Quality Technology & Instruction: Ten Years of Service
Hi, I'm Sid Kemp. I launched QTI in 1995 with a simple goal—to
help businesses succeed by providing training, coaching, and
consulting. I started out by creating computer technical and
troubleshooting courses, and teaching them all over the United
States. I helped companies install and manage the rapidly changing
versions of Microsoft Windows, computer networks, and new software.
My students and clients quickly taught me that the biggest problem
wasn't changing technology; it was difficulty in getting any
job done right.
Interviewer: What got you started in project management?
Sid: In 1998, I found myself with two consulting clients. One
was very large—the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
(USNRC), with 3,000 people near Washington, DC, and about 70
locations nationwide. The other was very small—a two-person
IT (information technology) department for a 150-person construction
company. I helped both clients with project management problems.
The USNRC needed help with just one big project: planning the
installation of 3,000 new computers. The construction company
needed help with 43 projects that had all piled up on one person's
head. With a little help from me to identify the key problems
and get focused, both clients solved their problems very well.
That's when I knew that I'd invented something anyone could
really use—a way of thinking about problems and solutions
that is simple enough for anyone to use and flexible enough
for jobs that take anywhere from five hours to five years.
I wanted to try this out in every type of business that I could.
In 1999, I launched a new class, Project Management for IT Professionals,
and taught it to over 2,000 students nationwide. In my public
classes, people came from small and large businesses of all types,
and also from federal, state, and local government, and not-for-profit
organizations. Two Fortune 500 companies—J. P. Morgan Investment
Bank and Sempra Energy—and the Illinois State Police asked
me to create and deliver custom courses.
In 2002, I turned my attention to writing books.
Interviewer: Why did you start to write books?
Sid: To be honest, I'd always dreamed of being a writer. At
the same time, I really saw that project management is just common
sense writ large. Every time we make a shopping list or plan
a vacation, we're doing project management. So I saw that we
all know how to get things done right—it's just that sometimes
we don't use all that we know. I wanted to put that together
in an engaging format with simple tools that had worked for thousands
of my students. I'm grateful that McGraw-Hill let me do that
with Project Management Demystified.
Interviewer: After you'd written a project management book,
why did you go on to write another one?
Sid: Entrepreneur Press asked me to write a big project management
book—the longer the better, they said—that would
get a lot of publicity. We put a CD-ROM inside, so you could
get all the tools and get going right away. It was a chance to
tell everything to everybody, to leave nothing out.
Interviewer: Is Entrepreneur Magazine's Ultimate Guide to Project
Management for Small Business: Get It Done Right! for
everyone?
Sid: I think so. I tried to write it that way. For example,
I used the simplest words I could. Instead of talking about "purpose,” I
talk about "Why are we doing this?" Instead of "objectives," I
ask, "What are we making?" Instead of “process,” I
ask, "How are we going to do this?" “Human resources” becomes "Who's
going to do the work?"
Interviewer: Is it only for small business?
Sid: Actually, not at all. The original title was for "Small
and Medium-Sized Businesses," but they couldn't fit the
title on the cover! And a lot of what is in there, I learned
from the Fortune 500 and scaled down to any business from one
person to many thousand. I think every company needs to define
its dreams and make them a reality, then get the roadblocks out
of the way. And Get It Done Right! is the way to do that.
Interviewer: Which do you like most: writing, training, or
consulting?
Sid: I really couldn't live without all three. From consulting,
I get to work with really bright people and learn about all kinds
of businesses. I also get to keep my hand in and make sure this
stuff really works. From teaching, I learn to explain things
in simpler and simpler ways, and I get to hear about many more
different types of problems and situations. And by writing, I
get to share what I've learned so that everyone can use it.
Interviewer: Eight books in three years. Over 10 years of training
and consulting. Why do you do all this?
Sid: I love to share success. Most people—small business
owners, professionals, everyone really—do have some dream,
something they want to make real. When I help them and they succeed,
I feel great.
Second, I love to learn and to share ideas. I like making complicated
stuff simple.
Interviewer: What's next?
Sid: I'll be creating some advanced project management classes
soon, and I'll be putting out more products for the self-starters.
I also want to offer teleseminars and webinars. People are so
busy these days—it's great to be able to sit in your office
or at home, on your own computer, and learn how to Get It
Done Right! where you're going to put it to work. I love learning
this way, and I think other people will, too.
Interviewer: Is there anything else we should know?
Sid: Yes! I love to answer questions. If you have a question,
a thought, a dream, please go to the Contact
QTI page and drop
me a note.
