A client recently approached us regarding some business cards that they needed for an event. They had recently acquired a new logo and wanted to show off their new branding at this event.
To complete this work it was important to use time management techniques so that we could both complete the work before the deadline and also spend only a reasonable amount of time actually completing the work.
Initially before I began working on the cards I quoted the client a design cost based on how many hours I thought it would take to create the cards. This price was based on an hourly rate and so I decided that the cards would take three hours to design, prepare and send to print. This time limit was based on previous jobs of a similar nature and also means that we can stay competitive with other companies when it comes to price.
Once work had begun on the cards I kept various accounts of the amount of time I had spent on the job. Firstly, I filled out a Time Sheet which featured listed chronological entries of the time spent, the work done and the date of which it was complete. For example, 17th June – insertion of text and logo – 1 hour. Another tool that I used was a diary; this diary is used on a day-to-day basis and keeps track of all the work completed on a day-to-day basis. I fill this out daily with all the work I have completed on each day and at the end of the week we analyse the data and work out how many hours of work is billable work and how many hours are for our own projects within the company.
By filling out this time sheet, completed the diary and working to the deadline this enables me to monitor the project and work out what still needs to be done and how much time should be spent on the remaining work. I also will work to internal deadlines, so for example with the business cards, they were needed for the end of May ready for the event, and we made sure that the cards would be sent to print on the 19th, so to allow for a weeks printing and for delivery time to the client’s office.
In order for us at GGS to begin work, we usually insist that our clients look over quotations that we send for costs and time scales and ask for them to agree to it before beginning. By doing this, we have agreed a set date that the work needs to be completed and internally we can agree on dates that we send artwork to print and delivery dates. This simple project plan is constructed by the designer, the directors; who oversee the time management process and also the studio manager; who will consider billing dates and also arrange delivery. We also discuss whether any resources are needed, whether this is people, materials or equipment, we consider whether this are actually available and this whether it will effect the project plan. Progress on work is always discussed on a weekly basis where all those who are involved in the particular job remain updated with what is happening. This is also where contingency plans are discussed, for example, if one of our resources is missing then we can collaborate for a solution and then keep everyone in the loop at the same time. A contingency plan is also commonly referred to as a plan B, a plan that gets put into place when things go wrong and an alternative procedure is needed. In this case it was necessary to come up with a contingency plan in order to meet the deadline after problems with printing. We had ordered two different sets of cards from the printers and both were intended for the same client on the same date. The first set that came back had actually been printed on the wrong material due to the printers’ error and so we had to create a contingency plan to solve this. In our plan, we arranged for the cards to be reprinted, and worked out what date they should be with us in order to meet the delivery schedule. As long as the cards were sent out on delivery before 2pm they would be delivered the very next morning. Once our plan was in place we were able to effectively liaise with the printers and the client to guarantee that the cards would be complete by our deadline.
Storing work effectively is also a great factor in the company. The business cards for example were worked on initially on my own Mac computer, this computer is backed up onto a server each night in case of any problems, and then once the job is complete, the files are moved onto a sharing back-up drive which everyone in the company can access. Also, any amendments that I may make during the design process are always saved as another version instead of simply replacing the current file. For example with my business cards, I sent a proof to the client with my initial ideas and then after this, the file received a ‘+’ at the end to indicate the latest version. This is generally applied to all work within the company and so when looking through our file archives; everyone in the company knows that the latest file will be ‘+++’ rather than ‘++’. File names are very important, especially when you are storing files onto a shared drive. For every job that we do, when it gets booked in as an official job, it is assigned a letter and number code depending on who created it and when it was created. For example, a person named Joe Bloggs books in jobs under the reference JB, and this is then followed with a number. All files and emails that are related to this job then get filed under this job number. This means that when searching through archives for work everyone can find the files relatively easily as the code never changes and is unique to every job. The convenience of assigning job numbers to all means that if you were to come back to a job and had to amend it slightly there is not overwriting of files, the new files will likely be given a new file name and will also be saved in the new job folder. The system is reliable and all is included in a database which tells you the company name, the job number and the nature of each job, it is always in date order and also gives details like the company address and the amount charged to the client.
No comments:
Post a Comment