Planning a Project and Getting It Done!

We are all experts at “planning” projects. For example, this summer I plan to plant a garden, redo my drainage system, attend three conferences on chemical education and/or leadership training, paint the exterior of my house, write and publish a newspaper full of kids’ activities, and adopt a dog. Of all the things listed above, however, I can realistically plan to complete only a few. There just isn’t enough time or money available to do them all. If I try, I will run the risk of diluting my efforts and end up with several incomplete projects—and nothing to show.

Managing a local section is not that different. Members of the section’s executive committee all come to the table with a set of pet projects that they would like to complete during their tenure. In many cases, it is their past successes or struggles in their areas of passion that have prompted them to seek office, or identified them candidates for the positions. The outcome, however, of trying to undertake everyone’s pet project at the same time, and without coordination, usually results in little or no progress, de-motivated leaders, and a sense of frustration with the system (or lack thereof). In order to avoid entropic rule, a system of prioritization must be put into place.

Knowing the requirements of my job, as well as the amount of time and money that I will be able to devote to my summer project list, I will have to delay painting the house until the fall after National Chemistry Week. I will also have to limit the scope of my new drainage plan to a few ditches dug into my front yard with flexible plastic drainpipes connecting to the rain gutters. It won’t be as pretty as I would have hoped, and it probably won’t win any big points for me in my neighbor’s eyes, but at least I’ll keep my job, and I will have accomplished something. I’ll also have to limit my travel to one conference on leadership training and one on chemical education. Attending a third meeting just isn’t in the budget and, short of a special board allocation, is not a realistic aspiration.

Projects in local sections can be prioritized in much the same way. Care must be taken, however, to listen to members of your executive committee to ensure buy-in by all. Dictatorial decrees generally end in decreased participation and alienation of those in the minority. If you are having trouble coming to a consensus, try asking each committee member to write down his or her top one or two projects. Copy them all onto a flip chart and give everyone three stick-on dots like those used to mark file folders. Let each person vote on the items that they think are most important to complete, allowing them to distribute their dots as they see fit. Generally, you should choose the three highest vote-getters to start.

If your budget is too tight, or if you don’t have enough volunteers to complete all three, consider lessening the scope of one or more of the projects. In the end, everyone will feel better about your year in office, because you’ll be the one that got things done!

David Harwell
Manager
Office of Community Activities

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