Brighton Product Lab Transforming lives and shaping futures Mark MilneTime and project Management

Brighton Product Lab How to manage your time and your project activity in year 1 Introduction to Time and project Management Mark MilneTime and project Management

Brighton Product Lab Time management The goal: To successfully manage your time to maximise your learning and progress on the course To develop habits that will help you achieve your goals

Brighton Product Lab Time management Why is it more important now?: Independent study – timetable less structured Monday teaching, Wednesday studio, the rest independent activity except for specialist modules More choices – what you do and when Creates issues for many – easy to disengage – procrastinate

Brighton Product Lab Time management Organisation Efficient use of time Aware of tasks Don’t duplicate Pro-active Handle things a minimum of times Action, file, read or bin Record No where you are and where things are! Those that get organised, generally do well!

Brighton Product Lab Time management Good habits Get a dedicated workspace Organise it – action, file, read, bin If you haven’t got the time to do it right, when will you find the time to do it over? J. Mayer Designer log book Record it Contacts, tests, useful websites, tel conversation notes If someone was to pick up your project – could they do it from your log? This will save you lots of time - and great habits for a lifetime

Brighton Product Lab Time management The seven habits of highly effective people Stephen Covey – 15million copy business best seller Be proactive Begin with the end in mind Put first things first Think win-win – good team working skill Seek first to understand, then be understood – again team working Synergise – combine strengths Sharpen the saw – continuous improvement

Brighton Product Lab Time management Setting priorities and goals A,B,C A – Tasks that are urgent and important B – Tasks that are important but not urgent C- Tasks that are neither urgent nor important Pareto Idea that 80% of the tasks can be completed in 20% of the time Year, month, weekly and daily planner What must I do today? Keep it simple, effective and real – don’t just manage lists

Brighton Product Lab Project Management Project Management Principles: Know what you need to deliver/achieve Plan your activities and your time

Brighton Product Lab Project Management Project Planning Start now High level year plan with key dates Wall chart Scope out your general time Incorporate all the individual things that impact your time How you do this is up to you Excel, MS project, hand drawn….. Key thing is how easy is it to edit and update If it’s not – you won’t

Brighton Product Lab Project Management In general - Why do we plan? Identify tasks Direction Order of events Timescales Organise resources Priorities Critical operations Costs

Brighton Product Lab Project Management When do we plan? All the time!

Brighton Product Lab Project Management Useful Planning When it adds value Think about the benefits of detail vs time to maintain/accuracy Start high level Then breakdown to detail tasks Link dependencies Identify critical tasks Think about contingency

Brighton Product Lab Project Management The most widely used planning chart - Gantt Chart:

Brighton Product Lab Project Management Gantt Chart Developed by Henry Gantt Bar chart – Activity against time List of activities – structured Work breakdown structure Shows the sequence of events and relationships between them

Brighton Product Lab Project Management ActivityOctNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJul Research Ideation Development Launch

Brighton Product Lab Project Management Microsoft Project

Brighton Product Lab Project Management Microsoft Project Relatively simple and effective planning tool Easy to edit Used in the uni – easier to access – download for home use

Brighton Product Lab Project Management Prince2 Developed by the UK government Standardisation Official courses – accreditation Following these principles throughout the course

Brighton Product Lab Project Management Summary Get organised Get planning Get into the habit of managing your time effectively Review regularly Find out about Gantt charts – try making a basic one either with Excel or MS Project