Feb 4

Feb 4 Regarding Big Data One Manager's "Resistance" Is Another Manager's "Caution"

Adoption, BDPM, Big Data, Change Management, Project Management, Data Program Management

Given the wide variations that currently exist in most organizations in understanding the ins and outs of managing current data governance and analytics practices, it’s not surprising that bringing in potentially “disruptive” technologies will be even more of a challenge.

Jan 28

Jan 28 Should Clinical Trial Data Sharing Be a Precondition for Refereed Journal Article Acceptance?

Dennis D. McDonald

Clinical Trials, Cloud Computing, Collaboration, Data Access, Journals, Open Data, Project Management, Research Data, Research

To appreciate some of the implications of the recent proposal by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) to make consideration of journal article acceptance contingent upon the author’s agreement to share de-identified clinical trial data with other researchers, as reported by NPR, some context is appropriate.

Jan 19

Jan 19 Challenges to DevOps May Be Deep-seated But Not Unexpected

Dennis D. McDonald

BDPM, Big Data, Change, DataOps, Project Management, Technology

After years in consulting and project management, though, I now view politics and culture as factors to be anticipated and managed rather than ignored. This is true whether one is planning an individual project or an enterprise wide portfolio management strategy.

Jan 12

Jan 12 Horatio Nelson, Dwight Eisenhower, SharePoint, and Big Data

Dennis D. McDonald

Agile, BDPM, Big Data, Change, Collaboration, Knowledge Management, Project Management, SharePoint, Data Program Management

There’s a lot more to collaboration than just providing a technology platform.

Dec 31

Dec 31 Developing a Basic Model for Data Analytics Project Selection

Dennis D. McDonald

BDPM, Big Data, Business Models, Cloud Computing, Cost Analysis, Customer Support, Data, Data Access, Data Lake, Internet of Things, Project Management, Data Program Management

One of the benefits of focusing on behavioral outcomes as a way of assessing the effectiveness or usefulness of improved data analytics is that behavioral outcomes are potentially measurable.

Dec 11

Dec 11 Big Data Project Management - Where to Start? (Slide Deck)

Dennis D. McDonald

BDPM, Big Data, Project Management, Strategic Planning, Data Program Management

A slide deck summarizing where I am on researching Big Data Project Management.

Dec 4

Dec 4 Introduction to PLANNING AND MANAGING BIG DATA PROJECTS: SELECTED ARTICLES

Dennis D. McDonald

Assessment, BDPM, Big Data, Process, Project Management, Strategic Planning, Strategy, Data Program Management

I began researching “big data project management” when I started seeing publications and online discussions concerning big data project “failures” being attributed to the classic reasons for project failure such as scope creep, poor stakeholder engagement, and inadequately understood requirements.

Dec 1

Dec 1 SharePoint Adoption Planning (a Prezi from 2011)

Dennis D. McDonald

Collaboration, Project Management, SharePoint, Communications

Nov 18

Nov 18 The Tip of the Spear: Connecting Big Data Project Management with Enterprise Data Strategy

Dennis D. McDonald

BDPM, Big Data, Data, Data Literacy, DataOps, Draft, Project Management, Strategic Planning, Strategy, Data Program Management, Data Governance

Nov 13

Nov 13 Too Much TV!

Dennis D. McDonald

Cable TV, Media, Television, Video, Streaming

To be honest I have not really explored the numerous options available for non-series-TV that even the devices I now have support. Just jumping among the different services that Roku and Apple TV offer is a daunting task especially when one is searching for “gems.”

Nov 3

Nov 3 A Mixed Review for Amazon’s New 7” Kindle Fire

Dennis D. McDonald

Amazon, Books, Kindle, Media, Mobile, Mobile Tech

I’ve had a new 7 inch Kindle Fire for a couple of weeks now and have formed an opinion about the device.

Oct 21

Oct 21 Understanding the Challenges of Big Data Project Management: “The Data Must Flow”

Dennis D. McDonald

BDPM, Big Data, Cloud Computing, Context, DATA Act, Data, Data Access, Data Literacy, PMO, Project Management, Strategic Planning, Strategy, Data Program Management

If what Nate Silver said in a recent presentation is true – “Big Data has Peaked, and that’s a Good Thing” – perceptions about big data are maturing.

Oct 10

Oct 10 Stop Calling It "Social Media"!

Dennis D. McDonald

Creativity, Innovation, Serendipity, ,

Using “social” networks to build a publishing or broadcasting infrastructure has the inevitable impact that those not part of that infrastructure can become excluded from participating. That has both positive and negative impacts.

Oct 8

Oct 8 Forgive Me, Father, I Don’t Use Facebook

Dennis D. McDonald

Anonymity, Facebook, , ,

This is not intended as criticism of those who find Facebook useful for publishing and marketing. After all, “Some of my best friends use Facebook.”

Oct 1

Oct 1 Understanding the Challenges of Big Data Project Management: The Business Case

Dennis D. McDonald

Analytics, BDPM, Best Practices, Big Data, Data, Data Literacy, Management, Metrics, Project Management, Data Program Management

As hard as it sometimes for those of us who are technically inclined to admit, management doesn’t necessarily care what tools we’re using. Nor does management care how we manage our projects.

Sep 26

Sep 26 Big Data Project Management: What Works? (Slides)

Dennis D. McDonald

BDPM, Big Data, Project Management, Data Program Management

These are drafts of the slides I’ll be using at the Data Science DC Lightning Talks on September 29, 2015.

Sep 16

Sep 16 Big Data Project Management Research Report #2: What’s In & What’s Out?

Dennis D. McDonald

BDPM, Big Data, Data, Governance, Project Management, Data Program Management

“Boiling the ocean” by attempting to make too many changes early on is tempting. Incremental steps in delivering analytics-based value may actually accelerate change in the long run.

Sep 4

Sep 4 Big Data Project Management Research Report #1: Setting the Stage

Dennis D. McDonald

BDPM, Big Data, Project Management, Data Program Management

Some of what I’ve learned so far does seem to be unique to data intensive projects. At the same time, many of the challenges posed by “big data” projects will be recognizable to project managers based on previous experience with other large or complex projects.

Sep 1

Sep 1 "Big Data Project Management" Interview Questions Set #1

Dennis D. McDonald

BDPM, Big Data, Project Management, Data Program Management

I’m researching how people plan and manage data-intensive projects. I’m calling this my “big data project management survey.” I’ll publish the research results here. Let me know if you would like to participate or if you are interested in the results; my contact info is at the end of this article.

Aug 26

Aug 26 You Need a Project Manager on Your Big Data Team

Dennis D. McDonald

BDPM, Big Data, Project Management, Data Program Management

The firewalled article by Ian Thomas, The seven people you need on your Big Data team, is an entertaining and insightful overview of needed technical skills if you are tasked with developing a team that “… takes data from various sources … and turns it into valuable insights that can be shared broadly across the organization.”