Average customer rating:
- real world pm
- project management with your feet on the ground and your heart on it
- highly practical and thorough coverage
- Great book
- Best book I've found on Project Management
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The Art of Project Management (Theory in Practice (O'Reilly))
Scott Berkun
Manufacturer: O'Reilly Media, Inc.
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ASIN: 0596007868 |
Book Description
The Art of Project Management covers it all--from practical methods for making sure work gets done right and on time, to the mindset that can make you a great leader motivating your team to do their best. Reading this was like reading the blueprint for how the best projects are managed at Microsoft... I wish we always put these lessons into action!" --Joe Belfiore, General Manager, E-home Division, Microsoft Corporation
"Berkun has written a fast paced, jargon-free and witty guide to what he wisely refers to as the 'art' of project management. It's a great introduction to the discipline. Seasoned and new managers will benefit from Berkun's perspectives." --Joe Mirza, Director, CNET Networks (Cnet.com)
"Most books with the words 'project management' in the title are dry tomes. If that's what you are expecting to hear from Berkun's book, you will be pleasantly surprised. Sure, it's about project management. But it's also about creativity, situational problem-solving, and leadership. If you're a team member, project manager, or even a non-technical stakeholder, Scott offers dozens of practical tools and techniques you can use, and questions you can ask, to ensure your projects succeed." --Bill Bliss, Senior VP of product and customer experience, expedia.com
In The Art of Project Management, you'll learn from a veteran manager of software and web development how to plan, manage, and lead projects. This personal account of hard lessons learned over a decade of work in the industry distills complex concepts and challenges into practical nuggets of useful advice. Inspiring, funny, honest, and compelling, this is the book you and your team need to have within arms reach. It will serve you well with your current work, and on future projects to come.
Topics include:
- How to make things happen
- Making good decisions
- Specifications and requirements
- Ideas and what to do with them
- How not to annoy people
- Leadership and trust
- The truth about making dates
- What to do when things go wrong
Customer Reviews:
real world pm.......2007-06-29
An easy and fun to read book, based on real life examples and experiences. While reading it, I got many tips from the book and apply them in my onw work.
project management with your feet on the ground and your heart on it.......2007-05-24
I really love this book!! I've read many books about how to run projects, to keep teams motivated, to be an effective leader, and I think this book compiles all of the above, plus it gives you a grounded point of view. There are no promises, only hard work and ways to improve your performance.
I've used some of the recommendations included in chapter 13: How to make things happen and, although is not a guarantee of success, I have accomplished some of my most difficult projects with it and the ones I didn't, at least I know why.
[...].
highly practical and thorough coverage.......2007-05-12
Reading this book is almost as good as having a highly experienced mentor help you manage a project. The book provides very thorough coverage with sound, practical advice. There is a good list of reference material as well. I have been a software developer for more than 25 years and have managed several projects and still found I learned a lot from this book. I wish it had been available years ago. The book also provided confirmation for many of my beliefs about which I disagree with my current project manager. I hope to use this book to help convince him to change. I will be managing my own project again soon and plan to use use this book to help me succeed. Every software developer should read this book even if they are not a project manager. My only very slight criticism is that the book is most helpful to software product projects, but I think even internal development projects should be run as this book explains.
Great book.......2007-05-09
This is a great book.
Filled with real-world wisdom, it prepares you for what to expect in the world of project management as a career option.
Especially usefull for people from software development background.
Best book I've found on Project Management.......2007-03-14
This is an O'Reilly publication, although it lacks their characteristic animal on the cover. It is a fabulous book. While most Project Management books focus on helping you pass the PMI test, this book is focused on real life and has extensive chapters on dealing with difficult situations and so-called "difficult people".
Book Description
Don't let your company kill you!
Open this book at your own risk. It contains ideas that may lead to a profound self-awakening. An introspective journey for those in the trenches of today's modern organizations, Deep Change is a survival manual for finding our own internal leadership power. By helping us learn new ways of thinking and behaving, it shows how we can transform ourselves from victims to powerful agents of change. And for anyone who yearns to be an internally driven leader, to motivate the people around them, and return to a satisfying work life, Deep Change holds the key.
Customer Reviews:
An excellent read..........2007-01-22
I had to read this book for my executive MBA program, and the class agreed that it was a very relevant and enlightening experience. I work for a large company that had a big merger pending, and I ordered copies for the senior managers that report to me. It is thought-provoking and helps one re-examine oneself with rich anectodes and vignettes that keep the book from descending into psycho-babble or abstract theory.
I highly recommend this book for anyone that is interested making difficult changes in their lives. The fact that Quinn addresses change in both a personal and professional environment makes this book a useful tool for self-enrichment or teams. There are thought-provoking discussion and/or self-reflection questions at the end of each chapter that allow the reader to take what the author has discussed and relate it to their own situation.
