Submit Search
Upload
Tyranny of deadlines
•
2 likes
•
462 views
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Follow
Are the dead lines really the kings?
Read less
Read more
Business
Report
Share
Report
Share
1 of 4
Download now
Download to read offline
Recommended
Critical chain - Eliyahu goldratt
Critical chain - Eliyahu goldratt
azadiriz
Kerry.mushkin
Kerry.mushkin
NASAPMC
Dit yvol2iss36
Dit yvol2iss36
Rick Lemieux
Pinck.pascal
Pinck.pascal
NASAPMC
Top Ten Obstacles To Project Success
Top Ten Obstacles To Project Success
Lou Gasco
Critical Chain Project Management
Critical Chain Project Management
Fred Wiersma
Saving time with CCPM
Saving time with CCPM
Freek de Ruiter
Is project failure
Is project failure
Lunodzo Mwinuka
Recommended
Critical chain - Eliyahu goldratt
Critical chain - Eliyahu goldratt
azadiriz
Kerry.mushkin
Kerry.mushkin
NASAPMC
Dit yvol2iss36
Dit yvol2iss36
Rick Lemieux
Pinck.pascal
Pinck.pascal
NASAPMC
Top Ten Obstacles To Project Success
Top Ten Obstacles To Project Success
Lou Gasco
Critical Chain Project Management
Critical Chain Project Management
Fred Wiersma
Saving time with CCPM
Saving time with CCPM
Freek de Ruiter
Is project failure
Is project failure
Lunodzo Mwinuka
Critical Chain Basics
Critical Chain Basics
Jakub Linhart
Why Projects Fail + Four Steps to Succeed
Why Projects Fail + Four Steps to Succeed
Kevin Wordon
Jerry Walker - without a plan
Jerry Walker - without a plan
Paul Ellarby
The real reason that projects fail and how to fix it - An introduction to Cri...
The real reason that projects fail and how to fix it - An introduction to Cri...
Association for Project Management
An introduction to Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM)
An introduction to Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM)
Association for Project Management
Improving Focus and Predictability on Projects with Critical Chain Project Ma...
Improving Focus and Predictability on Projects with Critical Chain Project Ma...
Joe Cooper
Critical Chain Project Management
Critical Chain Project Management
Shyam Kerkar
TOC instuments for IT projects
TOC instuments for IT projects
Evgeniy Vyshegorodtsev
Major Projects - Faster Better Cheaper
Major Projects - Faster Better Cheaper
Ian Heptinstall
Critical chain primer
Critical chain primer
Dan Klarman
Critical chain-concepts
Critical chain-concepts
Fernanda Farias
Neelam pandey project management issues
Neelam pandey project management issues
PMInstituteIndia
Taming The Unpredictable: Real-World Adaptive Case Management
Taming The Unpredictable: Real-World Adaptive Case Management
Keith Swenson
Critical Chain Project Management
Critical Chain Project Management
Narendra Bhandava
Interview with michael mah vendor relations
Interview with michael mah vendor relations
Computer Aid, Inc
12.0 risk management agile+evm (v10.2)
12.0 risk management agile+evm (v10.2)
Glen Alleman
Untitled
Untitled
Kaizenlogcom
The Real Reason That Projects Fail and How to Fix it - An Introduction to Cri...
The Real Reason That Projects Fail and How to Fix it - An Introduction to Cri...
Association for Project Management
Esteem and Estimates (Ti Stimo Fratello)
Esteem and Estimates (Ti Stimo Fratello)
Gaetano Mazzanti
Critical chain project management - Gary Palmer
Critical chain project management - Gary Palmer
Association for Project Management
28.Causes of project failure A Lecture By Mr Allah Dad Khan Visiting Profes...
28.Causes of project failure A Lecture By Mr Allah Dad Khan Visiting Profes...
Mr.Allah Dad Khan
How Scope Creep Negatively Impacts Project Success (& How to Fix It)
How Scope Creep Negatively Impacts Project Success (& How to Fix It)
QuekelsBaro
More Related Content
What's hot
Critical Chain Basics
Critical Chain Basics
Jakub Linhart
Why Projects Fail + Four Steps to Succeed
Why Projects Fail + Four Steps to Succeed
Kevin Wordon
Jerry Walker - without a plan
Jerry Walker - without a plan
Paul Ellarby
The real reason that projects fail and how to fix it - An introduction to Cri...
