30 April 2012 12:50 pm

Inventing the Steamboat: Why people matter in NPD projects

More often than one would expect, when we look at the original inventors of many of history’s great inventions they are marginalized in their association to their inventions.  Have you ever heard of Ferdinand Verbiest or Otto Lilienthal? Does Karl Benz and the Wright Brothers sound more familiar?  Although the first two people mentioned are the original inventors of the automobile and airplane respectively, the latter tend to be attributed to these inventions due to their ability to move beyond the inventions themselves and connect to the people who would popularize their use.

Written by Neil Stolovitsky
on 30 April 2012 12:50 pm

Posted in Famous Projects, PM Best Practices  |  No Comments
27 February 2012 4:07 am

Today’s project management leadership needs to adapt to the changing workforce

In light of the Facebook’s recent IPO filing that confirms the maturation and societal changing reality of social networks, it is evident to me that we have crossed the chasm in which the way the current generation interacts with each other on both a personal and professional level.
Whether it is via Smart phones or a Tablet PCs, “virtual” interactions have become an integral part of sharing and delivering messages among different groups of people with similar interests.  Facebook and its 875,000,000 members is a testament of how the world’s diverse communities has evolved into a global network all connected through  Read More

Written by Neil Stolovitsky
on 27 February 2012 4:07 am

Posted in PM Best Practices  |  No Comments
19 October 2011 12:41 pm

The Power of the Plan: Why 1% of the Population Controls 40% of the Wealth

The recent news of the “Occupy Wall Street” grassroots movement in which demonstrators are congregating around the world expressing their defiance against the financial establishment and its impact on the “Average Joe” has brought to light the age old reality that money and power lies in the hands of a few who understand the power of the plan that keeps this inequality afloat.  Throughout history kings and monarchs have exploited the majority by creating meticulously planned structures of power, wealth and governments to ensure their positions.  Although the Occupy Wall Street movement is a modern phenomenon, similar strategies employed centuries  Read More

Written by Neil Stolovitsky
on 19 October 2011 12:41 pm

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25 August 2011 2:06 pm

Project Vision: The “Apple” Never Falls Far from the Tree

With yesterday’s announcement of Steve Jobs stepping down as Apple’s CEO, the first thought that crossed my mind is the critical role leadership plays in any organization.  As the story goes… after building Apple into an industry giant, Jobs was ousted as its leader in 1985.  Following his departure, the company slowly deteriorated and by 1997 the company Jobs’ built was running at a loss of $1 billion on its $7 billion in revenue.  Almost 15 years later, under Jobs’ leadership Apple has not only transformed its own DNA, but has revolutionized the music industry, the smart phone and the  Read More

Written by Neil Stolovitsky
on 25 August 2011 2:06 pm

Posted in Information Technology, PM Best Practices  |  No Comments
12 August 2011 12:49 pm

Poor Stakeholder Management: Dangerous Politics will Yield Undesirable Results

In recent weeks, the media has been inundated with stories about political turmoil in the US and Western Europe.  We have not only seen the recent news of the US’s downgrade in its credit rating and its mounting budget deficit but we have also seen unprecedented social unrest in the UK, the French economy at a standstill and the Euro taking a hard hit due to Greece’s recent instability.  Although a lot of these events are partially due to poor planning by governments, the reality is (and this should not be ignored) partisan politics, self-interest, and poor communication among stakeholders  Read More

Written by Neil Stolovitsky
on 12 August 2011 12:49 pm

Posted in PM Best Practices  |  No Comments
15 June 2011 1:42 pm

Are your Projects Getting Social? With the Good comes the Bad…

Now that social media is really mainstream, there is a lot of discussion around its benefits (especially in the business world).  Creating social networks through the likes of LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter can equally empower both small project work groups as well as multi-national corporations to become their own media outlet by sharing valuable information and ideas among their peers and customers.   Instantaneously businesses can facilitate value-driven collaboration impacting the way they service their customers and the manner in which their employees can have their voice heard.
In theory social media tools are suppose to contribute to the overall growth of  Read More

Written by Neil Stolovitsky
on 15 June 2011 1:42 pm

Posted in Information Technology, PM Best Practices  |  No Comments
31 May 2011 2:32 pm

Effective Resource Management Requires an Accurate View of your People

In the digital age where the average person has 130 friends on Facebook and are plugged into to numerous other social networks, we tend to forget that many of the connections and relationships that live in these social are networks are limited to their virtual origins.  Most people can probably attribute only a couple dozen connections to real relationships that live outside this virtual reality.  In fact, in a recent research study coming out of Oxford it has been said that the human brain cannot manage more than 150 people in their social network and no more than 50 of  Read More

Written by Neil Stolovitsky
on 31 May 2011 2:32 pm

Posted in PM Best Practices  |  No Comments
11 April 2011 10:08 am

Is Agile right for you? Top 5 considerations when implementing Agile Methodology

We often hear in software development circles how Agile development is taking hold of the industry.  Created as a grassroots framework by developers for developers, the origins of Agile methodology began 10 years ago with a group of progressive software developers at a Utah ski lodge that established the Agile Manifesto aimed to establish a more inclusive, democratic and efficient system for running software development projects.  As result, multiple Agile methodologies emerged including Crystal Clear, Scrum and Extreme Programming all designed to establish self-governing project teams that place equal accountability on all members that touch the project.
As this is  Read More

Written by Neil Stolovitsky
on 11 April 2011 10:08 am

Posted in Information Technology, PM Best Practices  |  No Comments
14 January 2011 2:19 pm

Automated Project Management: The Human Element Does Matter!

Resource Leveling

I recently read an article that suggested that even the untouchable Google may face trouble ahead with its automated approach to Search based purely on its use of algorithms.  The article suggests even the most sophisticated machines do not have the ability to prevent its power users, SEO experts, from finding creative ways to outwit Google by developing “content farms” that produce Spam-like content that dilute the relevant results found on its coveted first page.  Consequently, human powered content is moving ahead in providing better search results.  In fact social media content produced and developed by its own end users  Read More

Written by Neil Stolovitsky
on 14 January 2011 2:19 pm

Posted in Information Technology, PM Best Practices, PM Software in the Software Market  |  No Comments
20 December 2010 2:15 pm

The Wikileaks Project: The Power of Information

wikileaks logo

It’s amazing what a small group of people, a web site and access to sensitive information can accomplish in a very short period.  As we are nearing the end of 2010, the information age has reached new heights placing the media into the hands of savvy internet rebels that have the ability to potentially turn even governments on their heads.  A great example can be seen with the Wikileaks projects headed by the controversial Julian Assange and his small band of internet mavericks exposing government activities with the help of international sources that hand over confidential documents shedding light on  Read More

Written by Neil Stolovitsky
on 20 December 2010 2:15 pm

Posted in Famous Projects, Information Technology, PM Best Practices  |  No Comments
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