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Episode 8: Project Management

Guests: Federal Training Academy Executive Consultants

Lisa Hammer, PMP, DASSM (https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisahammer/)
Dave Newman, PMP, DASSM, PMI-ACP, SHRM-SCP, GPM-b (https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-newman-pmp-dassm-pmi-acp-shrm-scp-6657b83/)

Book Link: https://a.co/d/6UQPlEa

Do you still highlight books and take notes in them? If so, you’ll fill the margins with insights as you read The Engagement Matrix and its valuable strategies.

This episode highlights two of our highly-qualified and proven project management experts. They recently co-authored a book full of golden nuggets, and we’re delighted to further learn from their expertise as they answer the following questions:

You’ve worked for 20+ years in project management and have significant credentials. In your opinion, what seems to be the most urgent message to share with PMs and leaders in the current work environment?
Your book, The Engagement Matrix, is a practical guide for PMs. In particular, the emphasis on collaborating well is intriguing, especially given research indicating we’ve been over-collaborating. What are some of the practical strategies PMs can use to collaborate for results?
You are experts in performance, collaboration, and strategy, and your book emphasizes these 3 areas. PMs play a vital role in shaping their teams’ culture. What 3 tips do you find most important for PMs to do this well?

We’re grateful for this duo’s partnership, and we look forward to our continued design and development work.

#NotAnAd
#ProjectManagement
#Leadership
#PMP#PMI #DASSM

Episode 7: Innovative Leadership

Guest: Shantha Mohan, Ph.D., Mentor at Carnegie Mellon University’s Integrated Innovation Institute

What’s your favorite Beatles song?

Dr. Shantha Mohan, with more than 30 years of experience in the high-tech industry, transforms Beatles lyrics into hard-core business principles in her most recent book, Leadership Lessons with the Beatles: Actionable Tips and Tools for Becoming Better at Leading.

Each chapter is themed on a Beatles song, and after a brief history of the song itself, the chapter dives into a related management topic. Although it seems light-hearted and fun with the song titles, the content is full of hard-core reminders for leaders at all levels.

In this interview, Dr. Mohan answers the following questions:

1. In the chapter, Help!, you share leadership tips about being vulnerable and the 360-degree assessment. What advice do you have for people who are told in feedback sessions, and perhaps even performance appraisals, that they aren’t perceived as strong enough to lead? Because we know being vulnerable can pave the way toward innovative leadership, how do you manage the paradox of being vulnerable and being a strong leader?

2. In the chapter, When I’m Sixty-Four, you wisely state: “A leader who understands the conflicting priorities in her life and balances them has a better chance of getting to 64 without regrets.” You provide excellent insights about how to manage life well, so let’s go a bit beyond that chapter and extend this topic to answer what advice do you have for emerging and middle-level leaders to embody your concepts for not only themselves but for their staff?

3. And let’s close on one of my favorite chapters, Think for Yourself. What would you say to our audience members who want to step up in the workplace and think for themselves in order to be innovative? How can one truly stand out as an innovative leader?

A big thank you goes to our guest, and if you’re looking for innovative ways to inspire your teams, snag a copy of her book.

#notanad #innovation #beatles #leadership #yousaygoodbyeisayhello

Episode 6: 4 Keys to Unlocking Your Best Performance

Guest: Mr. Mike Mears, Retired CIA Chief of Human Capital, Harvard MBA, and West Point grad

This episode launches in November before the United States celebrates Thanksgiving, and it’s a wonderful time to acknowledge the leaders who challenged us and brought out the best in us. We appreciate the leaders around us, and to celebrate, please watch this month’s episode of 15 Minutes with Federal Training Academy.

Mike Mears started and championed the CIA’s Leadership Academy, and in this episode, he goes into depth about his new model for creating change and breakthroughs in the workplace. He answers the following questions:

How can individuals break through a brick wall?
Your model reveals four keys to unlocking our best performance (insight, visual, behavioral, and inclusion). What do each of these keys mean, and what do they do for us?
What are some real-life examples where this model was helpful that can demonstrate how powerful and valuable it is for other leaders?

We’re excited to see Mike’s work in “Insight” and look forward to more of his research and findings in 2023. You can find more information on his website: mikemears.com. For professional development and coaching, visit FederalTrainingAcademy.com.

All of us at Federal Training Academy are grateful for you and your interest in our small, woman-owned, minority-owned business, and we wish you and your loved ones a holiday season full of abundance and joy.

#leadership
#thanksgiving
#grateful
#FedAcademy #training

Episode 5: Mentoring

Host: Dr. Nikita Harris – Partner at Federal Training Academy, award-winning Professor at the University of Alabama, Founder of NYH Consulting, and former employee at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center where she designed and developed a mentoring program for their Systems Engineer Division.

Guest: Attorney and Military Officer Jamiel J. Peterson – Founder of The Law Offices of Jamiel J. Peterson, Regional Special Victims’ Counsel for the National Guard Bureau, and former JAG Officer and Staff Judge Advocate in the Air National Guard.

