Dennis Alejo: articles and news https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/ Project management, construction, business consulting, AI and Utah business: articles, series and sourced news by Dennis Alejo. en-us Tue, 03 Nov 2026 14:00:00 GMT Utah Business, Part 2: Money and Support, From Free SBDC Advice to SBA-Backed Loans https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/utah-business-part-2-money-and-support-sbdc-sba-and-local-resources/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/utah-business-part-2-money-and-support-sbdc-sba-and-local-resources/ Tue, 03 Nov 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Utah Part 2 of a weekly series: advice first, numbers second, money third. SBDC, SCORE, APEX, SBA microloans, 7(a) and 504 loans, and a loan-readiness check. Business Process Automation: Twelve Examples That Pay Back, and How to Choose Your First https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/business-process-automation-examples/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/business-process-automation-examples/ Tue, 03 Nov 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo AI & Automation Twelve everyday processes worth automating, four tests for a good candidate, the payback arithmetic and a tool that ranks your own processes. The Project Management Plan: Ten Sections That Matter, and How to Write One in an Afternoon https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/project-management-plan-guide/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/project-management-plan-guide/ Tue, 03 Nov 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Delivery & Governance What a project management plan is, how it differs from the charter and the PMP, ten sections with a question each, and a one-page plan builder. AI for Small Business, Part 2: AI for Sales, Follow-Up That Never Forgets https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/ai-for-small-business-part-2-ai-for-sales-follow-up-that-never-forgets/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/ai-for-small-business-part-2-ai-for-sales-follow-up-that-never-forgets/ Mon, 02 Nov 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo AI & Automation Part 2 of a weekly series: five follow-up moments, a handbook for your AI assistant, the rules of the road and four numbers that show whether it works. SEO for Small Business: A 90-Day Project Plan You Can Run Yourself https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/seo-for-small-business-90-day-plan/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/seo-for-small-business-90-day-plan/ Mon, 02 Nov 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Strategy & Results A charter, three phases of thirty days, a risk list and a day-90 decision: SEO run like a project, with a dated plan you can copy. Kaizen for Project Managers: Small Weekly Fixes, the Five Whys and a One-Page Card https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/kaizen-for-project-managers/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/kaizen-for-project-managers/ Mon, 02 Nov 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Delivery & Governance What kaizen really means, how it fits inside a project, the eight wastes in plain words and a six-step weekly cycle with a card builder. How Much Do Business Consultants Charge? Real Numbers, Four Pricing Models and a Payback Test https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/how-much-do-business-consultants-charge/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/how-much-do-business-consultants-charge/ Sun, 01 Nov 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Consulting Sourced price ranges, four ways consultants charge, why hourly rates look high, what a good quote contains and a payback test. Construction Contract Management: A Guide for Owners, From Pay Applications to Closeout https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/construction-contract-management-guide/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/construction-contract-management-guide/ Sun, 01 Nov 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Construction Eight clauses to read twice, how pay applications and Utah retainage work, the notice game and a tool that ranks which clause to check first. Contract Management Best Practices for Small Businesses: The Five Clauses, a Calendar and a Health Check https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/contract-management-best-practices/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/contract-management-best-practices/ Sat, 31 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Risk & Contracts What happens after the signature: five clauses to read, a contract calendar, one owner per deal, honest changes and a ten-question health check. Lessons Learned: Five Questions That Work, How to Run the Session and a One-Page Template Builder https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/lessons-learned-template-guide/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/lessons-learned-template-guide/ Sat, 31 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Delivery & Governance Five questions, a blame-free way to run the session, how to find real causes and a builder that turns your answers into a one-page summary. Construction Project Management, Part 2: The Owner's Representative and the Seven Things They Protect https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/construction-pm-part-2-the-owners-representative-protecting-the-owners-interest/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/construction-pm-part-2-the-owners-representative-protecting-the-owners-interest/ Fri, 30 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Construction Part 2 of a weekly series: whose side everyone is on, the seven things an owner's representative protects and a ten-question check for your project. Hiring a Contractor in Utah: A Checklist for Owners, With Official Sources https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/hiring-a-contractor-in-utah/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/hiring-a-contractor-in-utah/ Fri, 30 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Utah Verify the license, compare bids, write the contract and pay safely in Utah, including what changed when the Residence Lien Recovery Fund ran out. Theory of Constraints for Project Managers: Find the One Step That Limits Everything https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/theory-of-constraints-for-project-managers/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/theory-of-constraints-for-project-managers/ Fri, 30 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Delivery & Governance The five focusing steps, where constraints hide in projects, critical chain ideas and a tool that finds the bottleneck in your own process. Project Focus, Part 2: The Three Engines: Leads, Operations and Sales https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/project-focus-part-2-the-three-engines-leads-operations-and-sales/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/project-focus-part-2-the-three-engines-leads-operations-and-sales/ Fri, 30 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Strategy & Results Part 2 of a weekly series: the three engines of a business, how each one leaks and a tool that shows where your sales process loses people. How to Hire a Project Manager, and What to Ask: Roles, Interview Questions and a Scorecard https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/how-to-hire-a-project-manager/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/how-to-hire-a-project-manager/ Fri, 30 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Consulting Four ways to get a project manager, what to look for, how to write the job, interview questions, reference checks and a scorecard you can copy. Change Orders in Construction: How to Manage Them Without a Fight, With a Request Builder You Can Copy https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/change-orders-in-construction/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/change-orders-in-construction/ Fri, 30 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Construction What a change order is, why changes are normal, where disputes start and how to price, approve and log them, with a builder for change requests. Downtown Salt Lake's rebuild has three different dates. What that tells a project manager https://dennis-alejo.com/news/downtown-salt-lake-district-three-dates/ https://dennis-alejo.com/news/downtown-salt-lake-district-three-dates/ Fri, 30 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo News SEG's October 14 renderings, a 2031 county target and the 2034 Games: three dates, three meanings of done. Five habits for any schedule. The Project Status Report: What to Include, How to Color It Honestly and a Builder You Can Copy https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/project-status-report-guide/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/project-status-report-guide/ Wed, 28 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Delivery & Governance Seven parts for a one-page status report, rules that keep red, amber and green honest, a weak and a strong example and a builder you can copy. AI Assistants for Project Managers: Ten Tasks Worth Delegating, and Four You Should Not https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/ai-assistants-for-project-managers/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/ai-assistants-for-project-managers/ Wed, 28 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo AI & Automation Ten project tasks an AI assistant can draft, a five-part way to ask, four jobs that stay human and a checklist to test any task before you delegate it. PMBOK Step by Step, Part 2: Who Is Involved? Building the Stakeholder Register https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/pmbok-step-2-the-stakeholder-register/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/pmbok-step-2-the-stakeholder-register/ Wed, 28 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Delivery & Governance Part 2 of a series that follows one project from idea to closeout: find every stakeholder, rate power and attitude and write an engagement plan for each. UDOT's $2.8 billion season: staging, closures and communication on I-215 West https://dennis-alejo.com/news/udot-2026-construction-season-i-215-west/ https://dennis-alejo.com/news/udot-2026-construction-season-i-215-west/ Wed, 28 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo News UDOT's season includes I-215 West: 30 bridges, ramps that close in stages and weekly updates. Five habits any project manager can borrow. Project Management Methodologies Compared: Waterfall, Agile, Kanban and Friends (Without the Bar Fight) https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/project-management-methodologies-compared/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/project-management-methodologies-compared/ Tue, 27 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Delivery & Governance Waterfall, agile, kanban, lean, PRINCE2 and hybrid in plain English, five questions that pick the right one and the mistakes every method invites. Construction Schedule Delays: 8 Causes, and the Habit That Prevents Each One https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/construction-schedule-delays/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/construction-schedule-delays/ Tue, 27 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Construction The eight places most construction delays come from, from late decisions to snowy steel, one habit for each and a ranking tool for your own project. Utah Business, Part 1: Start in 30 Days, With the Official Steps in the Right Order https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/utah-business-part-1-starting-a-30-day-plan-with-the-official-steps/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/utah-business-part-1-starting-a-30-day-plan-with-the-official-steps/ Tue, 27 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Utah Part 1 of a weekly series: four offices, one 30-day plan. Register, get an EIN, open the accounts and apply for licenses, in the order that avoids waiting. Construction Management vs. Project Management: Who You Need, and When https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/construction-management-vs-project-management/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/construction-management-vs-project-management/ Mon, 26 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Construction What a construction manager does, what a project manager does, why who pays them matters and a simple guide to which one you need first. Kanban for Small Teams: Finish More by Starting Less https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/kanban-for-small-teams/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/kanban-for-small-teams/ Mon, 26 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Delivery & Governance A plain guide to kanban: a three-column board, the work-in-progress limit that makes it work, four numbers to watch and when to use something else. AI