In most companies, Project Managers are typically assigned to multiple projects that they have to manage simultaneously. This could range anywhere from 2 to 5 projects of varying sizes being overseen by a single Project Manager at the same time with an expectation to successfully deliver on all of them. It could be a daunting task to someone that is new to project management, however, there are ways to effectively manage multiple projects that any Project Manager could adopt to help make their work more efficient.
Below are some of the guides that Project Managers can use to effectively manage multiple projects simultaneously:
Prioritize your Projects
As a Project Manager, you need to prioritize your projects based on several criteria such as:
- Project timelines and completion dates
- Levels of complexity
- Phases of the projects
- Resource availability
- Levels of urgency
By prioritizing your projects accordingly, you will be able to allocate the appropriate amount of time to each project based on their current needs. For instance, a Project Manager can spend a bit more time on those projects that have a much shorter timeline and imminent project completion dates while also conducting the initiation phase of a larger project concurrently.
Delegation of Tasks
A common misconception that many Project Managers harbor is that they have to do everything that’s part of their project because they either want to have things done their way, or they don’t trust others to do things as they would prefer them to be done. Unfortunately, this leads to an overwhelming workload on a Project Manager and as a result, their performance on getting things done on all their assigned projects eventually suffers.
Project Managers should delegate tasks to other team members such as Project Coordinators or Business Analysts and regularly follow up with them to ensure the tasks have been completed correctly. This will free up time for a Project Manager to be able to adequately spend time on all their project assignments without worrying about other tasks not being completed.
Utilize Project Management Tools
Project management tools such as JIRA, Smartsheet, and MS Project can help Project Managers predict when there would be an uptick in workload across different assigned projects by overlaying the key milestones and tasks to easily identify periods where too many things would be due at once. Through doing this, a Project Manager can plan ahead and shift some of the flexible dates on the impacted tasks or milestones, or they can proactively allocate more resources to their assigned projects during the high workload periods.
One major thing to note is that project management tools are only as good as the data they possess and how frequently they are updated. If a Project Manager fails to update their project plans, then chances are that they will not be able to effectively utilize the project management tools, which could then lead to issues arising across their multiple assigned projects.
Communicate Expectations
Communication of all progress on assigned projects will help Project Managers stay organized and will allow all stakeholders to have a better understanding of when different milestones will be completed. The best way for a Project Manager to better communicate all progress is to develop dashboards and reports that contain all the major milestones for assigned projects, resource allocation, and budget consumption. Including these on a weekly status report that is sent to all stakeholders helps ensure that expectations are set for all the projects with regards to when different milestones will be completed, and any deviations to them are immediately addressed before they turn into issues that could derail progress.
At PM Imperative, we cover the latest trends in Project Management and Product Management. As PM practitioners, we understand the value the Project Managers and Product Managers bring to each organization and that’s why we focus on the most practical strategies that Project and Product Managers can implement immediately. If you found this post useful, be sure to check out our latest book: The PM Imperative – Guide for Leading & Managing Projects, People & Delivering Value. https://pmimperative.com/shop/
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