Download - Get more done!
GET MORE DONE!
ByMark Phillips
Adobe Developer Summit Unconference 2009
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WHY GET MORE DONE
You can’t hire anyone else.You don’t want to be fired.
You want to do a good job &Have time for other things.
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WHO AM I
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WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT
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WHAT ITS NOT
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WHO YOU ARE
Designer, developer, copywriter, creative, support person –
member of a team.You solve and facilitate solutions
for your client.
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WHO YOU ARE
Manager who’s job is to get people of different skills and
backgrounds to work together.You are judged by the results
you deliver for your client.
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NO MATTER WHO YOU ARE
ITS ALL ABOUT THE CLIENT.
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TIP NUMERO UNO
“The only results that matter are EXTERNAL”
-Peter Drucker
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BE A FACILITATOR
Solve ProblemsBuild Solutions
Deploy SolutionsSupport Solutions
HELP ACCOMPLISH GOALS
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BE A FACILITATOR
HELP MAKE GOOD THINGS HAPPEN
“The only thing in abundance is mediocrity”
-Peter Drucker
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WHAT IS TIME MANAGEMENT?
Time ManagementIs a set of habits for making the
best use ofYOUR OWN TIMEso that you can
GET MORE DONE.
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WHAT IS PROJECT MANAGEMENT?
Project ManagementIs a set of habits for making the
best use ofOTHER PEOPLE’S TIME
so that the team can GET MORE DONE.
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PROJECT MANAGEMENT REDEFINED
COMMUNICATION
EXPECTATIONS
ESTIMATES
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PROJECT MANAGEMENT REDEFINED
help your client
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COMMUNICATION
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CONTEXT MATTERS
The only problem worth solving is the one the client defines.
Let the client frame the problem and then solve that problem.
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One Story
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TIP NUMERO DOS
Listen to your client
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GET MORE DONE
Your time and money will be spent most effectively if it is
focused on solving your client’s problem.
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COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY
When you communicate, the only thing that matters is what is understood by either party.
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COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY
When you are talking, it’s what the other person hears.
When you are listening, it’s how much you understood.
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TIP NUMERO THREE
Cater Communication to
Context
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EVERY PROJECT HAS 3 PHASES
PLANNINGACTIVE
WAREHOUSECater your communications to
each phase.
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PLANNING PHASE
Is where you define a project’s goals, the time table, budgets, resource allocations and risks.
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SUPER GRANDE TIP NUMERO 4
DON’T EVER WRITE A SPEC FOR A CLIENT
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WHAT IS A SPEC?
A spec document is an extremely useful document for
your INTERNAL team.It is the wrong tool for a client.
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BULLET POINT SPEC
Tastes better.Less filling.
Exactly the right tool for the client.
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BULLET POINT SPEC
All bullet points.Only a few questions.
Answered in one or two sentences.
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BULLET POINT SPEC
• Project goals • Time table • Budget & resource allocation • Risks
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Two Stories
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GET MORE DONE
Your time and money will be spent most effectively if you are using the right tools with
your client.
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Discussions?
Consider them issues (not endless)
Threaded message board with due dates or an issue tracker
Meeting as a last resort -> only when necessary
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ACTIVE PHASE
Is where the deliverables are worked on and the plan is put
into action.
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ACTIVE PHASE
Its where everything that can go wrong does.
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TIP NUMBER 5
Make Sure You Communicate.
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For Communication
Automatic emails when something changes.
Wiki, software, emails, message board, calls and even meetings.
How often? Depends on length of the project.
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What to Cover
• Goals update• Schedule• Budget• Need information?• Risks
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When Things Go Wrong!
Don’t Hold Back
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OTRO SUPER GRANDE TIP (NUMERO 6)
>30% =bring it up as a risk>70% =bring it up as a fact
=100% =too late =death spiral of despair
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WAREHOUSING PHASE
Is when the project moves to a different phase in the lifecycle. It is no longer being built but
rather maintained, archived or shelved.
