Category: Leadership and Soft Skills
- Why Memo is better than Slides ()
Recently, I read an interview with Jeff Bezos by Lex Friedman where the famous entrepreneur explains why Amazon doesn’t use PowerPoint for meetings. He lists 3 reasons for that: PowerPoint is designed to persuade. Slides are a sales tool. And inside the company, you shouldn’t sell. You all are truth-seeking. Slides are easy for the […]
- Review of Kanboard as a Task Tracker for a Single User ()
Recently, I have grown tired of both Trello with its paid integrations and the manual Kanban process in the wiki table with links to subpages. Then I decided to give an open-source solution a try. I was looking for a system made with PHP, a nice design and a somewhat alive ecosystem. My rather uninformed […]
- Top 3 mistakes when working in English-speaking environment as a non-native speaker ()
Working in a primarily English-speaking business environment as a non-native speaker can present significant challenges. As someone who has worked in this type of environment for over two years, I have made major adjustments to my initial tactics and have become a much better Business English communicator. In this article, I will describe some of […]
- How to create innovation with situational Research and Development ()
Research and Development process is s a central part of how companies generate revenue and how they get better over time. RnD is just thinking about how you can develop more ideas or more products and services that serve the needs of users or customers in a better and more fulfilling way. Research and Development […]
- Why should you work in an international company ()
Article is based on the 2014 interview with now President of the World Bank Ajay Banga conducted by Stanford Graduate School of Business. Here are some potential reasons why someone might choose to work in an international company: Competitive salaries and benefits. International companies often offer competitive salaries and benefits packages to attract top talent. “When […]
- How to resolve a conflict between teams on a project ()
Projects typically involve multiple parties coming together to form a temporary project organization that manages project execution. Let’s imagine a situation where two teams forming the project team experience friction in practice. Thus, the question is: how can project partners manage the integration of work ethics, practices, and processes to produce the most effective and […]
- 🚀 Role of Generalists in Digital Transformation ()
From the publications of Adam Smith, economies, top managers and company owners strived to implement separation of labor and hire specialists to fill all the key positions. But in more recent works, we can often find mentions of generalists as an important part of the organization in Digital Transformation processes. Thus, a question rises: who […]
- Do more with less: Pre-Week Planning technique ()
Do more with less is a common trend in the business world. It requires filtering out low-priority everyday tasks in favor of long-term goals. Thus, Time management is one of the most useful skills for a specialist. One tool to systematize your efforts in business and personal life is Pre-Week Planning. It empowers people to […]
- 🦾 Next-generation software development will change the industry in 2023 ()
The next generation of software development tooling improves processes and software quality across each stage of the software development life cycle (SDLC) enabling more and more nontechnical employees to create applications. These tools include technologies like low-code/no-code platforms, infrastructure-as-code, microservices and APIs, AI “pair programmers”, AI-based testing, and Automated code review. Even though these technologies […]
- Working with people on the project ()
As Project Managers, we always work with people: project team members, Project Management Office colleagues, stakeholders, and clients. Working with other people involves dealing with them both logically and emotionally. A successful working relationship allows PM to manage the project effectively and deliver results in a timely fashion. There are many aspects of working with […]
- Plan is not a strategy ()
When talking about the future it’s convenient for managers to plan things: a set of actions we want to perform, ideally, with concrete timelines. Planning is one of the five management functions apart from organizing, controlling, motivating & leading, and decision-making. Planning usually takes good judgment skills and includes something like “rent a floor” or […]
- Lessons for first-time managers: Skills and Knowledge areas to break into management ()
It’s natural to seek career progression into management or in-depth specialization. Today I’d like to discuss what companies are looking for in leaders to give you an overall understanding of the skills, responsibilities, and everyday tasks of middle managers. Being a head of a team, you maintain a complete and specific function within the organization […]
- How to develop your informal network in the organization ()
Much of the real work of companies happens despite the formal organization. Often what needs attention is the informal organization, the networks of relationships that employees form across functions and divisions to accomplish tasks fast. These informal networks can cut through formal reporting procedures to jump-start stalled initiatives and meet extraordinary deadlines. But informal networks […]
- Analysis of E-commerce industry as a part of digital economy of Russia ()
13-14th of October 2022 in Moscow Center of International Trade the biggest e-commerce conference took place. Conference “Electronic trade 2022” united online shops, producers, sellers and retail under one roof. Topic of the event was “Big Remake”. Between 18th and 20th of May 2022 26th Russian Internet Forum took place. What was discussed at these […]
- How to present your achievements for a review ()
A performance review allows both the employer and employee to discuss what has been completed during the last performance review cycle, assess what went well, where areas of improvement may lie, and proactively implement needed support. Employees often underutilize performance reviews. They are great opportunities to get feedback and to present your achievements to reach […]
- How to build a career entirely on Soft Skills ()
I believe there are two ways one can advance his career: either becoming a highly qualified specialist or providing general utility to the team and organization. The first ones often become seniors – senior engineers/programmers/lawyers. The second usually becomes managers: middle managers, Project Managers, Process Managers, etc. Governing other people requires less hard skills and […]
- Lessons for first-time managers: How to create innovations in your team ()
Innovation is a cornerstone for modern Businesses as even the smallest performance gain can separate a profitable company from a bankrupt one. CEOs, experienced managers, and business gurus all talk about innovation. As a first-time manager, you play a vital role in the innovation process. Apply these tips to help your team innovate: Promote cooperation […]
- First-time manager’s lessons: when to micromanage your team ()
According to the definition in the Merriam-Webster dictionary, micromanaging bosses “try to control or manage all the small parts of something (such as an activity) in a way that is usually not wanted or that causes problems.” Even though micromanagement is usually portrayed negatively, there are quite a few exceptional situations where micromanagement might be […]
- How to Ask for What You Want at Work – 5 Tips ()
Genuine problem solving often requires us to ask people for help and information. This is applicable for both work projects and career advancement as a whole. Creating strong cases for your requests will improve the chances you get positive answers and prevent miscommunication of excepted results. Often, inner thoughts dissuade us from asking for anything. […]
- First-time manager’s lessons: How to promote cooperation in a team ()
As my latest article with tips for first-time managers has received much positive feedback on Telegram, I’ve decided to play with this topic a little more. Let’s talk about facilitating coordination and cooperation within a team. Cooperation is a must-have aspect of effective teams. Promoting cooperation is one of the most important manager’s responsibilities. You […]