Advertise on podcast: Project Management Masterclass

A project can have clear priorities, meaningful measures, and an impressive scorecard and still fail to produce lasting results. The missing element is often an operational rhythm that connects information to decisions, decisions to action, and action to outcomes. In this bonus episode of Project Success Playbook, we explore how project leaders can sustain project success after the strategy, plan, and performance measures have been established. You’ll learn four practical guidelines: • Establish a recurring cadence for evaluating project success• Convert project discussions into high impact commitments• Use performance information to trigger decisions and intervention• Connect project delivery to outcome realization and organizational learning This episode also examines why dashboards and status reports frequently become organizational decoration, how unclear decision authority weakens accountability, and why completing a project is not the same as realizing its intended value. Project success should not be assessed only at the end. It should shape how the project is led throughout its life cycle.

Send us Fan Mail Knowing project management and successfully leading projects are two different things. Project Success Playbook is the premium series from Project Management Masterclass, exploring the decisions, behaviors, systems, and leadership practices that shape successful projects. Subscribe to access episodes including: • The Two Types of Decisions That Expedite Project Outcomes • Designing for Execution Success • How High Performers Stay C.L.E.A.R. Under Pressure • The Project Flywheel: How to Build Momentum That Compounds • How Intelligent Organizations Fail Without Collapsing Each episode turns ideas from books, research, and real-world project experience into practical lessons to help you think differently, lead better, and execute with greater clarity. Listen through Apple Podcasts? Subscribe directly there. If Apple Podcasts isn't your platform, sign up for Project Success Playbook here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2308468/support Deepen your project leadership with Project Success Playbook. Support the show Deepen Your Project Leadership https://www.buzzsprout.com/2308468/subscribe

Send us Fan Mail Project managers are often accountable for outcomes delivered by people who do not report to them. Team members may come from different functions, answer to different leaders, balance competing priorities, and bring different skills and ways of working to the project. So what does it really mean to lead when positional authority is not enough? In this episode of Project Management Masterclass, we continue the Project Management Trends 2026 series with Managing With People. Host Brittany Wilkins shares her personal experience of struggling to manage with people early in her career and what it took to grow into a more effective leader. Through lessons learned along the way, this episode explores the importance of creating clarity, developing capability, building ownership, adapting your communication, and bringing people together around a shared mission. Because successful project leadership is not about making yourself necessary for every task or decision. It is about creating the conditions for people to contribute, take ownership, and deliver together. Support the show Deepen Your Project Leadership https://www.buzzsprout.com/2308468/subscribe

A project does not always have a workload problem. Sometimes it has a decision problem. In this bonus episode of Project Management Masterclass, Brittany Wilkins examines how slow approvals, unclear authority, and the pursuit of perfect information quietly undermine execution. Drawing from the high-velocity decision-making principle in The Bezos Letters, she offers project leaders a practical way to match the decision process to the actual level of risk. You’ll learn how to recognize when rigor is necessary, when caution has become organizational drag, and how to keep disagreement from turning into paralysis. Because project leadership is not just about managing the work. It is also about building the conditions for timely, responsible decisions.

Send us Fan Mail Plans are necessary. But every project manager knows that the assumptions behind a plan don't always survive contact with reality. Requirements change. Stakeholder expectations shift. Resources move. Market conditions evolve. The challenge isn't simply knowing how to update a project plan. It's knowing when change actually warrants a response without constantly disrupting execution. In this episode of Project Management Masterclass, Brittany Wilkins continues the Project Management Trends 2026 series with a closer look at adaptive planning. Drawing on familiar project management fundamentals, we explore how techniques such as rolling-wave planning, iterative development, stakeholder engagement, impact analysis, and reprioritization help teams navigate uncertainty. But the conversation goes further: adaptive planning also depends on decision rights, governance, and an organization's ability to distinguish meaningful change from noise. Because too little adaptation can leave teams executing against outdated assumptions. Too much can create rework, budget overruns, shifting priorities, and teams that stop trusting the plan altogether. The goal isn't constant change. It's intentional adaptation. Be rigid on the outcome. Stay flexible on the approach that gets you there. Episode Keywords: adaptive planning, adaptive planning project management, project management trends 2026, project planning, project management planning, project management trends, rolling wave planning, progressive elaboration, iterative project management, project decision rights Support the show Deepen Your Project Leadership https://www.buzzsprout.com/2308468/subscribe

