webinar to determine the eligibility and breakdown for PDUs.   

Our book club book for July is The Project Manager's Little Book of Cheats by Beth Spriggs.  Beth Spriggs, PMP, is an experienced project manager, trainer, and speaker. For more than 17 years she's solved unsolvable problems, tamed unruly projects, and pulled off the impossible for organizations by deploying projects that work for customers while positioning clients for what's coming next. Her extensive portfolio consists of everything from bite-sized undertakings to years-long overhauls that impact every aspect of the organization. She began her professional career in information technology in 1999 and has combined her love for tech and project management by focusing her career on managing technology projects and portfolios. Some of Beth's contributions include delivering webinars for ProjectManagement.com, speaking at NTEN's Nonprofit Technology Conference and the DC Web Women's Conference.

About the book:

There is no such thing as cheating in project management, but if there were it would be this book. It includes quick steps, relevant tips, fun stories, and applicable advice to solving common problems and questions focused around the work of a project manager. 
 

The book is in question / answer format with 11 chapters covering 65 questions.
Some of the questions include:

  • #12 I need to convince someone of my idea. How do I sell an idea?
  • #16 Since most of my work communication is through email, how can I make my email communication more effective?
  • #22 How can I convince those who are change resistant?
  • #39 Assumptions introduce a lot of risk. What are some common assumptions to watch out for? 
  • #41 How can I tell if a project is getting off track before it's too late?
  • #47 What process could I use to evaluate project requests to determine if they should be approved or not?
  • #51 How can I make my team meetings more productive?
  • #58 My project tracking needs have grown beyond Microsoft Excel. What are some good project management tools?

When you have a question or problem do you have time to stop what you're doing and read a three hundred page book on a single topic? Wouldn't it be great if you could open a book and find a one to two page answer that you can apply immediately, in the moment when you need it? Now you've found one.

This book has hopes and dreams. It hopes that it will sit on or in your desk and be opened frequently when questions or problems arise. It wants you to write on its pages, make your own notes, and highlight what works for you. And it dreams that you will share its contents with your colleagues.
 

Our 2016 book club host is Tolitha Lewis, PMP.  Tolitha has been a PMI Volunteer Leader since 2008.  She was elected as a Director to the PMI Information Systems Specific Interest Group (PMI-ISSIG) in 2008 and served until the completion of the transition to a Community of Practice (CoP) in 2011. In 2012, Tolitha was appointed to the Leadership Team of the Consulting CoP, now referred to as the Consulting practice area, and has been a leader in the webinar program ever since.   Based in Indianapolis, Indiana, Tolitha is a Sr. Project Manager.

To register for the closing live book club webinar, please visit the webinar page on ProjectManagement.com, find the book club closing webinar and click on the “Register for this webinar” link.

Please visit the book club information and discussion on the Project Management.com books page

For additional questions, please visit the ProjectManagement.com Book Club FAQ page.

Posted by Carrie Dunn on: July 28, 2016 03:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (13)

June Book Club

Categories: community, book club

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We are excited to announce the ProjectManagement.com June book club!  The book club provides an opportunity to participate in webinars and discussions around selected books relevant to the overall practice of project management.  The book club occurs in three parts:

  1. Opening pre-recorded webinar which will be used to introduce the book. During this 30 minute pre-recorded webinar, the author will provide a high level overview of the concepts in his/her book, familiarizing participants with the information.
  2. Discussion thread on ProjectManagement.com with input from the book club host and author.  During the last week of the discussion, questions will be collected to present to the author in the closing webinar.
  3. **Premium and PMI-member exclusive** Closing Q&A live webinar with the author responding to questions submitted both through the online book club discussion thread and during the webinar.  The webinar will be a panel style discussion with open dialogue between the moderator and the author.

The first 25 PMI Members registered for the closing book club webinar will receive a complimentary copy of the book and will be notified via email.  Additional participants will have the opportunity to purchase a copy of the book at their own expense.  All community members will be able to view the book club opening webinar and participate in the discussion forum.  PMI members and ProjectManagement.com premium members will be able to participate in the book club closing webinar.  We will evaluate the content of each opening and closing book club webinar to determine the eligibility and breakdown for PDUs.   

Our book club book for June is Project Management for Small Projects, Second Edition by Sandra Rowe.  Sandra F. Rowe, PhD, PMP, MBA, MSCIS is the author of Project Management for Small Projects, Second Edition and has over 25 years of project management experience.  Her responsibilities include leading information technology and process improvement projects and developing project management processes and tools.  Dr. Rowe provides virtual training for project management, program management, and leadership courses.  She received both her MBA and Masters of Science in Computer Information Systems from University of Detroit Mercy and her PhD in Project Management from Capella University.

About the book:

Important New Tools for Managing Your Small Projects as Part of a Larger Program!