Excellent read on real change.......2007-01-10
Quinn's purpose in writing Deep Change is to challenge the reader to recognize that everyone is a potential change agent, if they are willing to take the difficult, yet necessary steps to experience deep personal change. He lays a strong foundation by first differentiating between deep change and incremental change. There is little doubt that most change that takes place in the life of an individual is incremental. Because people are uncomfortable with major change they choose to move in small steps. The possible exception to the choice of incremental change occurs when a person is faced with a major crisis. For example, when a person experiences a heart attack, they are motivated to make deep lifestyle changes in habits such as smoking or dietary chooses. Or when a marriage is on the brink of divorce, marriage partners are motivated to make sweeping changes in how they communicate or handle conflict. However, beyond these periodic times of being motivated by crisis, people usually make changes slowly and incrementally, rather than making needed deep change.
The tendency towards incremental change over deep change is also true on an organizational level. Rarely do organizations, including the church, make deep major changes. While it may be argued that leadership needs to be mindful of bringing people along in the midst of change, there are certainly times that organizations need to experience deep change to survive. Quinn is correct in stating that without deep change, routine patterns move organizations increasingly toward decay and stagnation. This is true in the life of the church today. The church has grown comfortable with the patterns of ministry from years past and as a result has lost much of its influence in the changing culture.
One of Quinn's foundational themes is that personal deep change must precede deep change within a system or organization. While most of the time organizational change is seen as a top-down process, Quinn argues that it can also happen from the bottom-up. He states that deep change requires a personal evaluation of the ideologies that under gird the organizational culture. This is a refreshing insight that has application to other relational contexts. As people desire to see change in the lives of others, whether in parenting, marriage or work relationships, they first need to examine what changes need to occur in themselves. It is true that we do not easily recognize the part that we play in the problem. This thought is consistent with the words of Jesus in Matthew 7:3, "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?"
Another topic that is very applicable to numerous arenas of life is Quinn's discussion of the logic of task pursuit. Most people, under the pressure of task completion, have no opportunity to consider routine maintenance. This is true in the life of the individual on multiple levels. If a person does not take time to experience physical renewal through rest and exercise the body will experience exhaustion. This is certainly true with the spiritual life as well. People need to carve out time from the pursuit of tasks to spend time alone with God. The logic of task pursuit is also true in the life of the church. Each church needs to set aside time to revisit its mission and to ensure that the work of the church is in alignment with that mission.
Other helpful insights are found in Quinn's discussion on why organizational change doesn't take place. He states that the dominant coalition in an organization is seldom interested in making deep changes. Therefore, deep change is often driven from the outside. This has been true in the life of many organizations. Furthermore, there are pressures within most organizations to conform to the prevailing structure. Quinn does an excellent job of identifying the barriers of bureaucratic culture, embedded conflict, and personal time constraints. It is helpful to recognize that in most cases people do not need new skills and competencies, but instead they need a new perspective that allows them to act as empowered leaders in a changing organization. While this section on overcoming resistance to change was helpful, it would have been strengthened with practical examples of how individuals brought about significant change.
There is also much to appreciate with Quinn's emphasis on the transitions from the technical, the transactional, and the transformational paradigms. Quinn's description of each paradigm and the paradigm's representative would prove to be very beneficial to any organizational leader's attempt to understand those that they lead and the unique perspective they hold about the organization.
Finally the culmination of Quinn's emphasis on empowerment and ultimate transformation of an organization is what he refers to as the transformational cycle. The cycle is a helpful visual reminder that deep change does not come to a point of completion. It is a cycle that will itself become routine and stagnate if there is not a time of reinvention and realignment of self and the organization.
While written from a business perspective, Deep Change is applicable for anyone who desires to bring about change within an organization. The book is structured in an easy to follow format and includes reflection and discussion questions at the end of each chapter to provide further assistance to the reader in taking steps towards deep change, on both a personal and organizational level.
Deep Change.......2007-01-09
Absolutely one of the best personal and leadership books I have ever used.
Very practical applications. Plan to use as a reference for my managerial library.
Easy to follow recommendations.......2006-10-24
It is interesting that out of the many books that I have read this one does not hit me across the head. However with that said, I re-looked at the book before writing this note and I did mark a lot of text that I found highly useful. I particularly liked the solid recommendations for implementing personal and community change at the end of each chapter. Maybe the fact that the authors do not try wow you with their brilliance but provide solid and easy to follow recommendations is why this book is so valuable. The structure also lends itself to a study group within your management team helping to drive implementation of the principles introduced.
If you are more interested in solid principles to implement rather than the "my way is the best way" often presented, I highly recommend that this book be part of your arsenal to improve personal and community performance. A must for your library.
Deep Change or Slow Death?.......2006-07-11
In this wonderful book, Quinn challenges us to confront our own hypocrisy and make a choice between deep change or slow death -- that is to say between commitment or disengagement. It's actually not an easy choice to make. Most of us have taken the easy path and chosen not to speak out when w've known what needed to be changed. Or, we've run from a difficult work situation, leaving the problems behind for someone else to clean up, not admitting our part in the failure or taking responsibility for changing ourselves.
Quinn instructs us by modeling the behavior we need to follow. Particularly striking, for me, is his personal account of finding himself crying while writing a short story called "The Prophecy." This is a version of the story his mother had told him about his father, who, knowing that he was soon going to die, and seeing his newborn son for the first time, had said, "I think our boy is going to make his mark on the world."
