Book Review – The Lazy Project Manager

Just as over the past few months, at the request of the Arras People, I am bringing you their October book review.  This time, it’s “The Lazy Project Manager” by Peter Taylor, who now also write for PM Tips.  The book review was authored by John Zachar.  John’s views of the book that he expresses as part of this review do not necessarily reflect the views of his employer, APM.

Book Review – The Lazy Project Manager

Peter Taylor, available through Amazon

Review by John Zachar, APM

It is extremely unusual for me to pick up a ‘management book’ involuntarily. I think I lost that particular desire when I did my MBA in the nineties. However, occasionally there is a need to acquire additional information or background knowledge.

So it was with some trepidation that I picked up Peter Taylor’s book one Sunday afternoon, knowing that I’d promised a review. I finished it later that day, having only put it down for a meal. I really, really enjoyed it.

I’ve read a number of the ‘jokey’ type of management books over the years; those that have catchy titles, and purport to be a fun read, yet seem to be. This time I was pleasantly surprised that the book not only caught and kept my attention, but that it did it in a very enjoyable, easily absorbed way.

Peter’s use of analogies and stories is where I found some of the value. The remainder of the value came in the real content of the book. Over the years as a project / programme management consultant, lecturer, teacher and practitioner, I’ve built up a pretty good education about how to manage change into organisations through projects. I cannot find fault with any of Peter’s recommendations – especially the bit about being lazy!

Peter has been able to enrich the content by using his stories and analogies to make a number of points, all of them common sense; even things like “it is important to separate the important from the immediate” (my words not his – you find his analogy in the book).

One of the analogies that Peter uses, almost from the outset, is that of a dinosaur – in fact a brontosaurus. “I’m sure you know the one, thin at the front, thick in the middle, then thin at the other end.” Well, Peter modifies the analogy a bit by saying that projects should be thick at the front, thin in the middle and thick at the other end again.

The thickness of the project shape represents the amount of effort or work that needs to be done at that stage of the project. The corollary is: initiate well, compensating for difficulties, be lazy in the middle because a well organised project can run on its own like a well oiled machine if initiated well, then put some effort into finishing with real enthusiasm, helping all the stakeholders realise how well it has gone, and what a wonderful result we have.

Organising your project in this fashion allows you to apply the principles of being a lazy project manager – and still be successful. That is really what it is all about.

Don’t forget: this is not about just being lazy and not doing the job – this is being lazy, and being successful as well. Do the job, but do the job in the most intelligent way you can, so that you can be lazy when you can. That is my kind of project management. The other bits that are interspersed throughout the book are about how to achieve the above by using a great deal of common sense.

Peter’s book made this entertaining, yet useful for me.

This article originally appeared in the October edition of Project Management Tipoffs, the project management issues newsletter from Arras People. Subscribe to Tipoffs today.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: John Zachar is the Product Development Manager with the APM. He has previously written for both Tipoffs and How to Manage a Camel, and would love to hear your feedback. Feel free to contact John with your thoughts about The Lazy Project Manager at john.zachar@btinternet.com. This review is the work of Mr Zachar and is no way connected to any views, beliefs or opinions of the APM.

Project Management from a Distance – Part 1

In this six-part series, I plan to cover the following topics of remote project management:

Part 1 – Why remote?

Part 2 – Will it work for you?

Part 3 – What type of job enables remote PM?

Part 4 – What setup do you need?

Part 5 – Negotiating when it’s not an obvious move

Part 6 – Staying the course

In this first part of what I plan to be a six-part series, we ask the question why remote? Why would you want to cut yourself off from your co-workers and hermit-up (is that a word?) in your house to work? Why would you want to hang around your family and have them interfere with your productivity? Can you separate work from home?

These are all good questions and must be asked – and answered – before you decide to go remote or even try to go remote. First let’s look at why someone would want to go remote. Some of those other questions above will be discussed in future installments in this series.

My Situation

For me, when I first started managing projects remotely it seemed like a no-brainer. I was managing large projects with teams of resources who were already dispersed around the country. It didn’t make much sense for me to drive to an office that was nearly an hour’s drive away and spend nearly $250/month in gasoline alone just for the privilege of sitting at a desk surrounded by people making noise and distracting me. It didn’t add up. By going remote, I gained back about 90 minutes of my life – and potential work time – just by not driving to the office. Over the course of a full month of workdays, that’s about 30 hours.

Not every situation is going to be that cut and dried, but mine was. I would go to the main office on occasion, but 95% of the time I was able to do everything I needed to do from my home office – not including, of course, the onsite customer kickoff sessions, etc.

Other Scenarios

In my situation, it was common sense. Each person needs to look at their own situation and their own reasons. Let’s say, for example, that you want to manage projects remotely because you have small kids and want to help out around the house. That’s nice and depending on your projects and call schedules, you can probably pull that off and remain fully productive. However, using that as a reason isn’t likely to fly with your executive management team. And it also doesn’t mean you’ll be a productive leader of your project resources. It doesn’t mean you won’t, but if that is your PRIMARY reason for wanting this working situation, then that’s not good.

