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This episode is sponsored by The Agile PrepCast for The PMI-ACP® Exam:

Whether you are a project manager, technical lead, team leader--no matter what your official title, you’re expected to get the project completed through others. Project success depends upon your abilities as a coach, team builder, and skillful motivator. There are few natural born leaders. The top project managers made the journey to effective leader by using their talent and focusing on learning the important skills needed to succeed, and indeed we've looked at many of those skills as part of our leadership podcasts in the past.

In this interview with Carla Fair-Wright (Optimal Consulting - www.opc-houston.com) we will will cover the 5 levels of leadership defined by internationally recognized leadership expert John C. Maxwell. You’ll learn what they are and how to apply them on your own leadership approach.

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This episode is sponsored by The Agile PrepCast for The PMI-ACP Exam:

According to a study published in the Journal of Business and Psychology, leaders who make mistakes are seen as less competent, less desirable to work for and less effective than leaders who do not. However, in a complex business world, mistakes are unavoidable. What separates us project managers from everyone else is that we often aren’t afraid to make mistakes, are resilient and know how to rebound from them. But how?

Carla Fair-Wright (Optimal Consulting - www.opc-houston.com) is a long-time listener of The PM Podcast. She got in touch with me and asked if her presentation, "How to Recover from Mistakes and Keep the Project Moving" might be a good fit for us. Of course it is. In our interview she explains five of the top ten most common mistakes project managers make and how to avoid them.

We’ll discuss techniques from positive psychology and competitive sports that focus on how to quickly rebound from mistakes and, how to cultivate and use a strategic system for mitigating them. You will also learn how to manage your own reaction along with the loss of trust or damage to one’s reputation that can happen.

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This episode is sponsored by The Agile PrepCast for The PMI-ACP Exam:

This is part 2 of our interview with Kevin Reilly and how he prepared for and then also passed the PMI Agile-Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP)® Exam. Hearing him speak is a great reminder for us all that having a plan and sticking to it as we prepare is paramount in our exam preparation. But almost more importantly, hearing someone else talk about how they managed to pass their exam serves as a boost for all of us who are also on the path of becoming PMI-ACP certified. (Disclaimer: Kevin Reilly works as a contractor for OSP International LLC, who produce both The PM Podcast and The Agile PrepCast).

As you know, the rules of all PMI exams are such that we are not allowed to discuss specific questions from the exam. But we can discuss his overall experience, general thoughts on the process and his recommendations to you.

During the interview you will hear us make several references to The Agile PrepCast. So if you yourself are interested in becoming PMI-ACP certified, then sign up to The Agile PrepCast newsletter at www.pm-prepcast.com/agile and be among the first to prepare for your exam using our new sister podcast. We’re furiously working to get it finished.

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The Project Management Podcast is late due to a death in my family. But I'm back at the office now and we'll be bringing you new PM Interviews soon.

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This episode is sponsored by The Agile PrepCast for The PMI-ACP Exam:

As we are recording this episode there are about 1,500 project managers around the world who have passed the PMI Agile-Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP)® Exam. Last year around this time there were zero. This is because the PMI-ACP certification is the newest exam offered by the Project Management Institute (PMI)®.

In today’s episode we have our first interview for you, in which a successful PMI-ACP exam taker opens up to you and talks about what it was like for him. His name is Kevin Reilly and we’ve had him on the program earlier this year. (Disclaimer: Kevin Reilly works as a contractor for OSP International LLC, who produce both The PM Podcast and The Agile PrepCast).

As you know, the rules of all PMI exams are such that we are not allowed to discuss specific questions from the exam. But we can discuss his overall experience, general thoughts on the process and his recommendations to you.

And since Kevin has changed his career and is now a trainer himself, who teaches others as they are preparing for their exam, you can look forward to a great discussion and some excellent advice.

During the interview you will hear us make several references to The Agile PrepCast. So if you yourself are interested in becoming PMI-ACP certified, then sign up to The Agile PrepCast newsletter at www.pm-prepcast.com/agile and be among the first to prepare for your exam using our new sister podcast. We’re furiously working to get it finished.

This episode is reserved for subscribers of the Premium Podcast. Learn how to subscribe to the Premium Podcast to access this interview and transcript...

This episode is sponsored by The PDU Podcast:

This interview with Elizabeth Harrin about her new book book Customer-Centric Project Management  is intended (sort of) as an implementation guide to moving your own projects to a customer-centric way of working, using a model called Exceed. We also want to give you some some guidance for ensuring that customer-centricity is sustainable and supported in the organization.

To achieve this we will be looking at the case study section from her book, which comes from her own experience and day to day work.

While there is of course no guarantee that customer-centricity will always lead to project success, adopting a customer-centric mindset and using the Exceed process to measure and monitor customer satisfaction will, however, help you move towards working with happier, more engaged stakeholders.

Remember, we have a wide range of podcasts aimed at helping you earn project management PDUs free of charge, as well as a range of premium podcasts like this one.

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This episode is sponsored by The PDU Podcast:

There have been many changes in the focus of organizations - whether private or public - away from a traditional product-or service-centricity towards customer-centricity and projects are just as much a part of that change. Projects must deliver value; projects must involve stakeholders, and as you will hear in our interview Elizabeth Harrin and her co-author Phil Peplow demonstrate convincingly that stakeholders are the ones who get to decide what 'value' actually means.

Today’s episode is based on their book Customer-Centric Project Management. It is intended as a short guide explaining what customer-centricity means in terms of how you work and its importance for project performance; using tools and processes to guide customer-centric thinking will help you see the results of engagement and demonstrate how things can improve, even on difficult projects. We’ll define what the problem is with how we do things today and then we’ll move quickly into the new paradigm.

