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Project Pirate

Project Pirate

Project Pirate Storm-Tested™ leadership and project management. For those who recognise that the journey itself holds as much value as any destination.
07
Jul
A clock face submerged in dark swirling ink, its numerals barely legible as black smoke consumes the dial

The Invisible Clock

The Countdown Nobody Heard There is a particular type of lighthouse that maritime historians find fascinating - not the ones that
5 min read
03
Jun
A cloaked ferryman stands motionless in a ancient wooden boat at the edge of a dark river, mist rolling across still water toward a distant amber glow on the far shore.

You Can't Cheat the Ferryman

In Greek mythology, Charon ferries the souls of the dead across the river Styx to the underworld. His service is
6 min read
26
May
A ghost ship rendered in white outlines dissolves into dark indigo mist — the Klabautermann, spirit of the vessel, barely visible within the hull.

Das Schiff hat eine Seele

Klabautermann - and the soul of the organisation. In den alten Hafenstädten der Nordseeküste glaubten die Seefahrer nicht nur daran, Schiffe
5 min read
12
May
Clock timer showing 22:59:59 against a dark background with Project Pirate branding.

The Countdown

In 1981, John Carpenter gave us the anti-hero Snake Plissken in the film, "Escape from New York"
3 min read
06
May
A hand gripping a pink soap bar embossed with the words "Reality Is Negotiable," styled as a Fight Club reference.

Reality Is Negotiable: The Day 1 Skill That Determines Everything

Tim Ferriss once said, "Reality is negotiable." Most people treat this as motivational philosophy. For Project Managers, it&
5 min read
21
Apr
A hurricane eye viewed from within — storm clouds rotating at the edges.

The Eye of the Storm - The Missed Opportunity

There is a meteorological phenomenon that most people misunderstand the moment they hear it described. The eye of a storm
5 min read
08
Mar
Close-up macro photograph of a heavily redacted document. Thick black bars cover most of the page.

[REDACTED]

CLASSIFIED // PROJECT PIRATE // EYES ONLY SUBJECT: Leadership Intelligence - Redaction as Craft  |  DATE: ██████████  |  CLEARANCE: Storm-Tested™ Redacted Every document arrives with
7 min read
05
Mar
A worn vinyl record on a turntable, label reading "Project Pirate Records - 99 Problems, Side A

I Got 99 Problems But the PMO Ain't One (hit me!)

Why projects don't die from governance - they die from lost belief. In 2003, Jay-Z gave us one
5 min read
25
Feb
Cargo ship sinking in fog on calm waters

The Silent Shipwrecks, Part 2: Emptying the Coffers

In "The Silent Shipwrecks, Part 1: Mediocrity is the Slow Death to Obscurity", we explored how organisational cultures
9 min read
17
Feb
Cargo ship disappearing into fog on calm waters.

The Silent Shipwrecks, Part 1: Mediocrity is the Slow Death to Obscurity

While sailing the high seas of complex IT delivery, I watched a team make a "strategic" decision that
7 min read