In this episode, we share critical insights on Mentoring Leadership. Did you know mentees are 5x more likely to be promoted, and mentors are 6x more likely to be promoted?

This episode launches in October at the start of a new fiscal year, which is an optimal time to plan for your career development.

In this quick interview format, we explore:

How mentoring can impact a career and leadership development
Characteristics and competencies that mentors and mentees should have to develop a successful relationship
How to identify and find a mentor
Time commitments and dependability on both sides of the relationship

One of our favorite moments was when our guest shared the insight that mentors are looking for mentees who are willing to reinvest in others. Spread the wisdom beyond the individual level, and build a legacy!

A heartfelt thank you goes to our host, Dr. Nikita Harris, whose experiences in education span more than 20 years of dedicated service.

If you’re ready to benefit from professional mentoring and/or coaching, grab your SF-182, and contact us. We also design and develop coaching programs for organizations. Email: [email protected]

#humanresources
#leadership
#mentoring
#FedAcademy #training

Episode 4: Professional Coaching

In this episode of 15 Minutes with Federal Training Academy, we share critical insights on professional coaching with our guest, Chief of Staff for Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Readiness Love Rutledge at the United States Department of Defense. This month’s episode launches during Labor Day weekend. As we take time to relax from the daily grind of our work routines, this can be an ideal opportunity to pause and set new personal development goals. Let’s revitalize ourselves and learn about how professional coaching can help individuals at all levels of the government.

As Love stated, “Coaching is important at all levels of your career. Often, we see executive programs that are either working to upskill senior leaders, or when they first come onboard, they get a specialized training experience and coaching is a part of that package. I think we would all be better served if coaching started at lower GS levels in the government, so that we were actively setting goals, working with our supervisor and with a coach, to figure out where we want to go. And really creating that individual development plan and map, so that we had targets that we knew we were going to hit. I think a lot of us don’t realize until maybe too late in our career that we should have been doing that kind of planning and that kind of work. So, first, I want to encourage everybody to get coaching…because it can be so powerful in helping you move forward in your career.”

In this quick interview format, we explore the following 3 questions with our guest, who is also a successful professional coach assisting individuals with their growth while accomplishing the mission:

Many people think mentoring and coaching are the same thing. There are distinct differences between the two, so could you share what some of those differences are?
What are the specific benefits professional coaching can bring, especially for individuals at all levels (not only executives)? Please share one real-life example of when you coached someone to unearth an “aha moment,” and you could see the tremendous impact at more than just the individual level.
If we aren’t in an official coaching program, how can we get coaching? What avenues do you recommend, especially for someone who is not at an executive level, to gain access to coaching?

One of my favorite moments was when our guest shared a real-life example of an individual experiencing Imposter Syndrome. With coaching, the individual made a positive impact sharing knowledge and experience across the federal government.

A big thank you goes to our guest, Love Rutledge, whose federal career spans more than 20 years of dedicated service. Love is also the founder and host of the FedUpward podcast, where Feds can find wisdom, inspiration, and practical tips to best serve our government and citizens. FedUpward celebrated its 150^th episode this month! Link: FedUpward.com

If you’re ready to benefit from professional coaching, grab your SF-182, and contact us. Visit our Coaching HUB^TM to see our programs and meet our coaches. Link: FederalTrainingAcademy.com/theCoachingHUB

#humanresources
#personaldevelopment
#professionalcoaching
#FedAcademy
#CoachingHUB

Episode 3: Generational Leadership

In this episode of 15 Minutes with Federal Training Academy, we explore generational leadership with our guest, Federal Security Director Gerardo J. Spero at the Department of Homeland Security’s Transportation Security Administration. This episode launches in the summer month of August, and summer reminds us of exciting travel experiences. Our guest enlightens us with leadership lessons as we journey throughout time.

In this quick interview format, we’re in a time warp exploring the following 3 tough questions:

If you could go back in time and give your younger self a piece of career advice, what would it be?
Now, we’re in the current time, and there have been dramatic generational changes within our workforce. What generational differences have you seen, and what advice would you give?
For our last question, we travel into the future. For future generations, if you were to wave your magic wand and make an improved federal workforce, what would that look like?

A big thank you goes to our guest, Gerardo J. Spero, whose federal career and wisdom spans more than 30 years. If you’d like to learn about his leadership involving more than 15 million travelers each year, please connect with him on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/Gerardo-j-spero-a994b843

If you’d like to explore more episodes in our video series and register for training events, visit: https://FederalTrainingAcademy.com

Discover the outstanding quality Federal Training Academy’s team of government experts provides. We are “Engaged in Your Success!”

Episode 2: July 4th Celebration & Leadership Through Change

As we celebrate our nation’s independence, we’re reminded of public service and leadership lessons through change. Federal Training Academy is honored to share time with Major General (Ret.) and current Senior Executive at the Department of Homeland Security Jimmie Jaye Wells.

