Interview with Andy Kaufman
Award- winning Project Management & Leadership
Keynote Speaker, Author & Coach
Interviewed by Ipek Sahra Ozguler
International Correspondent
Istanbul, Turkey
Andy Kaufman, PMP is an international speaker, author, & executive coach, and President of the Institute for Leadership Excellence & Development Inc. Andy works with organizations around the world, helping them improve their ability to deliver projects & lead teams.
His keynotes, workshops, and executive coaching services have reached tens of thousands of people from hundreds of companies over the years, helping them deliver their projects, become more confident leaders, take focused action, and deliver results. He brings a rich background of over 25 years of experience in executive management, technology, team leadership, project management, consulting, coaching.
He is a certified trainer and author of “Navigating the Winds of Change: Staying on Course in Business & in Life”, “Shining the Light on The Secret”, and an e-book entitled “How to Organize Your Inbox & Get Rid of E-Mail Clutter”, all published by Zurich Press. He is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP®) and a member of the Project Management Institute (PMI®).
He is the host of “The People and Projects Podcast” (http://PeopleAndProjectsPodcast.com or any podcast app) which provides interviews and insights to help listeners lead people and deliver projects. The podcast focuses on the intersection of People and Projects–where work gets done in the real world.
He is a recognized expert on topics related to leadership, project management, managing conflict, networking, relationships, time management, team-building, and delivering results.
Ipek Sahra Ozguler (Ozguler): Andy Kaufman, thank you for accepting the interview invitation of the PMWJ. Could you please introduce yourself to our readers? Who is Andy Kaufman? What are your areas of expertise and how do you use them?
Andy Kaufman (Kaufman): It’s a pleasure to join you for this discussion, Ipek! I started my career as a software developer and was promoted into management for all the wrong reasons! You know how this works, right? Someone is reasonably good at one job and we assume that they’ll be good at managing those sort of roles—it’s often called the halo effect. Anyway, after making plenty of mistakes, I grew to love leading teams. Over the years, I grew to be a Director, then Vice President of Systems. During that journey, I started speaking at conferences and ran into people who asked me to share the same messages at their companies. In 2001, I started a company that does training, keynote speaking, and executive coaching. I now spend most days helping people learn how to lead and deliver—it’s a joy that I never get tired of. And it’s an honor to work with leading companies around the world.
Ozguler: You are the President of the Institute for Leadership Excellence & Development and help the organizations around the world improve the ability to deliver projects and lead teams. How do you achieve this?
More…
To read entire interview, click here
How to cite this interview: Ozguler, I.S. (2020); Interview with Andy Kaufman; PM World Journal, Vol. IX, Issue I, January. Available online at https://pmworldlibrary.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/pmwj89-Jan2020-Ozguler-Interview-with-Andy-Kaufman.pdf
About the Interviewer
Ipek Sahra Ozguler
Istanbul, Turkey
Ipek Sahra Ozguler graduated from the Istanbul University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Engineering and from Middle East Technical University with an MSc degree in Software Management. As a project manager, she has more than 10 years’ experience in various areas such as portfolio management, program management, project management, software management, business analysis. She became a certified PMP in January, 2012 and a certified SCRUM Master in 2014.
She has managed a variety of projects across manufacturing, defence, FMCG (Cola Cola), insurance (Euler Hermes), audit (Deloitte), telecommunication, ICT and aviation sectors and gained broader insights. In addition, she has worked as international correspondent for the PM World Journal since 2014.
Ipek is based in Isanbul and can be contacted at ipeksahra@gmail.com. Her portfolio is published at the http://ipeksahra.strikingly.com/.
To view other works by Ms. Ozguler, visit her author showcase in the PM World Library at http://pmworldlibrary.net/authors/ipek-sahra-ozguler/
