Those who study management efficiency are familiar with Parkinson’s Law. As defined by Wikipedia, Parkinson’s Law states that “work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.” In other words, if you set a one-month deadline for your staff to complete a task, it will take one month to complete that task, but if you set a timeline of two weeks for the same task, it will be completed in two weeks.
Parkinson’s Law highlights one of the many inefficiencies that are inadvertently built into operational systems. While you should be careful not to overreact to Parkinson’s Law by setting unreasonable deadlines, you should be aware of how your employees can be led astray in a way that affects resource allocation and quality control.
In today’s hypercompetitive marketplace, the integrity of your operations matter. Whether you’re a club operator, equipment manufacturer, or another type of supplier, you depend on a team of professionals who work together to make your brand a success. If your operations are poorly designed, you’re setting yourself up for failure. Not only can you waste precious resources, your company can end up creating an inferior product or delivering poor service.