The Cranky PM

PM with a grudge. If it’s broken, I’ve already yelled about it.

Process Optimization

Stop Lying to Yourself About "Continuous Improvement"

Nov 17, 2025

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6 min read

Stop Lying to Yourself About "Continuous Improvement"

Your "continuous improvement" is corporate theater. Teams perform improvement with sticky notes, not real work. Here's how to spot it and get better.

The Cranky PM

Process Optimization

App Launches Don't Fail at the Finish Line; They Fail at the Start

Nov 10, 2025

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4 min read

App Launches Don't Fail at the Finish Line; They Fail at the Start

Your app launches fail because nobody knows who's supposed to do what when crunch time hits. Build countdown systems that run themselves.

The Cranky PM

Stakeholder Management

The Corporate Bullshit Survival Guide: Because Sometimes You Need to Sound Strategic While Quietly Screaming Inside

Nov 3, 2025

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7 min read

The Corporate Bullshit Survival Guide: Because Sometimes You Need to Sound Strategic While Quietly Screaming Inside

Master corporate doublespeak to survive impossible demands. Translation tactics for when your project's on fire and you need to sound strategic.

The Cranky PM

Process Optimization

Oct 27, 2025

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7 min read

The Agile Prison You Built Yourself

Daily standups waste 7 hours weekly on status theater. You built this Agile prison yourself. Here's how to get real coordination without the ritual.

The Cranky PM

page-feed

Your Client Isn't Demanding. You Just Didn't Set Expectations

Oct 20, 2025

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10 min read

Your Client Isn't Demanding. You Just Didn't Set Expectations

Stop blaming demanding clients. You never set expectations. Your expectation management is broken, and that's why projects turn into nightmares.

The Cranky PM

Agile & Scrum

Why I Keep Bringing Up Cargo Cults (And Why You Should Care)

Oct 13, 2025

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9 min read

Why I Keep Bringing Up Cargo Cults (And Why You Should Care)

Cargo cult thinking destroys software teams copying agile practices without understanding why. Learn the difference between mimicking and understanding success.

The Cranky PM

Team Leadership

You Don't Need More Alignment Meetings. You Need Fewer Delusions.

Oct 6, 2025

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7 min read

You Don't Need More Alignment Meetings. You Need Fewer Delusions.

Your alignment problem isn't communication. It's decision avoidance. Stop scheduling alignment into oblivion and start making the hard choices.

The Cranky PM

Stakeholder Management

Why Smart People Become Priority Addicts (And How to Cure Them)

Sep 29, 2025

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12 min read

Why Smart People Become Priority Addicts (And How to Cure Them)

Your smartest stakeholders are priority addicts who hoard urgent projects. Understand the psychology behind it and learn how to cure them.

The Cranky PM

Product Management

You Can't "North Star" Your Way Out of Poor Execution

Sep 22, 2025

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13 min read

You Can't "North Star" Your Way Out of Poor Execution

Stop confusing direction with capability. Learn why execution management moves North Star metrics, not strategic planning.

The Cranky PM

Team Leadership

RACI Charts Aren't the Problem. You Are.

Sep 15, 2025

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11 min read

RACI Charts Aren't the Problem. You Are.

RACI isn't broken, you're using it wrong. Stop massive matrices and accountability avoidance. Learn effective responsibility assignment.

The Cranky PM

Stakeholder Management

Priority Poker: Where Planning Meets Office Politics

Sep 8, 2025

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11 min read

Priority Poker: Where Planning Meets Office Politics

Your prioritization frameworks fail because they ignore office politics. Here's the only method honest about how product decisions really get made.

The Cranky PM

Stakeholder Management

The Real Reason Product Roadmaps Get Ignored

Sep 1, 2025

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9 min read

The Real Reason Product Roadmaps Get Ignored

Your roadmap fails because it's built on fantasy. Learn why teams ignore it and explore frameworks that drive real product decisions.

