February, 2025

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The PM Guilt Game

MPUG

The number of factors that can push a project toward failure is almost limitless. An unrealistic schedule, budget shortfalls, scope creep, even internal politics can wreak havoc on a project or doom it altogether. Sorting out the root cause of the problem amid the wreckage of a failed project isnt always easy, and oftentimes the finger of blame gets pointed at the most convenient scapegoat: the project manager (PM).

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The Power of Sleeping on It: Why Taking Time Leads to Better Decision-Making

The IIL Blog

By Jeff Zircher February 12, 2025 In todays fast-paced world, there is an increasing emphasis on quick decision-making. We often hear phrases like “trust your gut” or “act fast before it’s too late.” Early in my career at Caterpillar, I created a self-induced need or compulsion to make decisions quickly. There was a feeling of needing to get on with it or quickly make a decision to demonstrate decisiveness.

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Love at First Task: Cultivating A Passion for Your Work

NimbleWork

As February unfolds, with its heart-shaped chocolates and declarations of love, I find myself reflecting on a relationship that often goes unnoticed, my relationship with work. This Valentines season, Im choosing to celebrate the joy of loving what I do, even when its challenging, imperfect, or downright exhausting. Heres what Ive learned about nurturing this relationship, along with practical tips to help you fall in love with your work too. 1.

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The Silent Stakeholders: How to Identify and Engage Hidden Project Influencers

MPUG

A major hospital renovation was proceeding smoothly until an infection control specialist raised concerns that would add $2 million to the budget. The project manager had gathered approvals from every department head but missed this critical hidden stakeholder. According to our recent MPUG survey, 53% of project managers rank stakeholder management as their biggest challenge and it’s often these invisible influencers who create the most significant impacts.

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A New Look At Running Grants & Programs: Why Use A System When You Have Excel?

Speaker: Gareth Webb & Phil Selley, Founding Partners at Intouch Business

For many nonprofit organizations and NGOs, managing grants and monitoring projects with spreadsheets and manual processes feels familiar—but is it holding your organization back? As funding requirements become more complex and stakeholder expectations for transparency grow, relying on outdated methods can lead to inefficiencies, missed opportunities, and compliance risks.

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Don't Put Your Team in a Bubble

Scrum.org

Myth: A Scrum Master's Job is to Protect the Team Most people want to do good work. And many Scrum Masters see their role as protecting the Scrum Team. But when protection becomes isolation, something is wrong. Shielding a team too much from stakeholders isn't helpful - it hinders collaboration, stifles feedback and erodes trust. The Reality: Scrum Masters Foster Collaboration, Not Walls A Scrum Masters purpose is to improve the adoption of Scrum.

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How to use the “Stage Gate” process on complex projects

Planio

Lack of consistency, frequent scope changes, and poor governance are three of the most common reasons that projects fail. If you recognize these challenges, a structured project methodology, such as the Stage Gate process, can help you overcome them, by bringing control and consistency to your deliveries. The Stage Gate process breaks projects down into distinct stages and gates.

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Agile Project Communications: How to Adapt Project Communications to an Agile Environment

Online PM Courses

Agile projects are like any other, in that they need a communication plan. But you will want to adapt your approach to suit the fact you are working in an Agile way and also the particular agile methodology you have chosen. This video is safe for viewing in the workplace. This is learning, so, sit […] The post Agile Project Communications: How to Adapt Project Communications to an Agile Environment appeared first on OnlinePMCourses.

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6 Project Estimation Techniques for More Accurate Project Planning

Scoro

Getting your project estimates right means better margins, happier clients, and fewer stressful conversations about budget overruns and delays. But without a clear approach, trying to make them more precise is tough. Try these proven project estimation techniques as a starting point for more accurate project plans. Heres a quick summary of all the methods discussed below: Technique Pros Cons Analogy-Based Estimation Lets you create reliable estimates based on similar completed projects Only work

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Why Use a Construction Project Dashboard? (Template Included)

ProjectManager.com

Just as one wouldnt drive a car without a dashboard as it provides valuable information on the vehicles speed, gas level and so on, no construction project manager should try to deliver construction projects without a construction project dashboard. A construction dashboard is one of the pillars of construction project management. Project management and program management both recommend using a construction project management dashboard and well explain why.

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Welcome to the Future of Hospitality: Smart Rooms Start Here

Speaker: Jady West, VP of Hospitality & Chris Bennett, Head of Sales & Engineering

The modern hotel room is no longer just a place to stay—it’s an experience to remember. Today’s guests expect seamless 5G connectivity, personalized comfort, and high-tech convenience. From AI-powered smart room controls to in-room entertainment and app-based services, technology is redefining hospitality from the inside out. In this new session featuring industry pros Jady West and Chris Bennett, we’ll explore how high-speed, high-bandwidth connectivity powers the innovations that are enabling

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Scrum Teams - How to enable self-management?