The real reason that projects fail and how to fix it - An introduction to Cri...
Association for Project Management
An introduction to Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM)
An introduction to Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM)
Association for Project Management
Improving Focus and Predictability on Projects with Critical Chain Project Ma...
Improving Focus and Predictability on Projects with Critical Chain Project Ma...
Joe Cooper
Critical Chain Project Management
Critical Chain Project Management
Shyam Kerkar
TOC instuments for IT projects
TOC instuments for IT projects
Evgeniy Vyshegorodtsev
Major Projects - Faster Better Cheaper
Major Projects - Faster Better Cheaper
Ian Heptinstall
Critical chain primer
Critical chain primer
Dan Klarman
Critical chain-concepts
Critical chain-concepts
Fernanda Farias
Neelam pandey project management issues
Neelam pandey project management issues
PMInstituteIndia
Taming The Unpredictable: Real-World Adaptive Case Management
Taming The Unpredictable: Real-World Adaptive Case Management
Keith Swenson
Critical Chain Project Management
Critical Chain Project Management
Narendra Bhandava
Interview with michael mah vendor relations
Interview with michael mah vendor relations
Computer Aid, Inc
12.0 risk management agile+evm (v10.2)
12.0 risk management agile+evm (v10.2)
Glen Alleman
Untitled
Untitled
Kaizenlogcom
The Real Reason That Projects Fail and How to Fix it - An Introduction to Cri...
The Real Reason That Projects Fail and How to Fix it - An Introduction to Cri...
Association for Project Management
Esteem and Estimates (Ti Stimo Fratello)
Esteem and Estimates (Ti Stimo Fratello)
Gaetano Mazzanti
Critical chain project management - Gary Palmer
Critical chain project management - Gary Palmer
Association for Project Management
What's hot
(20)
Critical Chain Basics
Critical Chain Basics
Why Projects Fail + Four Steps to Succeed
Why Projects Fail + Four Steps to Succeed
Jerry Walker - without a plan
Jerry Walker - without a plan
The real reason that projects fail and how to fix it - An introduction to Cri...
The real reason that projects fail and how to fix it - An introduction to Cri...
An introduction to Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM)
An introduction to Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM)
Improving Focus and Predictability on Projects with Critical Chain Project Ma...
Improving Focus and Predictability on Projects with Critical Chain Project Ma...
Critical Chain Project Management
Critical Chain Project Management
TOC instuments for IT projects
TOC instuments for IT projects
Major Projects - Faster Better Cheaper
Major Projects - Faster Better Cheaper
Critical chain primer
Critical chain primer
Critical chain-concepts
Critical chain-concepts
Neelam pandey project management issues
Neelam pandey project management issues
Taming The Unpredictable: Real-World Adaptive Case Management
Taming The Unpredictable: Real-World Adaptive Case Management
Critical Chain Project Management
Critical Chain Project Management
Interview with michael mah vendor relations
Interview with michael mah vendor relations
12.0 risk management agile+evm (v10.2)
12.0 risk management agile+evm (v10.2)
Untitled
Untitled
The Real Reason That Projects Fail and How to Fix it - An Introduction to Cri...
The Real Reason That Projects Fail and How to Fix it - An Introduction to Cri...
Esteem and Estimates (Ti Stimo Fratello)
Esteem and Estimates (Ti Stimo Fratello)
Critical chain project management - Gary Palmer
Critical chain project management - Gary Palmer
Similar to Tyranny of deadlines
28.Causes of project failure A Lecture By Mr Allah Dad Khan Visiting Profes...
28.Causes of project failure A Lecture By Mr Allah Dad Khan Visiting Profes...
Mr.Allah Dad Khan
How Scope Creep Negatively Impacts Project Success (& How to Fix It)
How Scope Creep Negatively Impacts Project Success (& How to Fix It)
QuekelsBaro
Improving Focus, Predictability, and Team Morale on Projects
Improving Focus, Predictability, and Team Morale on Projects
Joe Cooper
Project Management: Your Guide in Acing the Project
Project Management: Your Guide in Acing the Project
Orchestrate Mortgage and Title Solutions, LLC
Project
Project
sobakavi
10 critical factors for success of a project
10 critical factors for success of a project
Zilicus
Risky Business
Risky Business
3gamma
Planning can we do with out it?
