Learn how to do it
Learn how to evaluate a job offer in PM, how to plan a very urgent project and how to prepare executive status reports. And more.
This playlist has 39 episodes.
Listen on Spotify -
Zombie Projects: Why They Exist and How to Kill Them
(Jul 17, 2023)
In this episode, Ricardo digs into the uncanny world of zombie projects - the projects that refuse to die despite their draining effects on organizational resources. He explores the mystery behind their existence, highlighting factors such as the fear of failure and the misgivings around abandoning sunk costs.
Download -
Occam's Razor: The Power of Simplicity in Project Management
(May 29, 2023)
In this episode, Ricardo introduces the timeless philosophy of Occam's Razor, a principle that champions simplicity. Coined by 14th Century philosopher William of Ockham, this concept prompts us to choose the most straightforward explanation or solution when faced with equally good alternatives. He discusses how this principle can streamline our approach to project management.
Download -
The Cobra Effect: Unraveling Second-Order Consequences
(May 22, 2023)
In today's episode, Ricardo guides you through the fascinating world of second-order consequences, focusing on the Cobra Effect. He explores how solutions that seemed reasonable in the short term can sometimes spawn more complex issues in a project environment if not adequately anticipated. Ricardo suggests you rethink your decision-making process and underline the importance of considering all potential outcomes before deciding.
Download -
How Gamification Can Maximize the Results of your Project
(Apr 24, 2023)
In this episode, Ricardo shares his experience learning Spanish using the Duolingo app and diving into how gamification can boost the productivity and morale of project teams. Using micro-rewards, project managers can create fun and healthy competition among project teams to deliver better projects. Listen to this new engaging episode packed with Ricardo's real-life experience and actionable insights! Listen to this episode to know more!
Download -
Little’s Law Application in Project Management
(Mar 27, 2023)
This week on the podcast, Ricardo discusses Little's Law. The formula created by MIT Professor John Little for productive processes involving Lean and Six Sigma has applicability in project management, particularly in agile projects that use Kanban and Scrum boards.
Download -
Why We Must Expand the Moral Hazard Concept to our Projects and Initiatives
(Mar 14, 2023)
In this week's episode, Ricardo talks about moral hazards. He exemplifies the recent collapse of the North American financial system when the Silicon Valley Bank closed its doors. From then on, a debate arose about the extent to which the government should interfere, with the emergence of moral hazard, because if the government helps, other banks will also have this right.
Download -
Using the Big Five Personality Traits Model to Select and Develop the Project Team
(Mar 06, 2023)
In this episode, Ricardo focuses on the Big Five Personality traits and their application in project management. The Big Five outlines five personality dimensions: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. Each of these traits could influence individual performance on different types of projects.
Download -
Stop Overthinking With The 5-4-3-2-1 Method to Reduce Anxiety
(Feb 06, 2023)
To help us cope with anxiety, Ricardo discusses a technique he learned from Nick Trenton's book "Stop Overthinking": the 5,4,3,2,1 method. Every day brings new challenges, and it's easy to get caught up in a never-ending cycle of panic and worry about the potential dangers to our work and projects. The method is based on counting down from five to one; at each stage, we focus on a different sense in order to locate ourselves in the here and now.
Download -
Understanding the Concept of Gray Rhinos and Our Negligence to Respond to Highly Likely and Impactful Events
(Jan 23, 2023)
In this week's episode, Ricardo discusses the Gray Rhino concept described in Michele Wucker's book. Ricardo comments that this idea is the opposite of the Black Swan concept. Events and risks, according to the Black Swan concept, have a very low probability of happening but can have catastrophic consequences if they do occur.
Download -
Does Holacracy Work in Projects?
(Dec 12, 2022)
This week, Ricardo discusses the holacratic model in the context of businesses and projects. Organizations following the holacratic model are self-managed and self-organized; there is no manager, and duties are distributed horizontally. In this framework, individuals and groups are empowered by a shared sense of mission and accountability, leading to greater flexibility.
Download -
Understanding External Factors and Trends Using PESTLE Analysis
(Nov 07, 2022)
This week, Ricardo discusses the PESTLE technique, which is used to assess the external factors: political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environmental, that may have an impact on a project or business.
Download -
The Future of Project Management Using DAO (Decentralised Autonomous Organization)
(Oct 10, 2022)
In this week’s podcast, Ricardo discusses DAO (short for "Decentralized Autonomous Organizations") Decisions on DAO platforms are made collectively, like in a real-world cooperative, with input from all members. With DAO, says Ricardo, we may not need a project manager, scrum master, or product owner … to oversee our projects in the future.
Download -
BANI Is Not the Evolution of VUCA!
