Thu, 20 Mar 2025 21:50:24 GMT https://www.ProjectManagement.com/blogs/546961/modern-pm Modern PM is a blog about modern project management in all its facets: classic, agile and hybrid. I will share my thoughts about the developments, trends, problems and challenges we face in our daily routine as project workers - and hopefully some solutions. https://www.ProjectManagement.com/blog-post/55556/perfectly-presenting-the-project-status Fri, 16 Aug 2019 18:39:46 GMT How we can survive upper management. This time with a conclusion right at the beginning. Some time ago I shared my tips for good presentations with you. (Do not worry, they are timeless.) These tips are very general. On purpose. But we project people find ourselves often in situations where t... https://www.ProjectManagement.com/blog-post/55334/half-life-of-knowledge Sun, 04 Aug 2019 18:37:51 GMT What is the half-life of knowledge and how is it affecting us project people. Plus five tips on how to best handle it. And a huge plot twist at the very end. The wild sixties In my opinion, you have to start from the very beginning to understand something. In our case that means we have to... https://www.ProjectManagement.com/blog-post/54977/two-hats-in-one--or--what-we-can-learn-from-a-children-s-book- Sun, 28 Jul 2019 17:09:23 GMT Life as a project manager is not easy. On first sight, we may only have one single role. But we are much more than what the doorplate in front of our office is saying. We are planners, facilitators, controllers, handlers, organizers, mentors, presenters, helpers, impediment-scavengers, carers, manag... https://www.ProjectManagement.com/blog-post/54978/is-the-minimum-viable-product-really-the-answer-to-everything- Fri, 19 Jul 2019 11:17:22 GMT Thoughts on minimum viable products and riskiest assumption tests. Always these misunderstandings Some of you surely know this drawing by Henrik Kniberg on the subject of minimum viable products. (By the way, Henrik is a software developer for the best-selling video game of all time - Mine... https://www.ProjectManagement.com/blog-post/54802/thoughts-about-having-an-icebox-on-your-kanban-board Sun, 07 Jul 2019 12:46:26 GMT Why I take the view that putting tasks into an icebox is a dangerous business - in summer as during winter. And what can be done about it. What is an icebox? A couple of years ago I overheard some developers, I had the chance to work with at that time, talking about an icebox. It was summe... https://www.ProjectManagement.com/blog-post/54577/why-there-is-so-much-talk-about-far-eastern-philosophy-in-project-management Sat, 22 Jun 2019 10:38:43 GMT Kanban, Kaizen, Kaikaku, Gemba, Muda, Heijunka, Jidoka, Genchi Gembutsu. Why are so many recent project management buzzwords of Southeast Asian origin? A trend? Of course, yes. But there is more to it than just that. It used to be that way before. In the 1980s. The older ones can (hopefully) ... https://www.ProjectManagement.com/blog-post/54378/kanban-flight-levels Sun, 09 Jun 2019 14:51:50 GMT Looking over the rim of our project tea cup. Lately, one is hearing more and more often about Flight Levels. Especially in combination with Kanban. But what is meant by that? And more importantly, how can I use these flight levels for myself? And where do they come from? The latter question i... https://www.ProjectManagement.com/blog-post/54093/how-an-impediment-backlog-can-help-us-to-get-our-issues-under-control Mon, 27 May 2019 13:23:35 GMT Of unpleasant surprises Imagine yourself managing a project where not a single problem arises during progress. No issues, no uncovered risks, nothing. A nice idea, right? And now reality. Each and every one of us encounters problems and obstacles throughout every single project. Even with the bes... https://www.ProjectManagement.com/blog-post/54019/presenting-done-right Thu, 23 May 2019 17:57:35 GMT Four points, that make the difference between a good and a really good presentation. (And no, that's not me in the picture.) Presenting projects We project workers spend a lot of time communicating. According to the PMBOK Guide between 75 and 90 percent. Half of this tim... https://www.ProjectManagement.com/blog-post/53848/the-dark-side-of-agility Sat, 18 May 2019 14:14:17 GMT What agility has to do with (much) efficiency and (often not so much) customer value, and why cookies are not always the right choice. “Come to the dark side. We have cookies.” First things first: I am seeing today's topic through the eyes of project management. And through...