Methods of Prioritizing Knowledge Work in Comparison to Lean Methods

The Lean method of prioritization (First in, first out) is the most used strategy in manufacturing and studies support its effectiveness. The present study examined strategies of task prioritization in knowledge work and compared them to performance to assess effectiveness. Four methods of prioritization were compared to five aspects of performance. Participants, who were recruited from LinkedIn contacts and through Amazon Mturk completed a survey on SurveyMonkey. There were 76 participants, 52.6% were male and they had an average work experience of 8.9 years. In contrast to manufacturing results, due soonest was the most used prioritization strategy. The first in, first out method correlated significantly with quality of work. Shortest preparation time correlated with creativity in performance. Future studies could examine specific types of work