Quinn explains that this true story about his father was etched in his consciousness and had great meaning for him. "In retelling the story I was retelling one of my core myths...I had always heard the story from the perspective of the woman. Now I was telling it from the point of view of a 38-year old man who was dying. The man was asking himself what his life had meant. There was no money, no house, no insurance policy, no signs of worldly success, no legacy to mark his passage."
"Years later, facing a midlife crisis, I was asking myself the very same questions about the meaning of my own life. Without even realizing it, I was trying to deal with the issues of impact and legacy," says Quinn, reflecting on the emotional impact of the story. "As all this become clear, I began to clarify what I wanted to do differently in my life. At work, for example, I took on a different perspective. I became more focused on my research. In my teaching and consulting, I became more caring yet more demanding. The resulting impact, in terms of outcome, was dramatic. I had a new perspective, and my life was changed. I became more empowered and more empowering."
This empowerment is demonstrated by Quinn's role in one intervention he made at one troubled company. In this intervention, Quinn conducted interviews, identified the core issues, and put his insights into writing, calling the resulting document the "Inner Voice of the Organization." This document was structured around eight questions and eight answers -- each answer describing a key issue facing the company and illustrated by a concrete example. Each of the eight issues had previously been "undiscussable," and each issue represented a weakness or need within the company. Quinn listed these issues as follows:
1. "The company is characterized by loyalty and considerable unused human potential
2. The organization must make deep change in order to become more viable and thus to be able to survive in a rapidly evolving world
3. The company is hampered by an unconscious conspiracy of silence and an inability to confront issues and identify needed adjustments
4. "Groupthink" is widespread, and models for constructive conflict are lacking
5. Certain key figures have favored individual good and self-interest over the collective good, and they have been reinforced
6. Everyone would like to believe that certain transparent issues are successfully kept secret. Individuals try to save face by pretending that no one knows what everyone knows--and the process works as long as no one listens to the organization's inner voice
7. A cohesive leadership team is lacking
8. The company has no clear, believable, and motivating vision"
Quinn sent the document to the CEO. He explained that it would be a useful tool to introduce at the outset of the program -- and proposed breaking the participants into five subgroups to discuss the five most important undiscussable issues honestly. He expected the CEO to reject the plan. Instead the CEO made a few factual corrections and agreed to it.
Most striking about this story, apart from the courage and honesty of the approach, is that it seems this identical list of eight issues could be applied to all companies, whether they're in trouble or not. It seems that the issues are universal, grounded in human nature, and that every company faces them to different degrees depending on their specific circumstances.
As Quinn puts it, there is often an "inner voice" in a company that everyone knows but dares not discuss. People know that if they do bring up these issues they will be marginalized and may be fired. It is a risky business to be a change agent, and Quinn does not underplay this. Speaking of one intervention at Ford, Quinn states that "Change means taking risks and facing the possibility of failure. Unfortunately, risk taking sometimes has a negative outcome...approximately 3 percent of participants reported being disciplined for taking initiative, and their anger was apparent. They told us, 'Your program is a fraud. The company doesn't want leaders; it wants conformists.'"
It doesn't take long for people in companies to learn that management cannot be trusted. In this light, it is amazing that around 12 percent in this same program at Ford were willing to engage in the riskiest form of change. The risk-takers were the people who reported higher scores on health, job satisfaction and personal relationships. Surprisingly, they were also usually the oldest participants. "We believe that they had reached a career plateau yet had maintained a positive outlook. They were loyal to Ford and eager to make a positive contribution. Their perception of the "risk-reward ratio" was different...They were willing to confront the pressures of conformity and pay the price of deep change."
So, even in the most jaded of organizations, there are always people able and willing to take a risk to improve the organization for themselves and others -- a finding which is as encouraging as it is surprising.
This is a compelling and useful book. It's written in a poetic way with a deep level of commitment and personal revelation. On the other hand, it's not for those looking for a quick fix. People who assume that the problem is with others and that they can be changed by instruction and coercion will not find it useful. Also, I found the exercises for reflection and discussion were valuable, but hard to use. What's needed, instead, I believe, is a daily practice regimen for personal reflection, and a more carefully designed, more usable set of exercises for use in management teams -- exercises that do not require all participants to have read the book.
However, these are minor criticisms. What differentiates this from the vast majority of other books by business school professors -- and what saves it from irrelevancy -- is the depth of the passion it conveys. Also, the real-life examples. Quinn epitomizes deep change.
If you are a change agent, or intend to become one you should read this book. It has the power to change your life. It could, in fact, be the only book you need. However, I think it will work best when read alongside others. I recommend starting with "Dance of Change," by Peter Senge and some of his colleagues from the Society for Organizational Learning. This will provide an additional perspective, including a wealth of examples of both successful and unsuccessful change efforts and a list of the key impediments to change, consolidating the message that many of the barriers to change are within ourselves.
If you read this book, you are sure to come away with a few ideas you can use or insights that will be of value. I, for one, will not easily forget that I do indeed need to make the choice every day between the slow death of apathy, and the deep change of personal growth. In the end -- hard as it may be -- the choice of reflection and deep change is the only one that makes sense.