Planning can we do with out it?
Catherine Bendell
importance of resources allocation in formal method of software engineering ...
importance of resources allocation in formal method of software engineering ...
Abdul Naqashbandi
mipb 2 capacityplanning v05_print_sam
mipb 2 capacityplanning v05_print_sam
Jason Neale
10 more quotes that make you a better project manager
10 more quotes that make you a better project manager
NirtiSingla
ETCA_1
ETCA_1
PMI2011
Paper mythical manmonth
Paper mythical manmonth
Vu Hung Nguyen
Project Management Overview by Darryl Vleeming
Project Management Overview by Darryl Vleeming
Darryl Vleeming
Estimate budget and project crashing.pptx
Estimate budget and project crashing.pptx
MIANMNADEEM
Why Scheduling Mustn't Be Allowed to Become an Extinct Science
Why Scheduling Mustn't Be Allowed to Become an Extinct Science
Acumen
Sheet1Lectocomp Electronics Manufacturing CompanyProject RisksAsse.docx
Sheet1Lectocomp Electronics Manufacturing CompanyProject RisksAsse.docx
lesleyryder69361
The Rules of Lean Project Management
The Rules of Lean Project Management
Claude Emond
Project Planning
Project Planning
William Zuppinger, PMP, RMP
Best Project Scheduling Techniques.
Best Project Scheduling Techniques.
NIILM University
Similar to Tyranny of deadlines
(20)
28.Causes of project failure A Lecture By Mr Allah Dad Khan Visiting Profes...
28.Causes of project failure A Lecture By Mr Allah Dad Khan Visiting Profes...
How Scope Creep Negatively Impacts Project Success (& How to Fix It)
How Scope Creep Negatively Impacts Project Success (& How to Fix It)
Improving Focus, Predictability, and Team Morale on Projects
Improving Focus, Predictability, and Team Morale on Projects
Project Management: Your Guide in Acing the Project
Project Management: Your Guide in Acing the Project
Project
Project
10 critical factors for success of a project
10 critical factors for success of a project
Risky Business
Risky Business
Planning can we do with out it?
Planning can we do with out it?
importance of resources allocation in formal method of software engineering ...
importance of resources allocation in formal method of software engineering ...
mipb 2 capacityplanning v05_print_sam
mipb 2 capacityplanning v05_print_sam
10 more quotes that make you a better project manager
10 more quotes that make you a better project manager
ETCA_1
ETCA_1
Paper mythical manmonth
Paper mythical manmonth
Project Management Overview by Darryl Vleeming
Project Management Overview by Darryl Vleeming
Estimate budget and project crashing.pptx
Estimate budget and project crashing.pptx
Why Scheduling Mustn't Be Allowed to Become an Extinct Science
Why Scheduling Mustn't Be Allowed to Become an Extinct Science
Sheet1Lectocomp Electronics Manufacturing CompanyProject RisksAsse.docx
Sheet1Lectocomp Electronics Manufacturing CompanyProject RisksAsse.docx
The Rules of Lean Project Management
The Rules of Lean Project Management
Project Planning
Project Planning
Best Project Scheduling Techniques.
Best Project Scheduling Techniques.
