Urgent and Important, revisited

Some ten years ago I wrote a short post about the tension between Urgent and Important. I was then Chair of Trustees at Bridge Support, and I framed my role as encouraging the Executive Team to stay focused on the Important - the strategic work that could all too easily be displaced by firefighting.

My perspective has shifted. I stepped down as Chair in 2024 and now work as a consultant to the charity. The change matters because I'm no longer the person maintaining that strategic focus from the board. Instead, I'm often brought in to handle what sits uncomfortably at the intersection of Urgent and Important.

Take serious incident reporting. When an incident occurs requiring assessment against Charity Commission reporting thresholds, it's both Urgent (time-sensitive and requiring immediate attention) and Important (there are governance obligations, risk management considerations, and learning opportunities). You can't defer it, and you can't rush it. The work requires careful judgement, often in conditions of uncertainty - about what happened, what it means, whether it meets reporting thresholds.

Or Trustee recruitment. Important? Absolutely. Board composition matters. Urgent? Not in the sense of firefighting but there are real time pressures when you have gaps or upcoming retirements. There’ll be drafting the papers, working through the process, getting the appointments right. It matters strategically, but it also needs doing now.

Or due diligence on a potential partner. The CEO needs a view, the decision has a timetable, and getting it wrong will have real consequences: financial, operational, reputational. Both Urgent and Important, requiring judgement about relationships, timing, what's appropriate and proportionate.

What I have come to see is that the binary between Urgent and Important doesn't quite work. Or rather, it works as a framing device but less well as a description of how work actually presents itself. Some work is Important but not Urgent - for example governance review implementation; this needs steady attention over months and that's where discipline matters. Some work is Urgent but not Important - the crisis that isn't. That's where you need to say no.

But quite a lot of work is both. And that's the work that tests judgement most. You can't dismiss it, you can't defer it. You have to do it well, do it now, and recognise that it matters.

Perhaps what I'm really describing is the difference between governance and execution. As Chair, I held the strategic frame. As consultant, I work in the detail - the policies, the assessments, the advice that helps the Executive Team and board make decisions. Both matter. They are just different.

The trick isn't striking a balance between Urgent and Important. It's recognising which is which, understanding when they overlap, and being disciplined about the work that's neither.