As this episode airs in the days leading up to July 4th, our nation’s Independence Day, we focus on 3 key themes:

⭐️ Leadership through 3 significant career transitions

Professional athlete as a Washington Redskin/Commander
Military service
Civilian public service

⭐️ Leadership lessons from a Matriarch’s Century

⭐️ Celebration of independence and recognizing “freedom is not free” as we support America’s Gold Star Families

If you’re looking to support America’s Gold Star Families, with the mission to provide honor, hope, and healing to those grieving any military loss through active duty service in the United States Armed Forces, please consider purchasing this faith-based leadership book sharing insights from 100 years of change. 100% of proceeds are donated to America’s Gold Star Families.

A Matriarch’s Century – Leader Lessons of Godliness, Sacrifice, Love and Service in a Century of Tumultuous Transformation:

Since our video series only allows for a snippet of time together, we gladly share Jimmie Jaye Wells’ ADDITIONAL INSIGHTS below from our time together outside of the recording.

⭐️ Who remembers the days watching Joe Theismann and hearing the glories of Jack Kent Cooke’s team? Many of us are native Washingtonians, so we do! We discussed lessons from his time as a professional National Football League player for the Washington Redskins (now the Washington Commanders).

Persevere toward your goal/dream.
Consider 4 levels of trust.
- Trust yourself.
- Trust your teammates.
- Trust your coaches to share the right skills and techniques.
- Trust your external collaborators, such as agents, team owner Jack Kent Cook, and officials providing credibility and authenticity.
Have confidence one-on-one as well as in large crowds of 70K+ people, and publicly represent yourself and your organization well.
Audaces fortuna juvat.” Remember: “Fortune favors the bold.”

⭐️ He chose to transition into military service earning an officer position and promotions leading to Major General as Chief of Staff of Forces Command Headquarters at one of the largest military bases in the world, Ft. Bragg in North Carolina. He, along with other Generals and SESers, managed 820,000+ people across the continental US Army. We are big fans of Jimmie Jaye Wells for his service to our nation.

Rank can be a crutch. Positional leadership and a commanding leadership approach are not lasting leadership styles.
Humble servant leadership is the key with a “mission first – people always” approach.
Inspire action.
- Accountability is vital.
- Encourage others to use their knowledge, skills, abilities, and preferences to solve wicked, complex problems.
- Stay positive, and don’t dwell in the negative. E.g., avoid sitting in the break room complaining and commiserating about the heat, rain, dust, or enemy.
Consider all dimensions.
What’s the mission? What are the tasks? What’s the strategy? Use Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How questions to engage and guide others.

⭐️ After retiring from the US military, he continued his public service as a senior executive at the Department of Homeland Security, where he currently serves in Honolulu, Hawaii and manages the Pacific region of the Transportation Security Administration.

Many civilian Feds face adversity every day in the execution of their assigned duties. Strong leaders act as a buffer while ensuring all dimensions (physical, spiritual, mental, intellectual, and social) of their staff are healthy and well-balanced.
Be values-driven. His core values are loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage (emotionally and not just physically).

Jimmie Jaye Wells has more than 40 years of public service. We’re honored to celebrate our nation’s independence and learn from him in this episode of 15 Minutes with Federal Training Academy. Thank you for joining us.

⭐️ Please visit FederalTrainingAcademy.com for our services and free resources section.

Episode 1: Juneteenth, Our U.S. National Holiday

Angela Kochuba, Managing Director of Federal Training Academy, hosts this first episode of 15 Minutes with Federal Training Academy where busy professionals gain valuable insights in 15 minutes or less. The interview format provides quick answers to pressing questions.

As we celebrate Juneteenth, we’re reminded of Maya Angelou’s quote, “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” Let’s learn and celebrate together, and don’t miss the call to action at the end of the episode.

Key Episode Questions:

⭐️ Why is this national holiday important?

⭐️ How do you celebrate Juneteenth? How should we all celebrate together?

⭐️ Leader to leader, what should we be saying and doing this week in the workplace in relation to the national holiday?

During the episode, Dr. Harris mentions “The Four Agreements” (by Don Miguel Ruiz).

1. Be impeccable with your word.

2. Don’t take anything personally.

3. Don’t make assumptions.

4. Always do your best.

We had so much to celebrate that we stretched the episode for an extra couple of minutes just as our call to action for U.S. federal leaders asks us to stretch the national holiday. Ms. Opal Lee, the “Grandmother of Juneteenth,” inspires us to extend Juneteenth to July 4th. Let’s all stretch our crucial DEIA conversations in the workplace and extend how we celebrate our nation’s independence together.

“Move forward through action, empathy, and celebration.”

Visit FederalTrainingAcademy.com for our partner list, including NYH Consulting, founded by Dr. Nikita Harris, who stars in this episode of 15 Minutes with Federal Training Academy. We’re proud to have her as the first guest on this video series and as our long-term partner. If you’d like Dr. Harris to speak with your group or facilitate vital DEIA discussions, please contact us: https://federaltrainingacademy.com/contact-2/

Or, submit your interest form: https://federaltrainingacademy.com/talentfavorite/

We post this video series in the pursuit of excellence, not allowing perfectionism to limit us as we continue to grow and stay “Engaged in Your Success.”

#GrowthMindset #Juneteenth #DEIA

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