This Guest paper was submitted for publication and is copyright to Alan Lockman © 2022.
Published here April 2022.

Introduction | The Importance of Time Management Strategies
Top 5 Management Tips

Top 5 Management Tips

1. Put all your projects in one place

The second most important tip for effective time management is if you have multiple projects with multiple deadlines, map them out and keep them all in one place so you can see the big picture of they will all fit together. That way you can see all at once your current workload, who is responsible for what task within each project and know where you are up to on every project.

This allows you to adjust any of the project planning you have done, and follow up with anything that needs finishing sooner rather than later, which can be very important in meeting tight deadlines.

A really good way to manage multiple projects is by using a multi-project management tool. It helps automate some of the process, freeing up more of your time to focus on other work.

2. Devise a plan and communicate it to the team

Many people fail to understand the importance of planning. Spending 10-30 minutes planning out daily or weekly tasks can increase productivity. This is the number one top time management tip. When you plan out the week or the day, it provides a clear picture for your team of where they should be and what they should be doing within what kind of timeframe. It helps people judge where they are at and adjust their individual working habits accordingly.

It's the team leader's job to make sure everyone is on the same page and provides the plan for the prioritisation of tasks to refer to, while keeping individual team members on task.

It is also the leader's job to set up communication channels, so progress can be shared and tracked throughout the duration of the project or projects, whether they are long or short.

3. Set priorities and manage expectations

The third tip is about task prioritisation. There are many ways you can do this but it's important to understand: Setting priorities means understanding the difference between what is important and what is urgent. This extends to team tasks as well as your individual tasks.

Without a clear standard process for organising your work or planning projects, your results will be inconsistent and extra time will be wasted on the wrong things.

When prioritising for your team project, don't go with completing the simplest projects first, but rather choose the ones that matter most to your company's goals. As you complete these tasks, your team will be one step closer to achieving your organisation's goal.

It is necessary, therefore, to strategically prioritise both at an organisational level as well as at a smaller level, such as a list of daily tasks, in order of importance.

4. Make working flexibly easy

The fourth top time management tip is to prioritise flexibility in your project planning. Having group priorities and aligning work with them is essential to completing projects. However, remaining flexible is equally as important. Sometimes a shift in priority needs to happen, due to a variety of external factors. This is where putting all your projects in one accessible place really comes in handy. Once you do this, you can effectively change priorities as needed without worrying about giving a new task to a team member who is too busy or working on a more important task.

5. Combine similar tasks

The fifth and final top tip is stop wasting time doing similar tasks across projects as separate jobs. Combine them and get them done all at once. Better yet, assign similar tasks to one person. Switching between tasks can involve alternating mind-sets, which can mess up a team member's workflow. When one person does a set of similar tasks, it eliminates the time it takes to reorient themself.

These are the top 5 guidelines for effective time management strategies while working with a team on multiple complex projects. Effective time management is essential.

The Importance of Time Management Strategies  The Importance of Time Management Strategies
  

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