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I have to take a 3-4 week emergency leave from creating new episodes for The PM Podcast because of my father's health.

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In this episode of The PM Podcast we introduce you to The PDU Insider at www.pdu-insider.com, which is our website and newsletter where we teach PMP® credential holders all there is to know about Professional Development Units (PDU).

We’ll show you some of the features of the website, point out the #1 article called “12 Easy Ways To Earn PDUs” that every PMP® credential holder should read and we’ll explain why subscribing to the free newsletter is more than “just another newsletter” about PDUs.

The PDU Insider highlights both paid and free PMP PDU opportunities, from respected education providers all over the world. We help you find the right opportunities for you, wherever you are in your project management career journey.

If you are already a PMP® credential holder, then you'll know that the goal is to earn 60 PDUs for PMP recertification cycles. That means earning 60 PDUs in a three-year period, prior to applying for renewal. Save time searching out PDU opportunities by subscribing to The PDU Insider and get on the fast track to meeting your professional development requirements, this year and every year.

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This episode is sponsored by The PMP Exam Simulator:

I have always said that one of the most beneficial actions that I took to further my career and success as a project manager was to become involved with PMI. I started out as an event volunteer and worked my way all the way up to becoming the president of my local PMI Chapter. This volunteering not only helped me to find a job, it also introduced me to colleagues in my field put me on the path of becoming PMP® certified and it was the starting point of this here, The Project Management Podcast where I’ve expanded my volunteering efforts out towards a world audience of project managers.

The good news is that I’m not the only one who has seen such great results from volunteering. Kevin Reilly, PMP has seen very similar results. Every since he started volunteering a little over a year ago doors have opened up for him and an incredible number of opportunities have opened up for him.

Kevin has now gone ahead and he has taken his approach and turned it into a process for you. A step by step process that you can follow towards your professional success as a project manager:

• Understand the benefits
• Analyze your skills
• Determine your goals
• Select an organization
• Leverage your time
• Market your skills

We first review these 6 steps in detail and then Kevin tells his personal story of volunteering and networking to illustrate how powerful a driver this approach was in his career and will help you do the same.

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This episode is sponsored by The PDU Podcast:

Karin Brünnemann (http://www.4cee.eu) made an excellent case last time describing how all our projects are in some way or another influenced by culture. We did also look at a few tools that she recommeds.

But how do you really become adept at mastering intercultural issues on your project? What are some of the actions you can take? What tools are recommended? And what are some of the qualities of a good intercultural project manager?

Well... listen up, enjoy and learn from Karin's worldwide experience.

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This episode is sponsored by The PMP Exam Simulator:

What would you say, if I told you that any project you lead is an intercultural project? Even if you have grown up in Paris and all the other project team members and stakeholders are native Parisians... you will still have to deal with culture on your project.

Karin Brünnemann (http://www.4cee.eu) specializes in consulting, project management, and training in intercultural and multi-national contexts on a worldwide basis. She has lived in and lead projects in more countries than I have fingers. So when it comes to projects, culture and how to deal with that, she knows what she is talking about.

In our interview, Karin and I will be:

• Answering the question: What is culture?
• Discuss some myths and mistakes in regards to culture.
• See how the iceberg model applies in this context
• Review the two high level challenges that projects face in regards to culture
• And we will look at three tools that will help you to thrive in managing culture on your project

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This is a Special PM Podcast Episode, in which we introduce you to Gazza's Corner, a new podcast about project management by Gary Nelson, PMP. Here is what Gary has to say about the episode:

You cannot underestimate the importance of the Project Kickoff. It sets the tone for the rest of the project, and it is often the first time all of the key players on the Project will be face to face. In some cases, it may be the only time they all get together - so make it count!

It may also be the first time that you get to review the project objectives as a team, and it is where you will build the collective understanding of what you are trying to achieve - and the first stage in Project Team Development.

But what exactly is a Project Kickoff, and why do we really need it? In this session we will explore what it is - and why it is so important.

This episode is reserved for subscribers of the Premium Podcast. Learn how to subscribe to the Premium Podcast to access this interview and transcript...

This episode is sponsored by The PDU Podcast:

Gate meetings often require stacks of administrative paperwork and template after template of fact and figure tracking. Most people would probably rather spend their time creating than justifying.

Matt Priest (www.kalypso.com) says that “Gate meetings can be faster, easier and more effective. Just improve the “what”, “who” and “how” of your meetings to make them less of a drain and more valuable for the organization.”

In this interview we discuss, how with a light and nimble framework in place, gate review meetings are more effective and scalable, will become easier to address and will grow and mature with the organization.

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This episode is sponsored by The PMP Exam Simulator:

In 2001, seventeen software developers met at a ski resort in Snowbird, Utah. They all faced the same problem: the need for an alternative to the slow moving, waterfall approach to improve their software development projects and the “agile” model for software development was born.

So, how does this innovation apply to new product development in the consumer goods industry? The benefits of the agile software development process - increased speed-to-market, reduced costs, enhanced focus, and minimized wasted time in development - apply to any development organization, whether the end result is a consumer product or software application. These gains are especially important in today’s economic climate where development budgets are constrained, competition is fierce, and expectations from both senior leaders and consumers have greatly increased.

To explore how to best do this I invited Matt Priest (www.kalypso.com) onto the program and give us his insights on the topic. He’ll not only answer all my questions but also introduce us to the three simple Agile principles that we should be using when developing new consumer goods, which are:

• engage the consumer early
• collaborate iteratively throughout the development process
• institute a closed-loop learning process