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WAREHOUSING PHASE
Lessons learned and final comments.
Fresh, but not blaming.Record immediately.
Wait two days to share them.
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PROJECT MANAGEMENT REDEFINED
COMMUNICATION
EXPECTATIONS
ESTIMATES
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Expectations
Make a good project feel bad.Make a bad project feel even
worse.Or, a bad project can be a
“learning experience”
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Here comes another tip (7)
Manage expectationsManage expectationsManage expectations
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You Are The Expert
Use that asymmetry.Trust your expertise.
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The Master of Management
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“Captain, we have a problem.”
Is not a knock on you.You are sharing your expertise.
You are helping your client.
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GET MORE DONE
Your time and money will be spent most effectively if you
communicate and change the plan to reflect how the client’s
problem is being solved.
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PROJECT MANAGEMENT REDEFINED
COMMUNICATION
EXPECTATIONS
ESTIMATES
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Let Experience Guide You
Estimates allow you to measure perception against reality so
you can improve pricing, scheduling, expectations
management and productivity.
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TIP OCHO
“Everything measured improves”
-Dan Gilbert
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Where do good estimates come from?
Tracking Time
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Dimensions in Time Tracking
• Track time on tasks• Track against calendar dates• Compare estimates to actuals• Keep a record of the estimates
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Track Time on Tasks
Create a task list (doubles as spec).
Buckets of at least 20 hours.Consistent descriptions and/or
work types.
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Track Time Against Calendar Dates
Effort DOES NOT = Duration.Track start dates and end dates.
Learn what times are most productive for which activities.
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Rule of Thumb
Duration = 2x effort + (1 day/2 days of effort).
orDuration = 4 x Effort
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Always include management time.
As a line item orAs additional hours or
As a proportionate increase in rate.
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Combo Rule of Thumb and Tip 9
1 hour of pm per 5 hours of production time.
1 hour of am per 7 hours of production time.
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Compare Estimates to Actuals
Monitor your time profitability.It’s a window into how long it
really takes to do things.It can be brutal.
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Keep a Record of Your Est. & Actuals
It is a goldmine of information for you or for any organization.
It is the key to visibility and process improvement.
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One Last Story
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GET MORE DONE
Your time and money will be spent most effectively if you can learn how to solve your
client’s problems better.
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GET MORE DONE
Results are on the outsideListen to your client
Cater communications to contextDON’T EVER WRITE A SPEC
CommunicateManage Expectations
TRACK YOUR TIME
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PROJECT MANAGEMENT REDEFINED
help your client
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EL ULTIMO TIP
Make it a habit.
THANK YOU
VERTABASE.COM/BLOG
TWITTER.COM/MPMOBILE
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Other Tips
Use 1-2-3 to Prioritize Tasks
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Let Your People Know
Let your people know what it is they should be working on at any time and what tasks are more important than others.
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1-2-3 Method of Prioritization
When assigning out tasks via email or other tool preface the
subject line with 1, 2 or 3.1 –do it soon
3 –do it when you can2 –do it before 3 and after 1
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GET MORE DONE
Your resources are spent most effectively when they are
working on the right things at the right time.
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Another Other Tip
Use the Launch Countdown method
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MANAGE YOUR OWN PROCESS
To be effective you need to manage your own work. That means using some
structure to define how you produce creative deliverables.
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WHAT IS THE METHOD
The Launch Countdown Method is a simple naming convention
to help you keep track of where you are on all your
assets.
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HOW IT WORKS
Every asset goes through three phases.
3 –needs to be started2 –asset is in progress
1 –ready for launch
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HOW IT WORKS
Put the number 3, 2 or 1 ahead of every asset’s name.
You’ll know what stage its in.You can juggle your work.
You can give information on its state. And it creates a super handy list on
your computer’s file systems.
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GET MORE DONE
Prioritize tasksUse Launch Countdown Method
THANK YOU
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TWITTER.COM/MPMOBILE
