Alan Zucker

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker In one of my training classes, there is an exercise to conduct a daily stand-up meeting.  The meeting should be no longer than 15-minutes and be well structured.  In class, we challenge the leader with common distracting and unproductive beha…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker There are many tools to help project teams manage their work, collaborate, and track performance.  The number of options is overwhelming—Capterra has published over 900-project management tool reviews.  I teach project management classes and …

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker I called an old colleague just to say “hello” and see how he was doing.  We have worked together at different companies over the past dozen years.  He is an inspirational finance executive and counted on me to implement his vision.  &#16…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker This year was like living through a 500-year storm.   COVID has infected 1 in 20 Americans, and 1 in 1,000 have died of the disease.  Nearly 15 million people are still out of work.  Thirty-three million have been remote for 9-month…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker Balancing our work and home lives is a challenge that nearly everyone faces.  I was a single parent for many years and managed large teams and projects in Fortune 100 companies.  It was not always easy.  Recently, I was talking to an old…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker Agile is now part of the general business lexicon.  On the news, non-technology leaders keep mentioning the need to be “agile” or “pivot.”  Even leaders of traditional industries, like football, use the terminology to describe their approach …

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker You may be a businessman or some high-degree thief They may call you doctor, or they may call you chief But you have to serve somebody … Bob Dylan No matter your role, you are accountable to someone.  As we ascend the organizational ladder, stakeh…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker We are living in interesting times. All countries are struggling to control the COVID-19 pandemic.  Societies are challenging their histories of racial and social injustice.  Fundamental beliefs are being scrutinized. Considering how we think…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker “If you can’t describe what you are doing as a process, you don’t know what you’re doing.” W. Edwards Deming Our work and home lives our bounded by standard operating procedures and process—and …

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker “…when faced with a difficult question, we often answer an easier one instead, usually without noticing the substitution.”  Daniel Kahneman, Thinking, Fast and Slow In the midst of the pandemic, we have and will continue to face numerous…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker Feedback is a critical and valuable management tool.  For managers, it is the engine of continuous improvement.   For employees, it is the gift of valuable insight.  Unfortunately, many managers feel uncomfortable giving regular fee…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker Productivity is defined as our ability to create value.  Traditionally manufacturers and farmers became more productive by adding resources—people and machines—to the process.  Knowledge workers can generate more value by working smarter, rat…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker The coronavirus pandemic is the most frightening, disruptive, and widespread crisis of our lifetime.  As managers and leaders, none of us have faced challenges of such a magnitude or scale.  Over the next several weeks and probably months, ou…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker Many organizations struggle with project governance, oversight, and control.  The truth is that most projects are not successful.   Over the past 25-years, only 30% of all projects are delivered on-time, on-budget, and with the desired s…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker Disciplined Agile (DA) has the potential to become a leading agile framework because it creates harmony in this congested thought-space.  DA recognizes practices from across the spectrum and offers a pragmatic and context-driven approach to agilit…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker Agile teams using the Scrum framework commit to delivering value in each development sprint.  Sprints are generally 2-weeks long, and the goal is to create working software that can be deployed into production.  While commitment is one of Scr…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker Managers and project managers are often told that “engaging stakeholders” is critical to success.  However, they rarely receive guidance on what it means or how to “engage your stakeholders.”  It is similar to when I started practicing yoga…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker Stakeholder management is one of the most critical project management functions.  Stakeholders are our customers, organizational leaders, members of our project teams, and people we may not even know.  The project manager’s ability to effectively ident…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker Many organizations try to catapult into agility.  Striving to instantaneously transform their traditional practices and culture.   Unfortunately, this strategy is usually painful and often fails. The Scrum Guide states, “Scrum is easy to…

PMP Certification Exam Prep & Training – Velociteach https://www.velociteach.com/ by Alan Zucker The Project Management Institute (PMI) is making a bold pivot toward agile.  As a project manager and an agilist, I am excited by these moves.  At the same time, it is hard to envision both this transition and the future state.  In this …