Essential Skills and Traits of Successful Maintenance Planners and Schedulers - Part 2

The Power to Motivate: A Key Trait for Planners and Schedulers

Being a planner or scheduler is more than just juggling calendars and timelines. You’re "the glue" that holds the team together, and one of your secret weapons is the ability to motivate. Here are five real-world ways planners and schedulers can bring energy, and keep your teams pumped up.

Start the Day with a Smile and a Positive Attitude

Ever noticed how a good morning sets the tone for the day? A planner who kicks things off with a quick huddle or even just a cheerful check-in can shift the whole team's mood. If you come in a bad mood, is that going to have a bad impact on everyone you come in to contact with that morning?

• Example: Share a win from yesterday, like the team having completed a tough maintenance job the day before, or hitting a scheduling milestone. Little victories go a long way!
• Why It Works: Motivation is contagious. When you’re upbeat, your team feels it, and they’ll tackle the day with more energy. Find a way to bring positivity to your team to start the day!

2. Show Appreciation for the Small Stuff

Motivation isn’t just about big speeches. Sometimes, it’s about noticing the little things your team does and giving them a quick shoutout.

• Example: “Hey, thanks for jumping in to help me reschedule those work orders last-minute—it really kept us on track.” Or "Hey, thanks for going out to help scope that job with me the other day. It looks like it to the plan perfectly!"
• Why It Works: People want to feel appreciated. Recognizing their effort, no matter how small, builds trust and boosts morale.

3. Paint the Big Picture

When the grind gets tough, it’s easy for the team to lose sight of why their work matters. A great planner reminds them of the bigger goal.

• Example: If they feel "stuck" doing preventive maintenance, remind them, “Guys, this is important! This is what keeps production running smoothly—no breakdowns mean no headaches later! Remember the problem you found last week, and we were able to make the repair before it failed? That was huge! It saved us a big repair bill and a ton of lost production!"
• Why It Works: Connecting tasks to the bigger picture gives meaning to the work, making it easier to push through. In the example, making the PM team "heroes" for finding an impending failure that would have been catastrophic and cost the company a great deal of downtime, maintenance costs, and lost production brings light to the great work they do to not only them but everyone in the plant (if we communicate it well).

4. Be the Calm in the Storm

Deadlines slip. Equipment fails. Stuff happens. 🙂 How you handle it can either deflate your team or keep them going.

• Example: When things go sideways, take a breath and say, “Alright, we’ve got a curveball, but here’s how we’ll handle it.” Then map out the plan. As you become more mature in proactive maintenance through effective planning and scheduling, and something bad happens, you say "we've got this"!
• Why It Works: A calm, solutions-focused attitude reassures the team that they’ve got this—and that you’ve got their back. You worked hard to become a team that knows your roles and how to manage anything that comes your way!

5. Celebrate Wins, Big and Small

Nothing kills motivation like moving from one project to the next without taking a moment to celebrate. As a planner, you’re in a great spot to make sure that doesn’t happen.

• Example: Hit a major milestone? Bring donuts to the shop floor. Wrap up a big project? Send out a team-wide email highlighting everyone’s contribution. Remember, that's your team! Celebrate when they succeed.
• Why It Works: A little celebration shows your team that their hard work matters. And who doesn’t love donuts? (or a good ham and egg & cheese biscuit)

Final Thought: Motivation is Your Superpower

As a planner or scheduler, you’ve got the power to set the tone for your team. By staying positive, recognizing effort, and keeping the big picture in mind, you can turn even the toughest schedules into something your team feels excited to tackle. After all, when the team wins, everybody wins!