(Sep 26, 2022)
In this week's episode, Ricardo talks about the relationship between the concepts of BANI and VUCA. The acronym VUCA for "volatile," "uncertainly," "complex," and "ambiguous" has its origins in the American army during the cold war and sought to explain the constant changes and complexity of contemporary entities, which alter our perception of what is right and what is wrong.
Download -
The Trap of Diderot Effect: Never Implement a Feature You Don’t Need
(Aug 16, 2022)
In this week's episode, Ricardo addresses the risks of the Diderot Effect. For many, this effect is directly related to consumption bias. However, it is perfectly applied also when we add something to our project, and that something triggers a series of new features causing control to be completely lost. This effect impacts budget, deadlines, and team, among many other factors.
Download -
Remember That the Law of Diminishing Returns Also Applies to Your Project Management Efforts
(Aug 01, 2022)
In this week's episode, Ricardo talks about the Law of Diminishing Returns applied to the effort we make to manage projects. We often doubt how much management is worth, and we try to simplify management as much as possible to avoid bureaucracy when we spend a lot of time in meetings or filling out documents and templates without reaching any results.
Download -
Understanding the Differences Between Conformity and Compliance
(Jul 11, 2022)
In this week's episode, Ricardo talks about the difference between compliance and conformity. Compliance and conformity are rules that an organization must always follow. However, the purpose of each is quite different. Often the company decides to follow a specific rule not because it has to but because it is good for the business, such as obtaining ISO certification.
Download -
What are The Top 3 Values Project Management Brings to an Organization: The Elevator Pitch
(May 09, 2022)
In this week's episode, Ricardo talks about the three central values that project management brings to the organization that you could talk about in a brief speech in an Elevator Pitch. The first: Project management is one of the most powerful tools to organize your workflow and prevent chaos from setting in. Regardless of the approach used, project management will define the criteria that will manage the flow of work within the organization.
Download -
What is Round-Robin Brainstorming?
(Apr 18, 2022)
In this week's episode, Ricardo talks about the Round-Robin Brainstorming technique. Ricardo explains that with this technique, everyone participates by analyzing, confirming, and questioning the other participants, and he makes an analogy between a football championship, where all teams play each other.
Download -
Understanding the Satir Change Model
(Apr 04, 2022)
In this week's episode, Ricardo talks about Satir Change Model, created by family psychologist Virginia Satir, considered the mother of modern family psychology. The podcast has a business focus, even though it was created thinking in the family environment. The model became widely used in the business context change process.
Download -
Why Should I Care about the Hawthorne Effect?
(Mar 14, 2022)
In this week's episode, Ricardo talks about the Hawthorne effect. Despite the rather unusual name, the effect is associated with changing our behavior whenever someone observes us. He gives examples in our daily lives, such as the compliments our young children receive when they stay at other people's houses or when we watch programs like Big Brother. Ricardo also talks about the Hawthorne effect in projects.
Download -
Cadence: The Heartbeat of your Project
(Jan 10, 2022)
In this week's episode, Ricardo talks about cadence in the project. He explains that cadence dictates the rhythm of project deliveries and gives some examples of cadence, such as the frequency of the heartbeat and the rhythm of a military parade.
Download -
4 Books and 3 Online Courses to Start your Year with the Right Foot
(Jan 03, 2022)
In the first episode of 2022, Ricardo decided to share four books and three online courses/platforms you should look at right now to start your year with the right foot. The books have two things in common: none are about Project Management, and he wrote none of them :). They cover aspects of uncertainty, culture, mindset, and career. Listen to the #5minpodcast to know more.
Download -
The Magic of Affinity Diagrams
(Oct 11, 2021)
Ricardo talks about affinity diagrams in this week's episode and how this technique can help you and your team organize ideas. He explains that when structuring a process, the scope of a project, risks, and other ideas, we usually create groups and distribute information within these groups. We will think differently using the affinity diagrams; first, we will have the pictures and then group; it is like an EAP in reverse.
Download -
How to Get to the Root of a Problem Using the 5 Whys Technique
(Apr 12, 2021)
In this week's episode, Ricardo explains the 5 Whys technique to help you identify the root cause of an event, a specific risk, or even support your decision-making process. The technique, although simple, has nuances that allow you to be more effective and expand its range of uses beyond what was proposed by its creator, the founder of Toyota in the 1930s.
Download -
How to Manage Coupled Dependencies in Projects
(Oct 19, 2020)
This week, Ricardo talks about a type of relationship that is becoming increasingly popular: coupled dependencies. This kind of relationship increases the delivery speed. However, if not appropriately managed, this coupled dependency can increase the risks and the chances of rework. This is due to the set of assumptions teams needed to create these coupled dependencies.
Download -
Do you know what is a Communication Filter or Noise?
