Hectic Workload? Learn to Prioritize and Communicate
Andy Jordan is President of Roffensian Consulting S.A., a Roatan, Honduras-based management consulting firm with a comprehensive project management practice. Andy always appreciates feedback and discussion on the issues raised in his articles and can be reached at [email protected]. Andy's new book Risk Management for Project Driven Organizations is now available.
Talk to any project manager, and they’ll tell you that there are times when there just aren’t enough hours in the day. When projects are challenged, the PM has to try and help solve the problems—getting aid from stakeholders where necessary (and keeping those stakeholders in the loop); answering questions from leaders, the PMO, customers and the like; and keeping team members engaged, motivated and focused when they themselves have a number of questions and concerns.
All of these things add to a PM’s already hectic workload and it seems impossible to get everything done. Unfortunately, some project managers try anyway, working ridiculously long hours and still falling short. That’s not good for them, the team, the stakeholders or the project. And increasingly, that’s finally being recognized as PMs are being encouraged to balance their work and personal hours a bit better (or at least, they are in reasonable organizations).
But finding that balance can be difficult, especially for new project managers. It requires the ability to accurately prioritize work, especially when a project is experiencing difficulties and there are increased demands on a PM’s time. They must consciously determine where to direct their energy based on the urgency and importance to the project of their efforts. And anything that doesn’t make the cut …
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