I do not have experience in the field, so my answer will be in terms of group projects. In the beginning of a project, I like to sit down with the team and list our major goals. It will then be assembled into a Word document with deadlines. I found it helpful to meet every few days to check in on everyone's progress, see if any times need to be adjusted, and/or if shifting focus to complete the top priority is necessary. It really all comes down to communication and honesty, even if you may be embarrassed for dropping the ball. Coming forward as soon as possible can help get the team back on the right path.

I personally have not had the experience of being a PM, but I am able to recall a time that priorities shifted at my previous job. 

I previously worked for a medical device company that was planning on submitting a medical device to the FDA for approval. This medical device had been years in the making and numerous tests were done on every aspect of it. The device had already been submitted to the FDA, but they had asked for more information regarding some of the testing scenarios that it underwent. As a result, the tests needed to be re-run. At this time, we were all working on different projects that were not as important as this FDA submission. As soon as we heard that they needed more information, everyone had to essentially drop the task they were doing and work to complete this new task for resubmission. Luckily, we had known that they may ask for more details regarding our testing, so we were prepared and ready to jump right into it. Since our manager had told us that this may happen, we weren't surprised when it actually did happen and were able to hit the ground running. 

I think the most important thing with shifting priorities during a project is keeping everyone in the loop so that they know what is happening. Without that, people will be lost and confused.

@cassiem I think you definitely identified the biggest factor when it comes to group projects and that is communication. It is rare that you will find the "perfect" group where everyone always does their assigned part well and in advance but keeping a constant stream of communication in the duration of the project will help identify and resolve any issues that may be happening. It will also help keep everyone in check and responsible for their portion of the project. Having a team that is always on the same page and working together as a unit will help create a project that flows well together and always moving towards the end goal of completion. Various things can come up to divert the project from its intended path but communication is what will help guide it back.

While I do not have experience working as a Project Manager, I can only contribute my experiences from working in group projects and reporting to project managers. 

I noticed there are a variety of tasks and processes going on and PMs have to be aware of the status of each to ensure they are delivering a successful product on time. A good point was made in which it is helpful to make a list of priorities and tackle them appropriately. To ensure a team stays on track to meet a goal or project on time, I think communication is important as well as setting team deadlines to ensure there is enough slack for setbacks and to implement contingency plans. By doing so, you are ensuring that you have more than enough time to reach your deadline and stay on track with the project whilst implementing some changes. 

@cassiem The discussion and goal setting is something I agree with. It is important to have a common goal and mentality amongst the group members, especially in projects which are not capable of being done short term. Each individual in the group needs to being on the common ground and work toward the the same ideas, not combat each other. 

Communication is key, but not just verbal. I think making lists and documents which visually communicate what needs to be done allows more incentive to be taken for projects and allows individuals to follow both by word of mouth and by writing. I would also add progress check ups prior to due dates to allow the project manager to understand that things are going accordingly or not and allowing them to adjust the schedule and plan based on the progress of individuals. 

As a project manager, it is important to use management tools to deal with priorities. Since the pandemic has started, there has been an increasing amount of people that work from home. Working from home and the ability to set your own hours can leave room for laziness for some people. As a project manager, it is important that everyone on your team has the same understanding and desire to prioritize the work at hand. One way to prioritize is to keep a tracker of all open projects and due dates. Each day, you can filter the tracker by due date and prioritize the tasks that are upcoming. Additionally, it is important to prioritize tasks that will take a lot of time to complete or involve reaching out to different cross functional resources. Staying focused on the main goal/task at hand can also help keep prioritizes in mind. On the job experience also helps people learn to prioritize. In your experience, do you feel it is easier to prioritize in the office or working from home? 

As a new engineer, I sometimes have trouble assessing priorities for a project I'm not familiar with. Upon becoming familiar with the project, the major milestones needed to complete the project become more clear. Determining how long these milestones take is also an important factor. I have trouble estimating how long these actions might take, which makes it harder to shift priorities. I am fortunate to be able to consult with subject-matter experts who have a better understanding how long projects might take. I can then learn to shift priorities for a project.

I think there are several tips which could be helpful for managing priorities in a project. As mentioned by other responses under this topic, listing things that need to be done is an effective way to manage priorities.  Listing things will help the project team have a plan for the whole project. Also, In my opinion, time management skills are also required for managing priorities. the priorities might be changed at some point especially for some long-period projects and the schedule might need to be changed. In that case, the project team might need extra time to handle these issues. That requires a precise schedule which needs advanced time management skills. At the same time, the project manager needs to ensure that every step is complete on time. 

Even though I also don't have Project Management experience but I used Microsoft Project in undergraduate BME capstone project class. I can say having skill with a great yet simple tool like Microsoft Project can help tremendously to manage hundreds of moving parameters and deadlines during a project. Simply listing goals/deadlines will not suffice in big projects with many moving parts. Tools like this helps track each deadline, keeps you on track with action plans, and adjust deadlines accordingly. Then one has to make sure they take proper actions at right time to meet those timelines and communicate to appropriate teams in a timely manner to move everyone along in successful completion of project. 

If the priorities concern different projects then they can be done according to deadlines. I work in a manufacturing companies and our priorities are set according to launch date, project profit value, and volume. 

