Our superhero PMP guest today is Sree Karanakarun!

Born and raised in India, Sree earned a degree in engineering and began her career as a mainframe IT developer. She quickly advanced through roles as a Business Analyst, Project Coordinator, and Project Manager, spending over 20 years in healthcare project and program management.

Then, she made a bold career pivot—leaving healthcare to become a Senior IT Project Manager for Douglas County, Colorado, managing projects in the community government sector.

In this episode, Mathew and I will dive into what it’s like to switch industries completely and explore her superpower: cutting through chaos as a project manager. 🚀

2:00 – Introduction to Sree
Sree shares her journey in IT, healthcare, and government project management.

4:00 – Walking in the Shoes of the Team
Her rise through roles—Business Analyst, Tester & QA, Developer, Architect, and Project/Program Manager.

5:00 – Speaking "Developer" as a PM
Understanding terminology, methodologies, workflows, and processes to bridge teams effectively.

6:00 – Seeing Through the Chaos
Using experience to close the gap between business and technology.

7:00 – Solving Puzzles
Balancing tools, technology, and teams. How PMs build trust and highlight contributors.

10:00 – Representing vs. Doing the Work
A PM’s role in ensuring work is accurately represented.

11:30 – Healthcare Project Management is Like an Ocean
Managing large-scale projects with a broad perspective.

12:18 – Staying High-Level
Focusing on the big picture without getting lost in details.

13:12 – Industry Terminology Matters
Each project is a stepping stone; knowing sector-specific terms is key.

15:48 – The Significance of Healthcare Projects
Critical, mission-driven work with lasting impact.

16:30 – Healthcare Project Types
A look at the projects shaping the industry.

19:25 – Shifting to Community & Government Projects
Exploring public sector work and its effect on daily life.

21:00 – A Universal PM Language
PMs share common processes and challenges across industries.

22:40 – Emotional Intelligence in PM
A crucial skill for managing teams and stakeholders.

25:00 – Strategic Thinking & Seeing Through Chaos
Lessons from The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

27:00 – Understanding People in Projects
Navigating stakeholders, leadership, and team dynamics.

27:30 – PM Appreciation Every Day
Recognizing project managers' contributions.

28:56 – Group Projects & Collaboration
Why teamwork is central to success.

31:00 – PMI Mile Hi Chapter
Discussing PMI’s role in the PM community.

LINKS: 

PMI-Mile Hi Chapter:  https://www.pmi.org/membership/chapters/north-america/united-states/colorado/mile-hi-chapter

PMI.org Chapter Listings: https://www.pmi.org/membership/chapters

Project Insight Website: projectinsight.com

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Cutting Through the Chaos

Episode Summary:
In this episode, we talk with Linda Goodrich, the VP of Delivery at CureIs Healthcare. CureIs a customer of Project Insight, and so we have been fortunate to get to see Linda's superpowers over the years. 

Operationally, she might be known for bringing a structure to project management org-wide, but her real PM personal superpower is having a keen awareness of her team, their capacities, passions, and helping them find their most fulfilling roles in the workplace.

Show Notes

00:00 – 02:00
Introduction and Linda’s early tech background

02:00 – 04:00
Starting in help desk, managing projects without knowing it

04:00 – 06:00
Gaining project experience prior to pursuing PMP certification

06:00 – 08:00
PM as the liaison between leadership and operations

08:00 – 10:00
Exposure to agile, forecasting, and real project complexity

10:00 – 13:00
Tracking capacity and allocation across teams

13:00 – 15:00
Using Project Insight to get real-time visibility into team bandwidth

15:00 – 17:00
How project data informs delivery timelines and sales commitments

17:00 – 19:00
Putting a dollar value on meetings and resource decisions

19:00 – 21:00
Making data actionable is the most important visibility

21:00 – 23:00
Helping team members blossom: right person, right role

23:00 – 25:00
Creating a framework for mentorship, motivation, and fun

25:00 – 27:00
PMBOK as a guideline, not a rigid rulebook

27:00 – 29:00
Balancing structure with energy and team spirit

29:00 – 31:00
The CureIS experience team and how they view their customers

31:00 – 33:00
What project work looks like in healthcare

33:00 – 35:00
Using Project Insight to unify sales and delivery processes

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Sponsored by: Project Insight Project & Portfolio Management Software.  Helping growing companies automate, execute, and measure project work across teams, systems, and portfolios. www.projectinsight.com

Matching People with Purpose

Project Insight's project portfolio management software centralizes your organization's project data across teams and software tools to give you a complete real-time picture of collaboration, budgets, resources, initiatives, and project status.

Cutting Through the Chaos

Project Insight

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