Graham Lawes
Book Description
The Covenant in Action was developed to continue the inspirational spirit of the Covenant With Black America and to empower people to take effective action to achieve THE Covenant goals. The information, tools, and ideas presented in The Covenant in Action will enable and inspire people to become agents of change in their respective communities and to become partners in a larger Covenant movement.
The Covenant in Action is organized into three parts: (1) stories about the projects and actions that everyday people have undertaken over the past year that were inspired by the Covenant With Black America; (2) motivational essays from young Black activists who are on the ground impacting their environments; and (3) a toolkit outlining steps you can take to organize, connect, and act. The toolkit contains not only traditional action strategies, but includes innovative approaches to organizing and community building that will result in stronger, more bonded communities that are reflective of their history and past experiences. The Covenant With Black America was only the first step. The Covenant in Action toolkit will prime and prepare individuals and communities to actually move the Covenant book into action.
Customer Reviews:
This is not going to cut it.......2007-09-03
What the Covenant in Action has accomplished is listed in a brief introduction and in a summary section that lists examples of them which to date include:
(1) Lobbying successfully to get the Voting Rights Act renewed,
(2) Conducting "parties with a purpose" to discuss various aspects of the Covenant,
(3) Creating book and discussion clubs,
(4) Conducting the Black State of the Union presentation on C-Span,
(5) Lobbying on behalf of getting more Black officials elected,
(6) Engaging in church discussions on Economic development and social equity,
(7) Putting on a conference on juvenile justice, and
(8) Conducting A Day of Dialogue, etc.
On its face, this list seems to be an impressive set of accomplishments and is admirable on its own merits. However, when it is compared with what black culture needs to get itself out of the ditch it finds itself in, and with what the Covenant called for in order to address the issues that are causing cultural stress within the black community, namely:
(1) Racism (the Covenant did not list it, but left it implied);
(2) Black Male-female relationships and decreases in Black marriage formation (again the Covenant did not list this item, but shame on the Covenant for omitting it);
(3) Out of wedlock pregnancies and unwanted, uncared for and improperly parented children (again the Covenant did not mention this item);
(4) Black-crime--especially Black-on-Black crime and the large and increasing black prison population;
(5) the poor state of black education and Black health, including HIV/Aids and SIDS;
(6) lack of jobs for Black males; and
(7) Black voter registration.
When the actions the Covenant has produced (in the first list) are compared with the objectives it established in the Covenant, and with the needs of Black culture given (in the second list), the discrepancies are so vast as to render the actions virtually meaningless to anyone who takes a non-emotional and dispassionate comparison between the two lists. There is virtually no overlap?
One must ask the question? What is going on in the Black community? Why are they having discussion groups and creating book clubs when the ghetto is gasping for its last breathe, in one of the worse social melt-downs in American history?
As the Black ship of state rapidly sinks, its main leaders and activists are busy rearranging the deck chairs. They are pretending that deep persistent cultural problems can be solved through feel-good methods. The most one can say is that the "feel-good" approach instead of a more hard-nosed tough-love approach, betrays the poverty of thought among black leaders in dealing with their own problems. What a pity.
Any Covenant worth its salt must seek to outline and solve the deep, real and intractable problems of black culture. And this cannot be done on the cheap without cost or pain -- that is, via such tactics as those in the first list. That list would do fine in a world where all else was equal and there was no emergency, but the Black community is in a full-scale melt-down, teetering on complete self-destruction, addressing these problems is no longer a discretionary option for black culture. It is not an exaggeration to suggest that Black culture as we know it is on the brink of self-destruction.
The author of the Black Covenant and the collective Black leadership needs to take a deep breathe, collect its thoughts and discuss a paradigm shift towards a more sensible and effective approach to black problem-solving. As much as I wish it were not so, Mr. Smiley's Covenant is not going to cut it.
Two stars
The Covenant In Action.......2007-07-03
An excellent book telling the story, concerns and issues of Black Americans by Black Americans.
All About History.......2007-04-10
Book was a gift to my 84 year old aunt who was interested in readings of Tavis Smiley during Black History month.
great gift.......2007-03-29
I brought this as a gift for a friend. He was suprised by the gift and really enjoyed the books.
Excellent Book .......2007-03-19
This book should be required reading in every high school in Amercia.
Book Description
Creating the Project Office is written for managers who are searching for ways to transform their organizations into more effective and efficient project-based workplaces. As this important book reveals, there is no more effective way to make that change than to create a project office tailored to the needs of the organization. While a project office model leads to better products from projects, it is also a vehicle for generating overall organizational changeâ by transforming the organization from function-based to project-based. This model incorporates projects into the very fabric of the organizational strategy and revitalizes organizations, creates competitive advantage, and increases shareholder value.
Customer Reviews:
Don't have metric for start the PMO.......2006-04-03
I belive, if the book would have metrics and templates for the process start, it is very usefull.
