Two events that introduce anomalies even into “Swiss” project planning

Imagine trying to schedule an ad-hoc, or even worse a regular recurring meeting for a team that is literally scattered around the planet, taking into consideration time zones, cultures, environments and priorities … welcome to the backyard of the ALM Rangers

Other than the normal challenges such as vacation, family emergency, illness and natural or infrastructure disasters, there are two anomalies that you should be aware of.

Anomaly #1 – Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving Day is a holiday celebrated primarily in Canada and the USA. The intent is to get together as a family and celebrate the end of the harvesting season.

So why is it an anomaly?

In Canada Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday of October, which means that the Rangers above the 49th parallel typically go dark for from Saturday to Monday.

In the USA Thanksgiving is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November, resulting in a black-out from Thursday to Sunday below the 49th parallel and up in Alaska.

Anomaly #2 – Daylight Saving Time

Not only do I have to massage my brain twice a year to comprehend time moving forwards or backwards, but different regions in the world change to daylight savings time at different times of the year. Huh?!?

Europe for example switches their watches forward by an hour on the last Sunday of March and backward by an hour on the last Sunday in October. USA and Canada switches their watches forward by an hour on the second Sunday of March and backward by an hour on the first Sunday in November.

Spot the two red areas on our 2011 timeline, which accounts for three weeks during which meetings scheduled in one part of the world may start jumping around in calendars in other regions.

For example, a meeting scheduled by an ALM Ranger on August 1st in Germany at 22PM will start at 12PM in Vancouver Canada … but from the instance that the European Union change their clocks, the meeting will suddenly do a time warp jump and start at 13PM in Vancouver Canada during first week of November.

Well, enjoy the humanoid chaos and scheduling your next “planetary” meeting