The Cranky PM

Process Optimization

How to Do a Project Health Check Without Wasting Everyone's Time

Aug 25, 2025

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12 min read

How to Do a Project Health Check Without Wasting Everyone's Time

Your project health assessment is killing productivity with status theater. Here's a 30-minute health check that identify real problems instead of wasting time.

The Cranky PM

Process Optimization

Agile Without Scrum: Is That Even Allowed?

Aug 18, 2025

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11 min read

Agile Without Scrum: Is That Even Allowed?

Your scrum theater kills productivity while ignoring agile principles. Focus on outcomes over ceremonies to build software that actually matters.

The Cranky PM

Process Optimization

Story Points: The Exhausting Philosophy of Fake Precision

Aug 11, 2025

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10 min read

Story Points: The Exhausting Philosophy of Fake Precision

Here's why agile estimation is broken, what story points actually measure, and better ways to plan work that doesn't insult everyone's intelligence.

The Cranky PM

Remote Team Management

3 Remote Retrospective Anti-Patterns That Kill Progress

Aug 4, 2025

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2 min read

3 Remote Retrospective Anti-Patterns That Kill Progress

3 remote retrospective anti-patterns keep distributed teams stuck in dysfunction cycles. Here's how to recognize and fix them before they kill progress.

The Cranky PM

Remote Team Management

5 Signs Your Remote Retrospective Is Just Video Call Theater

Aug 4, 2025

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2 min read

5 Signs Your Remote Retrospective Is Just Video Call Theater

Is your remote retrospective fixing problems or just making everyone feel heard? 5 warning signs you're running video call theater instead of driving change.

The Cranky PM

Remote Team Management

Advanced Remote Retrospective Psychology: When Basic Techniques Fail

Aug 4, 2025

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7 min read

Advanced Remote Retrospective Psychology: When Basic Techniques Fail

Stop running remote retrospectives that change nothing. This complete framework creates timezone accountability, surfaces real distributed work issues, and drives measurable improvement.

The Cranky PM

Remote Team Management

How to Assign Remote Retrospective Action Items That Actually Get Done

Aug 4, 2025

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2 min read

How to Assign Remote Retrospective Action Items That Actually Get Done

Your remote retrospective action items never get implemented because they're too vague and ignore timezones. Here's how to create distributed accountability.

The Cranky PM

Remote Team Management

Remote Retrospectives That Actually Work

Aug 4, 2025

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6 min read

Remote Retrospectives That Actually Work

Stop running remote retro theater (it's not working). Your distributed team deserves better than polite complaining sessions. Here's how to fix real problems.

The Cranky PM

Remote Team Management

The 5 Whys Technique for Remote Work Problems

Aug 4, 2025

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2 min read

The 5 Whys Technique for Remote Work Problems

Surface the root causes of your remote team's recurring problems with this adapted 5 Whys technique designed specifically for distributed work dysfunction.

The Cranky PM

Remote Team Management

The Remote Retrospective Questions That Surface Real Problems

Aug 4, 2025

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2 min read

The Remote Retrospective Questions That Surface Real Problems

Stop asking "how was async communication?" Start asking questions that surface real remote work problems. These 6 uncomfortable questions drive improvement.

The Cranky PM

Remote Team Management

The Uncomfortable Questions That Actually Fix Remote Retrospectives

Aug 4, 2025

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3 min read

The Uncomfortable Questions That Actually Fix Remote Retrospectives

Start asking questions that surface real remote work problems. Here are the uncomfortable conversations your distributed team needs to have.

The Cranky PM

Remote Team Management

Remote Retrospective Dysfunction Repair Kit

Aug 4, 2025

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2 min read

Remote Retrospective Dysfunction Repair Kit

Ready to stop running remote retrospective theater and start fixing distributed team dysfunction? Here's how to create conversations that drive real change.

The Cranky PM

Quick Wins

Jul 28, 2025

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1 min read

Requirements That Work

"Make it user-friendly" isn't a spec. "Improve the experience" isn't actionable. You build different mental models then act surprised when they don't match.

The Cranky PM