Creating the Project Office : A Manager's Guide to Leading Organizational Change .......2006-02-24
Excellent service
Common sense applied to change management, wrapped in a bow!.......2004-12-02
I purchased this book on recommendation from a previous reviewer and was amazed by the breadth, depth, and more importantly pace of the book. The book moves quickly and does not spend a lot of time on theory, more time on examples (drawn mainly from Englund's work at HP).
The high level process applies as a general change management agenda, but applied through the lense of a PMO or project office. The annecdotes and lessons learnt provide an excellent framework for either internal "change agents" or external consultants to structure a successful organizational change and increase in proejct delivery quality.
The examples and frameworks in the book are easily understood and presented in a way that they can be reused or applied to many different project management challenges. I highly recommend this book to program managers or IT consultants who are intereste in affecting change in any organization.
Unusually rich.......2003-03-26
This book takes the leading thinking in implementing organizational change and applies it directly to the challenge of implementing project management. The authors then advance the art through the application of their extensive experience and original thought that leaves the reader-practitioner with a step-by-step guide to implementing a project management office.
The major strength of this manuscript is its revelation of the organizational challenges in creating a project office, their causes, and straightforward advice on navigating the pitfalls. The knowledge and experience of the authors comes through with `been there, done that' credibility. The reader leaves with a deeper understanding of their organization and the means for achieving their goal of implementing a project office.
I thought Part One was one of the best discussions I have seen of the organizational change factors involved in implementing a project office. It provided thorough overall coverage on the existing body of work in organizational change and provided an application to project management. The author's contribution of speaking truth to power is valuable.
I found the manuscript replete with illustrative material. I particularly liked the anecdotes from Greek mythology and literature. This book is unusually rich in supporting the principles advocated with clear `how-to' instructions. As a practitioner reading the book, I found myself saying: "Yes, that works," "I wish I had thought of that sooner," and "I am going to use that tomorrow." - a manuscript reviewer
Book Description
Indoor/Outdoor Team Building Games for Trainers is a collection of 62 fun, physical acitivities from the world of adventure-based team building--now made simple for the average classroom trainer. Each activity (requiring only simple props such as rubber balls, blindfolds, and rope) comes complete with learning objectives, equipment needs, time goals, directions, and debriefing guidelines. Perfect for fields, parking lots, and even indoor classrooms. ativity
Customer Reviews:
Disappointing and too expensive.......2007-01-10
I was very disappointed with this purchase because very few, if any, of the activities are unique. It's only advantage is that it collates a good number of activities together in one place. However, I don't feel that the price for this collection is worth it given that I found most of these activities on the internet, for free, and on more than one site.
Is this book really worth its pricey tag?.......2002-08-26
After being greatly impressed by the size of the box that this work arrived in I was a little disappointed by the rather cheap looking folder that was contained within. Indoor/Outdoor Team building games for trainers by Harrison Snow is presented in a large triple ring folder that at first glance looks like a standard undergraduate dissertation. However the way the work is presented and the price tag are both justified in the copyright blurb on the very first page.
Indoor/Outdoor is a not just a reference book but a step by step course for those who want to instruct their own team building sessions. As a result the price tag (which is $$more than I am normally comfortable paying for a book) not only buys you the folder but also the right to make photocopies of relevant pages to distribute to those who attend your workshop, and what a workshop it'll be!
Having spent the summer working as an outdoor pursuits instructor I was glad to see many of the best warm ups and ice breakers that I had already learnt succinctly described in a manner that transfers the necessary fun within which all team-building sessions should be framed. There's enough problem solving exercises to keep even the most competent team busy for a least three days and each description is followed by a few generally excellent paragraphs on how to debrief after the exercise. Very few of the exercises need much preparation or investment in equipment and can be attempted by any able bodied person regardless of fitness.
Along with the individual tasks Snow has included a very readable section introducing a few management theories, the need for strong teams and the whole framework of trust, safety and fun within which good workshops must run. He concludes with some exercises that provide a review of the workshop and a few more management theories that are again very well presented.
Like most work on this subject Indoor/Outdoor can occasionally be a little "touchy feely" but never to a nauseating extent. Snow also occasionally makes the assumption that his audience is entirely from the US but although slightly annoying this in no way detracts from the overall excellent quality of his work. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in running their own sessions but also recommend that you either practice on your friends or shadow an experienced leader before instructing paying customers.
Poor Value.......2002-01-11
A tremendous disappointment. One of the more expensive Team Building resource publications available and it does not deliver. In many respects, Mr. Snow has authored a well organized, adequately written resource BINDER. A three ring binder and 241 (mostly single sided) pages of information. Sadly, the liabilities completely outweigh the assets of this selection.
Almost every activity may be found in other, significantly less expensive books. Very few activities feature illustrations or diagrams. Even when included, the pictures may not be worth a thousand words. Those unfamiliar with an activity may have difficulty vizualizing some instructions. Which begs the question if you ARE familiar with the activities, why purchase the book?
The only justification I found for the seemingly disproportionate price was the permission granted by the publisher to photocopy the pages of the publication "for use by participants attending a training workshop conducted by the original purchaser." This might be a terrific value for those who provide training of trainer workshops or who have a large staff to train. If you primarily will be solo or co-facilitating team building sequences with various groups this may be of dubious benefit to you.
