Amberhill Associates Ltd ©️Chris Robinson

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project managers and business consultants

Unemployment – #Innovation is the answer #pmot

Posted on October 12, 2011 by admin

In the U.K today we slumped to another level of misery with unemployment hitting 2.57 million, the highest for 17 years. What a tragedy especially for our youth with levels above 21% for 16 – 24 year olds.

So what’s the answer – there is no magic solution to the world economic crises but how about some of the following:-

less focus on “the markets”, our repeated emphasis on stock indices performance has led to short terminism in the extreme.
Stop bailing out failing financial institutions. Trillions of pounds of taxpayers money on both sides of the Atlantic has been thrown away propping up banks which have made disastrous risky investments at our expense.
Using the money saved from the above embark on a major series of public works, transport, housing, digital technology and green energy solutions should be at the forefront.
Set up a state bank to invest in small businesses. Small Businesses employ around 60% of the private sector workforce & are desperate for funds to enable growth.
Set up more Technology parks. Cambridge is a fantastic example of how successful this strategy has been over the last 20 years.
Encourage start-ups in the North by offering financial incentives to do so. Far too much of our industry is currently situated in the overcrowded South East. There is a wealth of untapped talent in the North which is currently going to waste & plenty brownfield sites to build on. The developments at Salford Quays including Media City is a great example of what can be done when there is a will to do it.

These are just some ideas how we can stimulate the economy by investing in Innovation & Technology instead of continuing to bail out banks pouring more valuable resources down the drain.
chris@projectsguru.co.uk

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When did you last hear bad news…?#pmot

Posted on October 5, 2011 by admin

shouting Managers often complain they never get told bad news.

If you are one of those Managers maybe you should consider how you reacted the last time one of your Team actually gave you bad news.

If you reacted by shouting, by being aggressive or acting as if the world had come to an end you could hardly be surprised if no one wanted to tell you something you didn’t want to hear.

Communication is a two way process so if you want people to tell you stuff you may not like it may pay to keep your reactions in check

How did you react the last time someone gave YOU bad news ?

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Casino Capitalism….#pmot…#biz..#innovation

Posted on August 6, 2011 by admin

We have seen trillions wiped off stock markets worldwide, the FTSE 100 has lost over 10% of it’s value in the last week alone & our TV screens have been filled with hysterical traders and concerned politicians.

So does it really matter, in the long term probably not, but if you were planning on retiring soon and have an equities based pension scheme you may well have to think about postponing your retirement.

The markets have become the biggest casino on the planet, where billions are traded on market fluctuations to generate financial gain for wealthy funds. The problem is that massive losses can also be generated especially in times (like now) of great volatility.

It is almost as if Government policies are primarily based on satisfying short term targets of financial speculators.

Over the last 30 years we have seen increasing numbers of large corporations listed on the Stock Market. The benefits of this are increased transparency and greater share ownership but the downside is that company boards are increasingly focused on short term share performance rather than long term strategic growth. They are also more vulnerable to deselection which increases their focus on knee jerk reaction to stock market fluctuations.

So how do we escape from all this madness ?

Here are a few suggestions which may help:-

1) Corporations should seriously consider de-listing from publicly listed stock exchanges & revert to private Limited Company status. Directors will then be able to take a more objective long term view divorced from the daily vagaries of the markets.

2) They should follow the example of German organizations and involve workers representatives at board level, increasing participation and integration.

3) The only way to pay down debt is to generate growth; Governments need to think beyond printing money and subsidizing banks. Innovation in manufacturing and services should be strongly encouraged.

4) Failing corporations, whether banks or otherwise, must be allowed to fall. The risks of failing institutions should not be born by the taxpayer.

5) A state bank should be established to act in direct competition with the private sector so that essential Capital flows can be maintained.

6) Government (NOT essential public services) must be streamlined and taxes reduced. For too long those in business & manufacturing have subsidised those working for the state who provide no added value whatsoever.

We need a radical rethink if we want to escape the madness of Casino Capitalism.

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Do NOT hire an interim project manager if… #pmot

Posted on June 5, 2011 by admin

Interim Project Managers 1) You need additional Project Management resource for the foreseeable future; in this case you will be better off engaging someone on a “permanent” salaried basis, even if finding them will take longer.

2) Your processes are so specific any new recruit will take several months or even years to become familiar with them.

3) You want to engage an individual (probably younger) you can mould to fit your organizations culture.

4) Your organization is expanding at a steady and predictable rate.

However, sometimes an Interim Project Manager is the best solution if:-

1) You have identified a short to medium term lack of resource in the Project Management arena.

2) You want someone quickly who can make an immediate impact.

3) You have a specific project which requires targeted resource.

4) Your organization is expanding rapidly but unpredictable.

