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Wednesday, November 29, 2023

The latest news from the world of project management

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How to fail well...

Failure Is the new success. Here are five ways that you can embrace...

5 Skills Needed To...

Why do projects fail? It's a question that invites a lot of interest and...

Embrace the change: Getting...

New IT systems for a growing business can be an exciting prospect and...

New Professional Body for...

The House of PMO, a new professional body for PMO professionals was launched...

David Cotgreave

If you like David's blogs - he is now a published author - Straight Talk on Project Management (VOLUME III)- Free eBook. Why not download your copy today. http://www.stoneseed.co.uk/ebook David Cotgreave MBA, BSc (hons), PRINCE II, is Professional Services Director at Stoneseed, with over 20 years’ experience in IT Consulting. David has worked with organisations such as BT Engage IT and KPMG, before founding Stoneseed in 2009 and has gained considerable business experience whilst working with a wide range of organisations across the UK and Europe carrying out a range of strategy, review and implementation projects. David is currently responsible for leading the Programme and Project Management services offered by Stoneseed. Project Management as a Service (PMaaS) from Stoneseed offers clients access to Project Management staff, resources and tools at a flexible and predictable cost via a fully Structured Managed Service. www.stoneseed.co.uk
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News

How Knowing Your PM’s Favourite Rom-Com and BA’s Dog’s Name Could Help Optimise IT Project Success!

Isn’t it beautiful when an IT Project team execute and implement with total cohesion from top to bottom? When colleagues become team-mates, and when...
David Cotgreave -
General

IT Project decision making: How the best choice between two options can often be the third!

The “Crucible Moments” podcast is a fascinating listen, especially as Roelof Botha (whose thoughts are the inspiration for this blog) isn’t the main subject. He plays the role of presenter; the main guest is Jack Dorsey (former Twitter CEO who now runs the financial services company Block). The central narrative of the podcast is the evolution of Block from its origins as Square, and how they created Cash App, a ‘third’ option, which is now responsible for half of Block’s revenue. The strategy of expanding the number of options for consideration was instrumental in helping Block identify and eliminate what wasn’t working and focus on more profitable projects.
David Cotgreave -
Programme Management

An interesting thought experiment: open-book IT Project Management

Empowerment, autonomy, ownership – these buzzwords have rattled around for a few years now in relation to IT Project talent. Most project managers, business analysts (etc) would agree that they have the power to schedule their own time, track their own progress and tasks and choose how they work, to some extent. It usually leads to improved performance – after all who knows how to do a job better than the person who does it day-in, day-out?! What if you could take this improved individual performance and amplify it across your whole project or portfolio?
David Cotgreave -
General

Changing our minds – the evolution of IT project strategic thinking and decision making

Interesting perspective from a Chief Experience Officer, Sandy, on how her organisation is making decisions – “we’re like a car that’s forgotten it has a steering wheel and more than one gear”. I love this metaphor. I can see the car missing turn offs and short cuts and the noise and smoke from driving along in first gear! What she means is that when the project team faces a challenge, or has a strategic decision to make, instead of weighing up what the problem really is and what would be best, it is culturally beholden to the in-house resources it already has at its disposal. Sandy thinks it may be a hangover from the pandemic. I suppose we all managed with what resources we could lay our hands on, became insular in our thinking, even adopting a scarcity mindset as we adjusted to the changing reality.
David Cotgreave -
Programme Management

How mergers and acquisitions can cement IT as a strategic business partner

Despite the slow economy and provisional estimates which suggested lower mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity at the start of 2023, there were 365 mergers and acquisitions involving UK Companies during Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2023 according to the Office of National Statistics. There were inward M&A (foreign companies acquiring UK companies) in Quarter 1 2023 was £12.7 billion; and the total value of outward M&A (UK companies acquiring foreign companies) in Quarter 1 2023 was £2.9 billion.
David Cotgreave -
General

FREE IT Project Management eBook

David writes blogs based on his many years in Project Management and also on ideas from the team here at Stoneseed. Light-hearted, insightful and funny, David’s blog cover all things Project Management, Leadership, Best Practice, PMO, Business Analysis and of course Project Management as a Service.  
David Cotgreave -
Programme Management

Onboarding your IT Project’s end-users – the often-overlooked human success factor

Most IT Project Management teams are masters of the technical aspects of the project – all the i’s are dotted, and the t’s are crossed, the business case is clear and delivered (on paper at least) but what about the people who you need to implement your project on a day-to-day basis?
David Cotgreave -
General

Is Accountability Strangling IT Project Innovation?

Is Accountability Strangling IT Project Innovation? Why is it, with VERY public IT projects, that when they fail everyone seems to want to wash their...
David Cotgreave -
General

How to fail well in IT Projects

Failure Is the new success. Here are five ways that you can embrace failure and enjoy its unexpected benefits. Knowing when to say enough is...
David Cotgreave -
PMO

Kick Start Your Project Management Office (PMO) – Five Key Areas of Focus and Assessment

by David Cotreageve - Stoneseed Ltd In 2020, the Project Management Institute (PMI) Pulse of the Profession reported that less than half (36%) of...
David Cotgreave -

Explore more

Skills analysis: Identify your skills and find and fill knowledge gaps

Felicity Goldsack -

How Knowing Your PM’s Favourite Rom-Com and BA’s Dog’s Name Could Help Optimise IT Project Success!

David Cotgreave -

Project Management in the Non-profit Sector: Maximising Social Impact With Project Management Tools

MS -

The Evolving Role of AI In Financial Services Project Management  

MS -

4 Words You Should Never Use In Project Management

MS -

IT Project decision making: How the best choice between two options can often be the third!

David Cotgreave -

Mastering Success: 5 Key Leadership Skills Required by Small Business Owners

MS -

The Value of Project Management Qualifications – Opportunities Within the Recession

Lynda Bourne -

An interesting thought experiment: open-book IT Project Management

David Cotgreave -

Changing our minds – the evolution of IT project strategic thinking and decision making

David Cotgreave -

Project Management in Healthcare – Training Approaches To Use

Anna Preston -

Train the Trainer: Developing Effective PM Instructors

Anna Preston -

Creating an organisational structure that supports your projects

MS -

How mergers and acquisitions can cement IT as a strategic business partner

David Cotgreave -

FREE IT Project Management eBook

David Cotgreave -

Conflict management tips for project managers

Felicity Goldsack -

Onboarding your IT Project’s end-users – the often-overlooked human success factor

David Cotgreave -

Measuring agility as a project manager

MS -

Setting SMART goals as a project manager

Felicity Goldsack -

What Should Be On Your Project Initiation Checklist?

Felicity Goldsack -
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