More from Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Saglik sektorundeki-trend-ve-ongoruler-nisan-2014
Saglik sektorundeki-trend-ve-ongoruler-nisan-2014
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Managing healthcare supply chain
Managing healthcare supply chain
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Medicalization of health Haiti
Medicalization of health Haiti
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Hospital supply chain core problem Tahran
Hospital supply chain core problem Tahran
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Mc kinsey- building new strenghts in healthcare supply chain
Mc kinsey- building new strenghts in healthcare supply chain
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Gartner supply chainnovators 2015
Gartner supply chainnovators 2015
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
McKinsey - Strengthening health cares supply chain
McKinsey - Strengthening health cares supply chain
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Gartner the healthcare supply chain top 25 for 2014
Gartner the healthcare supply chain top 25 for 2014
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Devlet Malzeme Ofisi Stratejik Plan (2015 - 2019)
Devlet Malzeme Ofisi Stratejik Plan (2015 - 2019)
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
T. C. Sağlık Bakanlığı Stratejik Plan (2013 - 2017)
T. C. Sağlık Bakanlığı Stratejik Plan (2013 - 2017)
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
TBMM 10. Kalkınma Planı (2014 - 2018)
TBMM 10. Kalkınma Planı (2014 - 2018)
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Sağlık bakanlığı 2013/09 sayılı stok yönetim uygulamaları
Sağlık bakanlığı 2013/09 sayılı stok yönetim uygulamaları
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Sayıştay mart 2005 hastanelere ilaç alımı raporu
Sayıştay mart 2005 hastanelere ilaç alımı raporu
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Sağlıkta yeni nesil tedarik zinciri yönetimi
Sağlıkta yeni nesil tedarik zinciri yönetimi
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Utkan Ulucay SCL Implementer Certificate
Utkan Ulucay SCL Implementer Certificate
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Israil izlenimleri
Israil izlenimleri
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Loder mtso lojistikte yeni bakış açısı utkan uluçay
Loder mtso lojistikte yeni bakış açısı utkan uluçay
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Staying demand driven 1
Staying demand driven 1
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Staying demand driven 2
Staying demand driven 2
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
Staying demand driven 3
Staying demand driven 3
Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
More from Utkan Uluçay, MSc., CDDP
(20)
Saglik sektorundeki-trend-ve-ongoruler-nisan-2014
Saglik sektorundeki-trend-ve-ongoruler-nisan-2014
Managing healthcare supply chain
Managing healthcare supply chain
Medicalization of health Haiti
Medicalization of health Haiti
Hospital supply chain core problem Tahran
Hospital supply chain core problem Tahran
Mc kinsey- building new strenghts in healthcare supply chain
Mc kinsey- building new strenghts in healthcare supply chain
Gartner supply chainnovators 2015
Gartner supply chainnovators 2015
McKinsey - Strengthening health cares supply chain
McKinsey - Strengthening health cares supply chain
Gartner the healthcare supply chain top 25 for 2014
Gartner the healthcare supply chain top 25 for 2014
Devlet Malzeme Ofisi Stratejik Plan (2015 - 2019)
Devlet Malzeme Ofisi Stratejik Plan (2015 - 2019)
T. C. Sağlık Bakanlığı Stratejik Plan (2013 - 2017)
T. C. Sağlık Bakanlığı Stratejik Plan (2013 - 2017)
TBMM 10. Kalkınma Planı (2014 - 2018)
TBMM 10. Kalkınma Planı (2014 - 2018)
Sağlık bakanlığı 2013/09 sayılı stok yönetim uygulamaları
Sağlık bakanlığı 2013/09 sayılı stok yönetim uygulamaları
Sayıştay mart 2005 hastanelere ilaç alımı raporu
Sayıştay mart 2005 hastanelere ilaç alımı raporu
Sağlıkta yeni nesil tedarik zinciri yönetimi
Sağlıkta yeni nesil tedarik zinciri yönetimi
Utkan Ulucay SCL Implementer Certificate
Utkan Ulucay SCL Implementer Certificate
Israil izlenimleri
Israil izlenimleri
Loder mtso lojistikte yeni bakış açısı utkan uluçay
Loder mtso lojistikte yeni bakış açısı utkan uluçay
Staying demand driven 1
Staying demand driven 1
Staying demand driven 2
Staying demand driven 2
Staying demand driven 3
Staying demand driven 3
Recently uploaded
The CMO Survey - Highlights and Insights Report - Spring 2024
The CMO Survey - Highlights and Insights Report - Spring 2024
christinemoorman
Call Girls In Sikandarpur Gurgaon ❤️8860477959_Russian 100% Genuine Escorts I...
Call Girls In Sikandarpur Gurgaon ❤️8860477959_Russian 100% Genuine Escorts I...
lizamodels9
Sales & Marketing Alignment: How to Synergize for Success
Sales & Marketing Alignment: How to Synergize for Success
Aggregage
Call Girls Navi Mumbai Just Call 9907093804 Top Class Call Girl Service Avail...
