Comments on: A New Idea…Can I Face the Pain? http://www.reformingprojectmanagement.com/2007/01/01/721/ The magazine for the project age Mon, 15 Mar 2010 21:07:44 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 hourly 1 By: Jack Dahlgren http://www.reformingprojectmanagement.com/2007/01/01/721/comment-page-1/#comment-12369 Jack Dahlgren Thu, 11 Jan 2007 07:50:46 +0000 http://www.reformingprojectmanagement.com/2007/01/01/721/#comment-12369 Hal, What I appreciate most about your blog is that it challenges me to think. And unlike my blog, it is fairly positive :-) I'm struck by the way the more successful teams I've worked with have team leaders in place who do a very good job at being the "last planner" even if I did not know to call it that. This system of commitment-based execution is what seems to separate the good teams from the bad. Thanks for the inspiration. -Jack Hal,

What I appreciate most about your blog is that it challenges me to think. And unlike my blog, it is fairly positive :-)
I’m struck by the way the more successful teams I’ve worked with have team leaders in place who do a very good job at being the “last planner” even if I did not know to call it that. This system of commitment-based execution is what seems to separate the good teams from the bad.
Thanks for the inspiration.

-Jack

]]> By: Bob Wells http://www.reformingprojectmanagement.com/2007/01/01/721/comment-page-1/#comment-12257 Bob Wells Wed, 03 Jan 2007 17:58:27 +0000 http://www.reformingprojectmanagement.com/2007/01/01/721/#comment-12257 I've been thinking recently about human behavior when faced with uncertainty or unexpected situations. I was very near an accident that locked up a city block for about an hour. The behavior of the commuters who were in the jam with me was a great example of what you can expect when both the unexpected (the accident) and the uncertain (the time to clean-up and re-open the street) occur. Rage, denial, data collection, exhortations and disgust. Strangely, those of us who were closer to the accident were presumed to know more about how long it was going to take to clean up. It took about an hour for a patrolman to get about 20 cars to backup 200 feet and take a detour. I think the implementers of lean face a double challenge. Not only the uncertainty of change, but then facing a system/project that by its nature is uncertain and requires a management system that acknowledges that. People don't want that. At least not without a leader with the authority to make it happen. I’ve been thinking recently about human behavior when faced with uncertainty or unexpected situations. I was very near an accident that locked up a city block for about an hour. The behavior of the commuters who were in the jam with me was a great example of what you can expect when both the unexpected (the accident) and the uncertain (the time to clean-up and re-open the street) occur. Rage, denial, data collection, exhortations and disgust. Strangely, those of us who were closer to the accident were presumed to know more about how long it was going to take to clean up. It took about an hour for a patrolman to get about 20 cars to backup 200 feet and take a detour.

I think the implementers of lean face a double challenge. Not only the uncertainty of change, but then facing a system/project that by its nature is uncertain and requires a management system that acknowledges that. People don’t want that. At least not without a leader with the authority to make it happen.

]]> By: Amy Schwab http://www.reformingprojectmanagement.com/2007/01/01/721/comment-page-1/#comment-12246 Amy Schwab Tue, 02 Jan 2007 21:25:41 +0000 http://www.reformingprojectmanagement.com/2007/01/01/721/#comment-12246 Nice posting, Hal. Yes, one of the greatest pains to human nature is the pain of a new idea - or perhaps even more so, the pain of discarding an old, familiar idea. We all like the certitude the PMI approach promises - me too. Proof positive of how hooked we are on the fantasy is the swelling numbers of PMI members and the swelling numbers of companies that require certification in the hopes that certification will deliver the business results they crave. And as long as there are vendors and institutes promising the impossible and delivering pat excuses for why reality never lives up to their theoretical utopia (poor project sponsorship, insufficient or incompetent resources, lack of discipline, etc.) companies will continue to disappoint themselves. Nice posting, Hal. Yes, one of the greatest pains to human nature is the pain of a new idea – or perhaps even more so, the pain of discarding an old, familiar idea.

We all like the certitude the PMI approach promises – me too. Proof positive of how hooked we are on the fantasy is the swelling numbers of PMI members and the swelling numbers of companies that require certification in the hopes that certification will deliver the business results they crave. And as long as there are vendors and institutes promising the impossible and delivering pat excuses for why reality never lives up to their theoretical utopia (poor project sponsorship, insufficient or incompetent resources, lack of discipline, etc.) companies will continue to disappoint themselves.

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