This year I submitted a panel proposal on the topic to SXSW. It was denied. I’ve moved on. In fact, I’m taking the cause to NXNE this year. That’s right, there is a North By Northeast festival, and it looks to be a whole heck of a lot better than SXSW!

I’m very pleased that the folks at NXNE have accepted my proposal:

THE F WORD: FEEDBACK

You’ve poured your heart and soul in to your work and proudly presented it to your team or your clients, and the response you got back was…not what you expected. Maybe you didn’t miss the mark, but they did? Maybe the feedback you got was a little confusing? Maybe you did suck, and you need to go back to the drawing board. It’s okay, it happens. Reviewing, filtering, understanding and responding to feedback on any type of deliverable can be a rough experience. This panel of web design professionals from the UX, Design and Project Management communities will discuss The “F” word and how to deal with it.

The best part? I get to collaborate with some awesome people:

Cassie McDaniel: Cassie is an extremely talented designer, writer and artist. Her book has become one of my daughters’ favorite stories. I originally reached out to her to join my SXSW panel (R.I.P.) because she wrote a great A List Apart article about design criticism. Thanks to Cassie. we’re headed to Toronto. She’s a native and had the idea to take the idea to NXNE.

Jenn Lukas:  Ever since Web Design Day, where Jenn and I both presented and helped one another with our slides, we’ve wanted to work together on a talk. I’m excited to have Jenn on the panel to provide a developer’s take on feedback and how it can impact her work at any point in the process of a project. Plus, Jenn is an all-around cat-loving genius who writes for The Nerdary and .NET magazine.  Who could ask for more?

Travis Schmeisser:  This panel wouldn’t be complete without the IA point of view. Travis is one of the creators of the Expression Engine Structure add-on, and is User Experience Designer for 80/20. Check out his talk “We Used to Build Forts”. I’m super-excited to collaborate with Travis.

We’ll be collaborating and crafting our panel conversation over the next couple of months. In the meantime, if you’ve got ideas/observations on how you (or others) deliver, accept, process or even reject feedback, I would love to hear from you! Comment below and I’ll be sure to get in touch.

It’s a lot of work. It’s also a lot of fun. We’re on day four of a five-day project, and so much has happened. I feel as though I have learned a lot, because I’m seeing the activity on a project that would typically take us six months or more in five work days. I’m siting in a conference room with my amazing coworkers who are designing and building the site, so I have the benefit of hearing and knowing the full spectrum of thoughts going into every detail. For me, that is invaluable. Plus. I’ve been able to jump in and help out. It’s been fun to apply some of my day-to-day PM experience, but  I’ve also learned a lot about how projects can work, how they should work, and what can always prove to be an issue. Here’s a quick breakdown of what I’ve taken in so far:

Communication…Yeah.
I’m like a broken record. I think all I ever write about is how communications are the most important aspect to a project. It’s true, and I found that out within the first two days of this week. Our first day was full of brainstorming. That led right into working. That meant that everyone was eager to do as much as possible. It also meant that people were having conversations without the rest of the group, and that not everyone knew what was happening all the time. So, we had to adjust the way we were working and put a good communication plan into place. We needed regular check-ins and decided on this schedule: 10am, noon, 2pm and 4pm. A quick review of what everyone is working on at the moment, and any issues that needed to be addressed. That’s helped us immensely.

Plans Change. Adapt.
Project plans almost never play out the way you expect. They certainly don’t on a short, high pressure project, but it’s good to have a high level list of things that need to be done and a target day/time. We’re working from a list with that kind of detail. I have found that it’s best to keep track of who’s doing what, when you need things done, and how they’re getting done. New tasks will come up and requirements might change, but knowing what can/cannot be done in a week is critical. A high-level list will help in setting or maintaining that expectation.

Document Everything.
We’re using Basecamp To Dos and writeboards like bosses. Everything is there; if it isn’t, it probably didn’t happen. It’s nice to know that one-off conversations are turning into “I’ll add a To Do for that.” Also, I made one whiteboard a status board that lists the goals for the day, our check in times, issues, and a bulleted status list for everyone on the project. We reviewed that list at every check in. It works well to show how much progress is made.

Don’t Be Bashful.
Someone in the room has to be listening to what’s going on, making sure that there are no conflicting details, or questions unanswered. I have felt that a lot of my job this week has been to resolve issues by asking question about the tasks (and following-up) and making sure conversations are happening.

Have Fun.
Yes, work is serious and you’ll be under pressure. But have fun. Honestly, that has been the best part of this week. The crew I work with…they’re awesome. And very funny.

So that’s it. Tomorrow is launch day. Another day of lessons learned. I’m excited. Also, ready for a celebratory beer with all my buddies.

It’s okay, I’ve gotten over those feelings, but it hasn’t been without some experience to find out that following up with people and holding them accountable for their own work is part of the job in project management.

Follow-up with your team.

I find that friendly reminders like “hey did you get to X yet?” or “don’t forget about Y.” can be handled in a way that won’t sound like a nagging granny. And, if you do handle them in a friendly way, people tend to be receptive and happy about it. I do my fair share of “Sorry to be a pain, but…” just to make sure they know I’m not trying to be a babysitter, but really it’s just a part of the role. If people hate me for trying to help, then so be it.