Call Girls Navi Mumbai Just Call 9907093804 Top Class Call Girl Service Avail...
Dipal Arora
Call Girls Pune Just Call 9907093804 Top Class Call Girl Service Available
Call Girls Pune Just Call 9907093804 Top Class Call Girl Service Available
Dipal Arora
rishikeshgirls.in- Rishikesh call girl.pdf
rishikeshgirls.in- Rishikesh call girl.pdf
muskan1121w
/:Call Girls In Jaypee Siddharth - 5 Star Hotel New Delhi ➥9990211544 Top Esc...
/:Call Girls In Jaypee Siddharth - 5 Star Hotel New Delhi ➥9990211544 Top Esc...
lizamodels9
Call Girls In Panjim North Goa 9971646499 Genuine Service
Call Girls In Panjim North Goa 9971646499 Genuine Service
ritikaroy0888
M.C Lodges -- Guest House in Jhang.
M.C Lodges -- Guest House in Jhang.
Aaiza Hassan
KestrelPro Flyer Japan IT Week 2024 (English)
KestrelPro Flyer Japan IT Week 2024 (English)
Data Analytics Company - 47Billion Inc.
Tech Startup Growth Hacking 101 - Basics on Growth Marketing
Tech Startup Growth Hacking 101 - Basics on Growth Marketing
Shawn Pang
Enhancing and Restoring Safety & Quality Cultures - Dave Litwiller - May 2024...
Enhancing and Restoring Safety & Quality Cultures - Dave Litwiller - May 2024...
Dave Litwiller
Call Girls In Radisson Blu Hotel New Delhi Paschim Vihar ❤️8860477959 Escorts...
Call Girls In Radisson Blu Hotel New Delhi Paschim Vihar ❤️8860477959 Escorts...
lizamodels9
7.pdf This presentation captures many uses and the significance of the number...
7.pdf This presentation captures many uses and the significance of the number...
Paul Menig
Vip Female Escorts Noida 9711199171 Greater Noida Escorts Service
Vip Female Escorts Noida 9711199171 Greater Noida Escorts Service
ankitnayak356677
Pharma Works Profile of Karan Communications
Pharma Works Profile of Karan Communications
karancommunications
Intro to BCG's Carbon Emissions Benchmark_vF.pdf
Intro to BCG's Carbon Emissions Benchmark_vF.pdf
pollardmorgan
Best Practices for Implementing an External Recruiting Partnership
Best Practices for Implementing an External Recruiting Partnership
Recruitment Process Outsourcing Association
Non Text Magic Studio Magic Design for Presentations L&P.pptx
Non Text Magic Studio Magic Design for Presentations L&P.pptx
AbhayThakur200703
Mondelez State of Snacking and Future Trends 2023
Mondelez State of Snacking and Future Trends 2023
Neil Kimberley
Recently uploaded
(20)
The CMO Survey - Highlights and Insights Report - Spring 2024
The CMO Survey - Highlights and Insights Report - Spring 2024
Call Girls In Sikandarpur Gurgaon ❤️8860477959_Russian 100% Genuine Escorts I...
Call Girls In Sikandarpur Gurgaon ❤️8860477959_Russian 100% Genuine Escorts I...
Sales & Marketing Alignment: How to Synergize for Success
Sales & Marketing Alignment: How to Synergize for Success
Call Girls Navi Mumbai Just Call 9907093804 Top Class Call Girl Service Avail...
Call Girls Navi Mumbai Just Call 9907093804 Top Class Call Girl Service Avail...
Call Girls Pune Just Call 9907093804 Top Class Call Girl Service Available
Call Girls Pune Just Call 9907093804 Top Class Call Girl Service Available
rishikeshgirls.in- Rishikesh call girl.pdf
rishikeshgirls.in- Rishikesh call girl.pdf
/:Call Girls In Jaypee Siddharth - 5 Star Hotel New Delhi ➥9990211544 Top Esc...
/:Call Girls In Jaypee Siddharth - 5 Star Hotel New Delhi ➥9990211544 Top Esc...
Call Girls In Panjim North Goa 9971646499 Genuine Service
Call Girls In Panjim North Goa 9971646499 Genuine Service
M.C Lodges -- Guest House in Jhang.
