This year, Cadence is rolling out the next major update to the core project management methodology training curriculum serving thousands of professional project managers around the world. This week on the show, Cadence CEO John Patton and Jay Christensen join Pete Wright to discuss what’s new in version 11.0, and how feedback from the community has helped to shape the best version of the Cadence core organizational project management course yet.

Lack of timely decision-making can cause rework and re-scoping on projects. This week on the show, Jay Christensen and Pete Wright take on this challenge from a course attendee and offer suggestions for maintaining team focus and strong communication up and down the project hierarchy.

Each year, we take the time to reflect on the year passed in our field, our business, and the role we serve as project managers for our organizations. This week on the show, Cadence CEO John Patton and Pete Wright review the year that has been, and the year to come for Cadence.

You know the project is coming, but it hasn't been authorized. As the window to deliver closes, how do you push sponsors to move the project forward before the schedule slips?

You know the project is coming, but it hasn’t been authorized. As the window to deliver closes, how do you push sponsors to move the project forward before the schedule slips? This week on the show, Jay Christensen and Pete Wright take on this issue from an attendee with solutions for getting action without sacrificing reputation!

This week on the show, Jay Christensen and Pete Wright discuss a key project management hurdle as presented in class: there are unclear priorities and mixed messages coming from the steering committee and an unwillingness to move projects down in priority. We cover the role of the portfolio manager and offer solutions for streamlining communication to ensure your teams are working on the right projects at the right time.

As a new team member in an organization, what do you do when those around don’t understand or believe in the power of project management? This week on the show we respond to this common yet difficult challenge with strategies for building success, support, and understanding, while helping your new team shine. Join John Patton, Jay Christensen, and Pete Wright this week on Ask Cadence.

Cadence Vice President and COO has served almost every capacity in her 22 years at Cadence. She has served as leader and mentor across the project management community and helped countless practitioners achieve success through project management themselves. We at Cadence will miss her greatly in our day-to-day activity, but we’re thrilled to see what Connie will bring to our field in the next chapter of her journey. This week on Ask Cadence, a brief conversation with Connie on her tenure at...

Cadence has just completed our second year ISO audit and passed with flying colors! This week, ISO auditor Karl Franz joins us to talk about the process, the Cadence journey, and what the ISO commitment to quality means for working with Cadence.

At Cadence, the relationship we have with our partners is critical to delivering project results. That’s why we’re thrilled to be able to introduce Craig Meuser as our new director of global sales and marketing. We look forward to introducing you to Craig over the coming months!

On projects, it’s all about the team. The same is true for training. John Patton and Pete Wright discuss the importance of attending training and consulting events in teams, leveraging the experience of training together to work on real projects, delivering real results fast.

It is bootcamp at Cadence — our annual opportunity to bring together our instructors from around the world to review and integrate the latest field experience into the Cadence Methodology. This year, we are working on OPM, our focus on bringing alignment to the whole organization around project management from the top down. This week on the show, Cadence CEO John Patton and Pete Wright discuss the latest trends in the field and outline the Cadence approach to programs and portfolios.

The Cadence team is preparing for the trip to Washington to connect with the PMI global community at the PMI Global Congress 2010. This week on the show, Cadence CEO John Patton previews his upcoming presentation, “Life cycles for portfolio and program management,” and talks with Pete Wright about the evolving nature of the field and inspirational project leadership around the world.

This week on the show, Connie Plowman and Prakash Achuthan join us to discuss the success of their recent event bringing MBA level project management students into the real world of PMs thanks to the generosity of Nike and PGE. Prakash has graciously posted event photos online to share!

The Cadence scholarship program for educators, in partnership with the PMI Education Foundation, has been a boon to teachers and administrators looking to bridge practical business and organizational skills with curricula. This week, join Pete Wright, Connie Plowman, and guest Denise Tischler to discuss her experience in the 3-day Cadence course, and how she will be using her new skills as a principal and administrator.

This time we take on culture. Building off our on-going discussion on behavioral models for individuals and teams, John Patton and Pete Wright discuss the importance of defining and understanding cultural behavioral profiles in project management in light of the ever-increasing demands on teams to work in geographically and culturally diverse project environments.

This time we take on groups. Building off our discussion last week on individual behavior models, John Patton and Scott Lissit introduce group behavior dynamics and outline critical strategies for project managers who are bogged down by the discomfort that can come in the early phases of team development.

This time we dive into human behavior. For project managers, helping team members understand and quantify their strengths can be a critical asset in guiding the team to delivering results. John Patton and Scott Lissit introduce key behavioral models and instruments, and discuss how to apply them judiciously in individual and team development.

Setting responsibilities for delivering results in project management is critical for success on teams, but even more important for the management support hierarchy around projects. This week John Patton joins Pete Wright to discuss the key principles and responsibilities that each role must take on to ensure consistent success on projects.

The CAPM certification from the Project Management Institute was originally fashioned as a milestone in the development of the professional project manager. But John Patton has a different take on the cert, one that positions team members as better prepared and supported team members, armed with the right tools to deliver project results for the team. John joins Pete Wright to talk about the importance of the certification on Ask Cadence.

This week on Ask Cadence, we take a few minutes to reflect on accomplishments in the field in 2009. Cadence CEO John Patton joins Pete Wright to share his experiences surveying the field with PMI around the globe, and then look ahead to the growth we’re seeing in projects coming in 2010. Join us for this brief walk down memory lane, and a look at what’s to come, this week on Ask Cadence: The Project Management Podcast.

In part 7 of our special, “19 Techniques for managing people who do not report to you,” Jay Christensen and Rod Sharman discuss problem solving and managing progress of critical tasks. After 7 discussion episodes on our 19 Techniques, we share some reflections on managing the people side of projects, and the importance of balance across key management disciplines in the best project managers.

In part 6 of our special, “19 Techniques for managing people who do not report to you,” Jay Christensen and Rod Sharman discuss how project managers can manage difficult people on their teams. Through rapport-building exercises social activities, communication study, and functional management involvement, you’ll have a suite of tools to use to build a tighter team and keep the project moving forward.

In part 5 of our special, “19 Techniques for managing people who do not report to you,” Jay Christensen and Rod Sharman discuss the importance of using facts and data in supporting positions on projects, how you can encourage critical thinking in your team, and what you need to do to support your team members in removing obstacles standing in the way of getting their work done.

In part 4 of our special, “19 Techniques for managing people who do not report to you,” Jay Christensen and Rod Sharman discuss task definition, specifically around critical impact tasks, and how to manage these tasks in a way that encourages action and progress.