How Many 'Productive' Hours in a Working Week?

How Many 'Productive' Hours in a Working Week?

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Octoposse

Original Poster:

2,152 posts

184 months

Friday 10th July 2020
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If I work 37 hours, how many is it reasonable to expect to be filled with actual, scheduled, work . . . as opposed to answering the phone, changing printer cartridges, making tea, etc . . .

The bigger picture is that there are two of us, analysts in a bit of the public sector, covering a town of about a quarter of a million people.

We've been a "bit busy" since COVID-19 (I've worked 15 weekends on the trot, and have told the powers that be that I can't do the next one for personal reasons). I work 37 hours, my colleague 22, and we both have childcare responsibilities.

It was sort of sustainable during full "lockdown" best efforts/crisis mode, but now business-as-usual demands are coming back without the emergency stuff entirely disappearing.

We're pushing back (which neither of us like to, having (my theory anyway!) gravitated to analysis/intelligence careers partly because they're normally pretty non confrontational, and we're non-confontational kind of people . . . ).

But getting pressure on two fronts: our time estimates for jobs (the "why will that simple job take 15 hours?" type st (spoiler: because if you want a sensible, evidenced, robust answer then it's not "simple")) . . . . and then the filling of the 59 theoretically available hours with 59 hours of specific scheduled/estimated tasks.

What's some recognised, standard, rule-of-thumb for productive hours in a week?

Thanks . . .

romeodelta

1,113 posts

160 months

Friday 10th July 2020
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I think I read somewhere, about 6.5 hours in an 8 hour day - not including lunch/breaks etc.

So you have to either build a bit of fat in, work smarter, more hours, automate tasks etc.

Generally limit admin type stuff, time spent browsing web/email, decline meetings where you will not add/gain value, do a bit of work while listening in on other meetings etc.

CheesecakeRunner

3,706 posts

90 months

Friday 10th July 2020
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We tend to work on 6 hours productive out of a 7.5 hour day. That’s in a big IT consultancy.

I did have a project once where I had 35 hours of weekly scheduled catchup and progress meetings in a 37 hour week...

Jasandjules

69,825 posts

228 months

Friday 10th July 2020
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Public sector you say? Maybe 5................................

CoolHands

18,496 posts

194 months

Friday 10th July 2020
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Sadly it’s where slack people thrive cos they just provide st data back to whoever is wanting (stuff). When you are conscientious or decent at your job it goes against the grain.

Basically, bodge it.

Wayne1989

53 posts

173 months

Friday 10th July 2020
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My role is within Resource Planning (Mainly contact centres but applies across the board) and I'd always start with 6.25 hours per day.

bigpriest

1,577 posts

129 months

Friday 10th July 2020
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Octoposse said:
We're pushing back (which neither of us like to, having (my theory anyway!) gravitated to analysis/intelligence careers partly because they're normally pretty non confrontational, and we're non-confontational kind of people . . . ).
Thanks . . .
Not sure this is true - if you are proper BI then you are taking data that most people don't find useful and turning it into meaningful, powerful information that planning and financial decisions can be made on. Added to that you're providing the intelligence that underpins the information, giving the necessary background, an idea of data quality and risk around any caveats. I'd say confrontation, pressure to deliver and negotiating (or telling people no smile) would be a major part of the role.

Octoposse

Original Poster:

2,152 posts

184 months

Friday 10th July 2020
quotequote all
bigpriest said:
Octoposse said:
We're pushing back (which neither of us like to, having (my theory anyway!) gravitated to analysis/intelligence careers partly because they're normally pretty non confrontational, and we're non-confontational kind of people . . . ).
Thanks . . .
Not sure this is true - if you are proper BI then you are taking data that most people don't find useful and turning it into meaningful, powerful information that planning and financial decisions can be made on. Added to that you're providing the intelligence that underpins the information, giving the necessary background, an idea of data quality and risk around any caveats. I'd say confrontation, pressure to deliver and negotiating (or telling people no smile) would be a major part of the role.
You are of course right! But the psychology is strange . . . I'm happy standing on a stage in front of 300 people with a graph and a lazer pointer telling them why I'm right and they're wrong (but doing that with confidence is conditional on you having had the time to marshal and analyse data thoroughly) but last time I flew (2019), BA screwed up and my seat was in the first row of Economy rather than the last row of Business Class . . . and I couldn't bring myself to complain at the time.

Straight from school I joined the Army, so 'happy' to face miscellaneous hazards . . . but have never in my entire life approached a 'strange' female in a bar or at a party.

(Being an Analyst, I have analysed the reasons for this, and it's mainly a difficult/challenging childhood).

But I digress . . . the role is an 'expert' one - it's not sorting out intractable problems in HR, it's not clawing your way to the top in management, it's not managing staff, etc.

I just want to do a good job and don't want conflict about being able to do a good job. My rather wonderful co-worker - although a much better complainer in shops or restaurants than me! - is in the same boat. She doesn't want / need that on top of juggling work and childcare. It's especially draining when the stuff coming down in by-the-yard management bks-speak like "fluid and flexible responsiveness", "work smarter not harder", "stepping up to the plate" etc.

bigpriest

1,577 posts

129 months

Friday 10th July 2020
quotequote all
Ooh, some proper management bullst bingo there! It's the 'I'm using words that mean nothing but they make me more important than you' attitude that plain-speaking BI analysts hate (or should I call you a Data Scientist).

Anyway, you know that a finite resource can only be squeezed so much to produce results, regardless of smart working, automation or not having a lunch break. It boils down to a calm conversation that explains you have produced a list of requests that you have prioritised for completion within the next x number of days/weeks. Below that line, stuff has to wait longer. If a temporary resource is needed then unfortunately the added days/weeks of training will further push back the deadline. But you know all this smile