How Much Multitasking is Involved in Multi-Project Management?

Drinking beer and watching football at the same time - well, that is easy. Rotating your right arm and moving the left one up and down at the same time - a bit more difficult. Managing various, multi-million-dollar construction projects and keeping track of costs, deadlines and abilities at the same time - a headache of a job. Ralf Molter and Anja Hallemeier explain how this works in practice.

Complex, Clear Cut Structure

A multi-project is a project that is broken down into several individual projects in order to make it manageable. These individual projects must also be considered as stand-alone projects but capable of being organized as a project.

When managing subprojects, interfacing with the overall project is key. In most cases, multi-projects are large-scale projects with a high construction volume or complex projects consisting of several construction sites, buildings or various types of buildings.

Ralf Molter, Associate Partner at Drees & Sommer, supervised the construction of the MyZeil shopping mall in Frankfurt a few years ago. The project featured an underground car park, a hotel tower, an office tower and an events venue, each with its own projects. Construction of the global headquarters of the pharmaceutical company Merck in Darmstadt even consisted of a total of 60 subprojects that needed to be organized.

Knowledge of Education Theory and Psychology is an Advantage

Anyone who wants to keep track of multi-projects needs ‘training as a kindergarten teacher and should have a degree in psychology,’ jokes Ralf Molter. And yet, there is more than a grain of truth in his statement.

When very different people with different goals come together on projects, tact and intuition are crucial. Conducting discussions, moderating conflicts and making decisions so that a project can move forward – soft skills are indeed essential for effective project management.

Professional Organization is More Important than Multitasking

Anyone who is technically well-organized, does not have to be a good multitasker, i.e. able to handle several things at the same time, claims the Associate Manager. ‘Multi-project management is about keeping the big picture in view – everyone needs to know what has to be done.’

In addition to a balanced team composition, proven methods and digital tools support work in multi-projects. Information is consistently available through Building Information Modeling (BIM). Lean construction follows a process-oriented approach and ensures transparency and speed at the construction site. And that is not a bad thing, especially in large-scale projects.

Sharing Expertise and Challenges across the Team

For Anja Hallemeier from the office in Cologne, one of the most important basic elements of multi-project management is teamwork. ‘There must be regular exchange. You have to share your experiences, your knowledge, and the challenges you face with colleagues, and draw from the fact that someone else has already mastered a similar challenge,’ says the project manager. Equally important is not to get lost in the details and to prioritize.

Anja Hallemeier is currently working on a school construction project, which consists of seven subprojects, some of which break down again into smaller projects. She is part of a five-person project management core team, which is complemented by four other colleagues from the technical-economic construction consulting unit. Anja Hallemeier supervises two of these subprojects. In addition, she is responsible for the multi-project as contact person for costing and is responsible for cost control and monitoring.

Allocating Tasks to the Right People

For Anja Hallemeier, too, multi-project does not mean multitasking. ‘Of course, the projects are running at the same time, but not everything falls into your own sphere of responsibility,’ she explains.

In addition to the ability to prioritize tasks, in her view, rational allocation and acceptance of tasks is important. ‘As a young team player, I sometimes need to pass on tasks to a more experienced team member, because it falls within the scope of his or her tasks and thus requires his or her expertise. On the other hand, I also accept tasks from others, for example, when costs are involved’.

Harnessing New Knowledge Immediately

The parallelism also has advantages, according to Anja Hallemeier. ‘Due to the simultaneous nature of several subprojects in the multi-project, it is possible to learn something at one point, putting the wisdom learned directly into practice in the next subproject.’

Learning: Multi-projects are projects with a complex and clear-cut structure at the same time. Here, it is important to keep the big picture in view, to communicate effectively and to work outstandingly well together as a team. Digital tools can support multi-projects. You do not have to have multitasking talent to successfully manage a multi-project. But expertise in communication and coordination is key.