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At the time that I’m writing this, the news is full of talk of trade deals. In the UK we are a couple of weeks away from Brexit – but it’s OK this is not about Brexit – you can carry on reading! I’ve just watched a news article about the brokering of trade deals, what they are, why countries need th...

I met a friend recently for lunch and, quite frankly, he is looking amazing! He joined a gym about a year ago and you can tell! His face is slimmer, he seems to have more energy, looks about ten years younger and, he told me, he has had to buy some new trousers because his old ones were starting to ...

“It’s the most pointless meeting, nothing to do with my work but I have to attend. I just zone out for an hour”. A Project Management contractor friend of mine said this as he told me about a monthly meeting that had just appeared again in his diary with the subject “Team Meeting – All Staff To Atte...

Is your IT Project Delivery a challenge? Let me start by saying - it should be a challenge. Ground-breaking IT Projects that disrupt markets, drive innovation and create new revenues should push you to the outer edges of your limits and capabilities. Otherwise, what's the point? Challenges are like ...

We are delighted to award Business Analyst, Mo Dakri the Stoneseed Colleague Recognition Scheme, with his efforts recognised by both his colleagues and clients. Each month the staff at Stoneseed are asked to nominate their colleagues as part of a recognition scheme, where they have seen hard work, o...

We are delighted to award Project Office Coordinator Kalvin Benning the Stoneseed Colleague Recognition Scheme for this month.   Each month the staff at Stoneseed are asked to nominate their colleagues as part of a recognition scheme, where they have seen hard work, over-achievement or acts of kindn...

During a recent conversation about IT Project Management and, specifically how to set and achieve goals, I was told that something I'd said was, and I quote, "amazing". I think "amazing" is the most over used word in the English language these days, usually with the middle 'a' elongated, "amaaaaaaaa...

What is it they say? The two most stressful things in life are moving house and commuting! People who live in mobile homes must be perpetually stressed! We just moved house and the process wasn't without its fair share of drama. You'll have been there yourself: the viewers who have just come for a n...

Brooks' law is an observation about IT project management which states "adding human resources to a late software project makes it later" It was written by Fred Brooks in 1975, in his book 'The Mythical Man-Month'. It is a 'law' that I've always believed to be fundamentally flawed and ripe for break...

I was sat in the pub beer garden at the weekend when a customer was stung by a wasp. A passing waitress saw this and instantly she returned with ice, cotton wool, some apple cider vinegar and an EpiPen (just in case). Now, I've treated wasp stings with calamine lotion in the past, and I have applied...

In a recent introductory piece on IT Project methodologies, I promised to follow up on each individual methodology and investigative its advantages and disadvantages. Having looked at Waterfall and Agile, let’s now turn to Scrum. Scrum. What Is It, When Should You Use It? Normally, when you talk of ...

We are delighted to award Marketing Assistant, Laura Grimes the Stoneseed Colleague Recognition Scheme for this month.   Each month the staff at Stoneseed are asked to nominate their colleagues as part of a recognition scheme, where they have seen hard work, over-achievement or acts of kindness and ...

Your IT project is almost ready: Development is done; testing is going well; just a few defects remain. The customer is satisfied with the look and feel of the product, you both have a shared vision about the business change it will bring .... but ... they want to ... delay ‘go live’ ... just a litt...

"A Dog Is for Life, Not Just for Christmas" has become a somewhat iconic message but as I write this on a blisteringly hot summer day there is no similar advice. Is now then a good time to buy a puppy on a whim? Of course, it's not, the message behind the slogan is valid all year round. It's just, y...

Welcome to the latest in an occasional series on the different IT Project Management methodologies, last time we looked at Waterfall, now let's focus on Agile. Agile. What Is It, When Should You Use It? The story goes that seventeen software thought leaders, programmers and developers met at The Lod...

This weekend I watched some remarkable displays of sporting endurance where the winners, in both cases, just seemed to have a little something extra left in their locker to power them onto victory after long, hard matches. IT Project Management can be a long, hard slog too and, with the rate of fail...

We are delighted to award HR Manager, Emma Jordan the Stoneseed Colleague Recognition Scheme for this month, with her efforts on Pensions.  Each month the staff at Stoneseed are asked to nominate their colleagues as part of a recognition scheme, where they have seen hard work, over-achievement or ac...

Have you ever thought about trying something new in your delivery of IT Projects but eventually decided to play safe? It happens to us all, I guess. I mean keeping it fresh is great but if you wreck your IT Project and at the post-mortem, it's revealed that the project failed because you tried somet...

I’ve been thinking about IT Projects that we've helped steer out of troubled waters lately and in, probably, eight out of ten cases the issue was with the people working on the project. This isn't a criticism of that talent, far from it, I'd happily be a referee for most of them. The issue isn't qua...

I am writing this with cake and champagne on my desk, instead of the usual Monday coffee and rich tea biscuit. The reason for such opulence at the start of the week is that, at Stoneseed, we are celebrating our tenth anniversary. The tech world was a very different place 10 years ago! A decade ago, ...