Executives spend nearly half their time responding to problems, dousing fires

MENLO PARK, Calif. ? Nearly half of an executive’s time is spent responding to crises or problems, according to a survey developed by The Creative Group, a specialized staffing service that provides marketing, advertising, creative and web professionals on a project basis.

The survey was conducted by an independent research firm and includes 250 responses ? 125 from advertising executives with the nations 1,000 largest advertising agencies and 125 from senior marketing executives with Fortune 1,000 companies.

The executives were asked, “In your opinion, what percentage of his or her time does the average executive spend responding to crises or problems?” The mean response was 43 percent.

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Responding to urgent situations may be par for the course in fast-paced advertising and marketing environments, but if “putting out fires” consumes a large part of an executive’s day, he or she may not have time for more strategic tasks.

The Creative Group offers the following suggestions for reducing time spent in “crisis mode”:

· Ask for answers. Encourage your employees to come to you with solutions ? not problems.

· Assign a deputy. Authorize a trusted senior staff member to be the point-person when trouble arises.

· Trust your team. If employees are second-guessed every time they make a decision, they will stop making them and turn to you instead.

· Nip problems in the bud. When confronted with a situation, such as an employee with a poor attitude or a vendor who doesn’t meet deadlines, take immediate action. A delay of even a few days can compound the problem.

The Creative Group has offices across the United States and Canada and offers online job search services at www.creativegroup.com.