Bottom line: If Mr. Snow and/or McGraw-Hill republished the binder as a book (at a fraction of the cost), added more visual-aids and you were looking for a solid resource book, it might be a useful resource. In it's present form I'd recommend you keep searching. Karl Rohnke and several others have authored resource books that will provide you with much, much more for much, much less.
Keep searching. . .
Great Hands on edition.......2000-03-29
This book is a wonderful collection of activities that will build and challenge your team. The books is spiral bound so it allows you to "take it with you" and use it wherever your team is. The activites are not just the typical version, they are challenging, exciting, and when used can help you establish a solid foundation. The book is easy to follow and does include some diverse games and activities. No two are alike.
Book Description
More and more, special events courses are being taught in hospitality and events management courses.
Written by the foremost authority on event management, and with expanded coverage of leadership and its role in successful planning, this book provides a handy reference for events professionals and the tools necessary for beginners to pursue a career in special events management.
Book Description
Only 43 per cent of U.S. construction firms remain in business after four years. Why? Inadequate management, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration. This is surprising because most construction firms are formed by ambitious construction project managers, executives and tradesmen who have excelled at what they have been doing. But as experienced as these entrepreneurs may be, they are not likely prepared to take on the full range of responsibilities forced on them in managing the business of construction in its entirety.
While this business failure rate and its causes are based on U.S. experience, available data from a number of other industrialized countries shows they are similar.
This book describes in detail what the business side of the construction equation requires of the construction firm owner. The contractor who quickly learns these requirements can identify and avoid or manage around the pitfalls that cause the high failure rate in our industry and put his or her construction firm on a level playing field with the best-run companies in the business. The detailed duties of the owner, whether in the U.S., U.K., Australia or Canada, are a common theme throughout the book.
The author, Nick Ganaway, speaks peer-to-peer, and the book is sprinkled with supporting examples from his own experience. He is immersed in the industry and this book is "based on the things I've learned, used, and refined as a light-commercial general contractor in the course of starting and operating my own construction firm for 25 years." The contractor doing $5 million or $50 million or more in annual sales or the equivalent amount in other countries, or the entrepreneur who is just starting up, can use the tried and proven material in this book to build a business that is profitable, enjoyable, and enduring.
Additionally, the book devotes a chapter to specializing in chain-store construction.
* Learn what you need to succeed in the construction sector
* How to target, land and retain profitable customers
* Avoid the pitfalls of running your own construction business
Customer Reviews:
A testimony to the principles of this text.......2007-02-08
Upon graduation from Georgia Tech's building construction program in 1982, I went to work for Nick Ganaway. One of the many reasons I selected his company was his obvious knowledge of business. Even more, I appreciated the motivation he placed in us (and himself) to always become better as contractors and as businessmen. We met frequently to "log in" new discoveries, efficiencies, risks, and methods of profitability that he had wisely accumulated for us. As I "ventured out" into the world and developed my own business with very little experience, I quickly noticed that although I was a "great" project manager that running a construction company was an entirely different issue. For example, do you understand the unique requirements of the construction firm owner? Terms in the project owner's construction agreement that can unfairly shift major risk onto your plate and what to do about them? How to ensure that you get paid for change orders? What to do when hard times suddenly strike (and they will)? After 25 years of experience in operating a commercial construction company, Mr. Ganaway explains chapter-by-chapter these and every other risk area you must manage if you are going to survive in construction. I know these explanations well as they ring in my mind from discussions with Mr. Ganaway concerning my very first projects and through calling for help with running my own construction business. You will feel like you're having these same discussions with him as you read this book. Every contractor, project manager, and construction student should read it. Today I use this very text to teach our students at Georgia Tech's building construction program how to run a business, as well as consulting in the same area. His principles work!
An added bonus to this text is the final chapter, where Mr. Ganaway makes the case for specializing in chain store construction. To "outsiders" who have not reviewed this market segment, I think you will be surprised at the benefits. If you are not already specializing in a niche market, this chapter is sure to start you thinking about it.
Product Description
Only 43% of construction firms are still in business after four years. Make sure your company thrives with essential and very readable guidance from a pro with 25 years success. Find out what it takes to build all aspects of a business that s profitable, enjoyable, and enduring. Includes: Contract Terms & Conditions (to include and to avoid); How to Make Sure You re Paid What You're Owed; Dos and Don'ts of Mechanics Liens; How to Select, Hire, and Keep Golden Employees; How to Choose Accountants, Lawyers & Insurance Agents; How to Target, Check out, Land, & Retain Profitable Customers; Effective Marketing Even the Smallest Contractor Can Afford; Opportunities & Requirements of Retail Construction; and much more ideas that will pay off right away & throughout your career. Whether you re a contractor, a key employee, a subcontractor, a student, or a facility executive, you ll find many ideas you can immediately add to your management and leadership toolbox. Adopting even a single one of them will pay dividends now and throughout your career.
Customer Reviews:
Important Information for New Contractors.......2007-04-11
If you are a person that is just starting out in the Construction industry, this book can help guide you in the right direction. Many mistakes that I have made in the past 10 years are covered in these pages. I wish I would have had this book back then. It would have made our company grow and prosper without the glitches. I highly recommend this book.
