If you speak to someone who knows me well, one of his or her first comments will be “Julie gets things done.” Whether it’s working at a big institution like Harvard or with a small start-up non-profit, I’ve always been equally comfortable devising strategy, leading teams, working the politics – or just rolling up my sleeves to do what’s needed to produce a quality result on deadline.

Over the years, I’ve found that having the answers to five simple questions at the beginning of a project is the first step to achieving ambitious goals:

  • Why does this matter?
  • Who is the target audience?
  • What’s the budget?
  • Who needs to approve the final product (and how will we make that happen)?
  • What is the deadline?

A simple checklist – but frequently some of these questions remain unanswered until surprisingly late in the process. In contrast, agreeing why a project matters and having the sense of urgency created by a publicly declared deadline naturally propels teams and individuals to success.

If your organization wants to expand its brand and develop and promote its case for investment, I’d love to help you get that done – and done well. Let’s be in touch.