This article, from December 2006 Better Software, talks about the tactic of redefining a problem to facilitate a solution. It has a software example inside, but a background in software isn’t necessary to understand it.

Explores organizational and structural issues with large public sector IT projects. Why are they so likely to fail & so difficult to cancel? This article appeared in the Cutter IT Journal in 2003.

Despite promises of the past, C-level executives (CEO, CIO, CFO) are still waiting for better project information to support their decision-making. This sponsorship prescription for CIOs originally appeared in a Cutter IT Journal issue focused on “The New CIO Agenda” (August of 2003). It describes a basic approach to assessing and improving project sponsorship that requires no enterprise tools or consultants.

This is the second part of a 2-part article on risk management that appeared in Software Testing & Quality Engineering in 2003. This article offers a practical approach to identifying, analyzing and mitigating project risks that can be accomplished in an afternoon for many projects.

This is the first part of a 2-part article on risk management that appeared in Software Testing & Quality Engineering in 2003. This article talks about overcoming organization’s natural resistance to risk management.

Positive thinking has its limits… in fact, it can work against open communication and risk management on a project when taken to extremes.

Many of the problems faced by projects can be avoided, or at least contained, by effective project management practices. Using a “Top Ten” list as a framework, this article highlights 10 of the most frequent reasons for project failure, and examines some alternatives and remedies for each.

Why is senior management so often suprised by large scale project disasters? What can be done to change cultural attitudes to encourage timely and accurate status reporting? This article, originally appearing in STQE Magazine in September of 2001, tries to address these questions and provide communication tools to avoid Zombie Projects – Project that have died but refuse to lay down.