Merry Christmas to everyone.
And to all of you out there a fantastic picture by my daughter.

Have a healthy and successful year 2010. Looking forward to inspiring conversations.
Keep it up and thanks for what has been 2009 - so far.

What a great idea I have seen today on the web!

Geof Lory explains in his blog post how he used Lego Blocks to build a GANTT Chart to represent in a different way the interdependencies of his project.

GANTT Chart built with Lego

Here are the steps he used to get to the result:

1. Idea was born
2. Quick trip to Legoland
3. Spent 100$
4. Everybody told to use the tools provided and start building
5. Go experimenting
6. No limitations (just restrictions set by the tools provided)

Here are the guidelines / rules used to build the GANTT Chart

1. Bottom Layer (yellow): Time line, every block is a week and date is written on the block
2. Red Layer: Incremental iterations / sprints
3. Green Layer: new functionality being added to production (Release)
4. Other colours: Activities (Design, Development, Testing etc.) are represented
5. People: Different User groups adding to the functionality

What a fantastic way to represent your time line, pieces of work and activities leading to it. And another tool to build a team as everybody is involved to build and maintain it. And beside that, you will build momentum and recognition as you might be the first on using it in your environment.

So go and find a sponsor for the blocks and start building on top of that idea.

I don’t now how upset you have been over the last year, seeing LinkedIn adding more and more functionality, trying to keep up with social media (adding status updates) and real time web (syncing twitter with LinkedIn) and its competitors (adding pictures to profiles). And by doing this, the User Interface got more and more disorganized and ended up to be a clutter.

I used LinkedIn less and less because I couldn’t get use to all the different navigation bars and different ways to navigate around. All the new functionality that had been added ended up somewhere in that huge black hole.

It was time for a redesign. Kevin Bury, the ‘Principal User Experience Designer at LinkedIn, explains in his blog post the reason behind the change

We began the redesign effort several months ago by analysing how people use LinkedIn.  We looked at what features people use the most and pored over several years of data from usability research on the site. Armed with this information we began doing design explorations of how to better organize LinkedIn features, and make them more convenient to find and use.

We factored into this effort additional features we knew were coming. We narrowed down the designs to a few candidates we felt were strong contenders. We then prototyped these designs and had users perform tasks with the prototypes in the usability lab. We went through numerous iterations until we arrived at a design we felt worked the best.  One of the key features of the new design is that it allows much more space for page content – information about you and your professional network.

and the new design elements

A global navigation bar at the top of the page that provides convenient access to all LinkedIn services.

Simplified local navigation within each of the LinkedIn areas (Profile, Contacts, Groups, etc.).

More room available for page content. Less scrolling.

cleaner, less-cluttered look.

The new User Interface is live and I must say after the first look and feel, it ROCKS!. Far easier to navigate through the site and the elements used are more common to what is out there on the web. More room and more space to breath. Thanks

After our new book ‘Kompendium fuer ITIL V3 Projekte‘ has been listed 2 weeks ago and is now available for purchase we already have received a great review, that I would like to share with you on my blog.

Its fantastic to see that our new book (basically its the 2nd edition or 2nd version of our book published in September 2006) already receives great reviews and high marks.

Mark Oliver Stromberg, the one reviewed our book, says ‘Sehr gutes Überblickswerk und ein MUSS für jeden der sich mit der Einführung eines ITSM beschäftigt‘:

Das Kompendium für ITIL V3 Projekte bietet dem Leser einen sehr schnellen und guten Einblick in die Umsetzung von ITIL-Projekten in Unternehmen. Es beinhaltet sehr informative Beschreibungen der einzelnen ITSM-Prozesse und der jeweiligen Projektphasen, die auch “Nicht-Experten” einen schnellen Zugang zu diesem Thema ermöglichen.

Gut gefallen hat mir die Verbindung von Projektmanagement-Ansätzen mit den pragmatischen Hilfsmitteln zur Prozessimplementierung und -optimierung. Das Buch ist Kapitel für Kapitel einheitlich aufgebaut, so dass man in allen Phasen eines Projekts einsteigen kann.

Fazit: Ein hervorragendes und absolut empfehlenswertes Buch!

So thanks to our first reviewer and we are looking forward to see more like this in the near and far future. We have put a lot of effort into this book and we are glad that it pays off. Thanks again.

I have been on twitter for the last 2 weeks.

After a friend of mine said to me, that twitter is a great resource and great articles and pearls are referred to, I started to create an account, loaded the great ‘Tweetie 2′ Application onto my iPhone and gave it a go. I looked for public known PMs within twitter, like the ‘pmstudent‘ or ‘CorneliusFicht‘ aka Cornelius Fichtner and started to build my ‘network’ on Twitter. I started following Project Managers and accounts from Companies. During that time Twitter announced the ‘list’ feature, where you are able to categorize Twitter accounts into lists so that you can build areas of interests. So it started to set-up a list which follows great individuals around project management (you can see it on the right side in my blog; an example for the real time web, where all new tweets are published at the very second they are visible on twitter).

