Greetings everyone! My name is Alexandre. Since I am a French-Canadian from Montreal, it's AlexandER for the rest of the world!

I've been in management positions for more than 15 years now (still young at 35!), planning and managing IT related projects for the transportation industry (mainly transit).

I have been using Haiku Deck with great pleasure for a while now, so I am pleased to share with you some of my tools and techniques using this app. I really like the way it "forces" you to synthesize your content. No more "Death by PowerPoint"!

Enjoy the slides and feel free to reach me if you want to share thoughts or comments!

alexandre_savard@outlook.com

Looks like The Hobbit's house. Great set of movies!

Ok, everyone has a smartphone today. I use mine extensively, mainly to get things done (using Nozbe), to put my thoughts in order (using Evernote) and manage my emails/calendars.

For news, I use Flipboard, Zite, Pulse and LaPresse+ (local newspaper, but with a great UI).

I also use Pocket to clip articles I find on the web and read them offline (great for the subway!).

As I use Evernote on my iPhone, the iPad version is also great (more screen estate). Being able to sync my notes is a critical factor of my productivity. I never look for stuff, it's always with me!

Dropbox is my main storage room. It also serves as a backup device, so I put a lot in there!

Otherwise, my iPad is filled with apps that I try. Of course, Haiku Deck is in my "Productivity" folder!

What else to say? I have been using David Allen's Getting Things Done technique for a while now and I has changed the way I work. My stress has been greatly reduced and my productivity has increased significantly.

I strongly suggest you read the book and try the technique. I also made a Haiku Deck about it a while ago, but it's in French. Contact me if you want to know more.

Ok, using a productivity method does not guarantee that every day is going to be a smooth ride. But that's the fun of it! I often say to my colleagues and staff: if it was easy, we wouldn't be there!

An important skill. As we get experience, we tend to specialize. The impact is that specialists tend to have a focused view on things. Forcing yourself to step back, look at all the factors of a situation will help you to get around it and solve the issue. Look at it like a Rubik's Cube. Have you looked at all the sides?

Don't be shy to ask questions and challenge rules (bend but don't break them!). Sometimes, just asking: "why?" will clarify a lot. Asking questions and criticizing (the constructive way!) will show your interest and help you think outside of the box.

I am the proudest father in the world! I know, your child is probably great too, but my daughter is the sweetest, cutest and smartest out there! ;)

Luckily, this cutie pie is the result of a wonderful relationship I have with my (future) wife. She is perfect to me and gives me this critical support I need.

Don't take life too seriously! Mistakes, bad situations, challenges: they are all good reasons to laugh. Always laugh at yourself first. It shows you are also vulnerable and accessible.

I remember one Friday, I came to work with my car (never do because I use transit). When I came back home after work, I had this feeling I forgot something important. I forgot to bring back the car! I turned back and went downtown again. What a way to waste a Friday night!

A word of caution with passion. Having a few is great. Having too many may be bad. My view of passion is being passionate about what you do, either it's work, playing guitar (used to), cooking (I'm a really bad one!) or anything else. Doing something with passion helps you get the most of it (pleasure and skills). As for work, it's taking a third or my life. So better like it!

I'm still young (35), but over the last 15 years, I had my share of failures. Missing targets, losing a big proposal, deceiving my employees, etc. Still, I try to get the most of them and learn from them. What is funny is that the lesson comes several months or years later, when a new similar situation comes by. Never forget your past mistakes, they may serve you in the future!

I recall, when I was 18, this important presentation I had to do for the upper management. I was so nervous (and not prepared enough) the night before, that I forgot to put on the alarm for the next morning. Guess what, I missed the whole thing! Lesson learned: be prepared and wake up early!

No revolution. But changes that can have an impact in your area of work, in your community or in your environment. By giving yourself a mission, you give yourself a reason to get up in the morning.

I gave myself the mission to improve transit in my region by deploying systems that will help agencies better work together, improve the quality of service and share data with users. It might not be much, but if a young mother is waiting the bus outside on a winter night and, not only she knows that the service is disrupted, but what alternative mode she can use to get home, maybe I would have make a (small) difference in her life.

That's me (and my beautiful daughter!). I'm not a narcissistic type but I like this one. It's been taken by a pro, and reminds me (with her in my arms) that what you do, you also do it for others.

I hope you enjoyed this presentation! Feel free to reach me on LinkedIn or look at my blog (in French).

savardalexandre.wordpress.com