Welcome to Project Management: It’s All Bollocks! where two people who vaguely know each other and barely like each other will pick over the sadly inadequate body of knowledge that is project management today, and generally challenge just about everything, eliminating that which you don't need to bother to learn about, or should already know, leaving you only with the parts that will give you the results you want. This book is a shakedown of project management, the profession, the myths it creates and promotes, its great ideas and ambitions and a few ropey bits that we’re just not convinced about. The project management profession continues to grow and mature, but is at risk of excluding those who don’t fit the mould. There is a mystique out there that only certificated project managers can be project managers. This is nonsense. The project management skill set is accessible to anyone, and how you choose to access it and put it to use should remain the decision of the individual. There shouldn’t be a right or wrong choice. This book is targeted at those ‘projects as usual project managers’ who will drive most of the change inside organisations tomorrow and beyond, and who really need help to do that. The authors offer up a selection of seven cracking ideas, that when applied to a project environment will ultimately result in you being a good manager of projects in this modern world of business complexity.

Enabling project managers to adapt to the new technology of artificial intelligence, this first comprehensive book on the topic discusses how AI will reinvent the project world and allow project managers to focus on people. Studies show that by 2030, 80 percent of project management tasks, such as data collection, reporting, and predictive analysis, will be carried out by AI in a consistent and efficient manner. This book sets out to explore what this will mean for project managers around the world and equips them to embrace this technological advantage for greater project success. Filled with insights and examples from tech providers and project experts, this book is an invaluable resource for PMO leaders, change executives, project managers, programme managers, and portfolio managers. Anyone who is part of the global community of change and project leadership needs to accept and understand the fast- approaching AI technology, and this book shows how to use it to their advantage.

Matching the speed of change in modern business, this book takes readers on a two-year journey in building a project management office (PMO) for today and tomorrow and redefines the PMO as to what it should focus on: Projects, Methods, and Outcomes. Many organisations invest heavily in PMOs, but these are built on an outdated and static model that does not fit a hybrid, agile, AI-empowered, and rapidly changing business environment. Building on his renowned "balanced PMO" model, project management leader Peter Taylor tackles today’s challenges with this diary-style guide to inspire all PMO leaders, project managers, and business leaders, and provide a roadmap to follow to build (or rebuild) their own PMOs. He presents a completely new definition of "PMO", eliminating the traditional back-office concept of a centralised PMO, with his "Projects: Methods: Outcomes" construct that provides a truly business focused team to oversee the delivery of value to their organisation. Enriched with case studies and practical models, this book will benefit all PMO leaders, project management professionals, change and transformation leaders, and anyone interested in how to deliver business value through projects.

Business Agility is an approach that gives the right business flexibility and fast decision-making in a volatile environment, providing a great capacity for innovation, adaptation and change. Businesses everywhere are trying to ‘get business agile’ – but it’s not easy to adapt to becoming this adaptive. How can conventional organisations succeed in this transformation? In this book, project and change management expert Peter Taylor walks you through the change process step by step, providing a tried and tested transformation roadmap: benefits are outlined, solutions to common challenges offered, and tried and tested methods and tools provided. He guides you towards a decentralised management style that offers more successful decision making through collaboration. By reducing processes, adjusting the governance and believing in ‘the power of the people’ to deliver simple success in a time of complex demand, the guidance in this book will help any manager get Business Agile.

From David Graeber, the bestselling author of The Dawn of Everything and Debt—“a master of opening up thought and stimulating debate” (Slate)—a powerful argument against the rise of meaningless, unfulfilling jobs…and their consequences. Does your job make a meaningful contribution to the world? In the spring of 2013, David Graeber asked this question in a playful, provocative essay titled “On the Phenomenon of Bullshit Jobs.” It went viral. After one million online views in seventeen different languages, people all over the world are still debating the answer. There are hordes of people—HR consultants, communication coordinators, telemarketing researchers, corporate lawyers—whose jobs are useless, and, tragically, they know it. These people are caught in bullshit jobs. Graeber explores one of society’s most vexing and deeply felt concerns, indicting among other villains a particular strain of finance capitalism that betrays ideals shared by thinkers ranging from Keynes to Lincoln. “Clever and charismatic” (The New Yorker), Bullshit Jobs gives individuals, corporations, and societies permission to undergo a shift in values, placing creative and caring work at the center of our culture. This book is for everyone who wants to turn their vocation back into an avocation and “a thought-provoking examination of our working lives” (Financial Times).

It’s been said that software is eating the planet. The modern economy—the world itself—relies on technology. Demand for the people who can produce it far outweighs the supply. So why do developers occupy largely subordinate roles in the corporate structure? Developer Hegemony explores the past, present, and future of the corporation and what it means for developers. While it outlines problems with the modern corporate structure, it’s ultimately a play-by-play of how to leave the corporate carnival and control your own destiny. And it’s an emboldening, specific vision of what software development looks like in the world of developer hegemony—one where developers band together into partner firms of “efficiencers,” finally able to command the pay, respect, and freedom that’s earned by solving problems no one else can. Developers, if you grow tired of being treated like geeks who can only be trusted to take orders and churn out code, consider this your call to arms. Bring about the autonomous future that’s rightfully yours. It’s time for developer hegemony.

What if you discovered a blueprint that could grow your brand’s reputation and loyalty, dramatically reduce customer service issues, produce content and technology, and cement a powerful, lasting relationship between you and your customers? Communities have been a popular topic since the rise of the Internet and social media, but few companies have consistently harnessed their power, driven tangible value, and effectively measured their return on investment (ROI) like Salesforce.com, Star Citizen via Kickstarter, and Red Hat. Companies such as PayPal, Facebook, Bosch, Microsoft, CapitalOne, and Google, have also built communities inside their organizations, which have fostered innovation, broken down silos, and helped their organizations to operate more efficiently and collaboratively. People Powered helps C-suite leaders, founders, marketers, customer advocates, and community leaders gain a competitive advantage by answering the following questions: What is the key value proposition of building a community? What kind of community do we need and how do we build and integrate it into our organization? How do we incentivize and encourage people to get involved, build reliable growth, and keep community members engaged? How do we develop authentic, productive relationships with community members both online and in person? How do we get departmental buy-in, hire effectively, and create consistent, reliable community engagement skills in our organization? What are the strategic and tactical pitfalls and roadblocks we need to avoid? How do we make sure that our community continues to grow with us—and more importantly, how do we make sure that we continue to grow with them? People Powered pulls together over 20 years of pragmatic experience into a clear, simple methodology and blueprint to not just answer these questions, but deliver results. Don’t get left behind—become an industry trailblazer and ensure your company’s longevity by tapping into the most dynamic force both outside and inside your organization: the people.