Time Management in Projects

I find one of the most important factors in a project is the scheduling or planning of time, the negotiation of time and the time added to a project for contingencies, that is those factors which have not been specifically planned for but happen, which are beyond our control. Is the customer expected to pay for the unforeseen, you will find most expect a certain level of add time “or fat” as we say in the industry, but it has to be reasonable, so the negotiation of this aspect is very tricky. The customer specifies a timeframe or drop dead date for project completion. This then inversely impacts cost versus time, as the time it takes to complete a project can be reduced, if all is going well, but the cost increases as a result.

 

Time is a very interesting resource, as it is not part of inventory. It is consumed whether it is used or not. Our objective as Project Managers is to effectively use the future time allocated to a project to ensure maximum productivity.  In respect to future time, an intangible resource, that is time which has not occurred yet in the project but can be traded

within the project. Once a project has begun, it is the prime resource available to us, to keep the project on track, to schedule or get it back into or allow us to negotiate for more of it if it has been lost.

 

A good Project Manager will be able to notice when time will be lost, via reporting from their resources, as road blocks should be identified during team meetings and maintained in risk and issues register mentioned in a previous posting, once identified and then addressed with the customer then the negotiation of time can occur, how it affects the project currently, or the overall project completion timeframe, what cost it has for the customer and the cost to you as the resources will have to be kept  for a longer period, hence costing the project more. 

 

Avoiding Time Management issues of this nature is addressed during the project scheduling phase, where you outline the necessary activities to deliver a project, and you have covered with your internal resources their concerns, potential risks to the project, and the time for resolution. Discussed with the customer the potential “Road Blocks” and the length of time it may take to resolve, essentially planting the seed before it occurs, so if it does become reality then it does not become a surprise.  Ensure you communicate with the customer frequently on the project progress, covering any delays to the delivery of milestones, set the expectation, the earlier the better.

 

Time Management in projects, an important factor to cover, because once it is gone, there is no way to retrieve it. Ensure your project schedule covers for those unforseen contingencies, if an issue arises then communicate it early, negotiate with your team and the customer on the time required to resolve, evaluate how it affects your current milestone or delivery, is it on the critical path, can it be negotiated in this phase and made up in another, your skills here are paramount, a good project manager will work out the best solution.