PM Training Squad - a project management podcast

In this podcast we discuss some of the merits of permanent and contract roles, and consider the factors that you might want to consider when deciding what's the right career option for you.

PERM
- base salary
- company car
- pension
- other fringe benefits
- training (usually paid for)
- progression/transition
- mentoring
- redundancy
- security
- experience depends on employer

CONTRACT

IS usually paid more
- admin hassle
- need to manage your own money
- keep a buffer (both for the taxman and in case you are on the bench) min 6M but ideally 1yr
- take renewals - evidence of this shows competence
- will depend on the amount of risk you want to take
- exposure to different ways of working and cultures
- easy to leave a nightmare role
- some people just don’t feel comfortable with permanent employment and the obligation that brings
- you may get the rubbish jobs
- can be a good option to see if you like the culture and then move to perm
- IR35 - a UK challenge
- fixed term salaried role - not such a good deal for you
- agency ‘directly employed’ model - ditto

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Many people will now be working from home for the first time which, if you are used to 5 days working in the office, can be a culture shock. We look at what you need to create a productive working environment that fits in with your home life.

• Broadband - plus your backup
• Recommended kit
• Working environment - separate from your home area
• Take breaks and get fresh air
• Daily routine
• Use meetings effectively in multiple ways
• Set clear targets and communicate these
• Tools you can use
• Addressing social isolation
• Use the phone instead of email
• Activities/opportunities outside work

View out the window.....Fawlty Towers :-). 0:50 sec onwards
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcliR8kAbzc

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Please subscribe, like or give us a 5* rating on your podcast app! We really appreciate it.

https://www.thesmarterpm.com/podcast11-tips-for-working-from-home/

In this episode we outline a straightforward process and approach which orgnaisations can use to help prepare for restrictions imposed due to the Coronavirus / Covid19 pandemic. In particular when you have no access to your premises.

Approach / Project Phases

1. Analysis - what systems have I got, and how critical are they? How to ask the right questions to determine this.

2. Requirements - what do we need to do, in detail?

3. Delivery - implementation, what are the tasks, who is doing them and by when?

4. Test - make sure everything works as expected.

Remote control software tools

TightVNC https://www.tightvnc.com/download.html

Chrome Remote (free) https://remotedesktop.google.com/

GoToMyPC ($$ paid) https://get.gotomypc.com/

Teamviewer ($$$ paid)

Trello Board - Coronavirus Business Preparation (reusable template)

https://trello.com/b/iVt2ZJPs/coronavirus-business-preparation/cczmark/recommend

Other tools worth considering..

Online backup services

Backblaze (paid - I use this) - https://www.backblaze.com/

Password Store

Make sure you keep a record of all critical system user accounts and passwords. Give at least 2 people the master password. Keep a copy of the password store offsite. Keepass V2 is great - I personally use this and have worked at organisations that use it.

https://keepass.info/

Video conferencing /screen sharing

Zoom meetings

WebEx

IP Telephony (instead of landlines)

Search for 'hosted VOIP'

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Visit www.pmtrainingsquad.com for more project management information.

In this podcast we look at our first Epic Project Fail and take away some key learnings.

How do you deliver years late and go €billons over budget?? Simple: build an airport...

Sources

BBC Radio 4 - In Business, The Berlin Airport Fiasco

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-48527308

https://onemileatatime.com/berlin-brandenburg-airport/

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2015-07-23/how-berlin-s-futuristic-airport-became-a-6-billion-embarrassment

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Thanks for listening.

Please subscribe, like or give us a 5* rating on your podcast app! We really appreciate it.

http://www.pmtrainingsquad.com

Disclaimer: All opinions are my own and do not represent the view of my employer.

There are some items that every project manager should have in their toolkit - one of these is the Decision Log.

We explain what it is, how to use it and an example of where it helped me out on a real project!

free Decision Log - #URL to be updated sorry for the inconvenience#