4 News Stories
Here are some of the PM News items that have caught my eye over the last week or so.
APM Hub
APM has launched a new a new online community exclusively for APM individual members, APM Hub. The secure space, which is now live, connects like-minded professionals faster and easier than ever before to nurture and facilitate discussion, debate and development across all levels of the profession and the sectors they operate in.
New Laptops
Apple have launched a new 13” MacBook Pro, completing the refresh of their laptop range in such a way as to remove the rather unpopular butterfly keyboard. Unless you really need the "pro" capability in a laptop (for video editing, graphic design, 3D modelling or software development) Apple now has 3 options in the same financial space: iPad Pro (with a magic keyboard), MacBook Air or the lower price-point MacBook Pro. Jason Snell has a great article on Six Colors explaining the 2 options within MacBook Pro, and Federico Viticci has a solid review of the iPad Pro Magic Keyboard on Macstories.
6 Ways to Keep Your Remote Team Aligned & Productive
Kevin Kruse on Forbes suggests the following 6 best practices:
Avoid the curse of knowledge, i.e. don't assume that others have the same knowledge as you,
Over communicate,
Move up the communication pyramid (email > IM > phone > video > face-to-face),
Write assertive emails (short & concise),
Use deadlines strategically, and
Assign responsibility right.
PM Capability Assessment
ProjExc have launched a new free to use online project management capability diagnostic tool. It brings 3 benefits to organisations:
Self assessment helps the individual completing the quick questionnaire to build self-awareness of where there are strengths and weaknesses,
A no-obligation report provides quick-wins and suggests longer term development targets, and
ProjExc provide tips on what high performing project organisations maximise their chances for project success.