Parkinson's Law in Project Management

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Parkinson's Law states that work expands to fill the time available for its completion.<ref> Parkinson, C. Northcote (November 19, 1955) [https://www.economist.com/news/1955/11/19/parkinsons-law "Parkinson’s Law"], ''The Economist''. Retrieved 13 February 2021.</ref> It was formulated by British historian and author Cyril Northcote Parkinson in an essay for ''The Economist'' in 1955. Parkinson's Law is based on Parkinson's own experiences as a British army staff officer during World War II.<ref> Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica [https://www.britannica.com/biography/C-Northcote-Parkinson "C. Northcote Parkinson"], ''Britannica''. Retrieved 13 February 2021.</ref> Parkinson criticises the bureaucracy of the British Civil Service              
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Parkinson's Law states that work expands to fill the time available for its completion.<ref> Parkinson, C. Northcote (November 19, 1955) [https://www.economist.com/news/1955/11/19/parkinsons-law "Parkinson’s Law"], ''The Economist''. Retrieved 13 February 2021.</ref> It was formulated by British historian and author Cyril Northcote Parkinson in an essay for ''The Economist'' in 1955. Parkinson's Law is based on Parkinson's own experiences as a British army staff officer during World War II.<ref> Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica [https://www.britannica.com/biography/C-Northcote-Parkinson "C. Northcote Parkinson"], ''Britannica''. Retrieved 13 February 2021.</ref> Parkinson criticises the bureaucracy of the British Civil Service  
  
Politicians and taxpayers have assumed (with occasional phases of doubt) that a rising total in the number of civil servants must reflect a growing volume of work to be done. Cynics, in questioning this belief, have imagined that the multiplication of officials must have left some of them idle or all of them able to work for shorter hours. But this is a matter in which faith and doubt seem equally misplaced.
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Complexity -> scheduling, when to do it? -> Parkinson's law        
 
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People working and amount of work is not related to each other
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The importance of Parkinson’s Law lies in the fact that it is a law of growth based upon an analysis of the factors by which that growth is controlled.
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the factors that underlie the general tendency to which this law gives definition
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actor I.—An official wants to multiply subordinates, not rivals; and
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Factor II.—Officials make work for each other.
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The Law of Multiplication of Subordinates
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A person, A, feels overworked, therefore A may do three things
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(1) Resign
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(2) Ask to halve the work with a colleague called B.
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(3) Demand the assistance of two subordinates, to be called C and D.
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most likely choose the third alternative. (1) would lose his pension rights
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(2) bring in a rival when looking for a promotion, same level in the hierarchy 
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A would rather have two men below him - divide the work between them and be the only one able to comprehend the whole
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C and D are inseperable, both fear the other is promoted, and so more pairs of assistants can be appointed to c and d
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the law of multiplication of work
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more people are what one did before. all make so much work for each other that all are fully opcuppied and A is actually working harder.
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A has more tasks because he has subordinates he needs to take care of and he still needs to sign off and redo the work done by his subordinates.
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statistical Proof
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research began in the British Navy Estimates. These were chosen because the Admiralty's responsibilities are more easily measurable than those of (say) the Board of Trade.
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Fall in ships and officers and men in royal navy, while rise in administration on land. This growth is unrelated to any possible increase in their work.
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1/3 in men and 2/3 in ships
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Mathematical formula for staff increase in any public administrative department 
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<nowiki>x = (2k^m+p)/n</nowiki>
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k = number of staff seeking promotion through appointment of subordinates
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p = the difference between the ages of appointment and retirement
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m = number of man-hours devoted to answering minutes within the department
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n = number of effective units being administered
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x = number of new staff required each year
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manage parkinsons law with scrum, where time is set for tasks
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== Theory ==
 
== Theory ==
 +
describe the tool, concept or theory and explain its purpose. The section should reflect the current state of the art on the topic
  
 
== Application ==
 
== Application ==
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provide guidance on how to use the tool, concept or theory and when it is applicable
  
 
== Limitations ==
 
== Limitations ==
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critically reflect on the tool/concept/theory and its application context. What can it do, what can it not do? Under what circumstances should it be used, and when not? How does it compare to the “status quo” of the standards – is it part of it, or does it extent them? Discuss your article in the context of key readings / resources provided in class. Substantiate your claims with literature
  
 
== Annotated bibliography ==
 
== Annotated bibliography ==
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Provide key references (3-10), where a reader can find additional information on the subject. The article MUST make appropriate references to the and reference material provided in class – either incorporating it as a source, or critically discussing aspects that are missing from it but covered by this article. Summarize and outline the relevance of each reference to the topic (around 100 words per reference). The bibliography is not counted in the suggested 3000 word target length of the article.
  
 
https://www.economist.com/news/1955/11/19/parkinsons-law  
 
https://www.economist.com/news/1955/11/19/parkinsons-law  
https://www.britannica.com/biography/C-Northcote-Parkinson
 
  
 
<references />
 
<references />

Revision as of 00:03, 14 February 2021

Parkinson's Law states that work expands to fill the time available for its completion.[1] It was formulated by British historian and author Cyril Northcote Parkinson in an essay for The Economist in 1955. Parkinson's Law is based on Parkinson's own experiences as a British army staff officer during World War II.[2] Parkinson criticises the bureaucracy of the British Civil Service

Complexity -> scheduling, when to do it? -> Parkinson's law

Contents

Theory

describe the tool, concept or theory and explain its purpose. The section should reflect the current state of the art on the topic

Application

provide guidance on how to use the tool, concept or theory and when it is applicable

Limitations

critically reflect on the tool/concept/theory and its application context. What can it do, what can it not do? Under what circumstances should it be used, and when not? How does it compare to the “status quo” of the standards – is it part of it, or does it extent them? Discuss your article in the context of key readings / resources provided in class. Substantiate your claims with literature

Annotated bibliography

Provide key references (3-10), where a reader can find additional information on the subject. The article MUST make appropriate references to the and reference material provided in class – either incorporating it as a source, or critically discussing aspects that are missing from it but covered by this article. Summarize and outline the relevance of each reference to the topic (around 100 words per reference). The bibliography is not counted in the suggested 3000 word target length of the article.

https://www.economist.com/news/1955/11/19/parkinsons-law

  1. Parkinson, C. Northcote (November 19, 1955) "Parkinson’s Law", The Economist. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  2. Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica "C. Northcote Parkinson", Britannica. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
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