It’s easy to lose focus when times get hectic. Identity are always looking towards progression be it with our client projects or internally as a company. However, progression cannot happen without meeting deadlines, staying within budget and having happy clients and staff along the way.

Staying accountable is just as important with client work as it is with meeting internal goals and projects – there is a lot that any one business needs to stay on top of so it’s important to recognise how you can do this successfully.

1. Focus On The End Result

It’s easy to get caught up on the smaller things and make them into much bigger things than they need to be. Wherever and whenever you can, remind yourself of what it is you are working towards and whether you are spending too much time on it and move on.

2. Delegate, Delegate, Delegate

You’ve heard ‘a problem shared is a problem halved’? Well, the same goes for any project. Inform your team members of the end goal and what needs to be completed to reach it. Once individual tasks have been assigned you’ll soon see pieces coming together and your completed project will be more achievable. You’ll also be in a position where you can assess progression in a clearer state as you’ll be less tied up with the actual mechanics of the tasks in hand.

3. Plan & Schedule

At the start of any project either for a client or internally it is essential that an action list of some sort is put together. To reach ultimate effectiveness your actions should be SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-bound).

4. Use A Calendar

Following on from planning and scheduling it’s essential that specific dates are set on a calendar to ensure you complete actions put in place. It is a good idea to have a large visual calendar up on a wall where everyone involved can easily and conveniently see what is coming up. It is helpful if this calendar is on a white board where you can quickly amend any dates, actions and completed tasks.

5. Set Reminders

When you have several projects on the go it’s easy to lose track and forget key dates. Find out the most convenient and effective way to set yourself and colleagues reminders that will get noticed and ensure everyone is on track. I find that setting a reminder well in advance ensures that I am aware of a task and understand that I need to get to work on it. Follow-up reminders can then be set to ensure completion.

6. Feedback is King 

In order to stay on track, it is really important to provide feedback to your team and for people to be able to easily provide you with feedback. At Identity ‘feedback is king’ and we have developed a culture of broad shoulders enabling us to provide effective feedback to stay on track, learn and be more efficient. This is critical for any business, without feedback, you quickly build resentment and inefficiencies amongst teams.

Each business will discover their own ways and practices of staying accountable but these are all great places to start. It’s important to set business guidelines which can be used against all projects big and small, internal and external. As a business manager, it is essential that you can successfully plan your projects to meet deadlines, the more prepared and organised you are the easier it is to complete tasks with no nasty surprises along the way.