Scrum.org

The core strength of Scrum is its ability to take advantage of self-managing teams who are capable of making faster decisions, taking ownership and creating value by helping the customers to respond to ever changing needs of their domain, market. The challenge however is, how many self-managing teams have we encountered in the software world. At least, in the places where I have worked in the past, the sighting was rare to none.

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Portfolio Management: The Career Move You’ve Been Looking For?

Rebel’s Guide to PM

Are you looking for the next step in your career? Project managers who want to move more into a strategic delivery role dont always have that many choices. Career paths tend to lean towards larger, more complex and more strategically important projects, or program management. Have you thought about moving into portfolio management? What does a portfolio manager do?

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"Cost" how say you?

Musings on Project Management

How many ways are there to say "Cost"?Certainly, more than one!When "they" ask: 'How do YOU manage cost?", your answer is: 'It's complicated' because there are so many varieties of 'cost'.

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Project Gates: The Janus-like Guardians of Product Development

MPUG

One might conclude that agile approaches to project management, such as Scrum, mean there is no need for gate reviews. We suggest blanket statements like that are of little use and amount to checking our brains at the door. We say the same thing if one adopts gate reviews for every product development project. In product development, project gates stand as crucial checkpoints, like the Roman god Janus, looking both backward and forward.

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How to Modernize Manufacturing Without Losing Control

Speaker: Andrew Skoog, Founder of MachinistX & President of Hexis Representatives

Manufacturing is evolving, and the right technology can empower—not replace—your workforce. Smart automation and AI-driven software are revolutionizing decision-making, optimizing processes, and improving efficiency. But how do you implement these tools with confidence and ensure they complement human expertise rather than override it? Join industry expert Andrew Skoog as he explores how manufacturers can leverage automation to enhance operations, streamline workflows, and make smarter, data-dri

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Try Toggl’s (Better) Approach to After-Action Reviews

Teamweek

One of the workplace’s most innovative review processes originated in an unlikely place: the U.S. Army. While after-action reviews (AARs) have been tweaked to make them more applicable to project management, team evaluations, and organizational learning, we still believe the process can be modernized even more. At Toggl, we believe there’s a better approach, and that’s why we’ve tried to modernize the traditional version of after-action reviews.

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Event Scheduling Basics: How to Make an Event Schedule

ProjectManager.com

Events are projects that must be planned, executed and tracked to be delivered successfully. Therefore, an event schedule is essential to ensure that all related tasks are organized and done within a predetermined timeframe. To have a successful event requires event scheduling, which means understanding the steps to creating one, what should be included and an event schedule template to lay it all out.

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Product Backlog Ordering - Beyond MoSCoW

Scrum.org

The only reason for a Product Owner to exist is to maximize the value of the Product. One of the ways Product Owner can accomplish this is by ensuring that most valuable items remain at the top of the Product Backlog and the Product Goal underscores their importance. So, how does the Product Owner order the Product Backlog; what techniques can be used?

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10 Things I Love About Managing Projects

Rebel’s Guide to PM

I've been managing projects for over 20 years, so I guess I must kinda like it! Below, I share the best bits about managing projects. It never fails to amaze me that I still love it, after all this time, but partly that's due to the fact it never gets boring. And that leads us straight into Reason 1. #1. The variety Today, IT, tomorrow you'll be talking to Marketing.

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Breaking The Commerce Bottleneck: Your SAP Exit Plan Starts Now

Speaker: Jason Cottrell and Gireesh Sahukar

Retailers know the clock is ticking–legacy SAP Commerce support ends in 2026. Legacy platforms are becoming a liability burdened by complexity, rigidity, and mounting operational costs. But modernization isn’t just about swapping out systems, it’s about preparing for a future shaped by real-time interactions, AI powered buying assistants, and flexible commerce architecture.

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Best Short-Term Rental Insurance Companies for 2025

Lodgify

If you’re planning to invest in a short-term rental property for 2025 , you’ll also want to invest in the right rental insurance. In most cases, typical homeowner insurance will not cover the vast majority of issues that arise in short-term rentals. Since short-term rentals can be unoccupied for long periods of time and guests could cause property damage, insurance companies consider them to be very high risk.