So after two weeks I almost posted 200 tweets, more or less in the area of project management, and I do have around 80 followers. I guess most of the followers are not organic, they follow me because of specific key words I have used in my tweets. Those guys are following a couple of thousand accounts or even more, and I am not sure how you can follow more than appr. 200 people. I would call that information overload.

But the best part are the tweets that I am seeing every day (I check them while I am on the train in the morning and in the evening while going to work and back home; wondering sometimes how I get there as I am fully focused on my iPhone :-) )

Out of all these tweets I am getting I do tag the ones as favourites that are focusing on my key areas of interest like ‘pearls in project management‘, ‘social media and project management‘, ‘How to use agile approaches in your projects‘ and other special topics.

As I have written 2 books in the recent past and another one due to be published in December this year, the next book has been planned and kicked off already which will focus on revolutions in project management, twitter has become a key resource for me. Just look at the fantastic pearls I have identified in the various fields over the last two weeks (abstract) thanks to all the great people I am following.

Perls in Project Management:

1. theplanis : New article: Disaster projects and how to recover them: http://bit.ly/7UAJWF
2. projekt_log : Super Artikel über Festpreisprojekte und Scrum: http://bit.ly/8cqOOQ
3. commsabilities : PMs: practical advice on how to turn projects round using communications http://cli.gs/2QRPj
4. pmstudent :What to Include in Your Project Kickoff Presentation: http://bit.ly/8JWncM #PMOT

Social Media and Project Management:

1. JoachimNiemeier : 12 Adoption Strategies for Web 2.0 and Enterprise 2.0 - http://bit.ly/8HwJgH
2. shim_marom : “Social Media in the work place | quantmleap” ( http://bit.ly/7GY0Pi )
3. tweetmeme : 10 Ways Social Media Will Change In 2010 http://bit.ly/7vKnms

Agile Approaches:

1. zcope : Turning #Storyboards into #Agile #Requirements http://bit.ly/5lYDtp
2. thepmp : Presentation: Principles and Practices of Lean-Agile Software Development http://bit.ly/4th6kj
3. garmahis : The waterfall trap for “agile” projects http://bit.ly/4JlTwi

Specials:

1. garmahis : Nine Awesome iPhone Apps for Business - ReadWriteEnterprise http://bit.ly/4pUwa2
2. chaoskind : Betrachte nicht müßig den Steinhaufen, sondern frage dich, wen du damit bewerfen kannst. (Persisches Sprichwort)
   
3. PhilipGDavis : Tips For Attractive Book Covers http://bit.ly/8egDWJ

Twitter is wonderful and I am looking forward to receive more perls and to contribute to the #pmot network. Thanks to everybody out there.

Yesterday I attended a presentation session, organized by the GPM (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Projekt Management), called “Agiles SW-Projektmangement - Ist Softwareprojektmanagement ohne agile Techniken und Werte noch verantwortbar?”, which basically means weather you can ‘afford’ to do Software Development Projects without using Agile Apporaches. Presented by Dipl.-Ing. Bernd Oestereich, Geschäftsführender Gesellschafter oose Innovative Informatik GmbH, based in Hamburg. The outline says:

Aktuelle Studien zeigen, dass agile Methoden wie Scrum, APM und XP sich immer mehr verbreiten. Ebenso bedienen sich auch viele traditionelle Projektmanager immer systematischer bei den vielen einzelnen Techniken aus dem agilen PM. Was dafür sorgt, dass die Übergänge fließend werden.
Statistiken von Standish, Gartner & Co. in den letzten Jahren zunehmend mehr erfolgreichere SW-Projekte ausweisen, so sind die absoluten Zahlen doch weiterhin unbefriedigend. Als ein entscheidender Unterschied zwischen erfolgreichen und weniger erfolgreichen Projekten wird immer wieder das so genannte agile PM angeführt.
Trotzdem ist Agilität kein Allheilmittel. Eine aktuelle gemeinsame Studie von GPM, PMI und oose zu den Erfolgsfaktoren agiler Projekte belegt, dass weniger die Wahl einer Methode wie Scrum, APM etc. erfolgsentscheidend ist, sondern das richtige Verständnis und die richtige Anwendung weniger ausgewählter Konzepte und Techniken. Welche das sind und vor allem, was das bedeutet, stellt Bernd Oestereich in seinem Vortrag dar.

Bottom Line, you should look at Agile Approaches and decide which one could work in your project, like making small iterations rather than slow motion waterfall and other approaches.

