HBR Guide to Project Management (HBR Guide Series)

Chapter 8

Boost Productivity with Time-Boxing

by Melissa Raffoni

Editor’s note: To keep your project on schedule, you’ll need team members who are focused and productive. Here are some tips for getting their calendars—and your own—under control.

Everybody needs more time—but since no one gets more than 24 hours a day, the only choice is to use those hours more effectively. One proven technique, time-boxing, involves just three steps.

First, list everything you and your team members want to accomplish in a given week, month, or quarter. Include project goals and the tasks necessary to achieve them. It may help to group activities by job function, such as strategy, business development, daily operations, and people management. With that kind ...