COPING WITH Multiple Activities in Civil Engineering Project Management

Project engineers suffer from multiple tasks at once. It may seem overwhelming at times, particularly when you could have 10 to 20 active projects under your control.

It is imperative that project managers understand the status of each project, their urgency and deliverables. In addition, it seems the better you're as a project manager, the more projects you have to handle at once.

When you manage multiple projects it really is vitally important that you understand the final time deadline (the delivery date) and the overall budget.

Ultimately, your client is interested in two things, when can I own it, and how much does it cost. If you can satisfy time and budget constraints, milestones (according to the client's expectations), you may be 'held in high esteem' by your client.

So that you can manage and juggle this many projects, it is vitally important that you realize 5 things ...

The final deadline and budget (
The significance and priority of the project
The entire tasks - High Payoff Activities, and Low Payoff activities.
Activities which might be delegated or outsourced.
Your role as a project Engineer / manager.
1. So that you can effectively manage multiple projects, you need to understand your total workload , and compare the projects deliverables. This is usually done utilizing a project planner, or project management tools such as Microsoft Project. Once all projects are considered, hopefully not all deadlines and deliverables aren't due simultaneously. The Tip is to find out the REAL deliverable date. Often whenever a client is asked when they have to project completed, they will have a buffer built-in to allow them to 'sit on it' for a short while. If you establish the real activities that will follow the 'deadline', you could be able to safely extend the ultimate date with your client - with no detriment. If this isn't the case, at the very least you will see out the importance of the ultimate date.

2. Not all projects are as important as one another. Some projects have other consequences, and tasks that cannot be achieved without the delivery of the original project. Without sounding callus, you definitely want to take care of your most significant clients who've constant work flow and pay well and on time. In most cases, it is these most valued clients that should be looked after as priority #1 1, as they are your 'bread and butter'. . Keep them happy and your business should continue to motor along. Concurrently you need to take good care of new clients who may have huge amount of money in future work for you based on your performance. They'll usually not display all their cards to you, so the best thing would be to make sure you take care of them and meet your deadlines. Ultimately you do not want to spend 100 hours on a project that's only worth 50 hours payment. It is fine balance between current and potential future work. The secret is to recognise project importance early , and their future work potential.

3. Within many projects there high payoff activities and low payoff activities. High payoff activities are the ones that will get the most benefit out of there completion, and low payoff activities don't generate an excessive amount of benefit at their completion. The end would be to recognise which activities / tasks are high payoff activities right in the beginning of the project. It is these activities that needs to be given the priority and attention they deserve. Low payoff activities could be either tackled later, or delegated to others (it is crucial however to monitor the progress of low payoff activities otherwise they might be forgotten before end - or at a crucial time). Constant updates to the entire task schedule is a fantastic way to stay on track and monitor your progress on each project.

4. You don't want to spend your valuable time on low payoff activities that you can do by others. Project management is also about delegating or outsourcing activities that are better completed by someone else. Sometimes it is better to outsource a 'time consuming complex design' to a specialist in the field, when you manage the procedure and the entire project.  サンタクロース　トナカイ  saying "if you want something done right you have to do it yourself" isn't always the case in engineering and project management. You should recognise and do a cost analysis on your time and cost on their cost (and delivery time). While they're completing the task, you could be focusing on or managing another high payoff activity, which will ultimately allow an overall timely delivery of the project.

5. As a project manager, you have to be generally 'managing' the project, and should not be 'in the trenches digging the holes'. This is the job for the 'soldiers' or workers under your control. It really is however essential that you understand their skills and what they should be delivering for you personally. By 'staying on top' of this element (periodic meetings and minor milestones), reduces the frustration of you having to 'check and change' their progress. It really is your responsibility to provide , which means you should ensure all things are moving ahead regularly, and communicate effectively and regularly together with your team, as well as your client.