test

Writing blogs can be quite the challenge, to come up with interesting, well-researched topics.

Once we have created a great blog post, one repetitive task that can be automated, is the posting of your gem on your facebook, twitter page.

The use of RSS Graffiti thankfully has made that quite easy.

As an exercise for my PMP training, I gave a presentation on Managing Client Expectations at City Square Mall today. I had a great time with Lily and Dan.

On Friday 23rd November, I started a personalized fast-track training with PMP trainer Lily Harvey. We have met 3 times a week, for 3 hours each time.

Wow, if you want to fast-track your PMP certification, this is the best way.

An great resource I found is this Project Knowledge website

Marius deBeer of Agile Vancouver, organized a panel discussion with Hootsuite Technical leadership

On June 11, Lean startup vancouver hosted The Lean Crossroad: Lean Startup + Internet + Entrepreneurship

It was great to hear about the "Lean" startup movement, "Lean" as in lean manufacturing, which agile development has roots in.

Eric Ries from Startup lessons talked about quickly validating your riskiest assumptions:

I hear of many opportunities for developers, and at webchicks talk at Drupal Camp Vancouver, she referenced that the drupal core developers were inundated with request for features without the equivalent offers for help.

It reminds me of Randy Fay's talk at Drupal Summit Portland about Burnout

Just finished my talk on Agile Techniques at Drupal Camp Vancouver.

Good discussions generated between audience. Questions about budget and customer negotiation.

Know of an agile pm / scrum master vacancy, let me know, I will be grateful.

Yesterday's agile May meeting was very informative and well attended, I estimate about a hundred people showed up for Mary Poppendieck's talk on the intersection of design and engineering.

3 main points that Mary made:
1) Simplicity, think Google
2) Experience, e.g. hipmunk
3) Stories, for example pixar toy story

Emphasis is on engagement versus record keeping.

Fresh off the presses:

"OpenDataBC is a collaborative effort by a group of B.C. citizens. We want to help all of us to have better access to information, so that we understand our government better. To answer questions such as how goverment spends our money, and what data is used to make decisions on our behalf.

We believe that open data helps to promote innovation, because citizens can use government datasets to build applications, ask better questions, and provide alternative answers and solutions."