(Jan 27, 2015)
On this episode, Ricardo talks about the attention we must have with how we communicate because the characteristics of personality, culture and values of the receiver can dramatically change the meaning of the original message.
Download -
Identifying, Training and Living Together with the Pet Projects
(Aug 04, 2014)
In this podcast, Ricardo talks about a type of project that is often special to certain people but does not show real benefits and offer significant value. He gives tips on how to handle this kind of pet project in a portfolio selection.
Download -
Understanding the GTD: Weekly Review, Software and Tips - Part 3 of 3
(Mar 11, 2013)
In this last episode of the series of three podcasts about GTD - Getting Things Done, Ricardo talks about his process of reviewing and planning the week. Including on his tips, some software that may help you.
Download -
Understanding the GTD: Processing, Projects / Contexts and Execution - Part 2 of 3
(Mar 04, 2013)
In this podcast, Ricardo presents the second episode of the series of three podcasts on Getting Things Done (GTD). He explains what we do with the ideas, appointments etc. that we collect daily. He gives tips on how to organize tasks into projects and contexts and explains each. Listen to the first episode: http://www.ricardo-vargas.com/podcasts/understanding-the-gtd-part-1-of-3/
Download -
Understanding the GTD: Introduction, Collection and Processing - Part 1 of 3
(Feb 25, 2013)
In this podcast, Ricardo starts the series of 3 podcasts about the time management method called Getting Things Done, created by David Allen. In this first episode, Ricardo explains what is GTD and comments on how he uses it to organize and get all his work done.
Download -
"Done is Better than Perfect": What you an learn with this quote
(Apr 30, 2012)
In this podcast, Ricardo explains that the project manager should seek to simplify the way he/she leads the projects. In the quest for perfection, many people often create methodologies which are too complex to be used and end up not being used at all. He mentions a methodology he once created, pinpointing ways that enable the simplification of the procedures necessary to manage projects.
Download -
How to Write a Good Project Objective: The SMART Technique
(Sep 12, 2011)
In this podcast Ricardo talks about the project objective, he explains that many people think that only the name is enough to understand the project, but the objective is important to write and explain "what is" the project, within time and estimated costs. Ricardo also says that the objective should be a sentence that explains exactly what you want to do.
Download -
Identifying the Project Vital Signs
(Jun 20, 2011)
In this podcast, Ricardo makes a comparison between monitoring of the project and monitoring of a patient in an Intensive Care at the hospital. He explains that the Project Manager should monitor since the beginning, the project vital signs and based on these signals, identify deviations and take preventive actions for the project remains viable.
Download -
How to Prepare Executive Status Reports - Part 2 of 2
(Feb 21, 2011)
In this second podcast of the series, Ricardo gives some tips on how to prepare an excellent status report. He explains that the great secret of the report is the ability to condense informations into a small and precise report, which usually can be 6 to 10 pages, trying to present visual data, colors, larger letters and graphics with performance information.
Download -
How to Prepare Executive Status Reports - Part 1 of 2
(Feb 14, 2011)
In this first podcast of a series of two, Ricardo talks about how an executive status report must be submitted, showing condensed information relevant to the sponsor and key project stakeholders. He explains that visual information is of great importance and that the report needs to have a pattern, without necessarily being presented in only a page.
Download -
How to Prepare your Project Manager Resumé – Part 2/2
(Oct 04, 2010)
In this second podcast of the Resumé series, Ricardo talks about how to present the experience in the resumé. He explains that often the job does not explain much. You need a separate space informing activities and projects that participated, focusing on project management. He also shows the importance of spending accurate information and good and bad experiments.
Download -
How to Prepare your Project Manager Resumé - Part 1/2
(Sep 29, 2010)
In this series of two podcasts Ricardo gives some tips about how to prepare correctly a resumé for the project management area. He explains how to insert your professional background, courses and experience. He describes in detail how to put your credentials (PMP, PgMP, CAPM, etc) in order to maximize your curriculum in a selection process. Part 1 of 2 podcasts.
Download -
How to Plan a Very Urgent Project?
(Jun 29, 2010)
In this podcast, Ricardo talks about the key information that must be produced by the project manager when receives a very urgent project and need understand the purpose, scope, budget, schedule and constraints of the project in a very short period. He explains that making a quick planning and not very detailed is not ideal and can not be a normal situation in the company.
Download -
How to Read the PMBOK Guide
(Jun 13, 2007)
In this podcast Ricardo explain the most effective way to read the PMBOK Guide, endorsed by him since 2001 when he presented a technical paper at the PMI Annual Conference and Symposium in Nashiville. This podcast was recorded only in Brazilian Portuguese. The link below is for the Brazilian Portuguese version.
Download
