Dictionary.com defines context as "the set of circumstances or facts that surround a particular event, situation, etc." Context is essentially the variables associated with an event. Context matters in nearly all things in life. The current hot topic is COVID-19. Context of data collection, timing of research studies, result tracking and more can make things look better or worse than they actually are. On a jobsite, context can include a wide variety of things. Weather, time of day, length of shift, crew size, crew skill or experience, management ability and more are all things to consider when analyzing work activity and making decisions. Do we really know what is causing a problem or driving positive results if we don't look at things in context?
An example of context is judging the productivity of an activity too soon or at the wrong time. On large jobs where scopes of work may take weeks or months to complete, judging the productivity of a crew on day one, or even day five, will likely not lead to a fair and accurate assessment. We need a combination of the right data and enough data to get a good picture of reality. Barring a drastic alteration in work conditions, changing work plans and schedules in week one would be a waste of time. There wouldn't be enough data to accurately know the results or nail down precise causes. On the other end of things, if we wait until the end of a long activity to change things, it will be difficult to make a change and there won't be much time to track or realize the benefits of the change. Like almost anything we do at work and at home, a balance must be struck between excessive observation, data gathering and decision analysis against constantly tweaking things when there's even the slightest deviation from the planned or desired result.
When we put ourselves and the work we are managing in the right context, we set ourselves and our teams up for success. Context matters. It can expedite bad decisions and project failures or aid in delivering high quality projects and building a better world.
Comments