How to manage high demand before the holidays

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If you've ever felt like work becomes a race against time just before the holidays, you're not alone. During these times, stakeholder demands skyrocket, creating chaos for all teams, especially product teams. As those responsible for building and delivering the solutions that leadership needs, we find ourselves in the eye of the storm. In this post, I want to share my experiences and insights on how to manage this avalanche of requests and maintain sanity in the process. If you've faced or anticipate facing this situation, read on to discover practical strategies and helpful tips.

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The surge in demand: reasons and consequences

The holidays are a time for rest and disconnection, but for stakeholders, it can become a race against the clock. Often, they have goals and objectives that must be met before the end of the quarter or fiscal year, and the holidays set a clear time limit. This creates an additional urgency to complete all projects before team members take a break.

During the holidays, the availability of key personnel decreases. Stakeholders anticipate this and push to advance work to avoid delays during the absence of important team members. No one wants to be in the middle of a critical project and find out that the necessary people are not available.

Closing projects before the holidays provides peace of mind to stakeholders and helps start the new year with a cleaner task list. However, the sudden and chaotic increase in demands can have several negative repercussions on the quality of the team's work. The accumulation of urgent tasks can lead to overwork, decreasing attention to detail and increasing errors. The additional pressure generates stress, which can lead to burnout. With so many demands, it can be difficult to maintain clear priorities, resulting in attention to less important tasks and reduced collaboration within the team.

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Strategies for managing expectations and communication with stakeholders

Managing stakeholder expectations is crucial to avoid the accumulation of urgent tasks just before the holidays. The key is proactive planning and communication. From the outset, we must be clear about deadlines and team capacity. Regular meetings to review progress and adjust expectations can make a big difference.

Prioritization is crucial. Work with stakeholders to identify which tasks are truly critical and which can wait. Techniques like the Eisenhower matrix, which classifies tasks as urgent and important, can be very useful here.

Marty Cagan, author of "Inspired: How To Create Products Customers Love," emphasizes the importance of prioritization and continuous communication with stakeholders. Cagan suggests that product managers must be masters at saying "no" to be able to say "yes" to what truly matters.

Effective communication requires honesty and transparency. If we know that certain tasks cannot be completed before the holidays, it's best to communicate this as soon as possible. This conversation should be frank but empathetic, explaining the time and resource limitations. At the same time, it is useful to propose alternative solutions or realistic deadlines for pending tasks.

A relevant case is Buffer, known for its radical transparency. Buffer publishes its strategies and challenges on its blog, showing how they communicate openly and honestly with stakeholders. This transparency has built great trust with its users and stakeholders, demonstrating that clear and anticipatory communication can be very effective.

Setting clear boundaries is essential to protect our time and energy. Learning to say "no" constructively and delegating responsibilities within the team can alleviate the load and allow us to focus on critical tasks.

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Maintaining team balance

Redistributing tasks to balance the workload among team members is a challenge, especially during periods of high demand. The key is to know your team and their capabilities well. Start by conducting a clear assessment of pending tasks and each member's skills. Use planning meetings to openly discuss who can take on which tasks.

Daily stand-up meetings are an excellent tool for adjusting the workload in real-time. During these meetings, each team member shares what they are working on, what obstacles they face, and what they plan to do next. This transparency allows for quickly identifying those who are overloaded and redistributing tasks to those with more capacity.

Retrospectives at the end of each sprint provide an opportunity to reflect on how the work was distributed and adjust for the future. Here, the team can openly discuss what worked and what didn't, and propose changes to improve task distribution in the next sprint.

Maintaining a constant pulse on the team's well-being and morale is essential. Conduct regular check-ins, formal or informal, and use anonymous satisfaction surveys. Visibility and access are crucial; ensure you are available to your team. Promote a culture of recognition and appreciation to boost morale. Small gestures like publicly acknowledging good work can have a big impact.

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Taking care of yourself to take care of the team

In times of high demand, it's easy to focus so much on the needs of the team and stakeholders that we forget to take care of ourselves. However, as a product manager or product owner, your personal well-being is crucial for effective leadership. Here are some strategies to ensure you stay at your best during these intense periods.

First, set clear boundaries with your time. Define specific hours for work and for disconnecting. It's easy to fall into the trap of working extra hours, but this can quickly lead to burnout. Make sure to respect your rest time as much as you respect your work commitments.

Second, prioritize your physical health. Maintaining a regular exercise routine, eating well, and getting enough sleep are fundamental. Even on the busiest days, taking small breaks to stretch, walk, or simply breathe deeply can make a big difference.

Practice stress management with techniques like meditation or mindfulness. Find what works for you and make it part of your daily routine. Seek support when needed. Talk to your colleagues, superiors, or mentors about the challenges you face. Sometimes, simply sharing your concerns can relieve some of the stress. Additionally, receiving feedback and advice from others can provide new perspectives.

Learn to delegate tasks when possible. Trust your team and delegate responsibilities. This not only eases your workload but also empowers team members. Finally, recognize and celebrate achievements, both yours and the team's. Celebrating successes not only boosts team morale but also allows you to appreciate your own work and effort.

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Implementing the strategies today

At this point, the big question is: how can you implement these strategies today to improve high-demand management and your team's well-being?

Start by reviewing your calendar and setting clear boundaries for your work and rest time. Plan regular meetings with your team and stakeholders to maintain open communication and adjust expectations. Use project management tools to organize and prioritize tasks effectively.

Talk to your team and redistribute tasks according to their capabilities and availability. Don't forget to conduct regular check-ins to monitor their well-being and morale. Promote an environment of recognition and mutual support.

And above all, take care of yourself. Maintain a healthy routine, seek support when needed, and celebrate every small achievement.

Implementing these strategies will not only improve your demand management but also contribute to the well-being and productivity of your entire team. I'd love to hear how it goes for you. Share your experiences and results in the comments!