Typically today's management tasks include project management, running workshops and working with consultancies - all complex activities, which require a multitude of skills and competencies. This book gives you a reference or cookbook-style access to the most important skills in a user-friendly format. Nicolai Andler presents in his book about 100 of such tools arranged according to task complexes. To make personal use of the tools as easy as possible, they are grouped into task-specific categories entitled Define Situation, Gather Information, Creativity, Goal Setting, Organisational Analysis, Technical Analysis, Strategic Analysis, Decision Making, Project Management, Checklists and Questions as well as Scenarios. Elements of information this books covers: - Relevant and appropriate for your needs - Up to date and as timely as possible - Comprehensive and sufficiently wide in scope, combined with a practical level of detail without being too academic - Reliable information from numerous tested sources and real implemented cases - Accessible and easy-to-use due to many different search options and self-help guides This book is a unique reference work and guide for those wanting to learn about or who are active in the fields of consulting, project management and problem solving in general. It presents cookbook-style access to most important skills, including a rating of each tool in terms of applicability, ease of use and effectiveness.

"This book is of the kind you always wanted but didn't think would or could ever exist: the universal field theory of problem solving." Tom Sommerlatte Typically today's tasks in management and consulting include project management, running workshops and strategic work - all complex activities, which require a multitude of skills and competencies. This standard work, which is also well accepted amongst consultants, gives you a reference or cookbook-style access to the most important tools, including a rating of each tool in terms of applicability, ease of use and effectiveness. In this considerably enlarged third edition, Nicolai Andler presents 152 of such tools, grouped into task-specific categories: Definition of a Situation/Problem - Information Gathering - Creativity - Information Consolidation - Goal Setting - Strategic, Technical and Organisational Analysis - Evaluation and Decision Making - Project Management. Checklists and Application Scenarios further enhance the use of this toolbox. Information provided by this book is: - comprehensive and sufficiently wide in scope, combined with a practical level of detail without being too academic - reliable and proven in numerous real implemented cases - easy to apply due to many different search options, checklists, application scenarios and guiding instructions. Written by a professional consultant, business analyst and business coach, this book is a unique reference work and guide for those wanting to learn about or who are active in the fields of consulting, project management and problem solving in general, both in business and engineering: business coaches and management trainers, workshop moderators, consultants and managers, project managers, lecturers and students.

Typically today's tasks in management and consulting include project management, running workshops and strategic work - all complex activities, which require a multitude of skills and competencies. This standard work, which is also well accepted amongst consultants, gives you a reference or cookbook-style access to the most important tools, including a rating of each tool in terms of applicability, ease of use and effectiveness. In his book, Nicolai Andler presents about 120 of such tools, grouped into task-specific categories entitled Define Situation, Gather Information, Information Consolidation, Creativity, Goal Setting, Organisational Analysis, Technical Analysis, Strategic Analysis, Decision Making, and Project Management. Checklists and application scenarios further enhance the use of this toolbox. Information provided by this book is: - comprehensive and sufficiently wide in scope, combined with a practical level of detail without being too academic - reliable and proven in numerous real implemented cases - easy to apply due to many different search options, checklists, application scenarios and guiding instructions. Written by a professional consultant, business analyst and business coach, this book is a unique reference work and guide for those wanting to learn about or who are active in the fields of consulting, project management and problem solving in general. "This book is of the kind you always wanted but didn't think would or could ever exist: the universal field theory of problem solving." Tom Sommerlatte.

The how-to guide for exceptional management from the bottom up The Effective Manager is a hands-on practical guide to great management at every level. Written by the man behind Manager Tools, the world's number-one business podcast, this book distills the author's 25 years of management training expertise into clear, actionable steps to start taking today. First, you'll identify what "effective management" actually looks like: can you get the job done at a high level? Do you attract and retain top talent without burning them out? Then you'll dig into the four critical behaviors that make a manager great, and learn how to adjust your own behavior to be the leader your team needs. You'll learn the four major tools that should be a part of every manager's repertoire, how to use them, and even how to introduce them to the team in a productive, non-disruptive way. Most management books are written for CEOs and geared toward improving corporate management, but this book is expressly aimed at managers of any level—with a behavioral framework designed to be tailored to your team's specific needs. Understand your team's strengths, weaknesses, and goals in a meaningful way Stop limiting feedback to when something goes wrong Motivate your people to continuous improvement Spread the work around and let people stretch their skills Effective managers are good at the job and "good at people." The key is combining those skills to foster your team's development, get better and better results, and maintain a culture of positive productivity. The Effective Manager shows you how to turn good into great with clear, actionable, expert guidance.

