Episode 013: More on Methodologies

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The main focus of today's show is the continuation of what we started two weeks ago when we looked at an overview of what project management methodologies are. Today, I am giving you a high level overview of several of these methodologies. You'll also get to hear several new helpful resources and news items.

Note: In the podcast we say that you cannot claim PDUs for listening to podcasts. However, that was in 2005. In the meantime PMI has "come around" and today the word "podcast" is even mentioned in PMI's PDU category structure. So it is now OK to claim free PDUs for listening: See www.project-management-podcast.com/pdu

Project Management in the News

- Google Thinks Small
- PMI Sao Paulo Conference attracts a capacity conference
- Cargo cult dooms project to failure
- Marketing company moves to Web project management
- Important information regarding the PMP® Examination.

Episode Transcript

Below are the first few pages of a computer-generated transcript with all its computer-generated quirks.

Speaker 1 (00:00:00): [inaudible]

Cornelius Fichtner (00:00:11):

You are listening to the project management podcast. We bring project management topics to beginners and experts. Find us on the web at pmpodcast.blogspot.com or send your emails to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Hello, and welcome to show number 13. I am Cornelius Fichtner. Now this is the project management podcast for the 3rd of December, 2005. And today we will continue on the road down towards project management methodology. Today, it's going to be a high level overview of several popular project management methodologies, and like every week to start out the show, here are a few announcement and things that I want to get off my chest. And we'll start out with a word from our sponsor.

Cornelius Fichtner (00:01:04):

Project load is the web based project management tool for your team as project manager, you create the tasks and assign activities as your team progresses. Their time sheets automatically feed into project reports with task forecasting documents, storage, integrated notes, and over 25 alerts project load is the one tool for project monitoring. Visit This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Yeah. If you remember last week, I spoke about the listener's survey and if you listen to and like the project management podcast, and you're obviously listening to him now, then I'd appreciate it. If you could take a few moments and go to the blog and click on the listener survey link, it'll take about three minutes for you to fill out the 10 questions. And one of the requests that I've already seen in the survey is that you would like more tips to me that means more short and easy to implement tips.

Cornelius Fichtner (00:02:09):

Those of you who listen all the way to the end of the show, you know, that I always throw in a quick joke and a little nugget of wisdom ride at the end of the show. Um, yeah, that's actually the tip there, but the feedback here tells me that more tips like that are needed. And that is why I am now thinking about introducing a new show segment called the project management tip of the week. That's going to be a short one to two minutes segment with a quick tip that you can easily use and implement. So you can see that your voice actually counts. And I listened to you and you can look out for this project management tip of the week, coming your way in a couple of shows down the road. So if you want to improve the show, if you want to have voice heard, please help improve the program and fill in the survey that I have for you.

Cornelius Fichtner (00:03:06):

I have also put up a press release. If you go to the blog, you will find a short and a long version of this press release. And I would very much appreciate it. If you could use that press release in your newsletter, be printed or an electronic format, or maybe even a, if you have a new section on your website, post my press release, that would help me to push out the information about the show and a very special, thank you goes to the PMI Alaska chapter because they have not only put the press release. Actually they did not put the press release onto their website. They did since even something even much better, they put a link to my podcast onto their website. The complete RSS feed is actually visible on their website and right there on the front page, plus they have included a short blurb about the project management podcast in the electronic newsletter.

Cornelius Fichtner (00:04:13):

So thank you very much. PMI, Alaska chapter, and a similar thank you goes to Silvio, skip box on from Brazil. And he writes to me, I added your link in my message this week to the PMI Sao Paolo chapter. We have more than 1600 members in Sao Paulo. I am sure Renato Feccine. The president of the chapter may contact you for more information, many PMs in Brazil, speak English, and we'll be interested. Congratulations for your excellent job. And please, if you can continue with, can continue with this work that I know is very hard. Please keep the blog and the podcast updated. It is a valued source of information for all of us project managers. Well Silvio. I really appreciate anything you, everything that you did in order to get my podcast message out in Brazil. And of course, all of those of you out there who are going to use either the short or the long version of the press release.

Cornelius Fichtner (00:05:25):

Thank you very much for helping me to get the word out there now onto some more reader feedback that I have received over the last two weeks. The first one here comes from Paulo Cush. He writes, I am a listener from Porto Portugal, and I really enjoy your show. I would like to ask you for some advice, he then goes into a long, long question about setting up a PMO, and I'm going to be answering that question to him offline here. And he ends by saying, and I liked that very much, very much here. Once again. I really enjoy your show. I am looking forward to the one hundreds show. Well, so am I, it's a long way to go here. We have 87 shows to go until we will be at show number 100, but I am looking forward to doing it. My second reader feedback is from Greg Simarusti.

Cornelius Fichtner (00:06:29):

I hope I haven't mispronounced that name too much, Greg. He writes I'm a member of the PMI-OC, that is a in fact, the PMI chapter of which I am a member of as well here in orange County in California. So he goes on and I have met you on several occasions. Don't remember it. Sorry, Greg. My mind seems to be going. I congratulate you on your podcast and look forward to future recordings. I was just wondering if there is a problem with the podcast server for the last two days, I have been trying to download the last six episodes. I have the first seven and was wondering if there may be a server problem. Well, I haven't noticed anything. I see that the downloads continue to go up and up every day, but, uh, what do I know, maybe there are in fact issues out there.

Cornelius Fichtner (00:07:26):

So if there is anybody else out there who has download problems, please send me an email because if there is a real outage, then I would like to make sure that this gets fixed as soon as possible. Third and last reader feedback here comes from Sean Howell. Unfortunately, I don't know where Sean is from. He writes your podcast is quite well done and I enjoy listening to them. I am a contract junior project manager currently working in on process improvement and integration. Can you talk about your view about how being a process manager relates to being a project manager? I think that would be an interesting show. I betted would a, what I'm going to do folks is I'm going to get in touch with Sean. I'm going to find out from Shawn, his views on process management. And I am going to get you some feedback on this here so much for the reader feedback.

Cornelius Fichtner (00:08:32):

I really appreciate all the letters that I'm getting here. And I promise I'm trying to get all of you. Write to me on the air here on the show. I have also received some feedback from the PMI regarding my question, whether listening to the project management podcast is a qualifying activity. So can a PMP, who's listening to this show claim. PDUs the response I have received came from Edwin Delgado. He writes though, I believe that your podcast may provide information regarding project management and that spreading the word through a broadcast like yours may be a great platform to spread the word of project management. There is no way for anyone listening to your program to report this for PDUs. Also, your podcast would not fall under category. Number four, as this category is reserved for structured PM courses and not a media source. All right, to me at this point, this means that if you are a PMP and you are listening regularly to the project management podcast, you cannot claim this as a qualifying activities for gaining PDUs.

Above are the first few pages of a computer-generated transcript with all its computer-generated quirks. A human-generated transcript is available to Premium subscribers starting with episode 136.