Leading with Your Strengths

Leading with Your Strengths

In this special live episode of Wear Your Cape to Work, recorded at the PMI Orange County Chapter [https://pmi-oc.org/] in Anaheim, California, Trina Schaetz talks with Marjan Khan, [https://www.linkedin.com/in/marjan-khan/] HR Project Manager at Mazda North America Operations, and Tamas Vejsz [https://www.linkedin.com/in/tamasvejsz24391/], Senior Project and Program Leader at CTC Global.  Marjan and Tamas share how they discovered their leadership strengths, how those strengths were shaped by their career paths and life experiences, and why strong leaders do not have to be good at everything. The conversation explores structure, communication, consensus-building, career pivots, asking for help, and building the kind of network that helps cover blind spots.  01:15 Leading from authentic strengths, not an impossible ideal 01:32 Marjan’s nonlinear path into project management 02:22 Tamas’s path from engineering to project leadership 04:01 Recognizing the strengths people consistently come to you for 04:17 Marjan’s strength: bringing structure and clarity 04:42 How Marjan’s communication strength was shaped early in life 05:43 Tamas on leading technical teams through relationships and consensus 06:30 Your strengths may shift depending on the role or season 06:58 Tamas on honing strengths over the course of a career 08:06 Strong leaders know who helps them think better 08:20 The people who see your capability before you do 09:23 Mentors who help you grow through blind spots 10:07 Why trust matters when someone gives you hard feedback 10:25 Asking for help without treating it like weakness 11:24 Start small, learn, and grow from the support you receive 11:44 Marjan on building a project management network inside Mazda 13:00 Networking starts with people already close to you 14:10 Marjan on being brave enough to reach out 15:08 Different strengths, same strong leadership 15:42 Get brave, go out there, and build your network  Project Insight Website [https://projectinsight.com/?c=20250101-podcast] Watch Video Podcast [https://projectinsight.com/wearyourcapetowork] Subscribe to Wear Your Cape to Work Podcast on: YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@ProjectInsightPMSW/podcasts] Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/5WMdTjiTDDDOJzSQqhUwi8] Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wear-your-cape-to-work/id1783821226] RSS [https://feeds.buzzsprout.com/2419669.rss]

The Power of Decisive Leadership

In this episode of Wear Your Cape to Work, Trina Schaetz and Mathew Sparkes talk with Misty Boyd, Senior Director of ePMO at LION, about the power of decisive leadership in project management. Misty shares how directness, action, and outcome-focused thinking can help PMO leaders move work forward, support executive decision-making, and keep project teams aligned to business strategy. This conversation explores what it means to be a decisive project leader without becoming overly command-and-control. Misty talks about learning to balance directness with communication, how PMO leaders can translate project realities into business impact, and why the best decisions often come from clear data, trusted relationships, and a shared understanding of priorities. In This Episode • How decisive leadership helps project teams move forward  • Why directness can be both a strength and a blind spot  • How PMO leaders support executive decision-making  • Why project work must connect to business value and strategy  • How to communicate tradeoffs, priorities, and project realities clearly  • What leaders rely on from the PMO when decisions need to be made  • How decisive people keep going when new information changes the plan  00:00 Meet Misty Boyd  02:05 From Trade Shows to Software Projects  03:00 Leading the ePMO at LION  05:20 Supporting the People Who Support First Responders  08:00 Learning to Lead in the Gray  11:10 Misty’s Superpower: Decisive Leadership  14:00 When Directness Becomes a Blind Spot  16:00 Untangling Years of Customization  19:15 Avoiding Analysis Paralysis  21:00 Balancing Speed, Buy-In, and Risk  22:15 Why Decisive Leadership Is Attractive  23:15 Helping Executives See Priorities Clearly  25:00 Connecting Project Work to Business Impact  27:10 Communicating Differently With Different Leaders  28:10 Showing Tradeoffs Before Decisions Are Made  31:15 When the Plan Changes  33:00 Picking the Work Back Up  34:15 Where Misty’s Leadership Strength Started  36:00 Final Thoughts on Decisive Leadership  This episode is especially helpful for project managers, PMO leaders, program directors, and operations leaders who want to lead with clarity, communicate value to executives, and make better decisions across complex project work. About Project Insight Project Insight is project and portfolio management software for growing companies that need better visibility across projects, resources, budgets, priorities, and work happening in multiple tools. Project Insight helps PMOs and project leaders centralize project data, reduce manual reporting, and give executives a clearer picture of organizational work. Project Insight Website [https://projectinsight.com/?c=20250101-podcast] Watch Video Podcast [https://projectinsight.com/wearyourcapetowork] Subscribe to Wear Your Cape to Work Podcast on: YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@ProjectInsightPMSW/podcasts] Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/5WMdTjiTDDDOJzSQqhUwi8] Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wear-your-cape-to-work/id1783821226] RSS [https://feeds.buzzsprout.com/2419669.rss]