for Small Business, Part 1: Where AI Helps, and Where It Does Not https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/ai-for-small-business-part-1-where-ai-helps-and-where-it-does-not/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/ai-for-small-business-part-1-where-ai-helps-and-where-it-does-not/ Mon, 26 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo AI & Automation Part 1 of a weekly series: think of AI as a fast intern with no common sense. Four tests and a traffic-light map show what to hand over and what to keep. Utah is getting ready to build again for 2034: what project managers can learn from it https://dennis-alejo.com/news/utah-2034-build-out-what-project-managers-learn/ https://dennis-alejo.com/news/utah-2034-build-out-what-project-managers-learn/ Mon, 26 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo News Utah is already planning rail, highways and a downtown district around the 2034 Games. Five habits from the story that work on any project. How to Start a Consulting Business: A 90-Day Project Plan (Without Quitting on Day One) https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/how-to-start-a-consulting-business/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/how-to-start-a-consulting-business/ Sun, 25 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Consulting Treat your consulting start-up as a project: a one-page charter, one sentence that says who you help, ten real conversations and a day-90 review. The Critical Path Method, Explained With a Storage Building and a Pencil https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/critical-path-method-explained/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/critical-path-method-explained/ Sun, 25 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Construction Find the one chain of tasks that sets your finish date: a worked example with forward and backward passes, float and a calculator you can change. Project Charter: What It Is and How to Write One in an Hour (Without Falling Asleep) https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/project-charter-guide/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/project-charter-guide/ Sat, 24 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Delivery & Governance What a project charter is, the ten parts it needs, three tiny examples, the smells of a bad one and a builder that drafts your first charter. The Utah Small Business Resource Guide: Free Help, Real Names, No Fluff https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/utah-small-business-resource-guide/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/utah-small-business-resource-guide/ Sat, 24 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Utah A map of free and low-cost help for Utah small businesses: SBDC, SCORE, state offices, Silicon Slopes and PMI, and what each is good for. RACI Chart: How to Build One in 30 Minutes, With Examples and Without Drama https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/raci-chart-guide/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/raci-chart-guide/ Fri, 23 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Delivery & Governance What the four letters mean, the two rules that make a chart work, three worked examples with an office party, and a builder that checks your chart. AI for Small Business: What to Automate First (and What to Leave Alone) https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/ai-for-small-business-what-to-automate-first/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/ai-for-small-business-what-to-automate-first/ Fri, 23 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo AI & Automation A practical filter to pick the first thing to automate: seven good candidates, what to avoid, a 30-day pilot and the guardrails that keep it safe. Construction Project Management, Part 1: What a Construction Project Is Really Made Of https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/construction-pm-part-1-what-a-project-is-made-of/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/construction-pm-part-1-what-a-project-is-made-of/ Fri, 23 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Construction Part 1 of a weekly series from a civil engineer's desk: the five flows that every building project is made of, where each one clogs and how to control it. What Is an Owner's Representative in Construction? A Plain Guide for Owners https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/what-is-an-owners-representative/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/what-is-an-owners-representative/ Fri, 23 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Construction What an owner's representative does, how the role differs from the architect and the builder, when you need one, and how to hire and use one well. Gantt Chart Guide: How to Read One, When It Misleads and What to Use Instead https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/gantt-chart-guide/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/gantt-chart-guide/ Fri, 23 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Project Management How to read a Gantt chart in a minute, six ways it misleads, how to build one that tells the truth, and when a board or a look-ahead works better. Project Focus on One Page: The Whole Method, Explained Simply https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/project-focus-on-one-page/ https://dennis-alejo.com/blog/project-focus-on-one-page/ Fri, 23 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo Strategy & Results Part 1 of a weekly series: the whole Project Focus method on one page, with a goal, three engines, owned projects, three numbers and a weekly rhythm. Gartner: only 13% of CIOs see significant AI value. The missing ingredient is project discipline https://dennis-alejo.com/news/gartner-only-13-percent-ai-value/ https://dennis-alejo.com/news/gartner-only-13-percent-ai-value/ Fri, 23 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo News Gartner's survey of 2,002 CIOs finds 13% report significant AI value and few have rules to stop failing pilots. Four habits for small teams. PMI Global Summit opens in Detroit: what "Built to Move" and a new AI standard mean for project managers https://dennis-alejo.com/news/pmi-global-summit-2026-ai-project-managers/ https://dennis-alejo.com/news/pmi-global-summit-2026-ai-project-managers/ Fri, 23 Oct 2026 14:00:00 GMT Dennis Alejo News PMI's Global Summit is under way in Detroit with AI first on the agenda. What PMI's new AI standard says, and five habits for small teams to start this month.