Visual Learning – Leading Answers

August 9, 2023October 3, 2026Agile Project Management, Books, Planning, Tailoring Approaches, Teams, Visual Learning

Suitability Filters – Team Discussion Tools

Suitability filters are models that offer simplified views of a decision-making process. They help people identify and discuss the variables at play and make a recommendation. The British statistician George Box said it best “All models are wrong, but some models are useful.” A good model provides insights, usually a basic view of how something works or the interactions between variables. From this perspective, models are interesting and can speed up our comprehension of something. However, the greatest benefit of models is as a group alignment tool. Visual Models Create Group Consensus Much of today’s work is knowledge work. Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) contribute their expertise and collaborate to solve problems or build new products and services. This work […]

April 6, 2023September 27, 2025Certification, Events, Games, Visual Learning

PM Illustrated Free PDU Webinar

Please join me with Peak Business Management for a Free PDU webinar on April 12th at 7:00 pm Eastern Time. Along with Barb Waters, I will be demonstrating the PMP® Exam curriculum from a visual learner’s perspective and giving a tour of PMillustrated.com. We will explore the videos, mindmaps, animations, and games that make learning fun and more effective. We will also be available to answer questions about the PMP® Exam, eligibility criteria, and what to expect in the exam. Reserve your place now and automatically receive 1 PDU for attending the event. I hope you can join us. Register Here

June 18, 2022September 27, 2025Agile Project Management, Books, Certification, Visual Learning

PM illustrated – 35 PDU Bundle

Looking for some PDUs to renew your PMP credential? Curious about the agile content added to the PMP exam since you took yours? Like to try a gamified, visual-learning experience? In partnership with Peak Business, this 35-module micro-learning suite provides comprehensive coverage of the new PMP® Exam Content Outline (ECO) and an excellent overview of today’s current project management topics for those looking for a refresher. Self-Directed Learning Chart your own adventure through topics and let the platform track your progress via self-assessment quizzes and achievement badges. Starting from a one-page, birdseye overview of the whole curriculum, select topics, master domains, and see your progress via our custom Achievements Grid. Track Your Progress Using graphical summaries, cartoons, and […]

May 8, 2022October 3, 2026Agile Project Management, Books, Certification, Tailoring Approaches, Visual Learning, Warning Signs

Agile Adoption – Left to Right is the Way to Go

Agile approaches "Crossed the Chasm" a decade ago. The organizations we see adopting it today are in the "Late Majority" and "Laggard" categories of Geoffrey Moore's Technology Adoption Life Cycle. As companies adopt agile because they have to / it's now expected / the industry norm / required to stay competitive / <insert your own reason>, we see more push-back and failures than ever. Doing something because you have to, rather than because you want to, leads to shortcuts and the wrong mindset. The image below, from Ahmed Sidky, shows agile as a mindset. In the image above, agile is a mindset described by four values, defined by twelve principles and manifested through an unlimited number of practices. The correct […]

January 2, 2022Agile Project Management, Books, Certification, Events, PMI-ACP, Visual Learning

January 2022 – PMI-ACP Supported Self-Study Group

The next 7-week PMI-ACP Supported Study Group with Mike Griffiths is starting soon. Register by January 15th for Earlybird pricing of just $99 (regular $199). This live 7-week online book-club / self-study program works as follows: Read one chapter of my PMI-ACP Exam Prep book each week Join me for a one-hour Zoom call to review topics and ask any questions you may have Get access to a private LinkedIn group where you can ask additional questions and discuss topics with peers Receive exclusive chapter summaries, mindmaps, additional sample exam questions, and extra resources A small group capped at 25 people. At the end of the 7-week program, we will have covered all the material, and you should be ready […]

December 17, 2021October 3, 2026Agile Project Management, Books, Visual Learning

Beyond Agile – Relentlessly Reduce Process

Stefan Wolpers recently reposted his survey “Would you recommend SAFe®?” on LinkedIn and it prompted some excellent discussion. One comment I liked by Maxwell Lamers summarized a common view of SAFe® succinctly as “The framework itself is built on solid ideas, and there is nothing inherently evil about the framework. The trouble comes in the implementation.” Maxwell described problems when SAFe® is not fully implemented, but I think taking on too much process and training is a problem in its own right. Process Has Weight, but Knowledge Is Weightless Ceremonies and processes have weight and take time to undertake. This is okay if the process adds sufficient value to warrant the expenditure. However, often they do not add enough value, […]

August 20, 2021October 12, 2026Agile Project Management, Books, Certification, Events, Games, Leadership, PMI-ACP, Visual Learning

Announcing “PM Illustrated” – The Fun Way to Prepare for Your PMP® Exam

I know, “Fun” and “PMP Exam” are rarely used in the same sentence. When I studied for my PMP credential in 2001, materials were text-based, process-focused, and dry! Unfortunately, not much has changed since then. However, fun is a serious business in adult learning, it boosts retention and cuts study time. We recall facts about our favorite hobbies and sports teams much easier than boring information because our brains prioritize fun experiences for recall. It is why good trainers who can make a topic enjoyable are so valuable. Visual Learning The other secret weapon in slashing our study time is Visual Learning. Research into visual thinking by David Hyerle, reports that 90% of the information entering the brain is visual. […]

June 18, 2021Agile Project Management, Books, Events, Leadership, Lean, Teams, Visual Learning

Beyond Agile – Webinar Recording

Last month I did a 20-minute overview of my new Beyond Agile book for the Washington D.C. Lean-Agile MeetUp group hosted by Sanjiv Augustine. I outline how Beyond Agile grew from studying high-performing teams and trying to distill what they did differently than most other teams. In the video, I cover Agile Myopia, Buffet Syndrome and the need to drop agile processes when they no longer bring enough value to warrant their use. I would like to thank Sanjiv and the entire team at LitheSpeed for hosting me and allowing me to share this video with you here. Anyone interested in my Beyond Agile book can get a paperback or electronic version here.

May 30, 2021Agile Project Management, Books, Certification, Events, Leadership, Lean, Personal Agility, PMI-ACP, Tailoring Approaches, Teams, Theory of Constraints, Visual Learning

PMI-ACP and My New Book “Beyond Agile: Achieving Success with Situational Knowledge and Skills”

It has been 10 years since the PMI-ACP exam was created, and I published my PMI-ACP Exam Prep book. I recall the Steering Committee meetings where we discussed what we believed was necessary for agile practitioners and team leaders to have experience in and an understanding of. Since then, the exam has been updated a couple of times based on Role Delineation Studies (RDS) and Job Task Analysis (JTA), which is how PMI surveys practitioners and asks what techniques are commonly used. However, the core content has mainly endured unchanged, which is testimony to its usefulness. I remember discussing the scope and goals for the credential among the committee that comprised: Alistair Cockburn, Mike Cottmeyer, Jim Cundiff, Jesse Fewell, Mike […]

May 28, 2021Agile Project Management, Books, Events, Leadership, Lean, NoProjects, Personal Agility, Remote Work, Tailoring Approaches, Teams, Visual Learning

Announcing My New Book “Beyond Agile”

I am excited to announce my new book “Beyond Agile: Achieving success with situational knowledge and skills“ is launching. It is available now from RMC in paperback or electronic form here. This post explains the name and motivation for the book. Future posts will profile the content. Background Since helping create DSDM in 1994, I have been working on agile projects for 27 years. In that time, I have personally been a member of around 30 teams, coached and consulted with about 400 organizations and taught agile to over 2,000 team leads and project managers worldwide. Statistically, most were around average, a few were really dysfunctional, and less than 10 were exceptionally productive. Problems Around 8 years ago, […]