recommended reading
Seven Strategy Questions: A Simple Approach For Better Execution
(Robert Simons)
The subtitle “a simple approach for better execution”, gets to the core of the matter, which is being able to actionize strategy. The questions help you first define your customer, and then make you look inside to define what your values are. Based on this foundation, the remaining five questions will help you frame how your business’ performance is measured, what you won’t pursue (important to keep the focus), and how you can create a culture of innovation and collaboration, topping it off with a discussion of how you can make change work for you. This requires a two-way street of top-down and bottom-up information sharing and transparency. Powerful concepts explained in a very practical way, laced with compelling examples. Simons is able to communicate in common language what business owners and corporate management needs to hear over and over again. One of my favorite quotes: “People think focus means saying yes to the things you need to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. It means saying no to the one hundred other good ideas.” (Steve Jobs).
Absolute Beginner's Guide To Project Management -
Second Edition
(Gregory M. Horine)
This is a helpful book if you actually want to apply project management. The author follows PMI's framework with few exceptions, and the terminology and language are consistent with the PMBOK® Guide. I'm using it in preparation for a basic project management training. The book is well organized and has a very useful index.
Know What You Don't Know: How Great Leaders Prevent Problems Before They Happen (Michael A. Roberto)
This book explains why it is much smarter to be focused on problem-finding, than problem-solving. Implementing this approach means a cultural revolution in most companies I know. The idea is that if you can catch and address issues when they have just emerged, and not swiped under the rug yet, they are manageable. Illustrated with many examples and based on academic research, this is an engaging and refreshing presentation of seven critical skill sets that could make a life or death difference in your business. Much of this is applicable to project management as well. For example, there is a short list of key questions in the “Hunt for patterns” chapter that will help you scrutinize assumptions. Question 6: How would our conclusions change if each of our key assumptions proves incorrect? If you are ready to challenge your view of the reality around you, and think you can handle surprises, this book will be a delight.
The Five Most Important Questions You Will Ever Ask About Your Organization (Peter F. Drucker)
I found this self-assessment tool refreshingly easy to read with laser focus on the five most important strategic questions:
1. What is our mission?
2. Who is our customer?
3. What does the customer value?
4. What are our results?
5. What is our plan?
Each of the five questions is first tackled by Drucker, followed by a brief expansion by one
of the co-authors, who are management buffs
in their own right. While the questions are universally applicable, much of the text and examples focus on non-profits. This really doesn't matter, because the text paints a broad enough picture to see how this applies regardless.
Reading this book makes it abundantly clear WHAT to ask, but leaves it up to the reader to figure out HOW to implement or actionize the findings. All in all a valuable "fog-lifter" to be revisited regularly to evaluate if your daily activities are still in line with your mission.
The brevity and organization of the book allow for time-efficient checkups.
Lean, Rapid and Profitable New Product Development (Robert G. Cooper, Scott J. Edgett, Laura Brady)
Next Generation stage-gate, adaptable and scaleable, applicable to fluid market situations.
Less than 200 pages, which is a blessing these days. Hits on the need to be practical about stage-gate, and treat is more as a framework and philosophy rather than a rigid process.
A fair amount of new material is mixed with recycled ideas, and there is some repetitiveness throughout. Overall well structured explanation of Seven Principles that will make/keep stage-gate lean, rapid, and profitable. Principles 1-3 (customer focused, front-end loaded, and spiral development) will help gain competitive advantage. Principles 4-5 (holistic approach driven by cross-functional teams, and metrics, accountability & continuous improvement) improve time-to-market. Principle 6 (portfolio management) focuses on investing in the right developments, and principle 7 (flexible, adaptable and scaleable stage-gate) puts all of the above together in the idea-to-launch process. If you are familiar with some of Cooper's other books and articles on stage-gate, much of this will be familiar themes. However, the focus on flexibility and adaptability makes this book a very appealing introduction to Cooper's stage-gate (he coined it in the 80s).
The Customer’s Way (Daniel H. Walker)
How to find out what your customers really want
An easy to read short story most people can relate to, which explains how to hear the “voice of the customer” and get it right.
The backdrop is an ailing and out of touch alumni association, that wants to increase alumni involvement with the college. Reading through the book, David, who is brought in by Marty, the president of the association, takes you through the steps, starting with the introspective “Why are we here”, all the way through customer interviews.
The book is written to the point with no distractions, no fluff, only what’s necessary to keep the story on track. Want to know more? Read it in a little over an hour. You’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Strategic Project Management Made Simple
(Terry Schmidt)
Why are we doing this? – How to keep your eyes on the ball!
From a project manager's perspective, this book presents very practical tools that help keep your eye on the ball, without being distracted by the day-to-day grind. Starting with the Four Critical Strategic Questions (what are be trying to accomplish and why?; how will me measure success?; what other conditions must exist?; how do we get there?) the reader is introduced to the Logical Framework, which applies If-Then logic to get from inputs to outputs to purpose to goal - goal being the strategic objective of the project. This approach forces you to answer the Strategic Questions on the way. Lots of practical advice - even on how to effectively facilitate meetings - and great examples. A practical book that can be read by anyone that contributes to project teams, but it helps to be familiar with the foundation of basic project management principles.
Innovation on Demand: New Product Development Using TRIZ
(Victor Fey, Eugene Rivin)
This textbook makes you think and rethink
Consider this required reading if you’re seriously interested in innovation, and TRIZ (theory of inventive problem solving) in particular. This is a very clear and well organized text book, but don’t mistake clarity with easy or quick to read. Having spent a major part of my professional career directly of indirectly in innovation, I had to “process” a lot of what is presented in this book. It really made me think and rethink why what I did worked – or why not. Most of the examples will really speak to mechanical engineers like myself, and I’m sure the pictures help explain the concepts to others as well.
The way ARIZ (algorithm for inventive problem solving) is explained clearly demonstrates why this is the most powerful TRIZ tool. Building on system conflicts, and using substance-field (sufield) analysis, the process to solve conflicts and how to make the right decisions is explained. The chapter on the laws of technological system evolution is of particularly great value, as it makes you realize that progress or innovation travels according to certain laws or along certain lines. If you want to focus your innovative efforts there are great answers to be found here.
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