There is a difference between a project that is moving and a project that has momentum. Your team can attend meetings, update schedules, close action items, and send status reports while the project still depends on someone constantly pushing it forward. In this premium episode of Project Management Masterclass, I explore the idea of the project flywheel and what project leaders can learn from Jeff Bezos' approach to building momentum that compounds. We will look beyond activity to examine the conditions that keep work moving. How do clarity, ownership, decision rights, trust, and visibility reinforce one another? What happens when the opposite occurs and ambiguity, delayed decisions, and firefighting begin creating their own cycle? I also challenge you to examine one of your current projects and identify where the real leverage point sits. Sometimes the schedule is not the problem. Sometimes the conditions underneath the schedule are. As project leaders, our responsibility cannot stop at keeping work moving. We need to understand what makes the work move.

Send us Fan Mail Artificial intelligence has become one of the biggest conversations in project management. Much of that conversation has focused on productivity: summarizing meetings, drafting communications, identifying risks, analyzing data, and automating routine tasks. But the value of AI extends beyond productivity. In this episode of Project Management Masterclass, we begin our Project Management Trends 2026 series by examining the strategic value of artificial intelligence and what it means for project leaders. We explore how AI connects to corporate strategy and business value, what the changing demand for AI skills signals about the future of work, and why governance must become part of the conversation as organizations expand their use of AI. Because adopting AI is only part of the challenge. Organizations must also understand where AI is being used, what risks it introduces, who owns the decisions, and whether those investments are actually delivering value. For project managers, the opportunity is bigger than learning another tool. It's understanding how AI, strategy, governance, risk, and execution come together to deliver successful outcomes. The technology may be changing, but the fundamentals of strong project leadership still matter. If you are ready to strengthen the skills that separate project managers from project leaders, explore the Power Skills Accelerator, a course designed to help professionals master the leadership capabilities needed to thrive in complex project environments. Enroll in the Power Skills Accelerator https://www.developpowerskills.com/sales-page If you want to assess where execution may be breaking down in your current projects, take the Execution Intelligence Diagnostic to identify gaps across leadership, decision making, and team alignment. Start the diagnostic https://executionintelligence.scoreapp.com/ Join the waitlist for Brittany Wilkins’ upcoming book, Execution Intelligence, focused on the mindset, systems, and discipline required to turn strategy into measurable results. Join the book waitlist https://makowayconsulting.scoreapp.com To learn more about how organizations eliminate execution friction and turn strategy into measurable results, visit Makoway Consulting. https://www.makowayconsulting.com Support the show Deepen Your Project Leadership https://www.buzzsprout.com/2308468/subscribe

Project Success Playbook: Designing for Execution Success Does successful execution begin when a project starts, or long before execution ever begins? In this episode of Project Success Playbook, I reflect on one of the most influential concepts from The 4 Disciplines of Execution: lead measures. Rather than reviewing the book, I explore the question it challenged me to ask: If organizations know the right lead measures, what allows people to consistently act on them? Together, we'll explore: The difference between lag measures and lead measures. Why visibility is essential for execution. How organizational systems influence execution. Why successful execution may begin with organizational design, not just project planning. A practical exercise to evaluate your own KPIs, dashboards, and scorecards. This isn't a book review. It's a conversation about execution. If you're ready to think more deeply about leadership, organizational performance, and the systems that shape successful execution, I'd love for you to join me. If you are ready to strengthen the skills that separate project managers from project leaders, explore the Power Skills Accelerator, a course designed to help professionals master the leadership capabilities needed to thrive in complex project environments. Enroll in the Power Skills Acceleratorhttps://www.developpowerskills.com/sales-page If you want to assess where execution may be breaking down in your current projects, take the Execution Intelligence Diagnostic to identify gaps across leadership, decision making, and team alignment. Start the diagnostichttps://executionintelligence.scoreapp.com/ Join the waitlist for Brittany Wilkins’ upcoming book, Execution Intelligence, focused on the mindset, systems, and discipline required to turn strategy into measurable results. Join the book waitlisthttps://makowayconsulting.scoreapp.com To learn more about how organizations eliminate execution friction and turn strategy into measurable results, visit Makoway Consulting. https://www.makowayconsulting.com