A testimony to the principles of this text.......2007-02-14
Upon graduation from Georgia Tech's building construction program in 1982, I went to work for Nick Ganaway. One of the many reasons I selected his company was his obvious knowledge of business. Even more, I appreciated the motivation he placed in us (and himself) to always become better as contractors and as businessmen. We met frequently to "log in" new discoveries, efficiencies, risks, and methods of profitability that he had wisely accumulated for us. As I "ventured out" into the world and developed my own business with very little experience, I quickly noticed that although I was a "great" project manager that running a construction company was an entirely different issue. For example, do you understand the unique requirements of the construction firm owner? Terms in the project owner's construction agreement that can unfairly shift major risk onto your plate and what to do about them? How to ensure that you get paid for change orders? What to do when hard times suddenly strike (and they will)? After 25 years of experience in operating a commercial construction company, Mr. Ganaway explains chapter-by-chapter these and every other risk area you must manage if you are going to survive in construction. I know these explanations well as they ring in my mind from discussions with Mr. Ganaway concerning my very first projects and through calling for help with running my own construction business. You will feel like you're having these same discussions with him as you read this book. Every contractor, project manager, and construction student should read it. Today I use this very text to teach our students at Georgia Tech's building construction program how to run a business, as well as consulting in the same area. His principles work!
An added bonus to this text is the final chapter, where Mr. Ganaway makes the case for specializing in chain store construction. To "outsiders" who have not reviewed this market segment, I think you will be surprised at the benefits. If you are not already specializing in a niche market, this chapter is sure to start you thinking about it.
Great Book!.......2007-02-01
This is the first straightforward, down-to-earth book on how to run a construction business that I have come across. A realistic account of what it takes to start an enterprise and what it's like to be a contractor. Anyone contemplating starting their own construction company should read this before attempting it and every contractor already working at it should study Nick's work to learn how to do it better and to realize that they are not alone when they discover just how challenging and difficult the struggle for success can be. Everyone associated with the construction industry should read this book to gain an understanding of how the business really works.
Thomas, C. Schleifer, Ph.D.
Visiting Eminent Scholar
Del E. Webb School of Construction
Arizona State University
Author, Construction Contractors' Survival Guide
Book Description
A full, expert discussion of the last major component of Six Sigma implementation
George Eckes' first two books on Six Sigma-The Six Sigma Revolution and Making Six Sigma Last-dealt with Six Sigma from a strategic level and from a cultural level, respectively. Six Sigma Team Dynamics covers the last component of Six Sigma-improving team processes. The successful completion of Six Sigma depends on teams working together and applying a proven methodology that defines, measures, analyzes, improves, and controls the process. These team dynamics and the roles and responsibilities of all constituencies are the last remaining key to successful Six Sigma implementation.
Customer Reviews:
Insightful!.......2004-06-09
This book is one of the few thorough, detailed, systematic guides to team leadership in the context of Six Sigma. Those assigned to lead or participate in Six Sigma teams will find it hands-on practical and consistently useful. To use this specific approach to team management, you need to be familiar with the Six Sigma concept and process already. Then, this straightforward, explanatory manual will take you step by step, list by list, through the task of facilitating a successful team, from establishing a plan to dealing with problem personalities. It isn't exactly juicy reading, except for the lively illustrative anecdotes, and the grammar is occasionally awkward given the jargon involved, but this focused package of instructions will help you get the job done effectively and efficiently. We recommend it enthusiastically to managers who are embarking upon, or already involved in, a Six Sigma team management process.
Great book to build great six sigma teams !.......2003-11-06
This book is a must read for everyone who works on projects...
George Eckes explains how meetings could be drastically improved, how to prepare a meeting, how a project should start, live... What are the important check-points...
I have personnaly used the methods described in this book and I'm now totally convinced that a team well driven can boost the performance a lot higher than initial assumptions...
Don't miss it, it's a great opportunity to learn more about human aspects of six sigma...
Insightful!.......2003-10-15
This book is one of the few thorough, detailed, systematic guides to team leadership in the context of Six Sigma. Those assigned to lead or participate in Six Sigma teams will find it hands-on practical and consistently useful. To use this specific approach to team management, you need to be familiar with the Six Sigma concept and process already. Then, this straightforward, explanatory manual will take you step by step, list by list, through the task of facilitating a successful team, from establishing a plan to dealing with problem personalities. It isn't exactly juicy reading, except for the lively illustrative anecdotes, and the grammar is occasionally awkward given the jargon involved, but this focused package of instructions will help you get the job done effectively and efficiently. We recommend it enthusiastically to managers who are embarking upon, or already involved in, a Six Sigma team management process.
Eckes Fills Critical Void in Six Sigma Literature.......2003-01-08
Whether new to Six Sigma or working in an established deployment, this book is for you. Until now, no books have confronted the Six Sigma Team function issue head on. Kudos to George Eckes for identifying this critical gap and plugging it!