Management tools I would use to prioritize a project include:

Make the Project Schedule Visible to Everyone this keeps team members updated on their top priorities every day. The use of collaborative project and work management tools lets everyone from individuals to managers to stakeholders have unlimited visibility into the project schedule and all the associated work in progress.

Creating a Project Backlog is also a great way to prioritize teamwork. This lets you capture all of your project tasks before you assign priorities to team members. A great way to put this into play is to use a work management application that includes a folder for your backlog tasks. The project backlog concept can be an important tool to show management all of the work that falls under your team’s responsibility that still needs prioritization.

Finally drawing lines between Urgent and Important Tasks. Urgent tasks get immediate attention based on business-critical factors like winning new business and keeping existing business. Getting a check from a customer as the result is often the big decider with urgent tasks for many organizations.

Important tasks receive ongoing attention and are only put on hold when an urgent task truly requires all hands on deck. Important tasks support the projects that together keep the business going, so don’t undervalue their priorities. When a new work request comes in, you have to ask yourself if it falls into Urgent or Important task buckets. If you’re not sure, use it as an opportunity to have a conversation clarifier around what the larger goal is, and structure your priorities from there. You don’t want to be the person always saying yes to an incoming urgent task.

As the project manager, it’s up to you to stay proactive in directing the undulations of the team’s priorities. Make sure your team has the tools and schedule access they need to know what their priorities are. Get to know what your team is doing, what individuals need, and what your stakeholders are expecting from you. If you manage priorities effectively, not only will you increase productivity, you’ll improve your team’s morale. Everyone wants to do work that really makes a difference!

What kind of project management tools do you use to deal with priorities as a Project Manager?  Have you found that there are constantly shifting priorities in a Project? How do you ensure that your team remains on track and works towards a common goal?

There are numerous tools that a Project Manager has at their disposal to deal with shifting project priorities and help the project team to focus on the main project goal.  In addition to effective leadership and proper communication, one of the tools that the Project Manager can employ to manage priorities is the Eisenhower Matrix also known as the Urgent-Importance Matrix, which serves as a means of sorting tasks that need completion based on the level of importance and can even identify those tasks which should not be completed in the first place.  Within this matrix tasks usually fall into one of four categories.  Important and urgent, which should be accomplished immediately, Important but not urgent which should be scheduled for completion. Not important but urgent which should be delegated and not urgent and not important which are tasks that could potentially be eliminated altogether as they may be time-wasters (Kissflow, 2022).

What other tools can a Project Manager utilize to keep their team focused on a common goal?

References

Kissflow. (2022, January 28). 6 realistic ideas to prioritize tasks and meet project deadlines at work. https://kissflow.com/project/team/how-to-prioritize-project-tasks/

What kind of project management tools do you use to deal with priorities as a Project Manager?

Have you found that there are constantly shifting priorities in a Project?

How do you ensure that your team remains on track and works towards a common goal?

In terms of management software, I like monday.com as it looks nice, is available for free to students, and has real time collaboration features. It's a simple way to assign roles and responsibilities for tasks, an as long as the teammates are responsive, it can be incredibly useful to keep track of multiple ongoing projects and goals. Ideally, there should not be constantly shifting high level priorities in a project. There are overall priorities when setting the goals and objectives of a project. These goals should remain constant, though the actions to reach the goals should and will change over time. There are different levels of priorities in a project and I believe a top-bottom approach is an efficient way to approach priorities. You begin with your overall goals for the project, then break them down into smaller, achievable action items in whatever timespan you choose. Priorities will shift on a daily or weekly or monthly basis, all depending on the specific goals and time/effort it takes to progress on them. Keeping track of these priorities and ensuring that they are understood when working on the objectives is the most efficient way to deal with shifting priorities.

In order to keep teammates on track, it is imperative that the team understand the common goal they are working towards as well as individual roles and responsibilities to achieve that goal. Interpersonal skills are imperative to inform teammates of their responsibilities and motivate them to achieve those goals. Be understanding and do not have unrealistic expectations. In my own experience with group projects, it is important to check in with my teammates instead of solely giving them responsibilities and expecting them to have it done by the deadline. A lot of the time, my expectations are not met, though that could have been mitigated if I had checked in with them over time to provide feedback.

I’ve never worked as a PM, but as a team member on a new product development team I know it is extremely easy to get overwhelmed with project deliverables. Without any insight into the priority of these deliverables it can also be easy to make mistakes due to the miscommunication of priorities. Good communication on a team, especially from the PM, can allow everyone to chip away at “the never ending to do list” in a manner that doesn’t affect the project timeline. I’ve found it to be easier to keep track of my goals/tasks using a ghant chart with itemized to do lists under each task. That way in my weekly or biweekly team meetings I can easily communicate progress or ask questions when I’m stuck. Microsoft Project has been a tool my teams have used in the past.

At my new job, I've had to adopt the pseudo-job of managing the machinists in the shop while our CEO is gone. Delegation is the most effective tool for keeping your mental map of the day clear. As we are a small manufacturing company; different orders come in all day, and I need to order parts, make drawings, give instructions, etc. The number one goal is always to get good product out the door as quickly as possible. All business decisions are made with that goal in mind; our team knows this as well as anyone who passes by. As such, when new orders come in; we shift gears accordingly in order to maximize the productivity of our small manufacturing staff.