September 23 marked the first day of fall.  Summer vacation memories may still be vivid but we all know: “Winter is Coming”. When the days are getting shorter and the weather colder and gloomier, it can severely affect our moods. 

Photo by Unsplash User Pavan Trikutam

The world today is more connected than ever. This has opened up a lot of opportunities for businesses to grow, but it also introduced new challenges. As international projects and cross-cultural project teams are becoming the norm rather than the exception, project managers need to improve their intercultural communication skills, if they want to lead their teams and projects to success.

Background photo by Unsplash User Anthony DELANOIX

Our CEOs are very busy individuals. Charged with running a small, medium or large organization, sometimes they are busier than the President of the United States. That said, their focus can never be too broad – or should I say, broad enough. It will always fall short, it can never include everything, and will sometimes overlook some of the most critical facets and success ingredients in their organization.  One of those – in my opinion – is the very real, very critical nature of project management.

Working on a project means working in a team. When different personalities and work styles come together, it is inevitable that disagreements arise. However, if you want to reach your project goals and deliver valuables to the firm, it is vital that the team gets over these issues and works together efficiently. 

Photo by Pixabay User Comfreak (edited)

‘Thought Leader’ is one of the buzzwords in business nowadays. What distinguishes a thought leader from a ‘normal’ leader?  Simply speaking, thought leaders are what the internet would call influencers, they are those with high Klout scores and high follower numbers on Twitter because they are experts in one specialized field. 

Photo by Flickr User Mainstream (edited), Licensed under CC BY 2.0

It’s that time of the year again! No, we don’t mean football season (though that started last week, too), we’re talking about New York Fashion Week! Let’s take this opportunity to look behind the scenes of the fashion industry and see how project management fits into the picture. 

Photo by Unsplash User Christian Holzinger

Labor Day marks the end of summer. School has started again and most offices are almost back to being fully staffed. Just as parents help their children with the transition to their daily school routine, a project leader can help their team refocus after a vacation. 

Photo by Unsplash User Jon Eckert (edited)

What do J.K. Rowling, Steve Jobs, Oprah and Walt Disney have in common? If you’re thinking SUCCESS, then you’re correct. But they have something else in common: FAILURE. This shows that the road to success is often paved with rejection and mistakes. What is important is that you don’t give up and keep going. 

Communication is Job #1 for the project manager.  I’ve long established my opinion about that concept.  Communication is the first building block in the success – or failure – of a project.  But it isn’t enough to just communicate.  The communication has to be heard and – if it warrants a response – responded to.

Photo by Pixabay User stux

When people hear ‘design’ they automatically associate it with the appearance of a product, but ‘Design Thinking’ goes much further than that. It’s not just about how the end product looks like, it focuses on the process of developing a product and places the human factor at the center.