Great presentation with lots of facts. I was sitting in the audience and used a different type to minute that presentation. I used twitter to highlight the key messages. Here is the stream:

1. Attending GPM presentation in Frankfurt on agile software project management. Keen. Will start soon.
2. Interesting study results are presented. Agile vs waterfall - succesful vs unsuccessful.
3. It’s all about applying the right agile technics to the approach you are using for your software project.
4. Iterations are short and sweet. Average 4 weeks and certain technics (planning, retrospective, etc.) are to be applied.
5. Changes are welcome in agile. Requirements are designed, developed and presented to customer. Achievements secured.
6. Milestone vs timebox. Deliver a scope or deliver a timebox (things achieved in a certain timeframe).
7. Project level followed by release level followed by team- and iteration level incl feedback loops and propability questioning.
8. From project target via product features via release features and iteration features to the word order.
9. Now we see an example where agile methods have been applied. Container terminal software project in hamburg.
10. Explaining the apm-timebox-iteration-modell. Wow, what a slide @presentationzen wouldn’t like this one.
11. Question on costs. Agile more expensive but higher quality, higher likelihood to be successful, customer receives what expected.
12. Q&A almost over. Question on who would apply the approaches presented … Small number of hands. How ever, great pres.

Interesting way of floowing a presentation and stepping into a discussions with followers on Twitter. Looking forward to the next session.

The PMBOK has been rewriten and enhanced and published throughout this year.

I have just came across in interesting article that describes all the major changes that have been applied to the 4th edition.

So what has changed (read the article for further information):

1. Consistency around the terminology and concepts used
2. clear and standardized writing style
3. Some minor process changes
4. Consideration of new PM practices (Agile etc.)

A great step forward but nothing really new.

As I have written in my past post, the methods and tools around Project Management do not change much. We are vertically rather than expanding the horizon. Agile gave some new momentum to the industry and new books have been published around this topic and you see more and more presentations on conferences. But emagine, after some years you would need to rewrite was has happened on the Internet, I am sure that book would have for more major changes than a book about project management.

As said, I am glad that there are projects as they make our lives.

I am just wondering, what has changed in the recent past in project management and what has been really new? To be honest, not much.

In the last 2 years I have visited a couple of project management conferences and I have presented on some, I have facilitated workshops, chaired whole conferences and gave presentations on several topics. What I have realized, especially in the break out sessions that we talk stuff over and over … and over. We dig deaply into Risk Management, Communication Management, Stakeholder Management, Quality Management and all other interesting topics around our micro cosmos. But really new stuff … I have’nt seen it.

OK, you might say … Agile … ! Yes, but isnt agile just a rapid waterfall with a different terminology?

OK, you might say … Web 2.0 … ! Yes, it has changed and will change the way how we communicate among teams, especially in a global and outsourced world. But is this anything new to Project Management?

Even PMI shows with their new credential programs, that they are going ‘more detail’. The PMI Risk Management Specialist, The PMI Scheduling Professional and more to come. The techniques and the terminology are enhanced but is there anything new to it?

Unfortunately a project is a project is a project. And project management compared to whats happening in the web 2010 and the dynamic thats happening in that field might look very boaring from the outside.

How ever, I am glad that there are projects! Which are not boaring at all, as every project is different and has it’s own challenges.

So lets do projects.

I just recently learned from Scoble (Famous Blogger in the western hemisphere) that Twitter has introduced Lists. I havent been a big fan of Twitter … yet. But now with this feature it covinced even me to join and to give it a try.

Twitter is not just about following people and yelling out the information that you just had a sandwich and waiting that people start following you. The question how smart they need to be or how much time the must have to follow you to understand when you have had your sandwich.

But there are are really smart people out there twittering about great news and fantastic stuff thay you might never had heard of or way to late, ‘wenn der Zug abgefahren ist’. To follow these guys is smart. Putting them into a list for a specific topic e.g. Project Management. And then, even smarter, to put them on your blog and pimp your blog in that way.

On the right sidebar you can see the new widget that you can customize yourself in twitter. In this list I have added some people that are ‘big’ in project management or in a peer area. They have something to say. They will point you in new directions. And sometimes they might even tell you that they have had a great tasty sandwich. I will increas the list overtime to give all of us the opportunity to learn more faster.

After years with XING and LinkedIn and after getting my iPhone working I started a new account on facebook. It took me, I guess, almost two years after i sign up with them.

A great experience.

After signing up and after using my email accounts to identify the first friends, the mails just kept on coming. One after the other was accepting my friend request, every secong send a personal note and after that the momentum kept on going. Unbelievable the vibe, stil and dynamic of the communication that is happening.

Its completely different to the communication dynamics that are happening on XING and LinkedIn. Not that it is more personally but direct in a sense of almost realtime. The reason is that facebook is communication centric. Its about sharing, commenting and ‘like’ing information others, like your friends are providing.

The iPhone application rocks and is in some parts even better and user friendly than the facebook website frontend. By the way its on of the best rated iphone apps in the store.

So lets keep the communication going and visit me on facebook.