Rick Brenner Presents "Organizational Politics for Project Managers" to the Alamo/San Antonio Chapter of the Project Management Institute

CAMBRIDGE, MA, March 12, 2007 — Project managers must navigate organizational politics with little authority and little training in politics. On March 28, the Alamo Chapter of the Project Management Institute will present Rick Brenner, of Chaco Canyon Consulting, to help equip project managers with the political tools they need to make their projects successful.

Mr. Brenner will present a 60-minute program, "Organizational Politics for Project Mangers," which focuses on practical techniques for dealing with the problems that arise in organizational politics, while keeping your integrity intact.

"Many of us see workplace politics as a dirty game," says Mr. Brenner. "It can be dirty, depending on the individual, but it's no game," he said.

Mr. Brenner observes that we can succeed in organizational politics only if we see it for what it is. "The first step is to take it seriously," he says, "and like the rest of Life, you can behave ethically, or not — it's up to you."
Mr. Brenner's program offers attendees valuable insights. Here are his top three:

* Workplace politics comes in two flavors: Toxic and Creative.

* Dealing openly and honestly with politics — both toxic and creative — is a safe way to manage it.

* For toxic politics, the point at issue is rarely the problem. Something else is going on.

In 1993, while researching low-cost software development methods for the Department of Defense, Mr. Brenner began to suspect that part of the solution to lowering development costs lay not in the next new technology, but in finding better ways for people to work together. That work eventually led him to develop Workplace Politics Awareness Month.
In this program, Mr. Brenner will provide insights for project managers, project sponsors, and leaders of project-oriented organizations to help them use workplace politics constructively.

Journalists and producers are welcome to peruse an archive of dozens of short articles (500 words) about organizational politics, at http://ChacoCanyon.com/pointlookout/politics.shtml. Sample titles: "Workplace Politics Is Not a Game," "When You Think Your Boss Is Incompetent," "How to Get a Promotion: the Inside Stuff," "On Organizational Coups d'Etat," "Is It Blame or Is It Accountability?," and "When Others Curry Favor." Mr. Brenner is available for interviews on any of the topics listed there, or on other related topics.

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About the Alamo Chapter of the Project Management Institute
and Chaco Canyon Consulting

The Alamo Chapter of the Project Management Institute is sponsoring this program as part of its series of monthly dinner meetings. The chapter was originally founded in 1995 to meet the needs of the chapter members while promoting the field of project management within the San Antonio area. It promotes project management as a recognized discipline, creates an environment that fosters professional development and networking, and guides the next generation of project managers. The chapter has over 700 members. More information is available at http://www.alamopmi.org.

Mr. Brenner is principal of Chaco Canyon Consulting. He works with people in problem-solving organizations that are making products so novel or complex that they need state-of-the-art teamwork and stronger relationships among their people. In his 25 years as a software developer, software development manager, entrepreneur and consultant, he has developed valuable insights into the interactions between people in technical environments, and between people and the technological media in which they work. He focuses on improving personal and organizational effectiveness in abnormal situations, such as dramatic change, technical emergencies, and high-pressure project situations. He has written a number of essays on these subjects, available at his Web site, http://www.ChacoCanyon.com, and writes and publishes a weekly email newsletter with a circulation of over 2500.

CONTACT:
Cathy Stone
Chaco Canyon Consulting
(866) 378-5470
(617) 491-6289
http://www.ChacoCanyon.com
castone@chacocanyon.com