Cures for Illusions about Competing Priorities

I recently attended a seminar through AMA about Managing Chaos in the business environment.



One of the key takes ways from the lecture :



"Three Cures for Illusions about Competing Priorities"



When your calendar gets overloaded, defend yourself against three common illusions that threaten your priority system:



Illusion 1: You need a big chunk of time for a major task.



OPTIONS: Cut big tasks down to smaller segments; map them visually on a whiteboard. Schedule the toughest item for your "best" time of day. Or attack the easiest task before going home at night.



Illusion 2: The data you produce holds value.



OPTIONS: Next time you churn out a page of daily or weekly numbers with only slight variances, ask requesters: "What risks does this data control?" Remeber that an event produces orginal data which different users want "sliced and diced" to suit them. Smart companies place such data on shared Web sties, inviting users to select and blend locally.



Illusion 3: All these demands are Number 1!



OPTIONS: Pareto's Law (Economics) indicates that the top 20% of a workload produces 80% of results. (Similarly, 20% of donors generate 80% of donations. Also, 20% of your inventory generates 80% of sales) So consider this when you look at your pirorites that server your customers and then answer the following :

• Which one of your current tasks merit your top 20% of effort?


• Which "bottom 20%" tasks look wasteful by comparisoin?

I learned that you should always focus on your top 20%, delegate, relegate or automate the bottom task. Always!

Tool:Risk/Value

The purpose of this tool is to analyze the risks and value of current or proposed projects or processes.

• This tool can be used in several ways: To analyze new projects or processes or to explain priorities within projects or processes.
• Some risks included: The unknowns, unsolved technical and human problems, potential costs, low political support.
• Some values are : The results achieved, problems solved, funding, acquired, support gained, product or process created, tested, or ready.

How to Use This Tool

1. Consider an ongoing process you must manage or a current or proposed project.
2. Begin by drawing line segments at the foot of the Risk bar for each known risk. Consider Risks that must be managed during the life of the project. Draw the segment size in estimated proportion to the importance or size of the specific Risk.
3. Begin by drawing from the foot of the Value bar. List the Values already achieved. Draw a segment size in estimated proportion to the importance or size of the specific Value.
4. Next, show Risk segments that may migrate to the value side once problems are solved. Some solved Risks will never make it to the Value side because they can't make a profit. They allow you to complete the project without reappearing on the Value side.
5. Use solid line segments to indicate current actual levels of Risk and Value. Then use dotted segments to show expected levels of Value after you have removed obstacles or met requirements.

Time Managers vs. Priority Managers : Vital Distinctions

Which type of manager are you? Which do you prefer to be managed by?

Time Managers:

• Decide when to do tasks.
• Scheudle tasks.

Priority Managers:

• Decide wheater to do tasks.
• Validate tasks by their combined risk and value.
• Negotiate up front and graphically when incoming tasks threathen existing tasks.
• Offer optoins to get the right things done.

Welcome BUS4100 Summer 2009

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You can find many class documents on the blackboard site.

http://my.dominican.edu