Management quotes

Well, everyone else seems to have a list of favourites, so ...

1. The way to secure success is to be more anxious about obtaining than about deserving it. William Hazlitt.


2. Some things that don't count are counted, many things that count aren't counted.


3. You can't rise unless you set goals that make you stretch. Tom Hopkins.


4. The greatest pleasure in life is achieving things that people say can't be done.


5. It is not enough to aim. You must hit. Italian proverb.


6. Activity is not achievement.


7. Nothing great was achieved without enthusiasm. Ralph Waldo Emerson.


8. Who begins too much accomplishes little. German proverb.


9. Quality is free, but it is not a gift. Philip Crosby, quality guru.


10. The best is the enemy of the good.


11. Either dance well or leave the ballroom. Greek proverb.


12. At the heart of every large project is a small project trying to get out.


13. Good project managers know when not to manage a project.


14. Failing to plan is planning to fail.


15. An individual without information cannot take responsibility; an individual with information cannot help but take responsibility. Jan Carlzon, CEO SAS Airlines.


16. A little risk management saves a lot of fan cleaning.


17. Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more. You should never wish to do less. Robert E Lee.


18. All successful men are men of purpose. They hold fast to an idea, a project, a plan, and will not let go. James Allen.


19. It's only common sense? Common sense is what you think when you're not thinking. RJ Robinson.


20. 'Begin at the beginning', the King said, very gravely, 'and go on till you come to the end: then stop'. Lewis Carroll.


21. No plan survives contact with the enemy.


22. Plans are nothing; planning is everything. Dwight D. Eisenhower.


23. Knowledge is no more to be found in data than a house can be found in a pile of bricks. RJ Robinson.


24. A good workman is known by his tools.


25. Nothing is impossible for the person who doesn't have to do it.


26. You can plan too much, but no one has ever been caught doing it.


27. A project without a critical path is like a ship without a rudder.


28. In NASA, we never punish error. We only punish the concealment of error.


29. You can only elevate individual performance by elevating that of the entire system. W. Edwards Deming, quality guru.


30. A badly planned project will take three times longer than expected - a well planned project only twice as long as expected.


31. Pareto’s Other Principle: The first 80% of the project will take the first 80% of the budget, and the remaining 20% of the project will take the remaining 80% of the budget. RJ Robinson.


32. Project management is like juggling three balls - time, cost and quality. Programme management is like a troupe of circus performers standing in a circle, each juggling three balls and swapping balls from time to time.


33. Of all the things I've done, the most vital is coordinating the talents of those who work for us and pointing them towards a certain goal. Walt Disney.


34. All successful men are men of purpose. They hold fast to an idea, a project, a plan, and will not let go.


35. Good estimators aren't modest: if it's huge they say so.


36. The sooner you begin coding the later you finish.


37. A verbal contract isn't worth the paper it's written on. Sam Goldwyn.


38. What is not on paper has not been said.


39. If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.


40. If you don't attack the risks, the risks will attack you.


41. The sooner you get behind schedule, the more time you have to make it up.


42. The more you plan the luckier you get.


43. A project is one small step for the project sponsor, one giant leap for the project manager.


44. Quantitative project management is for predicting cost and schedule overruns well in advance.


45. The philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways; the point is to change it. Karl Marx.


46. Good project managers know when not to manage a project.


47. Metrics are learned men's excuses.


48. Good project managers admit mistakes: that's why you so rarely meet a good project manager.


49. Fast - cheap - good: you can have any two.


50. The more ridiculous the deadline the more money will be wasted trying to meet it.


51. The project would not have been started if the truth had been told about the cost and timescale.


52. The most successful project managers have perfected the skill of being comfortable being uncomfortable.


53. If it wasn't for the 'last minute', nothing would get done.


54. Warning: dates in the calendar are closer than you think.


55. There is no such thing as scope creep, only scope gallop.


56. If project content is allowed to change freely the rate of change will exceed the rate of progress.


57. If you can interpret project status data in several different ways, only the most painful interpretation will be correct.


58. A project gets a year late one day at a time.


59. The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man. George Bernard Shaw.


60. When you describe your approach as ‘pragmatic’, do you mean ‘I’m devoid of principle’, ‘I’m completely lacking in insight’, ‘I would settle for second-best’ or ‘I’m making it up as I go along’? RJ Robinson.


61. I know that you believe that you understand what you think I said but I am not sure you realise that what you heard is not what I meant.


62. It must be considered that there is nothing more difficult to carry out nor more doubtful of success nor more dangerous to handle than to initiate a new order of things. Machiavelli.


63. I love deadlines, I especially like the swooshing sound they make as they fly past. Scott Adams (Dilbert).


64. Work expands to fill the time available for its completion. Northcote Parkinson.


65. Brevity is the soul of wit. Shakespeare (Hamlet).


66. Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat. Sun Tzu.


