Tips to Help You Manage Competing Project Priorities

Tips to Help You Manage Competing Project Priorities

Tips to Help You Manage Competing Project Priorities

By Lynn Wendt, PMP, PgMP

Imagine you are managing Project A and Project B and the organization’s priorities shift. Now Project B has to be delivered two months ahead of schedule, and Project A still has to be brought in on schedule.
Perhaps legislation gets passed that impacts your project. Or maybe when your project closes, you and all the team members get assigned to other projects and capturing lessons learned becomes a low priority.
These few scenarios underscore the challenge you face when managing multiple priorities. Competition for resources, risks and changing company priorities are some of the known elements of project landscapes requiring project managers to juggle priorities of the organization and stakeholders.
Considerations for Managing Competing Priorities
Regardless of your style or experience, there are actions that can help you optimize your chances for success when your projects are faced by competing priorities. As you gain experience, these considerations will become second nature.

1. Don't panic. Depending on your experience level, panic might be your knee-jerk reaction when faced with a challenge while executing a project. Take some time to gather all the facts and data about the situation. You will then be more likely to find a workable solution.
2. Don't lose your focus. Review your project charters, scope and goals so you will have a foundation for moving forward with confidence even though your project scope or delivery date may have changed.
3. Don't allow your ego to get in the way. If your project is at risk for being cancelled or put on the back burner don't take it personally. This is part of working in or for an organization. Take pride in what you have accomplished and in being a team player. Other opportunities will come your way.
4. Do recall the big picture. Assess the situation from an organizational as well as a project perspective. This will help you reach solutions that are in the best interest of the organization while moving your project forward.
5. Do remember your own and others’ success stories. This will help you build confidence that you will find a workable solution to your current challenge.
6. Do use your project and program processes. Rely on your governance, change control and risk management processes. These are your tools and system of checks and balances that are strategic to the successful outcome of any project.
7. Do communicate, communicate, communicate. Stakeholders and management should be parts of the solution and informed about the outcome. Follow both formal lines of communication as outlined in your communication plan and informal lines of communication to assure a timely resolution and project success.

If you keep these tips in mind when priorities clash throughout the life cycles of your projects, you will maximize your chance for success. At the end of the day, the over-arching priority is the successful implementation of all projects that contribute to the strength and growth of the organization.
Lynn Wendt, PMP, PgMP, has over 35 years experience as an IT program and project manager. She now consults in the real estate development domain in Northbrook, Illinois, USA. Ms. Wendt has presented on project management topics at multiple industry conferences. Ms. Wendt welcomes your