Send us Fan Mail Have you noticed that sustainability reporting is becoming more precise? One of the biggest proposed changes to greenhouse gas accounting is happening right now, and while it may sound like a topic reserved for sustainability professionals, it has real implications for project leaders. In this episode, Brittany Wilkins explains the proposed updates to Scope 2 greenhouse gas accounting, why annual renewable electricity matching may no longer be enough, and how changes like hourly matching could reshape projects across operations, IT, procurement, finance, and sustainability. More importantly, this episode explores the leadership lesson behind the technical guidance. As organizations face increasing pressure to provide better data, stronger transparency, and measurable results, projects become the mechanism for turning new requirements into reality. You'll learn: • What Scope 2 emissions are and why the accounting guidance is changing • What hourly matching means in practical terms • Why these proposed changes extend far beyond sustainability teams • How project leaders can prepare for increasing business complexity If you want to lead projects that matter, understanding the business environment around your projects is no longer optional. If you are ready to strengthen the skills that separate project managers from project leaders, explore the Power Skills Accelerator, a course designed to help professionals master the leadership capabilities needed to thrive in complex project environments. Enroll in the Power Skills Accelerator https://www.developpowerskills.com/sales-page If you want to assess where execution may be breaking down in your current projects, take the Execution Intelligence Diagnostic to identify gaps across leadership, decision making, and team alignment. Start the diagnostic https://executionintelligence.scoreapp.com/ Join the waitlist for Brittany Wilkins’ upcoming book, Execution Intelligence, focused on the mindset, systems, and discipline required to turn strategy into measurable results. Join the book waitlist https://makowayconsulting.scoreapp.com To learn more about how organizations eliminate execution friction and turn strategy into measurable results, visit Makoway Consulting. https://www.makowayconsulting.com Support the show Deepen Your Project Leadership https://www.buzzsprout.com/2308468/subscribe

Failure is easy to recognize when a project gets canceled. It's harder to recognize when the project finishes and the organization repeats the same mistakes six months later. That distinction raises an interesting question. What if organizations are measuring project failure correctly but measuring organizational failure incorrectly? In this bonus episode, Brittany shares a different way of thinking about failure, friction, and the patterns that keep showing up long after the project is over. Available exclusively to Project Success Playbook subscribers. If you are ready to strengthen the skills that separate project managers from project leaders, explore the Power Skills Accelerator, a course designed to help professionals master the leadership capabilities needed to thrive in complex project environments. Enroll in the Power Skills Acceleratorhttps://www.developpowerskills.com/sales-page If you want to assess where execution may be breaking down in your current projects, take the Execution Intelligence Diagnostic to identify gaps across leadership, decision making, and team alignment. Start the diagnostichttps://executionintelligence.scoreapp.com/ Join the waitlist for Brittany Wilkins’ upcoming book, Execution Intelligence, focused on the mindset, systems, and discipline required to turn strategy into measurable results. Join the book waitlisthttps://makowayconsulting.scoreapp.com To learn more about how organizations eliminate execution friction and turn strategy into measurable results, visit Makoway Consulting. https://www.makowayconsulting.com

