Steve Neiderhauser

Handbook of Program Management

Four years ago I searched for a book on program management with little success. Two weeks ago I searched again, this time I found a gem. The Handbook of Program Management, by Dr. James Brown is a diamond mine of polished tactics and concepts that you can use to manage programs.

This is also a great book for any executive who is responsible for multiple projects, even if the executive doesn't hold the title "Program Manager." So how does Dr. Brown define the key trait of a program manger?

"A program manager is first and foremost a leader. In fact, the program manager's main leadership duty is to turn chaos into clarity for the team."

And how does business typically control chaos? Managers introduce process and methodologies. Dr. Brown writes about people versus process, however he shows that he is no process fool -- "There should be very few rules compared with the number of guidelines."

In the late eighties there was a software design process called "Structured Design." I watched as several companies embraced the process with the zeal of a TV evangelist. What happened at many of these companies is akin to Gresham's law of money. The bad processes that were instituted, drove the good talent out.

It's true. If you create too many rules, the work becomes mind numbing, driving talented software designers to companies that use guidelines or software frameworks to transform the chaos of design into a beautiful software butterfly.

The Wow Factor

In Cheryl Hall's Dallas News business column, she writes about Barney Adams and his sales philosophy:

"No one sells a product. Everyone sells a service," the 69-year-old said over lunch recently. "I'm also a devout believer that you have to identify exactly what that service is."

Barney Adams started Adams Golf and credits his success to understanding that he was selling much more than golf clubs. In retail seminars, he tells managers that their job is to make people have such a remarkable experience that customers return to the store. And if their company designs great experiences, they'll have few competitors.

Mr. Adams writes about his business success in his new book, The Wow Factor.

Random Words

Michael J. Vaughn offers several tips on how to inspire your creative muse in this month's issue of Writers Digest. Here's an easy one.

"Pick out your favorite book, go to every tenth page and write down the first word on that page. Study your list of random words and see if any patterns come out."

When I opened Tom Sawyer and performed this exercise, these words emerged:

Tom, appeared, other, wrought, about, Aunt Polly; limbs, Tom, jail, river, exercise, and, top, I, occurred, way, handed, and, it, we'll, what, his, Joe, Tom, obstruction, now, trouble.

Interesting pattern, isn't it? The first seven words form their own sentence, and are perhaps seeds for a new story -- Tom falls into mischief and accidentally breaks Aunt Polly's limb. Tom is shipped off to a jail across the river. Tom works out in the exercise yard atop the hill, where Joe appears and befriends Tom. They plot their escape from the obstructions of the prison and now dream of being handed the keys to a world wrought with trouble.

Certainly, there's trouble a brewin' in Twain's random words.