We have a running discussion with some project managers and line managers on the topic of responsibility. The organization structure is matrix (weak) with seeming aspirations to strong matrix. The project managers attempting to drive the project are frequently confronted with the line management saying – “it is our responsibility”, or “trust us to deliver”. […]
I recently read a Scott Adams cartoon http://dilbert.com/strips/comic/2013-06-09/ in the Greensboro News and Record Sunday paper and had flash backs to projects that prematurely move to the production phase. Experience indicates that this mentality contributes to the recalls to which the consumers are subjected. Capitalism is based upon the willingness to take risks. There is […]
Have you ever heard this before at work? Can you do me a favor? As I was leaving a work place one day, I overheard a gentleman on the phone talking to what certainly sounded like a co-worker. Upon termination of the call he was tetchy. He started with, “nothing is too difficult for the […]
After we have identified the objective and the preferred delivery mechanisms we will set about building the training. We will consult subject matter experts, and put material together. That material will include: Develop Training Material Course Objective and Description Rubric Lesson plan (including formative assessment questions) Presentation, application exercises and practice material Student material (perhaps […]
In our previous post we discussed training needs tied to the organization’s objectives. In that work, we uncovered the scope of the needed training to address specific areas for improvement with very specific metrics identified. The discussion and subsequent research of the objectives also provided us with input to help ascertain the best delivery mechanism. […]
Training development follows similar set of processes or activities as product development. First and foremost we must know what we are trying to achieve. What is our scope? What is our ultimate objective? Those same steps we use to evoke the requirements or our product targets for our training requirements. The objectives of our training […]
The team works toward an objective of developing and releasing software according to a schedule. The delivery date comes, and the team has not achieved the objective. The project manager is at a loss for words. What happened? The team then informs the project manager – “we always said the time was tight”. The team […]
Perhaps some of you recall our post on project commitment. We have a continuation of that story now that is revealing. In that post we saw how not communicating clearly about actions that could possibly happen or actions that were not even remotely possible can put our project at risk. In that post, we show […]
When I was but a young engineer, I was developing an embedded product for a small organization whose product line went all over the world. Partially through the development of the product, a new permutation became needed. The owner of the company, also an Engineer that at one time did work for NASA, asked me […]
I know this is way off topic; however I thought we should post this. Below is a letter my brother and I sent to the Veterans Administration. Our father was in the Special Forces and served multiple tours in Vietnam. The US has been in wars for decades now, and we do not know the […]