15. Avoid Multitasking
Let’s talk about the effects of multitasking on estimation.
Many managers want people to work on several projects at one time. This is the multitasking problem. I’ve said before that multitasking introduces defects. We have research that says it makes you stupid. Still, some managers don’t want to manage the project portfolio and assign people or teams to projects. They think people can work on multiple projects at one time. We still have multitasking.
What can you do?
In Manage It! Your Guide to Modern, Pragmatic Project Management,(ROTPM), I said you shouldn’t even bother estimating when people are multitasking. Why?
- You have no idea when people will be available to work. A person might estimate a task will take four ...
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