Send us Fan Mail Business transformation is often discussed through the lens of technology, AI, automation, and digital initiatives. But after attending the CLM Summit, one theme surfaced repeatedly beneath the technology conversations: maintaining visibility and coordination is becoming increasingly difficult as complexity grows. In this episode, host Brittany Wilkins shares key observations from the summit and explore why connected systems, trusted data, lifecycle alignment, and cross-functional coordination matter more than ever. We discuss the role AI plays as an amplifier, the risks of disconnected systems and tribal knowledge, and why organizations must think beyond technology implementation when navigating transformation. Topics include: • AI and operational foundations • Product complexity and customization • Connected systems and data visibility • Lifecycle alignment across business functions • Human barriers to transformation • Why coordination is becoming a competitive advantage Whether you work in project management, operations, manufacturing, digital transformation, or organizational leadership, this episode offers practical insights into what it takes to maintain clarity and control in an increasingly interconnected business environment. The promise does not come without the process.   If you are ready to strengthen the skills that separate project managers from project leaders, explore the Power Skills Accelerator, a course designed to help professionals master the leadership capabilities needed to thrive in complex project environments. Enroll in the Power Skills Accelerator https://www.developpowerskills.com/sales-page If you want to assess where execution may be breaking down in your current projects, take the Execution Intelligence Diagnostic to identify gaps across leadership, decision making, and team alignment. Start the diagnostic https://executionintelligence.scoreapp.com/ Join the waitlist for Brittany Wilkins’ upcoming book, Execution Intelligence, focused on the mindset, systems, and discipline required to turn strategy into measurable results. Join the book waitlist https://makowayconsulting.scoreapp.com To learn more about how organizations eliminate execution friction and turn strategy into measurable results, visit Makoway Consulting. https://www.makowayconsulting.com Support the show Deepen Your Project Leadership https://www.buzzsprout.com/2308468/subscribe

Pressure does not automatically destroy project leaders. What destroys them is carrying pressure without a system to process it. In this premium episode of Project Success Playbook, Brittany Wilkins expands on the conversation from “Mental Health Isn’t the Problem. Pressure Is.” by introducing the C.L.E.A.R. Framework; a practical system designed to help high performers stay mentally clear, emotionally grounded, and effective under pressure. This episode explores: how to filter mental overload before it destroys claritywhy undefined pressure becomes emotional chaosthe danger of emotional decision-makinghow internal narratives shape leadership behaviorwhy recovery is a performance strategy, not a rewardBecause eventually, leadership becomes internal. How you think.How you regulate yourself.How you respond when uncertainty rises. That becomes the real work. IIf you are ready to strengthen the skills that separate project managers from project leaders, explore the Power Skills Accelerator, a course designed to help professionals master the leadership capabilities needed to thrive in complex project environments. Enroll in the Power Skills Acceleratorhttps://www.developpowerskills.com/sales-page If you want to assess where execution may be breaking down in your current projects, take the Execution Intelligence Diagnostic to identify gaps across leadership, decision making, and team alignment. Start the diagnostichttps://executionintelligence.scoreapp.com/ Join the waitlist for Brittany Wilkins’ upcoming book, Execution Intelligence, focused on the mindset, systems, and discipline required to turn strategy into measurable results. Join the book waitlisthttps://makowayconsulting.scoreapp.com To learn more about how organizations eliminate execution friction and turn strategy into measurable results, visit Makoway Consulting. https://www.makowayconsulting.com

