Administrator. Scenario 5 of 13. Prioritising

Two things by three o'clock

At 11am Helen, a manager, asks you to prepare a set of meeting packs for 3pm. It will take about three hours.

At 11.30am David, another manager, asks you to fix and send out a rota, also by 3pm. That will take about two hours. You cannot finish both in time.

What is the best call?

Do David's rota first because it is quicker, then get as far as you can with Helen's packs.

Not the best call

You have chosen for them, using a reason neither of them gave you. Quicker is not the same as more important. Helen will find out at 3pm, when it is too late to do anything about it.

Tell both managers now that you cannot do both by 3pm, say how long each will take, and ask which comes first.

Good call

They know what matters more to the organisation. You do not. Telling them at 11.30am gives them hours to move a deadline or find help. This is not complaining. It is the information they need.

Skip lunch and try to get both done without telling anyone.

Could be better

The effort is real and it might just work. But if it does not, both jobs are late and nobody was warned. It also hides a workload problem that will come back next week.

Do Helen's first, because she asked first, and tell David at 3pm that his is not ready.

Not the best call

First come, first served is a fair rule for a queue, but David does not know he is in one. A late warning is the part people remember. The same news at 11.30am would have been fine.

The principle

When you cannot do everything, say so early and let the people who set the deadlines choose. An early warning is nearly always welcome. A late surprise never is.