Managing Extreme Projects, with author and consultant Doug DeCarlo

Over the years I've not only worked on a lot of projects. I've also sat through a lot of project management training and read plenty of books. Have you ever noticed that projects are a lot easier to manage in a class than in the real world?

Unfortunately a lot of training and books are filled with theory that can be difficult to apply when you leave the material and run head-on into the wall of reality. That's why my organization works diligently in our keynotes and workshops to keep them as practical as possible so participants leave with skills that can be applied, not just knowledge that works on a white board!

There's also the problem of scale. It's one thing to manage a single project or a couple small projects. But what about the big ones--the extreme projects where uncertainty runs high and so do the stakes. That's the realm where many of us live so this episode is all about managing extreme projects.

My favorite extreme project management guru is Doug DeCarlo, author of the book eXtreme Project Management: Using Leadership, Principles and Tools to Deliver Value in the Face of Volatility. I had the opportunity to catch up with Doug recently and look forward to your feedback after you listen to my interview with him in this episode.

A major part of project success comes down to relationships: with stakeholders, team members, and sponsors. In fact, just about everything in business and life comes down to relationships. That is the main point of our keynote entitled The Dirty Little Secret of Business. What is the dirty little secret of business? It's all done on relationships. Whether we're talking about your individual success or that of your company, chances are it is heavily dependent on the strength of relationships.

I'd love to share this keynote at your organization. If you have an upcoming company or department gathering, offsite retreat, or association meeting, give me call to explore how The Dirty Little Secret of Business keynote can put an exclamation point on your event!

Thank you for listening to The People and Projects Podcast! If you enjoy this free resource I invite you to get the word out to friends and colleagues that would benefit. Also, please send me a note to let me know what you're learning from each episode. You can reach me by e-mail at podcast@i-leadonline.com.

Enjoy the interview!
Managing Extreme Projects, with author and consultant Doug DeCarlo

posted by Andy Kaufman, PMP at 11:32 AM