Some people might read the book and point out “So what, those are just common sense stuff.” Well, they are and good advices in life usually do not require specialized academic training just to understand. The challenge, as we all know, is to practice those insights consistently day in and day out. Practicing management is about doing the right things and doing things right on a consistent basis. This book is a great read for everyone, not just for those in the management line of work or aspiring to get into one. I read the book from time to time and continue to get new “insights” every time I read it. I encourage you to check what other had to say about this book.

http://www.amazon.com/Insights-Journey-John-Lucht/dp/0942785312/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1277262909&sr=8-1

I happen to have a couple of the “Insights to the Journey” books to give away. Please post a comment below by 5pm Friday June 25, and you will be entered into the book drawing. Enjoy some summer reading.

Book aside, Dr. Sutton also maintains an active blog, which I highly recommend. The blog contains a wealth of information on how to conduct oneself through more effective behaviors. If you are in a managerial position, read the blog and pick up good information on how to be a more effective superior. If you are not in a managerial position, read the blog and practice the civil behaviors so we all contribute to an effective workplace environment. Check out this recent post on the blog and others.

http://bobsutton.typepad.com/my_weblog/2010/06/my-job-is-to-hold-the-umbrella-so-the-shit-from-above-doesnt-hit-you-your-job-is-to-keep-me-from-hav.html

I have a couple of the “The No Asshole Rule” books to give away. Please post a comment below by 5pm Friday June 18, and you will be entered into the book drawing. Enjoy some summer reading.

When it comes to educating people on the project management topics, The Project Management Podcast hosted by Cornelius Fichtner definitely has a proven track record. Mr. Fichtner has been consistently pumping out quality weekly podcasts since September 2005. The collection of podcasts contains not only helpful how-to on a variety of topics, but also useful insights from many of Cornelius’ interview guests. All these contents put together makes a pretty engaging source of how-to-do-project-management-more-effectively.

The Project Management Podcast can be found at http://project-management-podcast.com/. Head over and begin checking out all of the episodes. Just like the Manager Tools, these podcasts are free and subscribing via iTunes or a podcast manager is highly recommended. While you are at Cornelius’ web site, be sure to check out the helpful Free PM Guide Book and Free PM Term Book under the Resources menu.

There are two other project management podcasts I also listen to. They are The pm411.org Project Management Podcast (http://pm411.org/) and PMO Podcasts (http://thepmopodcast.com). Both series of podcast provide additional information, viewpoints, and insights into the project and program management disciplines. I also recommend checking them out to see whether the topics are appealing to you.

Still want more? Consider joining Project Management Institute (PMI) and one of the local chapters. PMI Los Angeles Chapter (http://pmi-la.org) holds monthly meetings with speakers and a number of seminars and training sessions throughout the year.

The Manager Tools podcast focuses on helping manager to improve his or her performance. Many consider Mark and Mike’s advices spot on, as well as a much more effective way of doing managerial work, I included. The podcast covers a wide range of managerial topics, including many coaching, feedback, and delegation related topics. Don’t take my words for it. Just check out the discussion forum and see what other people said about the podcast. Manager Tools also has won The People’s Choice Podcast Awards in the business category for 2006, 2007, and 2008, not to mention the podcast won the overall People’s Choice Podcast Award for 2008.

The podcast subscription is free. You just need a podcast manager software like iTunes or something similar. There are over 250 podcast episodes available since 2005, so there is an ample amount of great ideas to help you improve. There is also a premium service you can purchase, and you will receive the transcribed show notes. In my opinion, the show notes are nice but they are not critical to get the most out of the podcast. The podcast contents from the free membership or the premium membership is the same – the quality of the advice is the same.

Will listening to Manager Tools make you a better manager? It is definitely possible if you are willing to take the time and effort to adopt the practices and integrate the knowledge into your daily managerial routines. Putting the Manager Tools advices into action often requires behavioral changes, and they are not always easy. For the benefits of the people you are leading, there is no reason not to adopt some of the good practices. If some of your directs are also managers, ask them to check out Manager Tools and emulate the behaviors outlined in the podcast. We can always benefit from having more effective managers around, can we not?

–Peter Drucker, The Effective Executive

With that quote from Peter Drucker, we celebrate the revival of my blog with this post. Moving forward, the mission of the blog is to share and to discuss everything that we can use to make us more effective in what we do. Being effective is a personal choice and a journey. Achieving effectiveness is also something that can be learned and get better at. Effectiveness and efficiency often go together, and they complement each other. By over-emphasize one or the other is not always optimal, either.

The information shared in this blog is not going to be anything revolutionary or shockingly new. After all, many business and management scholars have studied the subjects of effectiveness and efficiency for decades.  The intent of this blog is to share, educate, and encourage idea exchange. In the end, I sincerely hope the information presented here will be more than a helpful reading but also something that is actionable.

