Author: earthpm
Website: http://www.earthpm.com/2011/06/un-global-compact-ceo-study/

We know this is a radical, radical departure from our last two postings, which involved river nudity and toilet seat positions (!!!).  How is this post different?  For one thing, the photo involves an image with someone who is fully clothed.  For another it has nothing to do with toilet seats…

But (ahem) now to today’s post.

By the way: we know we lost some of you at that introduction, and you’ve already dallied back to look for the river nudity.  Welcome, er, back.

Here are some interesting statistics:

93% of CEOs believe that sustainability issues will be critical to the future success of their business.

72% of CEOs cite “brand, trust and reputation” as one of the top three
factors driving them to take action on sustainability issues. Revenue growth
and cost reduction is second with 44%.

72% of CEOs see education as the global development issue most critical to
address for the future success of their business. Climate change is second
with 66%.

58% of CEOs…

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Author: earthpm
Website: http://www.earthpm.com/2011/06/naked-fly-fishing-not-recomme…

While we wouldn’t recommend fly fishing naked, too many sharp hooks flying around, this photo, by J. Johnson, does capture your attention.  This comes from Patagonia’s website.

Those of you who know our book, know that Patagonia is one of those companies at the “Top of Their Game” when it comes to sustainability.  Also, those of you who use the products probably know the story of how Patagonia got started when founder Yvon Chouinard felt that the current pitons were harming the rocks he was climbing and invented a more environmentally friendly piton.  But what you may not know relates to fly fishing.

Well, you may ask, “Why is fly fishing relevant to me?”  It may not be per sec, but while Rich and I are both fishermen, I am a fly fisherman bordering on fanaticism and obsession.  Fly fishing may also be why I was drawn to project management or vice versa.  You see, fly fishing to me is about the process; fly tying, getting ready for a trip, the precision gear, the…

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Author: earthpm
Website: http://www.earthpm.com/2011/06/toilet-seat-up-toilet-seat-do…

One of our project management author colleagues – one Kimberly Wiefling – she of Scrappy Project Management and other great Scrappy books, recently posted on Facebook on the subject of men leaving the toilet seat up, and how that might disqualify them from ‘running the world’.

We refuse to get into THAT specific argument with her, especially since a full and detailed survey of all EarthPM male employees and their spouses revealed a 100% compliance with toilet seat etiquette.

However: she did bring “up” (excuse the pun, but this is a semi-lighthearted, semi-tongue-in-cheek posting anyway) a very interesting point which actually has a takeaway message for project managers.

Let’s look at the “project” of using the bathroom for, well, we’ll call it, elimination of waste.

The project (hopefully) is of fairly short duration, and has a very specific outcome.  The outcome: you leave the bathroom refreshed, relieved, and cleaned (and a little lighter).

So if you’re a male, and you are…

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Author: earthpm
Website: http://www.earthpm.com/2011/06/perception-and-reality-togeth…

Take a look at the image at the top of this posting. Are those ‘flowers’ spinning?

C’mon. Look at them for a while, or glance at them while you read this.

Or, look back and forth for a moment.

Are they moving?

Sure looks that way.

We know that you think they are.
But they are not.  Well, at least we can say with absolute certainty that they  have not been animated in any way with software.  It is indeed a still image. You perceive motion due to the way your brain processes images.  So it’s about perception and reality. And you can see that you’ve had some trouble with this even though you are viewing solid, clear-cut shapes.

So if there’s trouble for the human brain when clear-cut shapes are involved, imagine the trouble we have with the squishy topic of sustainability.

Take this into account along with our most recent posts about translating ideas and strategy into operations – and the role of the project manager as the bridge between strategy and operations.  Combining…

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Author: earthpm
Website: http://www.earthpm.com/2011/06/mind-the-gap/

In “Trend Watch” – a section of PMI’s PM Network® magazine, this month, we found Roberto Toledo once again speaking with concise lucidity * about a topic near and dear to our hearts.  We got permission (and even encouragement) from Roberto to quote from the article.  The article itself of course, is copyright  ©PMI 2011, all rights reserved.

In the article, “Bridging the Strategy Gap“, Roberto agrees with our previous post in which we reference Stanford University’s Strategic Execution Framework.

In both cases, projects, programs and portfolios are the bridge between Strategy and Operations.

Roberto says:  “Each strategic plan is as unique as the organization that creates it, but all should include standard elements such as the company’s mission, vision, and values.  (These become) specific operational goals – translating the strategy into a portfolio of projects.”

