Working Up

Working Up in Project Management, Systems Engineering, Technology, and Writing

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Losing Their Way

June 23rd, 2014 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Sometimes, projects and the people working on them lose their way. This is an expression I heard many times over the years. They’ve lost their way. I didn’t understand the expression. I suppose it was one of those grand mistakes that I never assumed people would make, but time showed me over […]

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Tags: Change · Management · Work

Policy

May 12th, 2014 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Senior managers issue policy. That is one of the more important tasks they do. A misunderstanding of policy statements and their purpose has given them a bad name. A better understanding of policy statements aids everyone in an organization. Issuing policy is one of the more important tasks that managers can do. […]

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Tags: Choose · Communication · Management

The Bologna Environment

April 24th, 2014 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips I’ve heard people in meetings tell me stuff that was just pure bologna. Then I had to ask myself why I created an environment where people told me bologna instead of the truth. I once managed a project where an engineer stood in a meeting and explained that a hardware part had […]

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Tags: Communication · Management · Meetings

Herding Cats and Those People Who Say That

April 14th, 2014 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips I ache for the people who say “herding cats.” I really ache for the people who work with the people who say “heading cats.” Almost every week, I hear someone say: Managing fill-in-the-blank is like herding cats. Deep sigh and groan. I ache. How can a person refer to their colleagues as […]

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Tags: Communication · Management

Advise vs Assist

March 24th, 2014 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips If possible, assist instead of advise. I worked in a government bureaucracy for over 25 years. A favorite practice to this day is the review board. Some unlucky and usually young engineer works really hard for weeks and then brings the work before a group of older engineers. The older engineers pick […]

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Tags: Learning · Management

Eliminate Vice Solve the Problem

March 3rd, 2014 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips I am a problem solver. Sometimes, however, solving a problem is the worst thing to do. This story made the rounds recently about how our military is experimenting with small jolts of electricity to keep sleep-deprived troops awake. The electricity might have fewer bad side affects than the current treatment — lots […]

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Tags: Change · Management · Problems · Work

The Purpose

February 10th, 2014 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips People often choose a development method without any reason other than, “that is what everyone is doing now.” I urge a bit more thought. More thought on day one brings more time and energy the rest of the way. Agile development is all the rage today. I know because I am unemployed […]

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Tags: Culture · Management · Problems · Process

A Sense (and Source) of Urgency

January 30th, 2014 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips A sense of urgency is obvious as people think, work, and move faster than when there is no such sense. There is a source of urgency that managers can find to help instill the sense. 1980, (yes, I am that old) I visited several contractors who were working with us. People moved […]

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Tags: Management · Work

No Surprises

December 16th, 2013 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips A phrase I often heard from my superiors, what “no surprises” really means. I don’t know how many times I heard it uttered in angst, “No surprises, no surprises, no surprises.” That is what my superiors constantly told me and my colleagues. This was one of those things that everyone acted like […]

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Tags: Communication · Management

The Most Important Moment in a Project

December 2nd, 2013 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips The most important moment in a project is not when you hold your breath during the final system test. Rather, it is a moment of interaction between persons. Quick and to the point: The most important moment in a project is when a person tells the project manager some “bad” news, and […]

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Tags: Management · Observation · People