Send us Fan Mail May is Mental Health Awareness Month. But awareness alone won’t fix what’s breaking project leaders. In this episode, Brittany Wilkins challenges the conversation around mental health in high-pressure environments and reveals the real issue: unmanaged pressure. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed, delayed decisions, avoided difficult conversations, or questioned your ability to lead under pressure—this episode is for you. Because the truth is simple: Your projects don’t break first. You do. And until you learn how to manage pressure in real time, you will continue to hit the same wall—no matter how skilled or experienced you are. If you are ready to strengthen the skills that separate project managers from project leaders, explore the Power Skills Accelerator, a course designed to help professionals master the leadership capabilities needed to thrive in complex project environments. Enroll in the Power Skills Accelerator https://www.developpowerskills.com/sales-page If you want to assess where execution may be breaking down in your current projects, take the Execution Intelligence Diagnostic to identify gaps across leadership, decision making, and team alignment. Start the diagnostic https://executionintelligence.scoreapp.com/ Join the waitlist for Brittany Wilkins’ upcoming book, Execution Intelligence, focused on the mindset, systems, and discipline required to turn strategy into measurable results. Join the book waitlist https://makowayconsulting.scoreapp.com To learn more about how organizations eliminate execution friction and turn strategy into measurable results, visit Makoway Consulting. https://www.makowayconsulting.com Support the show Deepen Your Project Leadership https://www.buzzsprout.com/2308468/subscribe

Send us Fan Mail Every business is measured by its financial performance. Revenue. Profit. The bottom line. That’s what people look at when something collapses. But by the time the numbers reflect the problem, it’s already been there. There are other indicators that get overlooked. Decision speed starts to slow. Pressure builds in places no one is tracking. Options begin to narrow long before anyone calls it a risk. I didn’t look at Spirit Airlines and think this was sudden. I thought about how long it had probably been building. In this episode, I walk through what most people miss when they look at business failure. Not the outcome. The pattern behind it. Because collapse doesn’t start with financial results. It starts inside the system. And if you’re not paying attention to those signals early, you don’t get time to react. You get forced to respond. If you are ready to strengthen the skills that separate project managers from project leaders, explore the Power Skills Accelerator, a course designed to help professionals master the leadership capabilities needed to thrive in complex project environments. Enroll in the Power Skills Accelerator https://www.developpowerskills.com/sales-page If you want to assess where execution may be breaking down in your current projects, take the Execution Intelligence Diagnostic to identify gaps across leadership, decision making, and team alignment. Start the diagnostic https://executionintelligence.scoreapp.com/ Join the waitlist for Brittany Wilkins’ upcoming book, Execution Intelligence, focused on the mindset, systems, and discipline required to turn strategy into measurable results. Join the book waitlist https://makowayconsulting.scoreapp.com To learn more about how organizations eliminate execution friction and turn strategy into measurable results, visit Makoway Consulting. https://www.makowayconsulting.com Support the show Deepen Your Project Leadership https://www.buzzsprout.com/2308468/subscribe

Send us Fan Mail You’re working hard. Delivering results. Doing everything right. So why are you still not moving forward? In this episode, host Brittany Wilkins  break down the real reason so many professionals and project leaders feel stuck despite their effort. It’s not about working harder. It’s about developing the right power skills. You’ll learn: Why hard work alone is not enough to advance your careerThe hidden gap that keeps high performers stuckThe 4 power skills every project leader needs to succeedHow to position yourself for growth, recognition, and leadershipIf you’ve ever felt overlooked, undervalued, or stuck in execution mode… This episode will challenge how you think about success. And more importantly—it will show you what to do next. If you are ready to strengthen the skills that separate project managers from project leaders, explore the Power Skills Accelerator, a course designed to help professionals master the leadership capabilities needed to thrive in complex project environments. Enroll in the Power Skills Accelerator https://www.developpowerskills.com/sales-page If you want to assess where execution may be breaking down in your current projects, take the Execution Intelligence Diagnostic to identify gaps across leadership, decision making, and team alignment. Start the diagnostic https://executionintelligence.scoreapp.com/ Join the waitlist for Brittany Wilkins’ upcoming book, Execution Intelligence, focused on the mindset, systems, and discipline required to turn strategy into measurable results. Join the book waitlist https://makowayconsulting.scoreapp.com To learn more about how organizations eliminate execution friction and turn strategy into measurable results, visit Makoway Consulting. https://www.makowayconsulting.com Support the show Deepen Your Project Leadership https://www.buzzsprout.com/2308468/subscribe