PLANNING AHEAD: TIME MANAGEMENT IN DEFINING GOALS
Geoffrey P. Timms
In current library management, people and activities are typically focused on defining and fulfilling goals in accordance with the library’s mission. Goals are usually defined collaboratively and specify how departments and individuals will function to achieve them. At any one time, a librarian may be contributing to multiple goals. It follows, then, that time management is a critical element in preparing to tackle the goals of the institution and to bring them to fruition in an appropriate time frame. This chapter offers ways to think in terms of time management as you define the library’s goals.
IDENTIFY REQUIRED TASKS AND SKILL SETS
In we are defining goals, the planning of time allocation must account for the various skill sets needed to accomplish it. For example, the goal of subscribing to a new e-book collection and integrating it into the library catalog may require the participation of several individuals across several departments. To assess the potential time contribution of each person, we must scrutinize the tasks required to accomplish the goal. For example,
Ongoing tasks might include regularly adding and deleting MARC records as the e-book collection changes over time; monitoring web server logs due to the additional information captured each time an e-book is accessed from the catalog; and gathering and processing e-book usage data.
This is an example of a relatively concise goal, yet with a little thought we have identified several tasks and skills required of several people to bring about its completion and ongoing maintenance. This enables us to become more effective in managing and coordinating the time spent on each of these tasks. If a new skill set must be acquired to accomplish the goal, a realistic estimate of the time burden of learning and applying the skills must be calculated.
ESTABLISH PRIORITIES
The definition of goals is determined by the institutional mission, but the allocation of time and resources to their fulfillment is determined by priorities. Priorities are often ranked according to the institutional level from which they were conceived; for example, the priorities of the institutional administration and senior management are likely to be given high priority at the department level. Priority is also usually allocated to activities to which individuals assign high importance or urgency. However priorities are defined, they weigh heavily in the allocation of time devoted to specific activities.
Having identified the tasks required to accomplish the goal and each individual’s anticipated contribution, we must consider the workload of the participating individuals and their priorities relative to the goal at hand. Priorities must be successfully negotiated before time commitments are made by participating individuals. This is where perspectives can complicate things. Colleagues may assign differing priorities to a particular activity according to their knowledge, perspectives, and specific function within the organization. For example, in a systems role I assign highest priority to ensuring system security and stability rather than to assisting with individual projects hosted on the system. Both are important, but one depends on the other, so the priority is clear. Time management at this stage, therefore, requires that we practice the skills of diplomacy, negotiation, and effective communication with colleagues.
UNDERSTAND PERSONAL PRODUCTION CAPACITY
As each of us weighs the potential time commitments we would contribute to the goals in question, we must consider our personal production capacity. It is easy to agree to participate in many activities without contemplating the aggregate workload and regret it later. Whether we are aware of it or not, each of us has a typical pace at which we accomplish specific types of activities. Some of us dwell on details and refinements; others complete tasks to their satisfaction on the first attempt. Some of us are more adept at specific tasks than others, each to our own skill set. It is important that we become aware of the time it takes us to accomplish the tasks in question or at least tasks similar in nature. Strategies to synthesize this information include listing the time commitments required to fulfill the day-to-day necessities of the job; listing the estimated time burden of additional activities that new goals would bring; ranking tasks by priority, which adds another useful dimension to the information listed; and utilizing human resources documents in which time allocated to routine tasks is formally declared for specific positions.
By maintaining a time allocation document, we can become much clearer about whether we are in danger of overextending ourselves or our subordinates beyond what is sustainable over time. Although people can work in overdrive for a time, nobody should be expected (or demand of themselves) to do so indefinitely. The result can be reduced morale and burnout, which reduce productivity overall.
PLAN FOR PROGRESS
Another reality about allocating time and resources to specific activities is that effective management usually expects an accounting of both the inputs (money, time, tangible resources) and the resulting benefits (both to the library and its patrons). It is important to contemplate and justify the time invested in any given activity so that, at the goal’s completion or at a predetermined evaluation point, the productivity of each of the inputs, time included, can be assessed. To keep track of this over time, when a goal is being agreed upon create a spreadsheet that outlines the specific tasks to be undertaken. It is prudent to assign a date by which each task must be completed, because this helps to maintain focus and momentum. Additionally, including a time log enables the documentation of time contributions to specific tasks. The value of this information is that it builds knowledge about personal and departmental production capacity and helps with considerations of time commitments when we set goals in the future.
It can be tempting to neglect planning time contributions for future activities and adopt a “we’ll get it done” attitude. But when we devote time to thinking through the implications and consequences of undertaking a project, we gain an awareness of the opportunity cost (the cost of the alternative foregone). Rarely in the current economic climate do we tolerate or enjoy excess capacity in our libraries, so most new endeavors are undertaken at the expense of something else. It is, therefore, our responsibility to make ourselves fully aware of the priorities and production capacities that exist for ourselves and for our libraries and to allocate our time accordingly. By proactively managing time during goal setting, we can improve our efficiency and enhance our ability to use this valuable resource wisely.