Another reason may be health-related. There are definitely good reasons related to health issues that either just came up or have already existed for a long time to make you want to or need to work remotely and ones that your employer should probably understand and work to accommodate. That, of course, is between you and your employer…and possibly your lawyer – your call.

Summary

The bottom line is – you need to figure out why you want to do it and see if it’s a good enough reason to do it. And will your situation let you be productive in a remote working or telecommuting situation? Those are the things you need to ask yourself. Oh, and don’t forget to ask you family….you may think they want you around only to find out that they’re more productive with you gone. I’ve faced that reality a time or two!

Book Review: The Invisible Candidate

The August 2009 book review brought to you by Arras People covers Tony Haley’s book entitled, “The Invisible Candidate.” This book is available through www.invisiblecandidate.com.

The Review

Just this week on the radio, there had been a jobseeker telling the interviewer all about the 700 jobs they have applied for which had resulted in 11 interviews but still no luck in landing a new job. The interviewer duly noted that the jobseeker really needs to get some help because they must be doing something wrong. The “Invisible Candidate” is not merely for the hapless serial applier of jobs but for any current jobseeker in the UK that wants to stand out from the crowd and beat the competition to their dream job. Anthony Haley’s book is current (the advice given is all in line with the current economic downturn), practical common sense, and crucially brings tools and techniques that are sales in nature, but translate beautifully to the business of getting a job. The “Invisible Candidate” is so called because;

“If you are busy sending out your CV and attending interviews but are not having any success in getting a job, you might be the Invisible Candidate. …. Are you even looking for a job where 70% to 80% of jobs exist? A combination of these two factors is making you invisible”

“The Invisible Candidate” is like having your own job coach: Haley’s style is straight to the point and he obviously has many years of experience that all makes perfect sense (especially at the senior end of the market as a head-hunter). It is for this reason that I felt that the “Invisible Candidate” would appeal to the project management marketplace: This book is about seizing the opportunity, understanding your skills and experiences to provide the necessary motivation to lift yourself above “today’s dysfunctional job market” to get the job you really want, rather than just any old job to pay the bills.

Haley’s approach essentially utilises sales skills to sell yourself and you may think that sounds like nothing new. But we still see in the marketplace people relying too much on job boards to find positions, outsourcing of your own CV writing to companies that may or may not have your best interests at heart, and, like the opening paragraph, some people still using methods that fail to land themselves a job.

The “Invisible Candidate” takes the reader through the job hunting process from where to find your ideal position (over 70% of vacancies are never advertised), plus self analysis to understand who you are, what you’re worth and what you’ve got to offer. It’s a technique that is straightforward with a very powerful outcome for any jobseeker. Of course the CV is covered, and mirrors the advice I always give out, too; “You will need several versions of your CV to suit different companies so do not be concerned with how many”. Remember: this book is all about making yourself visible to the employing organisation and Haley’s common-sense approach should be heeded by everyone when creating your CV.

Practical advice continues through making calls to the organisations you would ideally like to be working for, the importance of interview etiquette and surprisingly, good sections on the psychological, including use of NLP and the importance of body language in “business meetings” (Think of interviews like business meetings, a two-way street). The book also takes the reader through first and second interviews, psychometric testing, the offer process and counter offers, all with the tools and techniques to make you, the jobseeker, the most visible and likely candidate for the job. The “Invisible Candidate” leaves the reader feeling empowered in the job hunting process: it is all about both taking control and being in control throughout the entire process. Sometimes this might mean walking away from a potential opportunity, but at least the decision is firmly in your corner (indeed Haley gives a great insight into how the UK recruitment market works and how organisations deal with the business of employing people; sometimes you know when it’s better to walk away!)

This book is not for the jobseeker who wants to carry on applying for vacancies on job boards and the national press, sending the same old “me too” CV with cover note that says not very much at all. This book is for the jobseeker who wants to be proactive in their search; who is not scared of trying new techniques that may very well take you out of your comfort zone; who is looking for a much more professional approach to the whole business of job hunting. The “Invisible Candidate” is more about acquiring life skills primarily for job hunting but ultimately, you will be left with new skills which can be used throughout your professional career.

I particularly liked the quote in the book (of which there are many), which sums up the “Invisible Candidate” and whether, as a project manager, you should grab a copy;

“The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who cannot read them” – Mark Twain

- Lindsay Scott, Arras People

About Arras People

Arras People is a Project Management company delivering Recruitment and Resourcing solutions in the area of Programme and Project Management.

100% focused on providing Project Management professionals they supply contract, interim, temporary and permanent recruitment services across the UK and across all industry sectors including, public sector (central and local government), IT, engineering, banking & finance, marketing and media organizations, not-for-profit and charities.