M.C Lodges -- Guest House in Jhang.
KestrelPro Flyer Japan IT Week 2024 (English)
KestrelPro Flyer Japan IT Week 2024 (English)
Tech Startup Growth Hacking 101 - Basics on Growth Marketing
Tech Startup Growth Hacking 101 - Basics on Growth Marketing
Enhancing and Restoring Safety & Quality Cultures - Dave Litwiller - May 2024...
Enhancing and Restoring Safety & Quality Cultures - Dave Litwiller - May 2024...
Call Girls In Radisson Blu Hotel New Delhi Paschim Vihar ❤️8860477959 Escorts...
Call Girls In Radisson Blu Hotel New Delhi Paschim Vihar ❤️8860477959 Escorts...
7.pdf This presentation captures many uses and the significance of the number...
7.pdf This presentation captures many uses and the significance of the number...
Vip Female Escorts Noida 9711199171 Greater Noida Escorts Service
Vip Female Escorts Noida 9711199171 Greater Noida Escorts Service
Pharma Works Profile of Karan Communications
Pharma Works Profile of Karan Communications
Intro to BCG's Carbon Emissions Benchmark_vF.pdf
Intro to BCG's Carbon Emissions Benchmark_vF.pdf
Best Practices for Implementing an External Recruiting Partnership
Best Practices for Implementing an External Recruiting Partnership
Non Text Magic Studio Magic Design for Presentations L&P.pptx
Non Text Magic Studio Magic Design for Presentations L&P.pptx
Mondelez State of Snacking and Future Trends 2023
Mondelez State of Snacking and Future Trends 2023
Tyranny of deadlines
1.
1 © 2013,
ProChain Solutions, Inc. Originally published as part of 2013 Scheduling Conference Proceedings – Orlando, Florida The Tyranny of Deadlines Rob Newbold, CEO, ProChain Solutions, Inc. Introduction Most people agree that speed is good. They also agree that deadlines are good, because ability to hit deadlines is considered to be a sign of good management. It’s a better worker who can consistently make and meet her deadlines; it’s a better company that has excellent due-date performance. What people rarely realize is that deadlines, taken by themselves, are inimical to speed. They promote safety time and multitasking; they cause project systems to be homeostatic rather than fast. The three sections of this paper discuss how deadlines can be bad, why the problems aren’t recognized, and what can be done to fix them. The Problem with Deadlines For purposes of this paper, I will call a “deadline” any date that you really don’t want to miss. Deadlines can be set for individual tasks or entire projects, they can be formal or informal. I have seen them used for projects as diverse as construction, drug development, and aircraft engineering. In fact, I have very rarely seen a project organization in which deadlines did not form an important part of management’s tracking and measuring system. Project health, from a time perspective, is translated as “are we going to hit our deadline?” Wall Street rewards predictability and punishes instability; individual workers are rewarded for hitting deadlines and punished for missing them. Deadlines come with the expectation that unless something goes drastically wrong, they should be achieved. The promise of deadlines is extremely simple and logical: if everyone hits their individual deadlines, the projects will hit their deadlines. But let’s explore what really happens. Work has variation. That is not a bad thing; ability to handle variation can be equated with adding value (Reinertsen, 1997, 16). Innumerable unpredictable occurrences, from weather to creativity to individual productivity, may affect how long things take. Therefore, in order to set deadlines that we can achieve with a reasonably high probability, our tasks and projects must contain a certain level of safety time. Otherwise the promise of deadlines is impossible. That safety time creates a conflict between individuals and the organization: customers (and managers) want a commitment as early as possible, because faster is usually better than slower; workers want a later commitment, in order to have a good chance to make their deadlines. Workers can expect safety time to disappear if they acknowledge it, so typically they don’t. In fact, workers often experience an actual conflict of interest: being transparent about how long things take and how much uncertainty there is, versus keeping it hidden in order to preserve safety time. Date discussions are rarely about what is real and credible, but about compromises that people think they can live with. This lack of transparency is certainly a problem. It can be seen, for example, in the prevalence of “schedule chicken”: a process of “contagious schedule slips” (Schedule_chicken, 2013, ¶1) stemming from a reluctance to report that you’re going to miss your deadline, instead hoping that someone else will have to report a delay first and thereby take the blame. But deadlines pose even bigger problems: they promote multitasking. For example, suppose you have a task that should take two weeks on average to complete and you’ve been given four. If someone asks you to do something else, why not agree? You have time. To say “no,” you would have to be unresponsive, which is never a good idea. Inability to deliver early is still another problem with deadlines. Here are a few reasons deadlines are rarely completed early, for projects or tasks: • If you deliver early, the next time you negotiate for safety time you will be given less. • If you are on track to deliver on time easily, there are probably other things – for example, other dates – that appear to be more urgent.