67. What you don’t know will hurt you.

Management quotes

Well, everyone else seems to have a list of favourites, so here, in no particular order, are mine...

• Good management systems are like good brakes: they help you go faster.
• The way to secure success is to be more anxious about obtaining than about deserving it. William Hazlitt.
• 99% correct is wrong.
• Some things that don't count are counted, many things that count aren't counted.
• You can't rise unless you set goals that make you stretch.
• The greatest pleasure in life is achieving things that people say can't be done.
• It is not enough to aim. You must hit. Italian proverb.
• 90% of your problems have already happened the moment the ink is dry on teh contract.
• Activity is not achievement.
• Nothing great was achieved without enthusiasm. Ralph Waldo Emerson.
• Who begins too much accomplishes little.
• Quality is free, but it is not a gift. Philip Crosby, quality guru
• The best is the enemy of the good.
• Either dance well or leave the ballroom. Greek proverb.
• At the heart of every large project is a small project trying to get out.
• Good project managers know when not to manage a project.
• Failing to plan is planning to fail.
• An individual without information cannot take responsibility; an individual with information cannot help but take responsibility. Jan Carlzon, CEO SAS Airlines.
• A little risk management saves a lot of fan cleaning.
• Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more. You should never wish to do less. Robert E Lee.
• All successful men are men of purpose. They hold fast to an idea, a project, a plan, and will not let go.
• 'Begin at the beginning', the King said, very gravely, 'and go on till you come to the end: then stop'. Lewis Carroll.
• No plan survives contact with the enemy.
• Plans are nothing; planning is everything. Dwight D. Eisenhower.
• Knowledge is no more to be found in data than a house can be found in a pile of bricks. RJ Robinson.
• A good workman is known by his tools.
• Nothing is impossible for the person who doesn't have to do it.
• You can plan too much, but no one has ever been caught doing it.
• A project without a critical path is like a ship without a rudder.
• In NASA, we never punish error. We only punish the concealment of error.
• You can only elevate individual performance by elevating that of the entire system. W. Edwards Deming, quality guru.
• A badly planned project will take three times longer than expected - a well planned project only twice as long as expected.
• Pareto’s Other Principle: The first 80% of the project will take the first 80% of the budget, and the remaining 20% of the project will take the remaining 80% of the budget. RJ Robinson.
• Project management is like juggling three balls - time, cost and quality. Programme management is like a troupe of circus performers standing in a circle, each juggling-three balls and swapping balls from time to time.
• Of all the things I've done, the most vital is coordinating the talents of those who work for us and pointing them towards a certain goal. Walt Disney.
• Either dance well or leave the ballroom.
• An individual without information cannot take responsibility; an individual with information cannot help but take responsibility.
• Good estimators aren't modest: if it's huge they say so.
• The sooner you begin coding the later you finish.
• A verbal contract isn't worth the paper it's written on. Sam Goldwyn.
• What is not on paper has not been said.
• If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.
• If you don't attack the risks, the risks will attack you.
• The sooner you get behind schedule, the more time you have to make it up.
• The more you plan the luckier you get.
• A project is one small step for the project sponsor, one giant leap for the project manager.
• Quantitative project management is for predicting cost and schedule overruns well in advance.
• The philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways; the point is to change it. Karl Marx.
• Good project managers know when not to manage a project.
• Metrics are learned men's excuses.
• Good project managers admit mistakes: that's why you so rarely meet a good project manager.
• Fast - cheap - good: you can have any two.
• The more ridiculous the deadline the more money will be wasted trying to meet it.
• The project would not have been started if the truth had been told about the cost and timescale.
• The most successful project managers have perfected the skill of being comfortable being uncomfortable.
• If it wasn't for the 'last minute', nothing would get done.
• Warning: dates in the calendar are closer than you think.
• There is no such thing as scope creep, only scope gallop.
• If project content is allowed to change freely the rate of change will exceed the rate of progress.
• If you can interpret project status data in several different ways, only the most painful interpretation will be correct.
• A project gets a year late one day at a time.
• The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man. George Bernard Shaw.
• When you describe your approach as ‘pragmatic’, do you mean ‘I’m devoid of principle’, ‘I’m completely lacking in insight’, ‘I would settle for second-best’ or ‘I’m making it up as I go along’? RJ Robinson.
• Metrics are learned men's excuses.
• I know that you believe that you understand what you think I said but I am not sure you realise that what you heard is not what I meant.
• It must be considered that there is nothing more difficult to carry out nor more doubtful of success nor more dangerous to handle than to initiate a new order of things. Machiavelli.
• I love deadlines, I especially like the swooshing sound they make as they fly past. Scott Adams (Dilbert).
• Work expands to fill the time available for its completion. Northcote Parkinson.
• Brevity is the soul of wit. Shakespeare (Hamlet).
• Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat. Sun Tzu.
• Vision without acting is daydreaming, acting without vision is only pastime.
• What you don’t know will hurt you.