I get lots of thanks and kudos for pmclinic, a discussion list about real issues managers face, despite the fact I don’t contribute much directly to the thing anymore, and Shawn Murphy runs the list. Instead it’s 5 or 10 really smart, wise people who do much of the posting and advice giving.
One of these smart, wise, clever contributors is an industry veteran named Steven Levy. Why do I mention him now? Here’s why.
He’s set up shop on his own at a shiny new blog on project management called: No Secrets.
He’s already been busy with posts on How to kill projects, and is your boss a manager or an administrator?. Check it out.
I’ve received quite a few applications for this role, but there’s still time to apply. I’ll be closing the door this friday. Details on the role here:
Five years ago I started a simple little discussion list called pmclinic. The idea was simple: e-mail out a real world management situation on Monday, discuss it all week, write a summary on Friday.
Unlike most discussion lists, the idea created a surprisingly high signal to noise ratio. As the months went by, without any PR or much of a web presence, the list grew. Today the list has over 1000 members. We’ve covered hundreds of situations, and the list is still going strong.
There are dozens of things that need to be done, from making the list archives public, to getting the list out of the technology dark ages. And the best way for that to happen is to hand the reigns over to someone new.
This opportunity could be great for either a veteran who’s looking for something fun and different to work on with big networking opportunities, or even a rock star intern, college student, or journeyman who’s looking for experience and to build a reputation.
Job title: Project Manager
Project: PMCLINIC 2.0
Description: Lead the planning, brainstorming, organization and development of a new online community for the 1,000+ community of leaders, PMs and managers who reside on the legendary pmclinic. Objectives include taking the list out of the technological dark ages and onto the web, while retaining the stellar signal to noise ratio, and e-mail only options, subscribers cherish. It’s a huge opportunity to play a rare leadership role on a high visibility project in the tech-sector, software development and project management communities.
The current forum has a ghetto web home: http://www.scottberkun.com/pmclinic/.
After a few weeks on hiatus, the pm-clinic is back. With a vengeance. New tales of management challenges and great advice await.
This week in the pm-clinic discussion forum:
I was asked by to take over a troubled project. This group is managed by my boss’ peer so I am now dotted-line-reporting to him for this project. This
senior-level manager is not happy about being forced to use me. The project teams are strong but have been micro-managed by said manager who repeatedly
puts the cart before the horse – one of the major reasons the project is in trouble.I, as the white knight,” am being asked to keep the listing ship from completely sinking. Expectations for getting it on track are high, while still meeting some of the originally set timelines.
How do I both manage this project and a sponsor who doesn’t want me as the PM?
-Signed, the white knight
This week in the pm-clinic discussion forum:
Is innovation for innovation’s sake a good idea? I think not, but my new VP has it in his head that our entire organization needs to be more innovative – despite his lack of clarity about what that means. So all of the team leads (including myself) are like a pack of wolves, pacing and racing around our projects.
New ideas are flying all over the place (reorgs, new technologies, new directions), but progress on existing projects has stalled, morale is volatile (rising and falling daily), and there is a shortage on meaningful decisions about why we’re changing things, or how those changes will be made.
How can I help my VP sort out what innovation means? (Or is this some kind of leadership game where he’s testing us by watching our responses)? Or more cynically, protect my team and existing projects from this chaos until it passes?
- Innovate or die
This week in the pm-clinic discussion forum:
A handful of managers that have worked together for years are good friends. One of them, the one with the least competent reputation, left over a year ago, and is now being hired back into the company as a perennial contractor (product manager).
Every time my team has interacted with him, across various contracts and on different projects, we’ve had some kind of performance problem. However given his connections, despite feedback to the contrary, he keeps getting rehired (generally with different teams each time).
What can I do, as a manager myself, to exorcise this ghost employee from my world?
- Signed, Haunted by a ghost employee