2.
2 © 2013,
ProChain Solutions, Inc. Originally published as part of 2013 Scheduling Conference Proceedings – Orlando, Florida • Others are basing their actions on your deadline, and will not be ready to move the work forward until that date. Sometimes they’re even upset when you deliver early. • When requirements are unclear, work can easily be handed off on a date rather than when it is “done.” Of course, this pushes problems downstream, where the cost of fixing them becomes dramatically greater (see, for example, Boehm, 1986, 15). Multitasking leads to decreased efficiency and longer cycle times (Goldratt, 1997, 125-127; Newbold, 2008, 43-47). It also leads to significant increases in variation, because it is very difficult to predict when or how much people actually will multitask. Dates end up being relatively arbitrary, because we can’t predict how much safety time will be needed. The more safety time you include, the more you need. The impact of all this on projects – deadlines, multitasking, rarely delivering early – is drastic. Cycle times and stress are high, efficiency and transparency are low. Ironically, management’s typical reaction to poor results is to emphasize deadlines even more, locking in the vicious cycle. An obvious retort is that some expert project managers use milestones and have excellent track records. To answer what’s going on there, I have one word: homeostasis. Deadline systems tend to be homeostatic relative to their deadline dates. They seek equilibrium around those dates. If a project or task is late, people work hard to get it back on track, sometimes working weekends and evenings to make it happen. If a project or task is early, people relax, maybe shuffling resources to something more urgent. There are pressures that move things earlier and later. Most project organizations are self-correcting as they try to hit their dates. Speed – above whatever is needed to hit deadlines – is agonizingly difficult. Good project managers rely on good scheduling as an early warning system in case things go wrong. They are adept at motivating their teams, grabbing additional resources, and stashing away safety time. Poor project managers may take some time to recognize when things have gone wrong. Most organizations have some range of project managers, meaning that – while projects are rarely very early – they are frequently late. In other words, the true homeostasis point – the equilibrium reached relative to deadline dates – averages somewhat later than the actual dates. On average, projects tend to be late. Better project management unquestionably makes a difference. However, in a deadline system, true speed is rare. In my experience, that is true even in well-managed project organizations, whether they schedule using CPM, critical chain, or some other approach. In summary, the “deadline promise” – make all your deadlines and the projects will finish on time – often doesn’t work. Unwillingness to deliver early promotes multitasking. Multitasking brings its attendant longer cycle times, low efficiency, high variability and high stress; making it harder to deliver early. The entire cycle generates poor transparency and poor due-date performance. Why the Problems Are Not Recognized The next logical question would be: if this is such a big deal, why don’t we talk about it? There are several reasons. Deadlines are a given, so we don’t talk about them. When is the last time you had a serious discussion about gravity? We look at due-date performance, but we rarely look at how early the most important projects are. Consider the Standish Group’s Chaos Report, that often-cited biennial survey of IT project health. Standish talks about projects that are cancelled, challenged, and successful. Many people have expressed reservations about their methodology. Here’s mine: statistically, there is a huge piece missing, namely how many projects are early. Some companies have R&D projects that have value of a million dollars or more for every day they can be delivered early. How can that be unimportant? Customers assume deadlines. In fact, sometimes funding is not available to support early delivery. That doesn’t necessarily mean that there is no advantage to finishing earlier. People don’t understand the cause-and-effect relationships that lead from deadlines to missed dates and poor productivity.
3.
