Eric Mack On-Line

GTD Blogging buddy, Michael Dolan, recently blogged about his experience coaching team of people that are using Lotus Notes as a trusted system for GTD. Michael's post is worth reading, because he talks about the importance of being the master of your own domain: knowing and controlling what crosses over the transom. Specifically, Michael addresses the issue of delegated tasks - not just in Notes but in general - and how touchy a subject it is.

I blogged about the topic of delegated tasks for group action management a few years ago, explaining that I felt that using delegated tasks incorrectly could create a situation in which the technology of productivity would likely clash with the methodology of productivity. It's proven to be a popular post and the question comes up often enough, so I'll share this quote and then link you back to my original post.

Delegated tasks create a situation in which the technology of productivity is likely to clash with the methodology of productivity.

The technology allows for tasks to be created and assigned to other individuals; however, without a sound methodology  and clear agreement on how these will be processed, (the action delegation protocol), it can quickly become a recipe for lost or missed actions, frustration, and incompletion.

Resources:
03/01/2005  Delegated Actions for Group Action Management
12/12/2007 Master of one's own domain

I hope you will join the discussion, either here on my blog or better yet, over on Michael's blog.

Update: There's a comment on Michael's blog from a reader that asserts that "it is near impossible to build a trusted system out of Lotus Notes."  I could not have wished for a more wonderful blogging invitation - response coming soon!