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Why People Burnout at Work? And Proven Ways to Recover

NimbleWork

Burnout at work is more than just feeling tired. Its a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by prolonged workplace stress. According to a Gallup study , nearly 76% of employees experience burnout at some point in their careers, with 28% feeling burned out “very often” or “always.” Source: Gallup The consequences of burnout extend far beyond workplace disengagement.

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Multi-Resource Scheduling: Assigning Tasks to Multiple People and Resources

Ganttic

Ever needed to schedule a task for multiple people or resources? Instead of adding the same task again and again for each person, why not do it all in one go? Multi-resource scheduling lets you assign a single task to multiple team members, equipment, or locationskeeping everything in sync without the extra clicks. What is Multi-Resource Scheduling?

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10 Types of Construction Projects with Examples

ProjectManager.com

There are many different types of construction. Most think of dwellings, but when driving past road crews tearing up the streets, thats also an example of a construction project. In fact, there are many different types of construction projects. Lets review different types of construction, defining and illustrating them so they are clear and understandable.

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State of AI in Sales & Marketing 2025

AI adoption is reshaping sales and marketing. But is it delivering real results? We surveyed 1,000+ GTM professionals to find out. The data is clear: AI users report 47% higher productivity and an average of 12 hours saved per week. But leaders say mainstream AI tools still fall short on accuracy and business impact. Download the full report today to see how AI is being used — and where go-to-market professionals think there are gaps and opportunities.

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Psychological Safety: Misunderstood, Yet Mission-Critical

Scrum.org

TL; DR: Psychological Safety as a Competitive Edge Psychological safety isnt about fluffy nicenessit is the foundation of agile teams that innovate, adapt, and deliver. When teams fearlessly debate ideas, admit mistakes, challenge norms, and find ways to make progress, they can outperform most competitors. Yet, many organizations knowingly or unknowingly sabotage psychological safetya short-sighted and dangerous attitude in a time when knowledge is no longer the moat it used to be.

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4 Common Change Models and How Useful They Are at Work

Rebel’s Guide to PM

Project managers deliver change all the time, but in my experience, we arent always focused on the change side of change if you see what I mean. Project managers tend to focus on the delivery and execution, and hopefully theres a change manager who picks up the impact on the end users. But if there isnt, then you need to spend at least a little time on making sure your project changes land well.

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The 10 Best Airbnb Management Companies in 2025

Lodgify

Managing an Airbnb can be a time-consuming and stressful endeavor, especially for hosts who have multiple properties or are located in another city or country. By partnering with a professional Airbnb management company, hosts can rest easy knowing that their properties are in good hands. An Airbnb rental management company can handle every aspect of the rental process, from creating and managing listings to guest communication, cleaning and maintenance, and financial management.

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Love for Work in a Toxic World: How External Forces Shape Burnout and Passion?

NimbleWork

I used to see my job like a whirlwind romancefull of adrenaline, late nights, and grand gestures. But over time, the spark faded. Micromanagement felt like jealousy; unrealistic deadlines became gaslighting. Burnout crept in, and I realized: loving your job isnt enough when the system works against you. This isnt just about self-care. Its about dismantling the forces that turn passion into exploitation.

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How to Avoid Pitfalls In Automation: Keep Humans In the Loop

Speaker: Erroll Amacker

Automation is transforming finance but without strong financial oversight it can introduce more risk than reward. From missed discrepancies to strained vendor relationships, accounts payable automation needs a human touch to deliver lasting value. This session is your playbook to get automation right. We’ll explore how to balance speed with control, boost decision-making through human-machine collaboration, and unlock ROI with fewer errors, stronger fraud prevention, and smoother operations.

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Profit Margins from Customer Projects

The IIL Blog

Oliver F. Lehmann February 5, 2025 Many organizations generate revenue by doing customer projects as contractors. The business they are involved with is Project Business , and a major concern in these projects is profitability. Claires story shows what specific challenges these projects bring for project managers and what organizations can do to make it easier for individuals to grow into this role.

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Acceptance Criteria in Project Management: A Quick Guide

ProjectManager.com

When a project or product manager is in the planning stage, theyre scheduling tasks to meet a schedule and not exceed the budget. But if the customer needs arent met with the deliverables being created, the project is a failure. Equally or more important than meeting deadlines and avoiding cost overruns is acceptance criteria. Why are acceptance criteria important?

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Evolving Agile Frameworks

Scrum.org

Change is a natural part of any organization. People move on, technology advances, and new challenges arise. At the same time, markets shift, customer expectations evolve, and competition increases. If your organization isn't delivering the results you expect, it might be time to rethink your approach. Agile Frameworks as a Starting Point Agile frameworks offer a way to navigate these challenges.

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