The mission, vision, and values piece is what Stanford calls Ideation.  The operations are jointly referred…

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Author: earthpm
Website: http://www.earthpm.com/2011/06/take-a-stroll-down-empire-ave…

We’ve been having a blast experimenting with Empire Avenue.

What is Empire Avenue?

I suppose you could look at it as an online challenge in which YOU become a stock and based on your online presence and ‘gesturing’ you earn value as a stock.  As you do this, you show value and people ‘buy’ you.  Hard to describe…but it is fun and a bit addictive.

EarthPM is actually for sale as a stock there.

We suggest you check it out.  You don’t need to buy our stock (it’s all with virtual money, no actual dollars or euros, pounds or yuan are necessary), but we really really would like it if you do.

Another way you could help is to endorse our blog.  The purpose is to show that it exists.  If you are reading this, well, then, I think you can agree that it exists.

From a PM standpoint – we encourage you to join because there seems to be an under-representation of Project Managers there.  And, oh by the way, there is a growing Environment community on Empire Avenue as well.

Go to the…

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Author: earthpm
Website: http://www.earthpm.com/2011/06/sustainability-thinking-impro…

“Sustainability Thinking Improves Project Management” – you’d think that would be something we’d say.

And it is.  In fact, it’s the basis of our non-profit startup, the International Society for the Integration of Sustainability in Project Management (or ISIS-PM).

But besides being something we would say, it also is the name of a presentation given at the Queensland Chapter of the Project Management Institute a little less than a year ago.  We just found it today (okay, so we’re a little bit slow), but we’re ironically thrilled in a “great minds think alike” sort of way.

Andrew Wilford, the presenter, is a self-admitted engineer and PM who enjoyed a long career in the aerospace and defense, holding senior positions with Boeing Australia and Air New Zealand. He was also involved with the development of the Complex Project Management competency Standards that have been adopted by the Australian Defence Materiel …

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Author: earthpm
Website: http://www.earthpm.com/2011/06/hockey-schtick/

It’s Stanley Cup Finals time.

Hockey is a rough game, and hits and checking are part of the game.  In this posting you see a photo of the Bruins’ Nathan Horton, who took a vicious blind-side hit knocking him unconscious and jeopardizing his career and taking this important clutch player out of the Stanley Cup finals.  His opponent, Aaron Rome, is also suspended for the rest of the year (and perhaps into next year if the Finals end early).

Not a good thing for sports fans – at least real sports fans.  Play hockey, gentlemen.

So what could this possibly have to do with projects, project management, or the triple bottom line?

As you know, one aspect of the triple bottom line is the environment, and one aspect of the environment has got to be concern for climate change.

In the same Boston Globe that is covering the hockey games mentioned above, there is an editorial in today’s paper called “Playing Rough”.  And there’s the link.  The article talks about the hits that climate…

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Author: earthpm
Website: http://www.earthpm.com/2011/06/making-a-big-deal-out-of-ener…

As project managers, we always seek integrative negotiations – those in which the pie is enlarged rather than split up in a zero-sum-game.

One of our colleagues has arranged just such a win-win for kids and parents.

Paul Reale, who we’ve interviewed here before at EarthPM, is the principal at Green Allowance.

And now, Green Allowance is seeking investors and interested utilities.

Green Allowance LLC encourages kids to make a deal with their parents. Kids save energy around the house, and parents share the savings with the kids as a, well, Green Allowance! The service includes a web site that helps kids pick what they’ll do to save energy – a bit of project management there, and it also reports on the actual savings. Green Allowance’s business model is to sell to utilities; most of which are interested in promoting conservation.  Check out their web site at www.greenallowance.com.  Also, you can see a very short video which tells the story here.

Green Allowance has a utility…

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Author: earthpm
Website: http://www.earthpm.com/2011/05/salt-of-the-earth/

Several of our last posts have focused on the economic and social responsibility legs of the triple bottom line.  With this post we return to the environmental leg, with a “green by definition” project which was just turned over for operation in sunny Spain.

“Green by definition” is one end of the Green Rainbow we talk about in our book.  These are projects which have as their main outcome an environmental improvement. The other end of the spectrum is “Green in General”, which would be, for example, release 7.4.3.1.4 of your company’s payroll software.  Even those projects, we assert, can benefit from sustainability thinking.  But that’s not the topic of today’s post.  Today we talk about molten salt.

According to a great article in ecoseed.org, “The 19.9-megawatt Gemasolar concentrating solar power plant uses 2,650 flat mirrors called heliostats arranged over 185 hectares of land to heat molten salt. The heliostats focus sunlight on a tower where liquid is heated up to 900…

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