When employing additional resource be sure to take into account the circumstances in which it is to be deployed.

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project managers and business consultants

Project Management Rapture….#in…#pmot

Posted on May 24, 2011 by admin

I knew exactly how Reverend Harold Camping felt on Saturday when his end of the world prediction (known as “The Rapture”) failed to transpire.

I’ve been there, oh yes I’ve been there; not predicting the end of the world of course, but forecasting a key project milestone to a customer. Tracking progress carefully and communicating regularly and what happens……a project bananna skin sneaks under the sole of my foot and all hell breaks loose, my project milestone is suddenly hoofed into the future and I’m left in front of the customer with egg, not only on my face, but dribbling down my shirt as well.

Of course I always go back to the customer offering 3 options and making every endeavour to minimize the delay but…..it’s never the same.

Like so many of the good Reverends followers who sold their houses, or spent their life savings prior to “Rapture” the Customer inevitably feels cheesed off to say the least.

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Return of The Apprentice….#pmot…#in…#entrepreneur

Posted on May 11, 2011 by admin

There are always plenty of laughs to be had in BBC’s “The Apprentice” – that’s what its all about after all, rather than a serious look at innovation or
entrepreneurship, it revolves around getting a bunch of young (naive) wannabes together who are generally arrogant, self opinionated and full of it; falling over themselves to look even dafter than they are in reality (all helped by clever editing of course)

Sir Alan hams it up, pontificating in cockney barrow boy English whilst trying not to fall off the box he has to place on his chair in order not to look too short.

Each task has a “project manager” – which has probably done more to damage the profession than anything else, most of the prats on the show probably think a Gantt is a term of abuse.

The funniest bit last night was when Sir Alan referred to himself as an “electronics expert….who sees things other people cannot see..”

Hmmmmm….perhaps he was referring to Amstrad’s “emailer” phone.
Oh Yes the famous emailer phone, widely used by Sir Alan’s receptionist to
usher in the hapless competitors.

Doesn’t every home have one ?

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The importance of bin on message #pmot #in

Posted on May 7, 2011 by admin

Whatever the rights or wrongs of the killing of Osama Bin Laden the message delivered surrounding his dispatch was certainly confusing to say the least.

First he died in a vicious firefight, next he was unarmed.

He used his wife as a human shield, then it was her who leaped in front of him!

The Whitehouse staff watched every moment of the assault live, then…… oh no they didn’t, they only watched the first couple of minutes before transmission was lost ! etc etc etc etc

“Jeeeezzzzzz! can’t these guys get anything right? ” millions around the world screamed at their TV’s.

And this is just the kind of mixed messages we deliver to our exasperated customers every day of the week. First we promise delivery on a certain date, then we go back and revise it, then someone else tells them a different story, its hardly any wonder that customers get fed up and go elsewhere.

So here are some simple tips to make sure your organization is on message for your customers:-

1) Where possible have one direct contact per customer, if this is not feasible have one contact for engineering issues, another for commercial etc.

2) Before giving a customer a key milestone make sure the project plan is fully developed and includes some contingency to allow for risk.

3) If events transpire to affect a key customer milestone make sure every option is explored to pull back on track before going back to the customer with the bad news.

4) If a major milestone is affected this should be communicated face to face.

5) Always give the customer a series of alternative options, so they can choose the best for them.

Keeping the customer on message is an essential part of managing customer relations and ensuring steady, repeat business.

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Lost opportunity cost…..#pmot…#in

Posted on May 3, 2011 by admin

Bizplan03

In the last post we discussed risk aversion. One of the pitfalls of being too risk averse is lost opportunity cost.

In New Product Development Project Managers constantly balance time to market with product quality, resource management, project costs & a host of other competing factors.

In an effort to develop the perfect product with maximum process capability and meeting 100% customer satisfaction the real cost of lost opportunity is often missed.

Consider a product which on release will generate, on average, $100,000 profit a month for 12 months. If the product release is delayed by 1 month the lost opportunity cost can be estimated as $100,000. What should be emphasised is that this amount will NEVER be recovered. If the product lifecycle is estimated as being 12 months depending on the competition then releasing the product 1 month late reduces the lifecycle to 11 months.

If that lost $100,000 was invested at a compound rate of 5% per year over ten years it would be worth $163,000 !

So here are some tips to minimize lost opportunity cost:-

1) Invest in the project at the front end, providing ample resource and support.

2) Fix the product spec before the end of the design phase.

3) 100% perfection is great but 95% is normally good enough for most customers.

4) Make it easy for engineers by setting SMART (Specific, Measurable, Aggressive, Realistic, Timely) targets.

5) Publicise Project Milestone targets.

6) Communicate Lost Opportunity Costs.