Follow-up with your clients.

This can be really tricky. Are you doing weekly status reports and a fair share of check-ins by phone and STILL missing things from clients? Maybe it’s time to get serious. In my experience, clients tend to get more serious when you bring up Budget and Scope immediately. There’s always the potential for some impact when you’re caught with client delays, so raise the issue right away. It might spark a fire. It may ignite wildfire. But either way, it’s a part of the job. Handling what comes out of a follow-up, whether it’s good or bad, is a part of being a good PM. If you don’t want to deal with a client who doesn’t want to hear the real talk, you might want to step away.

How do you handle your follow-up? Does how you follow-up with teams affect the way you do your job, or the way you’re perceived?

I loved Pittsburgh. I have not been there in a really long time, and was really impressed by the city. But, really, I was most impressed by what seemed to be a really friendly, passionate web community. These guys showed up for a full day event on a Saturday and stayed engaged all day long. The (other) speakers were great, so I guess that wasn’t too hard to do!

I have to say, I was slightly nervous to give my talk to a group of designers and developers. There were a couple of PMs in the audience, but I was talking mainly to an audience outside of my practice. I had no idea how it would go over. And I was totally happy with the outcome. We did an exercise to get people thinking about project process, I talked A LOT, and then there were a bunch of questions. I could not have been happier, and am so happy to know that designers and developers are generally engaged in process.

If I had one wish, it would be for more project managers to attend events like Web Design Day. Hearing super-smart professionals like these guys is what makes project managers better at what we do. It’s important for us to keep up on practices and trends in the industry, and to think about how we can change our process or help our colleagues in the face of change. So, if you’re not a PM and you’re reading this and going to events like Web Design Day, ask your PM along to the next web-related event you attend. Trust me, it will be good for everyone.

Check out the slides from my presentation: BHarned_WDD_presentation

Two days after launch, I am sitting at my desk, going back to the site to make sure we didn’t miss something, thinking “what happened here?” or “how did we pull it off?” Here’s why I think we did it:

A solid project plan
I’m definitely not saying it was me. The plan we came up with was a team effort. I steered the ship to make sure we met milestones and that all parties involved were keeping up with their end of the deal. But going in to the project with a sense of immediacy about what needed to be accomplished and in what order was crucial to our success. In this instance, everything would’ve fallen apart without it.

An understanding, flexible client
You never know what you’re getting in to with a new client. Thankfully, this client understood that a 10 day project meant they needed to think quickly, get us the info we needed, and approve/provide assets quickly. They made my life easier than it could’ve been, that’s for sure.

Good communications
It’s all about opening up all channels: phone, email, IM, meetings, etc. I set up weekly check ins for the term of the project, but for this first milestone we only had enough time for one weekly status report call. That doesn’t mean that we were not in constant communication as a team and with our clients. We had to be. We communicated page requirements through a message and ran with them on the fly. We couldn’t wait. It wasn’t perfect and things change (they always do), but keeping a solid stream of communications with good expectations in place helped us, for sure.

A nimble team
The team consisted of one designer, one designer/developer, one creative director, and one project manager.  Design concepts were wrapped up in two days, selection and revision happened in one day, and final design and development of features (including responsive design and some other cool bells and whistles) happened up until the very last-minute possible. Responsibilities were very clear, which made things easy to manage from the beginning.

Extra work hours
We had to make it work. Not only was the team nimble, they were willing to work late, on the weekend (on a planned day off), and come in early to make it happen. It’s nice to see real dedication and teamwork to make a project happen.

I am sure there were other things, like the stars aligning with the moon, that contributed to the success of the project, but the real things that made us happy. So, now that we’ve celebrated with some beers and picklebacks, it’s probably time to do a post mortem to really figure out what helped us kill it.

In fact…I just let one of those references creep in to my work. Check out my latest article, Save Ferris!, which was posted today on Cognition. The article is about how we handle the challenges that work throws at us, and how it affects our attitudes. I’d say I’m a Cameron about 20% of my work week and a Ferris the rest. I’m a Ferris at home, for sure. How about you? Are you a Cameron or a Ferris? Comment on Cognition!

The article is all about what I do to make sure I am keeping up my end of the deal, project management-wise and having fun on the job, meeting new people (clients) and just being myself. It’s not an easy thing to do, but it can be accomplished. Please check it out!

I’ve got a couple more article to be published outside of this blog. I’ll mention them here when they’re published.

I am really happy to say that an article I posted here a while back was recently featured on pmhut. The response to that article, through the blog and other channels, has been really awesome. In fact, it has totally inspired me to write more. I have been talking to a few other publishers about new articles and reuse of some of my current content, which is really cool. Honestly, I never expected more people than my mom to read this stuff. Actually, I don’t even think she reads it (and really, not that many people do).

