Alan Zucker

Modern management theory is built on the premise of trust.  If management creates a values-based culture, employees will make the “right” decisions.   Douglas McGregor described Theory X (not trusting) and Y (trusting) managers.   The 1950s were an inf…

The virtues of high-performing teams are well documented.  They are 50% more productive.  They are more creative, and members are 76% more likely to be engaged.  Gallup studies of organizational performance find that companies with highl…

The virtues of high-performing teams are well documented.  They are 50% more productive.  They are more creative, and members are 76% more likely to be engaged.  Gallup studies of organizational performance find that companies with highl…

The traditional definition of optics is the scientific study of sight or light.  An alternative description relates to politics and refers to the perception of a situation.  The political origin dates back to the Carter Administration when a …

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…

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 …

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…

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…

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…

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 …

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…

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…

“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 …

“…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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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…