The Curious Yes

In this episode of Wear Your Cape to Work, Trina Schaetz talks with Ashley Simmons, VP of PMO at Summit Seven [https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashlee-simmons-mba-pmp-92726249/], about PMO leadership, stakeholder management, organizational strategy, and leading change with curiosity. Trina first heard Ashley speak on a panel at PMO UnCon in San Diego [https://pmoga.pmi.org/pmouncon] in spring 2026, where Ashley’s talent for stakeholder management, organizational strategy, and change stood out right away. In “The Curious Yes,” Ashley shares how she developed that strength across her career, from project specialist to PMO executive, and how some of the mindset behind it started even earlier, back when she was playing national team soccer. This conversation is especially valuable for project managers, PMO leaders, and business leaders who want to build trust, support executive decision-making, and drive business value. Topics include: * PMO value  * Stakeholder management  * Executive decision-making  * Business acumen  * Curiosity in leadership  * Project manager career growth  * Mentorship  * The power of a “curious yes” Watch the video version here  [https://youtu.be/gJYPm2YcAl8] Project Insight Website [https://projectinsight.com/?c=20250101-podcast] Watch Video Podcast [https://projectinsight.com/wearyourcapetowork] Subscribe to Wear Your Cape to Work Podcast on: YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@ProjectInsightPMSW/podcasts] Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/5WMdTjiTDDDOJzSQqhUwi8] Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wear-your-cape-to-work/id1783821226] RSS [https://feeds.buzzsprout.com/2419669.rss]

Born with the Project Management Gene

In this episode, Trina and Mathew talk with Joe Pusz, better known as "PMO Joe," [https://www.linkedin.com/in/joepusz] about discovering project management, learning from mentors, leading PMOs, and understanding the business value behind project work. Joe shares why project leaders need to stay focused on purpose, customer needs, executive priorities, and the people doing the work. He also reflects on how being unemployed during the recession shaped his mission and inspired the work behind PMO Squad Staffing. 1:45 | Joe’s project beginnings Joe shares how he first got started in project work. 5:00 | Preparing for Y2K Joe talks about where his career went next, including Y2K and learning from his first great mentor. 6:30 | Leading projects across industries Joe reflects on leading projects at Cessna Aircraft, Bell Helicopter, Textron Financial, and Wellstar Healthcare. 7:05 | First PMO leadership role Joe shares how he stepped into his first PMO leadership role. 8:25 | Projects have a purpose Joe talks about one of the most important lessons from his career. 10:30 | Earned-value management The conversation turns to earned-value management and project performance. Joe shares that it does not matter how well the project is running if the work is not meeting the customer’s need. 12:00 | Understanding the business Joe reflects on a mentor who helped him understand the business value of the project. 13:00 | Managing experienced teams Joe talks about motivating and managing people with more experience through coaching, feedback, motivation, and team focus. 14:25 | Not having all the answers Joe offers advice for PMO leaders managing big teams and large financial projects, including why you can never have too many mentors and why it is okay to say, “I don’t have all the answers.” 15:48 | Translating project information for executives Joe talks about translating project information so executives can make strategic decisions.  18:44 | Correction Trina mentions “Ashley Simpson,” but meant to say Ashley Simmons. 20:00 | Never forgetting that feeling Joe shares what it was like to be unemployed during the recession and never forgot the feeling of struggling to provide for his family. That experience helped inspire PMO Squad Staffing. 23:00 | PMO Squad Staffing Joe explains the special edge PMO Squad Staffing brings across tech, consulting, and staffing. 24:00 | Resume advice Joe shares why resumes need to show results and business acumen. Joe explains why project professionals should stop applying for jobs. 27:45 | Be a force multiplier Joe encourages people to connect with 10 PMO leaders for mentoring advice. 28:15 | Joe’s superpower Joe shares how staying connected to what people are going through, especially when it mirrors something he has gone through, has become one of his superpowers. 29:00 | Take a bite of everything Joe closes with the advice to take a bite of everything at the buffet. PMO Squad Staffing Website: https://www.thepmosquad.com/ Project Insight Website [https://projectinsight.com/?c=20250101-podcast] Watch Video Podcast [https://projectinsight.com/wearyourcapetowork] Subscribe to Wear Your Cape to Work Podcast on: YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@ProjectInsightPMSW/podcasts] Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/5WMdTjiTDDDOJzSQqhUwi8] Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wear-your-cape-to-work/id1783821226] RSS [https://feeds.buzzsprout.com/2419669.rss]

