How often do you scratch your head wondering how you can get your project to the top of everyone's list?

Have you ever been asked to produce a project with limited resources (liken this to being asked to build the Taj Mahal with a $10,000 budget). How do you tell your supervisors that this is UNrealistic?

Do you wonder how to get your team on the same page so that your projects seem, well, seamless?!

What do you think of when the term "people-problem" is mentioned to you?

Would you like to speak with stakeholders, project members, superiors and peers so that you can get more done with less effort?

 It seems as if project managers have high expectations (placed upon them by selves or others) but may not be appreciated as often as they should. The projects are endless, the changes are around every corner, the conflicts seem constant, and the misunderstandings appear endless. The deadlines do not change, but the resources may be cut, the team members may become saboteurs, and the project itself may not be at the top of everyone's urgency or importance list.

We understand your project management challenges, and we want to help. Welcome! My name is Gwynne Dawdy and I am an organizational psychologist and an expert in project management soft-skill (people-oriented) training. I want to answer these questions and help your job become easier. I appreciate your situation, your hard work, and your frustration with others!

 

I am continually surveying project managers to find out what your biggest people-challenge is, to find out what your soft-skill questions are, and to answer these with my knowledge and experience in psychology of people, projects, and organizations. Please feel free and welcome to review the pages within this site. You may want to pay special attention to the Teleseminars page, for I often offer free and paid teleseminars specifically for project managers. Many of these courses are project management relevant and may be used towards your PMP certification under Category 4 of your recertification options. GREAT thing is, teleseminars are so convenient to attend, no matter where you live or what your schedule is (thanks to recordings and transcripts)!

I also have worked closely with many PMI Chapters in offering one-day and two-day courses for PM members. The feedback from project managers is fantastic (you can find many testimonials from project managers in the Client's Comments page). With my trainings, you will receive certificates to use for professional development audits, as well as bonuses that may also benefit management, leadership, or other areas of your personal or professional development. You can find more information about the workshops for project managers within the brochures page of this web.

Also, please visit my Ask Gwynne page. I would appreciate your input, your questions, and your challenges within project management (please focus on people-oriented issues or soft-skill topics, as these are my areas of expertise. While I appreciate your technical or PMP Certification questions, I would not be the appropriate person to answer them.) For your valuable time and input, you will find a gift waiting for you!

Thank you for visiting, and I hope our paths cross again soon!

“The Social Compass and Coaching 1 day course that Gwynne puts on is time well spent. Gwynne has brought the complexities of people style and management into simplistic, well understood tools that we can use everyday. Thanks!” Nicole Eiche, PMP, ISPM  

Scheduled dates for PMP training: Sept. 7 PMI MIle Hi, Sept. 13 PMI Central Indiana, Sept. 26-28 PMI Alamo, Oct. 24 PMI Portland; and many more in the process of setting '08 dates.~ See each chapter website or our dates page for more information

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PMI Chapters: Find Out About Benefits for Your Chapter & Your Members:

PMI Chapters brochure

Gwynne's training is pertinent and easily grasped.  So much of the other training we had evaluated was buried in academic terms and unrealistic.  If you need tools - you need Gwynne.  If you want immediate results - you need Gwynne.  She surpassed my team's expectations and has showed us how to get out of our rut and improve our level of performance." Alan N. McKellar, PMP, MBA, Hewlett Packard

Tips for Project Managers

1.  Clearly define the deliverables to your team. Each member should be able to communicate exactly what it is they are working on, how that effects the entire project, and what deadlines need to be met. If they are unable to communicate this to you, you have not clearly communicated this to them. Remember, people hear the same message differently from one another. What you think you said may not have been what person C heard you say. Ask for them to paraphrase. Let them know you are available for any clarification. Be detailed with the folks who need it, and speak big-picture for the folks who need it. Know that they know the deadlines and are willing to do what it takes to meet them. Define the deliverables and stress the urgency and importance.

2.  Build trust and loyalty among your team members. Without it, ranks can shift and the project may be lost in the shuffle of personal issues. Encourage group interaction, but do not force it. Include some teambuilding activities in meetings, but only those things that can easily relate to your team and project. Deliver what you promise to them, and expect them to do the same. Follow the team charter that each of your members contributed to, and agreed to up front.

3.  Master communication. Communication in a project is everything. Recognize your team members' different communication styles and match those styles when visiting with each member. Listen to the concerns of your team and know that what may concern one person may excite someone else. Acknowledge their concerns and work together for a win-win solution. Investing a little time with your members may actually save you a lot of time in the long run.

4.  Be flexible in your structure. Some individuals live for structure, whereas others live for flexibility. Both are important in project management and team leadership. Experienced project managers know all about risk and flexibility, and they also know how difficult it can be to get their team to shift focus. Address this before a shift ever occurs. Recognize which team members need more time, details, or reasoning in order to eagerly jump on board. Take the time to address your team's needs and then revert to your team charter and the expectations that were agreed upon in the beginning.

5.  Network and collaborate. Building strong relations within your team and among all of the stakeholders is important before an issue arises. Knowing the strengths and building on these strengths is important with any team. When an issue does arise, you will have built a strong network from which to pull solutions and facilitate results. Again, this takes time and a conscious effort, but the investment may pay off exponentially in the long run.