I love project management as a subject not only because it gets so much work done, but also because project management manifests how people operate. I have written before that Projects are a great opportunity to practice leadership. They way we work on projects and the way we manage projects tell a lot of the […]
John Spence has done a brilliant job of writing a very useful handbook titled “Awesomely Simple – Essential Business Strategies For Turning Ideas Into Action”. It is a privilege to interview John on his book. Business is complex and this book is a great attempt to simplify it through ideas and how they can be […]
Total Quality Management (TQM) says that quality is everybody’s job. Each individual’s approach to work, understanding of quality and personal standards of excellence are crucial for delivering quality. One of the biggest challenges for a lot of organizations today is to involve each and every team member in the quality game. Most people in the […]
When a kid learns how to play music, he develops “ability” to play music. He knows the basics. He is able to play the music according to notes. He can play the songs exactly as the notes tell him to play. Then a few more years of practice and he develops ability to play new […]
In quest of better outcomes (efficiency, results, productivity, improvements etc.), a lot of companies focus on restructuring their organization structure (hierarchy). Periodically, they overhaul their structure, add new positions and assign new/diverse responsibilities to people. Tuning hierarchy and structure of the organization for better outcomes is just one part. These structural changes won’t produce the […]
You can improve almost everything in your organization. With so much to improve, how do you identify what are your top priority improvements? Here is the simplest answer: focus on improvements that directly impacts customer satisfaction or business profitability. Our customers are the most important beneficiaries of any improvement or change. Here is a simple […]
Just about the time that I was thinking about behaviors that impact quality of our outcomes, I read the following quote: “You get more of the behavior you reward. You don’t get what you hope for, ask for, wish for or beg for. You get what you reward.” – Michael le Boeuf As a manager […]
Change, they say, is the only constant. With rapid globalization and advent of technology, the rate of change in society and in organizations has just multiplied. We may not be ‘change management experts’, but having a set of thumb rules always helps when dealing with change (because at some point, we have to face/manage/lead a […]
I have been following Chris Guillebeau’s remarkable work via his blog since last couple of years. So when I heard about his new book “The Art of Non-Conformity”, I could not wait to order it. I am glad I did, because this book instantly made it to my favorite books in 2010 which also includes […]