3 © 2013,
ProChain Solutions, Inc. Originally published as part of 2013 Scheduling Conference Proceedings – Orlando, Florida Deadlines can be very convenient, because they eliminate the tiresome need for credible schedules and detailed priorities. For example, suppose you are assigned task A for project X and task B for project Y. Which do you work first? If the tasks have deadlines, that solves the problem: work whichever task is most in danger of missing its deadline. Maybe you multitask to make sure that each task continues to present minimal risk. But suppose task B is driving project X’s completion, and task A is not driving Y’s completion. Do you work X, to the detriment of a milestone on Y? Suppose completing project A has a hundred times the value of completing project B – what then? Organizations that have neither speed nor predictability tend to value predictability. They assume that predictability must come first, as a sign of good management. They intend to push for speed when good management is in place. Unfortunately, better management is often taken to mean more and more emphasis on due dates, which makes the problems worse. In fact, predictability and speed are both results of good management. The level of lateness is sometimes hard to identify clearly, because when it is clear that dates will be missed, they often change. We’re no longer considered late if the date is moved out. There are many justifications for this “moving finish line” syndrome: changes to scope, acts of God, vendor problems, and so on. Given the emphasis on deadlines, it isn’t surprising that people would want to point fingers away from themselves when deadlines are in jeopardy. The Solution People use a relatively small number of reasons to explain why they can’t avoid deadlines: • Deadlines are an essential means of dealing with customers. • Dates are how people communicate and interact inside a company. • Dates are how we measure people. • There is no real problem with deadlines; we don’t want to be late on our promises, and if we’re early, that’s fine. These reactions are truly difficult to overcome. Getting rid of deadlines would upend the universe as people usually understand it. It would require major changes to culture and systems. Because of this, and despite everything written above, I do not recommend getting rid of dates. Instead, I recommend putting them in context. Consider an organizational value expressed in the same way as the Agile Manifesto (Beck et al, 2001): we value speed over deadlines. It’s not that we don’t value deadlines; it’s that we value speed more. Deadlines must be put in a context of speed. In fact, let’s give it a little more emphasis: Deadline dates are fine until they conflict with speed. As a simple thought experiment, suppose you have a project worth $1,000 for each day it is delivered early, and another that is worth $100,000 per day. Finishing the first on time is fine – as long as the second is moving as quickly as possible. If you are familiar with agile or lean methodologies, this will seem perfectly normal. Here are a few ideas you can promote to help people in valuing speed over deadlines: • Communicate dates sparingly, preferably only for key deliverables. Use schedules and precedence-driven, value-based priorities. • When you have commitment dates, work to beat them. Make on-time performance a necessary condition and speed a competitive edge. You still have the deadline, but speed is even more important. • Promote the critical chain idea of creating explicit “buffers” (Newbold, 2008, 72-74) to track safety time. The end of the buffer is the commitment date, but you want to minimize consumption rather than consume it all. When we have date ranges based on credible project schedules, we can have scrutiny without negotiation or recrimination. We value speed over deadlines.
4.
4 © 2013,
ProChain Solutions, Inc. Originally published as part of 2013 Scheduling Conference Proceedings – Orlando, Florida • “Deadline conformance” is not a good measurement of people if the dates are arbitrary, or negotiated, or conceal a lot of variability. Instead, learn to measure people based on how they really do, for example capabilities, quality and speed of work, and attitude. Measure for early, not on-time. • It’s ok to value quality over speed, just don’t work to dates. Work to “done.” If you still think deadlines aren’t a problem, I urge you to contemplate them next time you’re waiting in a doctor’s office at 10 a.m. for a 9:30 appointment. Is that a homeostatic system? Is it chronically late? Do you think your doctor multitasks? References Beck et al. (2001) Manifesto for Agile Software Development. Retrieved on 1 April 2013 from http://www.agilemanifesto.org/. Boehm, B. W. (1986) Understanding and Controlling Software Costs [Electronic Version]. Retrieved on 31 March 2013 from http://csse.usc.edu/csse/TECHRPTS/1986/usccse86-501/usccse86-501.pdf. Goldratt, E. M. (1997) Critical Chain. Great Barrington, MA: North River Press. Newbold, R. C. (2008) The Billion Dollar Solution. Lake Ridge, VA: ProChain Press. Reinertsen, D. G. (1997) Managing the Design Factory. New York: The Free Press. Schedule_chicken. (2013, February 13). In Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved March 31, 2013, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schedule_chicken.
Download now