Successful Project Management

There’s a lot to be learned from how top performers manage their projects. When “A players” plan out their day, they are committed to achieving all their goals and meeting expectations. For “C players” or poor performers, hope is running the ship–nothing is committed to paper; it’s all kept in their heads.

The difference is that “A players” can quickly visualize what a completed project looks like. Planning then becomes disassembling a project into pieces or steps and committing to completing X number of those steps in Y number of days. “C players” will count on hope to deliver results. Without a clear plan, they end up with zero items on their daily list, which means they will often take care of zero of their responsibilities.

If you are striving to become an “A player” learning to work faster and smarter is key. Ask your manager to help determine the project’s timetable for the week; outlining the key elements and assigning due dates/times. Every day, determine which pieces of the project are most important to accomplish and get them done so you don’t get behind. By following this simple process, you will finish your project on time. Ultimately, you will begin developing your own plan of attack and boost productivity in your department.