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Jeff Colvin
Management Consultant & Founder of Link,
a Management Consulting Group
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"How
much time do you need to complete that job?" If you gave the
answer to your boss, the customer, or best friend and didn't build
in any additional cushion to what you thought it would actually
take, then you are amongst the small minority.
From top executive on down to the front line technician, most people
add a "fudge factor" when making a time commitment. At
the surface this may appear to be innocuous. But think about the
total number of hours or days that are built into a plan that are
truly unnecessary.
This process often begins when the customer is asked, "When
do you need it by?" With more complex deliveries of product
or service the customer may build in up to 20% more time to a schedule
than they actually require. This is based much on their past experience
of not having had deliveries met as initially requested or promised.
They may not really expect delivery when they ask for it, but are
instead expecting there to be delays. In this way they can hedge
their bet and not get caught with a late shipment.
As the request and commit date are established it is then translated
through multiple departments, positions, and people including the
salesperson, the engineer, and the operations managers. Each one
adds 10% to 20% fat to the equation to give themselves "breathing
room" to juggle all of their work.
The culture of the business and the chain of businesses become
one of questionable commitments. The time to meet a commitment will,
of course, expand to fill the time available.*
The basics of running any good business fall back to a very familiar
cliché; Plan your work and work your plan! It is therefore
necessary to establish a plan based upon the tasks and activities
necessary to achieve the outcome. The grand plan is really a set
of action items that in sum ensure the successful delivery of a
result.
The simple appreciation of planning is often lost when commitment
dates of output are given. Without the understanding of the elements
of activity that make up a plan and the relative time requirements
for each, the date of a commitment is often unrealistic; high or
low. And the cultural acceptability of building fat in to a commitment
replaces the basic fundamental of good planning.
How do we fend off the evolving culture of commitments without
planning? Ask why and how? Why is the given date appropriate and
how do you intend to make it happen? Help those who are making commitments
to identify the major milestones on the path to delivery and determine
what is realistic and appropriate versus what is cushioned.
The model of planned commitments starts with your willingness to
be there at "8:00" as you said you would and to have planned
accordingly so that you didn't have to rush. Good planning leads
to good execution.
* A proverb coined by the twentieth-century British scholar C.
Northcote Parkinson, known as Parkinson's Law. (Work expands to
fill the time available for its completion.).
Commitment to Planning
Don't Commit (without a plan)
- Understand the actions required first
- Delay the commitment until you have the plan defined
- Avoid arbitrary commitment dates
Define Major/Minor Tasks
- Identify major milestones
- Break milestones into sub tasks
- Determine realistic dates for each
Ask for the Plan
- Request a layout of actions that support a commitment date
- Question and understand the plan
- Assist with the details of actions leading to output
Plan and Execute
- Communicate your plan and rationale
- Manage tasks/milestones routinely
- Learn and continue to plan better
Jeff Colvin (Jcolvin@linkllc.com)
founded Link, a management
consulting group in 1997 whose mission is dedicated to the Systems,
Structures, and Behaviors that make people and companies successful.
Link's bottom line focus on process improvement is achieved through
the facilitation and training of cross-functional teams to address
key strategic goals. Learn more about Jeff
Colvin & Link...
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