The first edition of Project Management for Small Projects introduced project management processes, tools, and techniques that are scalable and adaptable to small projects. Project managers learned a structured, disciplined approach to managing small projects sensibly and realistically. This new edition is updated throughout to reflect the PMBOK® Guide, Fifth Edition, balancing the particular needs of small projects with the project management methodology.

Project managers who are proficient at managing and leading their own projects are increasingly being called upon to work collaboratively with other project managers to lead components of a program. In addition to knowing how to manage processes and how to lead the team, project managers must now also know how to collaborate and share knowledge with other project managers. A new chapter on program management offers important insights and guidance for managing a group of related small projects in a coordinated way to obtain benefits and control not available from managing them individually.

Our 2016 book club host is Tolitha Lewis, PMP.  Tolitha has been a PMI Volunteer Leader since 2008.  She was elected as a Director to the PMI Information Systems Specific Interest Group (PMI-ISSIG) in 2008 and served until the completion of the transition to a Community of Practice (CoP) in 2011. In 2012, Tolitha was appointed to the Leadership Team of the Consulting CoP, now referred to as the Consulting practice area, and has been a leader in the webinar program ever since.   Based in Indianapolis, Indiana, Tolitha is a Sr. Project Manager.

To register for the closing live book club webinar, please visit the webinar page on ProjectManagement.com, find the book club closing webinar and click on the “Register for this webinar” link.

Please visit the book club information and discussion on the Project Management.com books page

For additional questions, please visit the ProjectManagement.com Book Club FAQ page.

Posted by Carrie Dunn on: June 29, 2016 11:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Creator of the Philadelphia Papal Visit App Shares Best Practices—Only at the PMI Information Systems & Technology Symposium

Categories: events, community

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Learn how to deliver innovative enterprise applications in 30 days.

Think you have risks and constraints? So did our keynoter, Neil Gomes, Vice President for Technology Innovation and Consumer Experience at Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson Health System. 

His team only had a few weeks to make sure 3,200 employees were staffed appropriately for the Philadelphia Papal visit. Their solution? The JeffBnB app in just three weeks. It involved assigning thousands of staffers to different rooms and campuses, while taking into account all the necessary details.

That’s not the only innovative enterprise application Gomes has delivered in 30 days. He’s sharing more examples and tips on how to do this at the PMI Information Systems & Technology Symposium on 30 June 2016. Don’t miss it. Registration is exclusive and free for PMI members.

Register now to hear practical examples of a team-driven project delivery system that has propelled innovative development at Jefferson in less than two years. You’ll learn how to analyze, design, develop, release, evaluate, and support innovative enterprise applications with small teams in less than 30-days.

Posted by Carrie Dunn on: June 28, 2016 03:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

May Book Club

Categories: community

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We are excited to announce the ProjectManagement.com May book club!  The book club provides an opportunity to participate in webinars and discussions around selected books relevant to the overall practice of project management.  The book club occurs in three parts:

  1. Opening pre-recorded webinar which will be used to introduce the book. During this 30 minute pre-recorded webinar, the author will provide a high level overview of the concepts in his/her book, familiarizing participants with the information.
  2. Discussion thread on ProjectManagement.com with input from the book club host and author.  During the last week of the discussion, questions will be collected to present to the author in the closing webinar.
  3. **Premium and PMI-member exclusive** Closing Q&A live webinar with the author responding to questions submitted both through the online book club discussion thread and during the webinar.  The webinar will be a panel style discussion with open dialogue between the moderator and the author.

The first 25 PMI Members registered for the closing book club webinar will receive a complimentary copy of the book and will be notified via email.  Additional participants will have the opportunity to purchase a copy of the book at their own expense.  All community members will be able to view the book club opening webinar and participate in the discussion forum.  PMI members and ProjectManagement.com premium members will be able to participate in the book club closing webinar.  We will evaluate the content of each opening and closing book club webinar to determine the eligibility and breakdown for PDUs.   

Our book club book for May is Driven by Difference: How Great Companies Fuel Innovation Through Diversity by David Livermore.  David Livermore is a thought leader in cultural intelligence (CQ) and global leadership and the author of ten books on cultural intelligence and global leadership. He’s president and partner at the Cultural Intelligence Center in East Lansing, Michigan and a visiting research fellow at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.  Prior to leading the Cultural Intelligence Center, Dave spent 20 years in leadership positions with a variety of non-profit organizations around the world and taught in universities. He’s a frequent speaker and adviser to leaders in Fortune 500’s, non-profits, and governments and has worked in more than 100 countries across the Americas, Africa, Asia, Australia, and Europe.  Dave has authored several other books, including the award-winning titles, Serving With Eyes Wide Open and Cultural Intelligence: Improving your CQ to Engage our Multicultural World (Baker Publ.).  Dave loves to take research and make it accessible to practitioners.  Dave and his wife Linda have two daughters, Emily, a film student at University of Southern California and Grace, a high school swimmer. Some of their favorite activities are traveling (fortunately!), hiking, and discovering new foods together.