So what’s the point? Why am I telling you this without actually naming the other publishers? The point is: a little positive feedback can go a long way. Remember that when you’re working with your project teams. A simple “nice job” not only makes people feel good, it inspires them to do better, or do more. And that’s all we want out of our careers, good work to show.

When my next non-blog articles are published, I’ll post links to them here. I won’t be looking for a pat on the back, but a comment, argument or response blog will certainly continue the conversation. A dialogue about what we do, or how we represent our profession is always a good thing, as long as you keep it respectful. So with that, I ask that you send me your ideas, or links to articles, images, presentations, or other things that inspire you. My list of topics is not never-ending, and I would love some input. Thanks!

So I’ve been thinking about what actually happened. How did I reach this point? Here is my answer: I found what I could do reasonably well and ran with it. But here’s also what happened: I realized that I was no longer a part of a community that understood my role. So, I’m trying to change that. I am getting involved!

I just joined the Project Management Institute. My hope is to learn a thing or two through the many resources available to members and make some connections with project managers all over the world. Do I plan on becoming certified? I don’t know yet. I’ll take baby steps and see just how much I can do with my very limited free time.

Another fun PM-related thing that I have going on: I’m working with PhilaMade to organize a PhilaPM organization. That’s right! A PM community for Philadelphia. Our first event is on Tuesday, June 28. If you’re in the area, join us. In the future, I am hoping to build a community of project managers who want to share ideas and socialize. I’m looking forward to meet-ups, presentations and maybe workshops.

In the meantime, I’ll continue to learn and be better at what I do. Please let me know if you have any ideas on resources, conferences, or discussion topics (for the blogs, or otherwise).

For any other work, a budget is a budget and you need to work with it, right? The same can be said for project management. We need to do what is right for the client and the project, and keep our work within the constraints of the project budget. I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately, as I have hit my hours budgets on projects earlier than expected, or have seen a trend toward using my hours before a project is done. I had to take a deeper look at what I was doing on those projects to see just where the time was going. It’s true, you read it here first: I’m not perfect. I completely exhaust budget hours! (If you don’t, you must have some amazing budgets to work with.)

Here are some things I noted that were maybe taking a little more time than I needed. I’m still in the process of figuring out just how I can do more with less hours, but this is a start for me, at least.

Status Overload!
I do weekly status reports and a follow-up calls weekly with all of my clients, whether we’re working on large or small projects together (read: regardless of budget). I had to wonder, was I creating needy clients or setting expectations improperly? That’s a tough one. Part of what we do is keep the lines of communication open and keep everyone informed of all project details, and status reports contribute to that. I also think that speaking with a client on the phone to actually discuss details of the project only contribute to the health of a project, so using a weekly check-in to make sure we’re all in agreement makes a lot of sense. But, I just don’t have the budget to use that time every week. 30 minutes a week really can add up!

Resolution: Maybe a weekly call is overboard. Let’s reduce them to bi-weekly to see how that goes.

Mr. Meeting
It’s important that a PM be involved in all conversations on a project to know what is happening on all fronts. In many instances, I find that even sitting in on a meeting between team members can help me in many ways:

• I gain a better understanding of my team’s process and working relationships, which can inform future decisions and responses to client questions
• I can get a sense for any possible project risks (and ask about them on the spot)
• I tend to learn things about UX, design and code that I might not learn while sitting at my desk (a selfish one, but critical to career growth)

Here’s the thing: I can no longer be Mr. Meeting. It’s a fact: sitting in on every meeting eats up a lot of project time and you never know if you will actually be able to contribute or get anything out of a meeting. So, what to do when budget hours are running out?

Resolution: Make better decisions on what conversations you need to be a part of and ask the team to fill you in on the details when you can’t attend. And, of course, always ask questions if you need to.

Expect the Unexpected
I find that at least 20-80% of my day can be spent answering unexpected questions and requests. How do you budget your time when you have a percentage of the project hours and have to answer to random client calls and requests? It’s a part of what I do, it can’t be avoided. I know that I can’t plan for it, but I can expect some level of “unexpected” work in my day. It can be fun, actually. It can also be miserable if it gets in the way of your planned (budgeted) work.

Resolution: Delegate when possible. It’s not just about passing work off to save your own time. When it comes down to it, it makes sense for some people to respond to questions/requests that relate to project specifics. In the past I’ve made myself a part of that process. Now, I watch it all go down and make sure everyone is communicating (rather than doing the communicating and running it by my peers).

That Plan? Yeah, It’s Always Gonna Change
I find that I can spend a lot of time making adjustments and updates to project plans and thinking about how resourcing will work for the next month. But, really, project plans will change often, and so will the details that they affect.

Resolution: Budget time each week to make updates to your project plans and other project-related tasks (like updating milestones in Basecamp, ugh).

I’m still auditing my own practices and trying new things. Hopefully I’ll get to a point where I can just sit back and watch projects just happen. But seriously, I know that I can always improve how I work and save budgets (and make everyone happy), it’s just a matter of how to make it happen and still provide a quality work product to my team and my clients.

Do you take any steps to work more effectively and stick to your own budgets? I’d love to hear all about it! Check out the comments, man (or woman).