As an established deployment leader at a large firm, I can attest to the fact that team dynamics is one of the biggest factors in success or failure of Six Sigma projects. Eckes' book is an easy read, using a fictional team throughout that keeps the reading light and interesting, while imparting valuable tools and techniques to improve your teams. From clarifying roles and responsibilities of team participants to providing specific intervention techniques for maladaptive behaviors, this book is packed with things you can use today. No matter what role you play on a Six Sigma team - Champion, Black/Green Belt, or Master Black Belt - you will find keys to better team interactions to allow you to deliver the results your company needs to succeed.
Terrific bonuses include common pitfalls in team dynamics you should avoid, a list of 95 questions champions should ask their project teams and tools templates you can put to work to improve your information flow.
This book is now required reading for all our Master Black Belts and soon to be incorporated in to our Champion eduction. If you want to improve your team's results, I highly recommend this book.
A Must for the Library.......2002-12-07
I really enjoyed reading this book. It flows easy and the concepts are practical. This book makes helps put the team side of Six Sigma into focus. There are plenty of tools books, but few to help the team leader (Black Belt) deal with the facilitation side of the project. The examples and recommendations are a great help. I consider this a must for a good Six Sigma library.
Customer Reviews:
A great help for introducing change.......2007-02-04
Fearless Change is a catalogue of patterns for introducing change in a company. Personally I've been in the role of change agent for years and this book provided me many "ah-hah"s which you get from reading good patterns. Most of the patterns I've applied in the past. Now I realized it and I got a name for them, which makes me more able to reuse the patterns. Some of the patterns were new to me and I've applied them immediately in my work.
The book is organized in three parts. The first part tells short stories on the different phases of change. These stories already made me understand the basics of the patterns and how they were related. The second part has a couple of case studies. Personally I found this part rather boring, but it was very short. The third part of the book is the actual pattern catalogue which provided the needed details.
The book was easy to read and, except for the case studies, didn't make me feel bored at any time. I've learned an awful lot from the book and it gave me some new tools in my toolbox when trying to introduce change.
I've rated this book 4 stars, which should have been 4.5 starts, but I don't have that option. I wouldn't want to give it 5 stars for the small boring parts and since I wouldn't call it perfect yet, but close! The books is an absolute must for anyone introducing change in an organization though!
Patterns for change.......2006-10-24
Another patterns book -- it certainly is a popular type of book these days. I got about half-way through this one before someone else wanted to read it. What can I say? Not bad. Recommended reading if you're trying to introduce a change in the way people work. The stories or case studies are pretty readable. But I'm not sure how much it helps to give little (pattern) names in brackets inside every other sentence. Pick up any book about industrial success like Marriot or The HP Way and you'd probably do just as well. The important thing is to read about others' similar successes and how they did it, and always to get help from lots of other people.
An useful catalog.......2006-03-02
Just like all books on patterns, this gives you the feeling of 'oh, this is soooo obvious' the first reading it. The fact is that a second after reading it you start thinking and talking about brown bags, angles and evangelists and refer to the book all the time. Linda and Mary Lynn give us an idiom, a very very useful idiom.
Also, the book is funny. Must read.
Change will always be hard, but this book helps a lot.......2005-05-29
Change is hard. I've been part of companies that merged, were acquired, acquired others, downsized drastically, changed the CEO, moved corporate headquarters to another state and completely changed their target market. The change was difficult in each of these circumstances. That's not particularly surprising. What is surprising is that change is also difficult when doing something as seemingly simple as changing the company health plan. I wish I'd read this book before going through those changes.
A large part of my current work is in helping companies manage the transition from how they currently develop software to developing software with an "agile process." The book codified some of the things I've done for years without thinking about why but more importantly it also presented ideas I hadn't thought of. For example, the "Champion Skeptic" pattern says to designate a skeptical, strong opinion leader to be the "official skeptic." I've always made a point of involving these skeptics because they can become your best advocates if you convert them. However, I've experimented with the idea as presented here and it works well.
Change will remain hard, even after reading this book. But, you'll be much better prepared and you should find many of the patterns here very helpful.
Powerful, yet simple, change toolkit.......2005-05-12
I had found myself moderately successful at introducing new ideas and influencing change in my organizations, but never knew why, or how to improve my ability to influence and sustain the change effort. The lightbulb was illuminated immediately upon getting a few patterns into this book- I had been, in one way or another, using some of these patterns without realizing it. Opportunities I had failed to take advantage of in the past became obvious as well in many patterns that were new to me, and in the past went unrecognized (next time, they will either be easy to spot or part of the plan in the first place!)
Once you are able to recognize techniques as patterns, influence becomes something much more controllable. This is a powerful, easy-to-use (and reuse) toolkit for introducing ideas and influencing change. I believe that those experienced in influencing change will find a well thought out set of techniques and those unsure of even how to start will have a great roadmap and set of practices to start with and to invoke as-needed as their change efforts evolve.
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- The Complete Illustrated Guide to Furniture and Cabinet Construction
- The Essentials of Risk Management
- The First 90 Days: Critical Success Strategies for New Leaders at All Levels
- The Fundamentals of Business-to-Business Sales & Marketing
- The Labor Relations Process
- The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business is Selling Less of More
Books Index
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