Boost your performance with improved project management tactics Project Management ToolBox: Tools and Techniques for the Practicing Project Manager, Second Edition offers a succinct explanation of when, where, and how to use project management resources to enhance your work. With updated content that reflects key advances in the project management field, including planning, implementation, control, cost, and scheduling, this revised text offers added material that covers relevant topics, such as agility, change management, governance, reporting, and risk management. This comprehensive resource provides a contemporary set of tools, explaining each tool's purpose and intention, development, customization and variations, and benefits and disadvantages. Additionally, examples, tips, and milestone checks guide you through the application of these tools, helping you practically apply the information you learn. Effective project management can support a company in increasing market share, improving the quality of products, and enhancing customer service. With so many aspects of project management changing as the business world continues to evolve, it is critical that you stay up to date on the latest topics in this field. Explore emerging topics within the world of project management, keeping up to date on the latest, most relevant subject areas Leverage templates, exercises, and PowerPoint presentations to enhance your project management skills Discuss tips, reporting, implementation, documentation, and other essentials of the project management field Consider how project management fits into various industries, including technology, construction, healthcare, and product development Project Management ToolBox: Tools and Techniques for the Practicing Project Manager, Second Edition is an essential resource for experienced project managers and project management students alike.

The book describes how to manage and successfully deliver large, complex, and expensive systems that can be composed of millions of line of software code, being developed by numerous groups throughout the globe, that interface with many hardware items being developed by geographically dispersed companies, where the system also includes people, policies, constraints, regulations, and a myriad of other factors. It focuses on how to seamlessly integrate systems, satisfy the customer’s requirements, and deliver within the budget and on time. The guide is essentially a “shopping list” of all the activities that could be conducted with tailoring guidelines to meet the needs of each project.

A project manager must not only master methods and processes, but also have the ability to deal with new, unexpected and critical situations. The book deals with these challenges, the passion for projects and the creativity which is required in order to lead projects and bring them to a successful conclusion. Experienced project managers report on exciting tasks in various countries, daily life as project managers and about their personal experiences and learning effects. Readers will experience the fascinating appeal of the job of a "project manager", which also means constantly being prepared to get into a new task. Furthermore, the book provides ideas about how to overcome social, cultural, organisational, financial, bureaucratic or other hurdles. Not only classic project managers - engineers and economists -, but also lawyers or industrial engineers, who work in projects or are interested in project work, will be inspired by this book, how personal commitment and professional, organisational and social capabilities combine to form this unique profession.

Is my enterprise really prepared for future business? What can I do to become more competitive? Ulf Pillkahn's book is directed at all of those seeking answers to these questions: executives in strategic positions, business analysts, consultants, trend scouts, marketing and product managers and research engineers. The book presents the two most powerful tools for future planning: environmental analysis, based on the use of trends, as well as the development of visions of the future through the use of scenarios. While scenarios are generally regarded as a classical management tool, it is expected that the importance of trends will gain tremendously in the coming years. Pillkahn demonstrates how to build robust strategies by aligning the results of environmental and enterprise scenarios, thereby offering entirely new insights. "Using Trends and Scenarios as Tools for Strategy Development" convincingly illustrates why efficient observation of the environment of an enterprise is an absolutely essential factor for strategy development, and why strategy development only works if it is institutionalized as a permanent enterprise process. It also addresses the issue of what information is needed to keep both processes running. The book further describes how trends can be categorized, and offers advice on how to glean the essential information from the vast variety of trends. Information is provided on how scenarios are used as a holistic instrument for creating visions and pictures of the future, and how the results of trend research and scenario techniques find their way into entrepreneurial strategy development. An optimized strategy development process is also outlined. Practical examples and real-life pictures of the future round off Pillkahn's insightful discussion of future business planning.

Project management software.

This new edition gathers more than 22 experts to outline the theory behind consulting, providing insight into change processes and management issues in the field. The business of consulting has grown faster than most other businesses, due not only to increased demand by clients, but also to the innovative capabilities of numerous consulting firms as they develop new services. Divided into six parts, the book introduces readers to the consulting industry, addressing the major practice areas, contexts, and implementations of the field. Significant updates detail the effect of the economic troubles between 2004 and 2010 and then 2010 and now; analyze the market response to consulting in recent years; and provide a more thorough understanding of how consulting is applied in the different areas of a business, such as operations, marketing, and finance. Introductions written by the editors offer further insight into the themes and learning goals of each section, helping readers to recognize the elements of a successful consultation, and utilize their new skill set. The text concludes with a look at the future of consulting with regards to ethics standards and how strong manager-client relationships contribute to financial growth. Readers will also learn how the developing field of entrepreneurship creates new economic structures and job opportunities. Practitioners, consultants, clients, faculty, and students of business and management will learn not only how to consult, but also gain the skills needed to adapt to and lead organizational change, giving them a competitive edge when they enter the field.