Now back to Drucker’s book for a bit…

The book rests on two premises where 1) the executive’s job is to be effective; and 2) effectiveness can be learned. Dr. Drucker also defined “executive” as a knowledge worker who “is responsible for a contribution that materially affects the capacity of the organization to perform and to obtain results.” I believe that definition includes most, if not all, of us. Moreover, I will not going into the books in great details since many others have already done the in-depth reviews. You can check out the following URLs and see what others had already said:

http://www.manager-tools.com/book-review/effective-executive
http://www.amazon.com/Effective-Executive-Definitive-Harperbusiness-Essentials/dp/0060833459

Overall, I was glad that someone wrote a book on this topic. I had often wondered just how relevant the middle management work is to today’s “flat” organizations. To my surprise, the middle management profession is still very much alive; however, the old advancement rules no longer apply. Companies are also less accommodating when it comes to nurturing and managing one’s career. In any case, feel free to derive your own conclusion on the middle management work. If you happen to pick up the book later, enjoy the reading. I did.

By the Numbers

• The number of managers in the economy is steadily increasing, not decreasing.
• The numbers do not tell how life inside organizations has changed for managers.

The Changing Role

• In today’s team and matrix environment, two major job activities emerge:

1. Managing internal processes of the team. Trying to place the best people on the team. Setting priorities, etc.
2. Acting as an ambassador to other teams. Managing boundary between teams, both an opportunity and challenge. Opportunity because of the visibility presented in the work. Challenge due to the significant and subtle relationship skills are required to be successful boundary work.

• Stress is up because the environment we manage is much more complex, which leads to increased hours and uncertainty that managers face regarding their own fate.
• Autonomy vs. Breadth: Because firms have reduced organization layers and with diffusion of IT, managers face more monitoring and control, which means less autonomy. For the same reasons, jobs are broader and more complex, which means more breadth.

Personal thoughts: These points match up with my experience pretty well – a lot of coordination and path-paving work we do on the daily basis.

Changing Rules for Success

• Opportunities and rules for advancement have changed. Under the best circumstances, managerial assessment is a difficult business for two reasons.

1. Managerial work is relatively invisible and hard to capture in clean measures.
2. When performance metrics are used, they are unreliable.

Personal thoughts: I was hoping the book can shed some insights, unfortunately, not much help here. How to advance within the organization via the middle management route also depends a lot on the individual’s values and philosophies. It also depends on how one defines success and planning out the goals for achieving it.

Shifting Commitments

• Managers maybe under increased pressure and may feel greater stress, they have strong commitment to the work itself. Middle managers are committed to their tasks, to their immediate jobs, and to their close colleagues.
• Many managers have lost their commitment to the firm as an enterprise and they are suspicious of the motivations and actions of top management.

Personal thoughts: These points also match up my sentiment pretty well. Everyone’s mileage will differ obviously. At the end of day, it would still appear that the people I work for and with have a sizeable influence on how I feel about my work. I continue to like what I do and will do my best especially for the people I care about. That is my own definition of commitment and loyalty.

Podcast Awards Link

Manager Tools’ podcast: The First Rule for New Managers
John Lucht’s Insights for the Journey

I will remind myself from time to time to avoid those costly mistakes. Why? Because “…the more magnificent and righteous I am, the farther and harder I’ll fall when I inevitably mess up.”

If you are a WSJ subscriber, here is the link to Peter Jeffrey’s article.

So why sell your ideas? Because no one is obligated to buy, not usually anyway.

Link to HBR’s IdeaCast
Link to Dr. Goldsmith’s blog (so glad I found this)

]]> http://bitworkshop.com/davidlowe/2008/01/21/why-sell/feed/ 0 http://bitworkshop.com/davidlowe/2008/01/17/insights-for-the-journey/ http://bitworkshop.com/davidlowe/2008/01/17/insights-for-the-journey/#comments Thu, 17 Jan 2008 16:57:24 +0000 admin http://bitworkshop.com/davidlowe/?p=39 I like this book for several reasons. First, the prints are visually pleasing, for me at least, with large fonts and ample space. Second, Mr. Lucht’s writing style yields content that is easy to absorb. Third, and the most important of them all, John’s advices make sense and work, day after day.

Some people might read the book and go “So what, those are just common sense stuff.” Well, sure but try to do those things in the book consistently day in and day out. I guess practicing management is about doing the right things and being effective on a consistent basis. A great read for anyone who is in the management line of work or aspiring to get into one. I read the book from time to time and continue to get new “insights” every time.

Link to the book on Amazon

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