About the book

Diversity alone won’t magically spur innovation—it’s just the first step. Today’s workforce is more diverse than ever before. But despite new perspectives and talents, the promise of increased innovation rarely materializes. Why are so few businesses seeing results?

Studies show that diverse teams are more creative than homogenous ones—but only when they are managed effectively. The secret is to minimize conflict while maximizing the informational diversity found in varied values and experiences. To do this, both leaders and team members need a high level of cultural intelligence, or CQ. Drawing on success stories from Google, Alibaba, Novartis, and other groundbreaking companies, Driven by Difference identifies the management practices necessary to guide multicultural teams to innovation. Cultural differences can lead to gridlock, or they can catalyze innovation and growth. This research-based plan turns diversity’s potential into economic reality.

Our May book club host is Tolitha Lewis, PMP.  Tolitha has been a PMI Volunteer Leader since 2008.  She was elected as a Director to the PMI Information Systems Specific Interest Group (PMI-ISSIG) in 2008 and served until the completion of the transition to a Community of Practice (CoP) in 2011. In 2012, Tolitha was appointed to the Leadership Team of the Consulting CoP, now referred to as the Consulting practice area, and has been a leader in the webinar program ever since.   Based in Indianapolis, Indiana, Tolitha is a Sr. Project Manager.

To register for the closing live book club webinar, please visit the webinar page on ProjectManagement.com, find the book club closing webinar and click on the “Register for this webinar” link.

Please visit the book club information and discussion on the Project Management.com books page

For additional questions, please visit the ProjectManagement.com Book Club FAQ page.

Posted by Carrie Dunn on: May 26, 2016 03:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

April Book Club

Categories: community news

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We are excited to announce the ProjectManagement.com April book club!  The book club provides an opportunity to participate in webinars and discussions around selected books relevant to the overall practice of project management.  The book club occurs in three parts:

  1. Opening pre-recorded webinar which will be used to introduce the book. During this 30 minute pre-recorded webinar, the author will provide a high level overview of the concepts in his/her book, familiarizing participants with the information.
  2. Discussion thread on ProjectManagement.com with input from the book club host and author.  During the last week of the discussion, questions will be collected to present to the author in the closing webinar.
  3. **Premium and PMI-member exclusive** Closing Q&A live webinar with the author responding to questions submitted both through the online book club discussion thread and during the webinar.  The webinar will be a panel style discussion with open dialogue between the moderator and the author.

The first 25 PMI Members registered for the closing book club webinar will receive a complimentary copy of the book and will be notified via email.  Additional participants will have the opportunity to purchase a copy of the book at their own expense.  All community members will be able to view the book club opening webinar and participate in the discussion forum.  PMI members and ProjectManagement.com premium members will be able to participate in the book club closing webinar.  We will evaluate the content of each opening and closing book club webinar to determine the eligibility and breakdown for PDUs.   

Our book club book for April is What to Do When You're New: How to Be Comfortable, Confident, and Successful in New Situations by Keith Rollag.  Keith Rollag is Associate Professor and Chair of the Management Division at Babson College.  His new book “What to Do When You’re New:  How to Be Comfortable, Confident and Successful in New Situations” (published by AMACOM) was named by Success Magazine as one of the “10 Best Books of 2015.”  His research and insights have been featured in the New York Times, National Public Radio, Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Forbes, Inc., Success Magazine, Cosmopolitan, New England Journal of Medicine and many other outlets. 

About the book

What to Do When You’re New combines the author’s research with that of leading scientists to explain why we are so uneasy in new situations—and how we can learn to become more confident and successful newcomers. With practice, anyone can get better at being new. This original book opens your eyes to the necessary skills and teaches you how to:

• Overcome fears

• Make great first impressions

• Talk to strangers with ease

• Get up to speed quickly

• Connect with people wherever you go

Blending stories and insights with simple techniques and exercises, this one-of-a-kind guide will get you out of your comfort zone and trying new things in no time.

Our April book club host is Tolitha Lewis, PMP.  Tolitha has been a PMI Volunteer Leader since 2008.  She was elected as a Director to the PMI Information Systems Specific Interest Group (PMI-ISSIG) in 2008 and served until the completion of the the transition to a Community of Practice (CoP) in 2011. In 2012, Tolitha was appointed to the Leadership Team of the Consulting CoP, now referred to as the Consulting practice area, and has been a leader in the webinar program ever since.   Based in Indianapolis, Indiana, Tolitha is a Sr. Project Manager.

We are very excited about offering the book club program to our community!

To register for the closing live book club webinar, please visit the webinar page on ProjectManagement.com, find the book club closing webinar and click on the “Register for this webinar” link.

Please visit the book club information and discussion on the Project Management.com books page

For additional questions, please visit the ProjectManagement.com Book Club FAQ page.

Posted by Carrie Dunn on: May 02, 2016 09:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
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