Time management is still a big deal after all this time. From its humble beginnings as a term coined in the 1950s, we still haven’t mastered it. As a society, so to speak.
Task management is another topic that is hot. Getting stuff done. We all need to close out our tasks, whether we work in an office, a construction site or a factory. We definitely seem to have more tasks than is possible to cope with.
So, can a task and time management app help?
Unless you can manufacture more time and resource, there are still a few options available to us. Let me delve into these for a moment, and then let’s look at how a task and time management app would deal with this.
Delegation
First up is delegation. If you have a team around you then you have this option. Many managers don’t load their team members effectively. This isn’t a criticism of managers, rather than accepting that it is hard to ‘see’ people’s workloads.
Being able to understand how busy someone is, and then load them is often an art. But, if you can do this, you can make life a lot easier for yourself and your team a lot more productive.
Many teams have some people that are overloaded and others that are underloaded. Balance is key.
Prioritization
Knowing what to do first is another key principle. Many people work on the last item that is on the pile. This means that the original items then sink lower and lower.
Keeping the whole list visible and then choosing what gets worked on and what doesn’t is the skill here. Do you have a method to do this? If you don’t, this is a good opportunity.
By deciding what to work on, and what not to, you can get on top of time and task management issues.
Packaging and parking
This links to the previous item. This option is about parking non-priority items. Once you have made this decision, to park a task, how you leave it determines the effort required later on.
If you drop the task, as it is, you’ll have to think about what you need to before you can get started. If you leave yourself some good notes, picking the task back up shouldn’t be a problem. This is best when the topic is still fresh in your mind.
This is good practice and make your life easier. A few seconds, or minutes, to park your task can save hours later on.
Minimization of effort
The final option I want to share with you is reducing effort.
If you look at a project, or a larger task, you should be able to spot opportunities to reduce effort.
- Is there a similar result you can achieve, for less effort? Brainstorm some options.
- Are any of the steps in the project ‘nice to have’? Drop them if they aren’t essential.
- Does anyone still want you to complete the task? If no one is chasing you, you can most likely drop it.
How a task and time management app helps
When we set out to build PDCA Complete we had many challenges we wanted to address, including:
- Capturing all tasks with ease.
- Ensuring the team’s workload is visible.
- Creating a simple and effective prioritization system.
- Keeping opportunities for improvement away from current tasks.
- Being able to ‘park’ a task if the list was overwhelming.
There are many apps that help with task and time management on the market. We have focused our app on helping to run a business, that’s why there are different module types. PDCA Complete addresses all the challenges above and more.
Our My Tasks function allows you to capture ad-hoc tasks and see your team’s queue of tasks. The Projects and Meetings modules are specifically designed to help you reduce overwhelm. Keep the detail separate and then manage the day to day actions through My Tasks. If you sign up for a free account you’ll see exactly what I mean (see below).
Our other features help with different elements of task and time management. The Workflows module digitizes your physical processes. Audits help you keep on top of your standards. Templates generates detailed recurring task requests. The Bucket is your go to place for capturing, evaluating and launching improvements. And there’s more, but you’ll need to see it for yourself (or check out our Features page!).
So there’s a brief look at this topic. If you are operating a task and time management app, then how you manage your tasks is key. Whilst we can’t manufacture more time, we can choose what we do first.
Free subscription offer
If you don’t currently have a task and time management app, then try out PDCA Complete today. We offer a free subscription to organizations with three users or fewer. If you have more people in your team, or want the premium features, then try out the free version and upgrade later.
To find out more about PDCA Complete, and its features, check out the home page of our website.
