Projectified

Project professionals know anticipating the need to pivot is a mainstay on any project. But what warning signs should you look out for? How can project managers identify them? And how should you inform the C-suite of major red flags? We discuss this with Mary Hladio, PMP, senior productivity and program leader at GE Aerospace in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA, and Franziska Höhne, PMP, project manager for international internal auditing at ALDI in Essen, Germany.  
Key themes 
01:25 Spotting red flags in data and how people communicate and act 
04:48 Common red flags on projects: resource misallocation, scope creep and misalignment with organizational strategy 
11:28 How to handle overly ambiguous—or extremely constrictive—project specs 
15:24 Good practices for communicating red flags to the C-suite  
17:00 Creating team cultures with transparency and trust

Today’s project professionals are feeling the pressure. And when they don’t manage it well, it could steamroll into full-fledged burnout. What’s the difference between burnout and regular stress? How can burnout effect project outcomes? What early warning signs might show that you or your teams on are the verge of burnout? And what can project leaders do to reset and recharge? We discuss this with Michele Badie, PMP, CPMAI, a program manager in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA, and Valerie Carmel, a mental health therapist based in Orlando, Florida, USA.  
Key themes 
00:57 What’s the difference between stress and burnout? 
03:19 Facing burnout in yourself—and your team—as a project professional 
06:04 How mental health professionals can help project managers amid burnout 
09:14 How burnout can affect project outcomes 
12:01 Warning signs for burnout: Lack of boundaries, sleep disturbance and irritability  
14:27 Tips to keep burnout at bay on project teams 
18:21 Recognizing burnout—and when it’s time to rest and recharge

The Project Management Professional (PMP)® certification can be a career game-changer. What’s the best way to study for the exam? How do you stay motivated through months of preparation? What’s the difference between taking the exam in-person or online? We discuss this with Kelly Heuer, PhD, CAPM, VP of learning at PMI in Brooklyn, New York, USA; Fernanda Sa, PMP, procurement coordinator at Meta Reality Labs via Mackin Talent in Bellevue, Washington, USA; and Prabhjeet Singh, PMP, project manager at MedStar Health in Washington, D.C. 
Key themes
01:09 Why earn the PMP certification? 
04:52 How to create a study plan for the PMP exam
09:07 Ways to stay motivated while studying for the PMP
12:01 How PMI can help you prepare for the PMP exam
17:03 Taking the PMP exam online or in-person
20:40 How the PMP certification affects project careers
23:41 Advice for the PMP certification exam

Launching a career in project management can spark a flame. But how do you get that first job and keep the early fire burning? We talk about starter career goals, PMI certifications, mentorship and more with Albert Cayuela, CAPM, PMP, a technical project manager at Banco Sabadell in Madrid, and Krista McCalley, CAPM, PMP, a project coordinator at Insight Global in Des Moines, Iowa in the United States. 
Key themes
01:04 How did you start your project management career? 
02:55 Pursuing the CAPM certification and crafting a career plan 
09:08 Overcoming imposter syndrome and leaning on mentors early in your career 
14:55 Solidifying knowledge, developing skills and boosting confidence with PMI certifications
17:57 Advice for project professionals starting their project careers

Gigaprojects aren’t hard to spot: deep complexity, massive stakeholder groups, wildly ambitious scopes and a major boost to national economies. We discuss two gigaprojects with: 
Ryan Banas, project director for the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel expansion project and VP at HNTB in Norfolk, Virginia, USA; and Chris Hall, district engineer at the Virginia Department of Transportation in Hampton, Virginia, USA: Banas and Hall discuss how their teams prepared for the years-long bridge and tunnel project, how they keep teams aligned across multiple hand-offs, and the clever ways they engage stakeholders—including community members affected by construction.  
Mohammed Almutlaq, project management office VP at the Royal Commission for AlUla in Riyadh: Almutlaq shares how teams are turning the historical site of AlUla into an archaeological tourism destination. He discusses how the PMO keeps teams across portfolios aligned to a singular strategy, ways teams best communicate and keep track of progress across projects, and builds flexibility into projects through solid change management practices.
Key themes
01:42 Managing a multibillion-dollar infrastructure overhaul in Virginia
04:42 How teams collaborate to tackle years-long projects
07:41 Good practices for hand-offs across the project life cycle
10:12 Keeping the community informed—and building buy-in for the long haul
15:44 Transforming the ancient city of AlUla into a tourism hub
18:18 How a PMO keeps multiple teams aligned to one strategic vision
21:19 Building adaptability into projects with change management
25:06 Top challenges: continuous value delivery and retaining the right talent  over long timelines