The ‘Aha’ Moment: PM Influencer Series with Thomas Walenta
Table of Contents
In our series, The Aha Moment, we chat with influencers in the PM & PPM space and get to know them better. We ask a bunch of questions, some biz related and some not so biz related, in order to understand what makes them tick and find their aha moment.
This month’s feature is Thomas Walenta, an incredible project lead and educator in the IT industry. So, keep reading to learn about his impressive journey and experience in the industry.
Q. What is your job title and in which industry are you working in?
A. Global Project Economy Expert, industry agnostic.
Q. What is something unique that most people do not know about you?
A. I am just an ordinary person, but happy.
Professional Stuff….
Q. What led you to this career?
A. My first project was in 1974 when I was a working student at IBM. Then I evolved as a software developer over 10 years and a system engineer over 3 years. After I was asked to move a datacenter for a client, and this project was successful, I learned that project management is indeed people business, not technical nor industry specific. Finally, in 1988 I decided to pursue a career as PM and cut off my heritage as an engineer and SW developer.
Q. What is your biggest challenge in your profession? How do you overcome it?
A. Project Management is fluid, requirements, expectations and success criteria change with time, even if stakeholders stay stable.
Q. In your experience, why do projects fail or fail to meet their deadlines?
A. The focus on deadlines is not so important. For example, Olympic games are considered failed projects and yet non of them missed the start of the games. Key construction projects like Syndey Opera, Hamburg philharmony or even Boston big dig failed deadlines but were impactful on the public. Success definition is not generally agreed, and so failure is also not finally defined.
Q. Why should every organization have a PMO?
A. Because PM is fluid and someone should be the steward of project management knowledge and practice in the organization, adapting it continuously to the changing environment.
Q. What’s the most annoying thing about project status meetings?
A. The most annoying thing is, if they are not prepared, moderated or debriefed well.
Q. What’s the most difficult thing about managing stakeholder expectations?
A. A key PM capability should be to influence others. Managing expectations is not only understanding them but trying to set them. Since stakeholders determine success, it is important to make sure they understand what success is.
Q. Have you read any books, articles or other resources that changed your perspective on project management?
A. Permanent reading is important in this profession. In 1987, I read a book about PM by Küpper, who pointed out the importance of communication. Then, in 1996 the book project office by Frame helped me to implement my first PMO.
Fun Stuff
Q. What fictional place would you most like to live in?
A. A peaceful world without nations.
Q. What three items would you choose if stranded on a desert island?
A. Volleyball, Leatherman tool with can opener, and hat against sunburn.
Q. Spring, summer, fall or winter?
A. All of them, they complement each other and represent the cyclic time of nature.
Q. What is your favorite breakfast food?
A. Baguette, butter and strawberry jam.
Q. What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received, and did you follow it?
A. Be patient (from a Japanese CIO). Yes, it is a very important feat.
Don’t be afraid to pick the phone up and call someone if you have a question. And yes, I did follow it (back in the day when people answered their phones)
If you want to connect with Thomas and gain key insights from his expert ppm content, look him up on LinkedIn. Thank you Thomas for hanging out with us and answering our questions!
