Where to Start with Kory Kogon
Kory Kogon is the Global Practice Leader for Productivity at FranklinCovey, where she focuses on research and content development around time management, project management, and communication skills. Before joining FranklinCovey, she held executive roles in the retail and direct sales industries, giving her a practitioner’s perspective that grounds her writing in real organizational challenges. She is the co-author of Project Management for the Unofficial Project Manager (2015) and The 5 Choices: The Path to Extraordinary Productivity. Her work is defined by its accessibility: she writes for people who need to get things done, not for people pursuing certifications. The FranklinCovey approach she champions emphasizes both process and people, recognizing that the human side of project management is often what determines success or failure.
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Project Management for the Unofficial Project Manager
Kory Kogon · 256 pages · 2015 · Easy
Themes: project management basics, stakeholder communication, risk management, team collaboration, practical frameworks
The definitive guide for anyone who has been handed a project without any formal project management training. Co-written with Suzette Blakemore and James Wood, this FranklinCovey title provides a practical, repeatable process that works across industries and project types.
Why Start Here
This is Kogon’s most widely read book and the clearest expression of her approach to making project management accessible. Rather than assuming you have a PMP certification or years of experience, it meets you where you are: someone with a project to deliver and not enough time to study theory. The five-step framework (initiate, plan, execute, monitor, close) is simple enough to remember and robust enough to handle real complexity.
What to Expect
A structured, practical guide at 256 pages. Each chapter builds on the previous one and ends with clear action items. The writing is straightforward and professional. Strong on both the process mechanics and the people skills that unofficial project managers often struggle with, including stakeholder management, team communication, and navigating organizational politics without formal authority.