Continuously finding new ways to save time for both your Product Managers and yourself is crucial for maximizing efficiency and focusing on strategic thinking.
In this article, we’ll share five practical time-saving techniques that will help your PMs become more efficient and free up your own time for higher-level planning and decision-making. Let’s dive in!
1. Ruthless Prioritization
Show your PMs the importance of prioritizing tasks and setting clear goals.
Encourage them to list what they should do, but also specifically on what they should NOT to do.
Use a prioritization framework, like the Eisenhower Matrix (urgent/important), MoSCoW method, or DEAL to identify all tasks and focus on the most important and urgent tasks.
And remember:
“Spending a lot of time on something also doesnt make it important.” – Tim Ferris.
By ruthlessly going through the list of tasks you can save a ton of time.
Now, there is a chance you are you thinking ‘I knew that already’ at this point now… That’s okay! All I want you to ask is apply it. It can always be improved. Take action and get results. I’m happy you read my stuff, but if you apply it we get more impact.
So..
a. Choose a prioritization framework.
b. Apply it! Use your blocked 30-min improvement time and list everything you do.
c. Eliminate or automate 20% that is not contributing. By getting rid of that, you can focus on the top priorities.
d. Plan when you will do b. & c. with your PMs in the next 1-on-1’s
2. The power of empowering others
The next key to save significant time..
When planning your day or week: Delegate. Encourage your PMs to do the same. By delegating you empower others to take ownership of their work, you free up your own time and help PMs focus on tasks that truly require their expertise.
It does require you to let go of some control. And that is the perfect bridge to the second Tim Ferris quote:
“Doing something well doesn’t make it important.”
Or in slightly different words: That you do something well doesn’t mean that you should be the one doing it. You might be able to do it better right now, but if you take the time to delegate and teach the other person what you expect it will pay off.
e. Identify tasks that can be delegated to other team members.
3. Kill switching costs
There are many distractions in the current workplace. From business related to a spouse sending a message.. we get notifications about everything.
There is a huge cost is switching. It yields nothing but waste. Introduce timeboxing techniques like the Pomodoro Technique to help your PMs manage their time effectively. A tool I love myself is Forest, it locks up a phone for a set amount. Others are FocusKeeper and Pomodor. This can help your PMs stay focused and accomplish tasks more efficiently, ultimately saving even more time.
f. Implement focussed moments and reschedule to remove switching cost.
4. Hacking (and Slashing) Meetings
Remember: The biggest danger to your company is to become internally focussed. Your PMs should be focussing on client needs. To create time for that you should help them to not get stuck in a web of unnecessary meetings. They just clog up their already full calendar.
Manage this or your team will have a major time sink. Encourage your PMs to set clear objectives for meetings they run. Create concise agendas and invite only the necessary participants. NEVER start a meeting before the goal is clear. If culture permits it, you could even go so far as to mandate your PMs to opt-out or cancel a meeting if there is no goal. If you do that you should also take responsibility for them not being there.
And about ‘update’ meetings…
They can be replaced by email. If there is no decision making or communication where all parties give input you might be better off doing it over email.
Lastly, consider implementing stand-up meetings or shortening meeting durations to maintain focus and momentum. And don’t just call them stand-ups and then sit down! If implemented well, this will bring you a ton of hours.
g. Get rid of non-crucial meetings.
5. Plan, plan, plan. And plan.
Last step: It has been shown that each minute of planning saves 10 minutes in execution. Encourage your team to plan their day, week and month. Check them on it.
Ask them to tell you what they planned for the day, week and month and help them to figure out what happens if they aren’t able to keep to their plan.
h. Decide how to keep yourself and your team accountable to planning.
Conclusion
Time is essential for maximizing efficiency. Managing it is the way to massively increase your impact. By implementing these practical time-saving tips, you can help your team work more effectively, freeing up valuable time for higher-level planning and decision-making. Remember, a more efficient team leads to better product outcomes, decision-making, and ultimately: greater success for your organization.
Exercises for your 30-min improvement slot:
a. Choose a prioritization framework.
b. Apply it! Use your blocked 30-min improvement time and list everything you do.
c. Eliminate or automate 20% that is not contributing. By getting rid of that, you can focus on the top priorities.
d. Plan when you will do b. & c. with your PMs in the next 1-on-1’s
e. Identify tasks that can be delegated to other team members.
f. Implement focussed moments and reschedule to remove switching cost.
g. Get rid of non-crucial meetings.
BONUS: Let me know what you did! LinkedIn, reply to the newsletter, I will read it!
