Who is a Program Manager (PgM)? A Program Manager's job is to oversee and deliver large initiatives/programs, for which he/she has to juggle between multiple tasks, responsibilities, by focussing on the deadlines and handling complex projects at the same time. Being a Program Manager, one has to be ready to deal with uncertainties/unplanned events anytime and everytime. Whether it's your first project or you are an experienced program manager, there is a lot which you have to manage on a daily basis including stakeholders, deliveries, teams, supervisors, deadlines and challenging goals. A Prog ..read more

In order to understand how project managers align on roles and responsibilities at Zalando, I interviewed some of my GPMO peers (Barry Hendrick, Juan Sierra, Lydia Eichhorst and Robert Kilb) to learn how they manage this in their different projects. My main finding is that one size does not fit all and in order to create a productive working environment with well defined roles and responsibilities, one must tailor their approach and style accordingly. Once your project is kicked off, how do you align on Roles & Responsibilities? The unanimous response from my colleagues was that communica ..read more

Emotional Intelligence isn't just recognising emotions; it's actively managing them to keep teams united and driven, especially during challenges. Understanding Emotional Intelligence Expert in psychology Daniel Goleman lists the following five components of emotional intelligence: Self-awareness, Self-regulation, Motivation, Empathy, and Social skills. These elements work synergistically to improve leadership effectiveness, fostering a conducive environment for project execution: Self-awareness: The ability to recognise and understand personal moods and drives, as well as their effect on o ..read more

In the same way that individuals continuously learn and improve, project teams also undergo a process of growth and development. As team members gain experience, acquire new skills, and foster a deeper understanding of their roles, the project as a whole benefits from this collective evolution and while we may wish for "clear skies" and "sunny days," the reality is that the journey is often marked by challenges and obstacles and some of those hurdles come from within the project team. Tuckman's Team Life Cycle To understand this better let's look into what Bruce Tuckman developed in 1965, bet ..read more

In the realm of professional endeavours, influence holds greater power than authority. When wielded tactfully, influence can pave the way for project success while establishing credibility among colleagues. But how does one embark on the journey to becoming truly influential? This blog explores the key strategies and qualities that can help individuals unlock their influential potential and thrive in their professional pursuits. Allow me to begin by quoting Kenneth Blanchard- "The key to successful leadership today is influence not authority." Enhance Your Knowledge In the pursuit of becoming ..read more

Introduction Implementing and leading a change requires more than just a vision; it necessitates effective communication that resonates with stakeholders and inspires them to embrace the transformation. Change initiatives can be complex and challenging, met with resistance, and require transparent and open communication channels. With effectively communicated vision, project managers can manage resistance, ensure transparency, and facilitate a smooth transition. In this blog post, we will explore the building blocks of the communication strategies to better support the change initiatives. Thes ..read more

What is the easiest way to describe the purpose of the Statement Release project? [Lydia Eichhorst] It's changing the game in how Zalando inspires our customers and offers top brands the perfect platform to elevate storytelling around their hottest products. [Julien Sanchez] Thanks to curated articles and stories we can engage customers in new ways so that they don't connect to Zalando only when they're searching for something specific but come to us to get fresh ideas and inspiration for their looks. It's our first step towards bridging the gap between social media, editorial websites and e-c ..read more

What is the PMO Maturity model? A PMO maturity model is a mechanism for recording and tracking the growth of a PMO through its different levels of maturity. It serves as a roadmap of progress of the organisation. This maturing process results in more projects complying with Project Management standards, closing projects successfully and achieving business objectives. There are many PMO maturity models that currently exist eg. PMI, CMM, OPM3, Gartner, Berkeley, Kerzner and others, this article does not talk about any specific PMO maturity model. Why is it important? As the PMO matures it delive ..read more

What is an NDA and why do some projects need it? [Valentine Vierne] An NDA is a non-disclosure agreement which you might have to sign informing you that you are on a restricted project with restricted information that you can not share with people that are not on this restricted list. It's a bit like an insider list but for a project and it's needed because sometimes projects have external dependencies which are still being negotiated and until the negotiation is closed we have to remain as quiet as possible about the potential outcome of the negotiation so as not to endanger it. It's usually ..read more

As a Project Manager I have lost count of how many workshops I have attended or facilitated. From early days, when I was running over huge campuses with my workshop case full of pens and stickers, over the past two years mostly sitting at home and trying to get a group to collaborate on a digital whiteboard, to overcoming the technical difficulties of a hybrid set up. One thing remains true for all those cases: Facilitating a successful workshop is not too hard - if you have a plan. First let me define what a workshop is: While a meeting is focused on general knowledge sharing, like updates or ..read more