Beating the Clock

Secrets Of Better Time Management

Like many people fortunate enough to still have jobs, program directors' lives are tougher these days. You're already doing a juggling act, scheduling music, organizing the station's annual mega-concert (with no budget), attending sales meetings, reviewing the online callout research, doing talent development and minding the interns.

Suddenly, your GM announces that you'll soon be in charge of another station. You're already working 60 hours a week. How do you handle all the old responsibilities as well as the new ones without going crazy? You have to master the secrets of multi-tasking and effective time management.

Today's programmer is faced with a wide number of challenges ... many of which weren't even imagined five years ago. These challenges bring about complex questions. Very often the reason you're there is because the person you replaced couldn't handle them. The GM lost confidence and decided it was time for a change. And then there were new duties and stations about to be stacked up on top of the old ones, which weren't being handled. Sound familiar?

These are very real dilemmas facing virtually every programmer. Facing and solving them are critical to the successful operation of the station group ... and none comes with an easy answer. The process largely is one of trial and error ... often trial by fire. Some solutions work, others don't.

First of all, every one of those 60 hours or more a week you're now working has to be carefully planned. Everything has to be compressed into smaller amounts of time so you can get everything done. You have to prioritize, let some things go and get some help. I remember one of my early mentors telling me that a good manager only touches a piece of paper once. Now that we're fast approaching a "paperless business society," the same theory applies. It simply means everything has its place and often that place is the trash bin.

Next, as a programmer, you have to eliminate any semblance of bad habits brought to the job. If it wastes time, get rid of it. As impersonal as it may seem, voicemail and e-mail may have to suffice because you simply can't always get to the phone. But, you do need to respond. You can't just leave people hanging. Sometimes finding quality time for face-to-face meetings is a fleeting notion.

I find that "pick-up" meetings are more the exception than the norm. To make certain that everyone involved knows what's going on within the programming department, a weekly meeting that serves as a communication session with a developed agenda is a must. Then you can't get bogged down and you must stick to the agenda.

Everyone has to perform. Long gone are the days when a programmer could hire someone who exhibits less-than-stellar qualities and personally make up for (or correct) their deficiencies.

When you meet with that new hire, you have to spend a little time with that individual so that he or she understands what is expected and how you think so they hit the ground running in the right direction.

Double Vision

What most PDs I've spoken with recently all agree on is the fact that when they first take over a multi-station situation, they immediately experience a kind of "double vision." Systems that had been more than adequate were now substandard. Facilities were pressed to the limit, which mean that the staff was stressed to the max. We're still in a creative business and creative people do not function well in a hostile or stressed environment.

Suddenly you have twice as many commercials to write, dub, produce and schedule. There's a lot more creative work, extra input for traffic and continuity and additional invoices for the business department. It's amazing when you more than double in size and you still are expected to do everything as well as you did before.

In theory as well as in application, change brought on through rapid growth initially outpaces any significant increases in staff, budget and physical resources. You don't have time to lay everything out in a time line. There's no time for that because the growth isn't just coming, it's already here. All of a sudden the small day-to-day things double or triple in size and you can't put them off until later.

Target Formatting & Balance

In spite of being asked to do more with less and do it well, part of doing it well is not only keeping up, but occasionally leading. It's best to lead with knowledge of something that works, that can make a difference. Target formatting is a new game that comes with time-saving short-cuts that can quietly make a difference. It's a combination or series of little things that, when done right, can create a sharp listener focus and make a huge ratings difference, especially in the PPM world.

I've mentioned this in earlier editorials: Target formatting can mean the difference between a P1 and a P2. One of the tricks or illusions involves changing the perception of our stations and stepping outside the format boundaries occasionally. You save time by not waiting for research to confirm every song before it's scheduled.

The other trick is being able to increase your audience share by scheduling the right crossover music at the right times. Again, you save time by stepping out on these titles without waiting for research confirmation.

For Urban Adult stations, it means playing select rap songs that are extremely familiar, a.k.a. crossover adult party songs. These are songs that would be a hit at any party. They're part of the new strategic thinking that has developed a new, hybrid format that's currently being tested in a number of markets, including Washington D.C.

Obviously, there has been a shift in the core of Urban stations' library over the past few years. We've been moving away from some artists that have been researched, discovered by other formats and then overexposed. There is a new defensive programming theory that is evolving under target formatting. It holds that hip-hop is replacing rock with a younger male audience. I've seen the studies and in many markets, it's true. It happens with every generation. If we've learned anything about market leaders in the last few years, it is that a well-programmed Urban or Urban AC station can become the new market leader despite the competition from format similar stations, even if they have stronger signals, better research and deeper pockets.

Target formatting is a powerful, short-cut weapon in the right hands. The key is maintaining the proper balance between consistency and freshness. We can't hope to capture and keep an adult audience with nothing but oldies and ballads ... even if they're the right oldies and ballads. There must be balance. Balance in tempo, demographic appeal and freshness. It's a proven fact that the Urban audiences are trendsetters, so sameness will not work over the long haul.

Finally, all of the secrets and benefits of eliminating waste, target formatting, better time management and beating the clock begin with you. These things have to become new habits that you form. Adopting these habits means less risk, less fatigue, more productivity and greater accuracy. But you have to want them.

The person who never wants anything gets little. If you want a great deal, you must first demand a great deal. Once you make your demand, anticipate its fulfillment. Remember we are rewarded according to our efforts. We become what we determine to be.

Word.