Aligning People with Strategy

Katharine Manchanda [https://www.linkedin.com/in/katharinepmp/] is a strategy and execution leader with experience across IT, banking, retail, automotive finance, loyalty programs, data and analytics, and the winery industry. Throughout her career, she has led projects and programs, helped grow PMOs, updated governance structures, and mentored project managers.  We're excited to have her on the show because she is as passionate about people as she is about business strategy, and when you bring those two parts together, that’s when businesses really can move forward in what they want to accomplish.  Show Notes 1:16-2:47 | A career across industries Katharine shares her background in project and program leadership across several industries, along with her experience growing PMOs and governance structures. 2:49-3:42 | Grocery and loyalty Katharine reflects on her work in major grocery retail launching a loyalty program. 3:46-5:15 | How market and regulatory shifts impact project work Katharine discusses how changing consumer behavior and new regulations can quickly reshape priorities, timelines, and project plans.  5:31-7:27 | Strategy on the go Katharine and Trina talk about what happens when strategy changes interrupt long-range plans. 7:47-9:00 | From delivery to strategic thinking She reflects on how depending on role, perspective needs to evolve from task-focused delivery to broader business relevance. 9:20-11:11 | What executives need to see Katharine shares her thoughts on the information leaders need in order to make good decisions. 11:11-13:01 | Successful vs. relevant Katharine explores the difference between delivering a project successfully and delivering benefits that still align with the original business strategy.  13:01-15:03 | Governance and decision speed Katharine discusses how governance and access to executive sponsors can affect momentum. 15:03-17:38 | Risks and issues The conversation turns to why leaders need visibility into risks and issues, not just status. 18:01-19:01 | Strategy work behind the scenes Katharine reflects on the difference between frontline delivery and more strategic PMO roles. 19:04-20:05 | Aligning strengths to the work This part of the episode looks at how leaders can match people’s strengths to organizational needs. 20:05-21:08 | Katharine’s superpower Katharine shares why the people side of leadership matters most to her. 21:39-23:20 | Building a PMO Katharine offers advice for organizations setting up a PMO. 23:20-24:29 | Capacity in real life Katharine and Trina discuss workload, competing priorities, and the realities of capacity. 24:29-end | Aligning people to strategy The episode closes with a look at how people, capacity, and strategy come together. Project Insight Website [https://projectinsight.com/?c=20250101-podcast] Watch Video Podcast [https://projectinsight.com/wearyourcapetowork] Subscribe to Wear Your Cape to Work Podcast on: YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@ProjectInsightPMSW/podcasts] Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/5WMdTjiTDDDOJzSQqhUwi8] Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wear-your-cape-to-work/id1783821226] RSS [https://feeds.buzzsprout.com/2419669.rss]