A. Introduction to Excellence in management and leadership
4. Time management and goal prioritisation
b. Time management and task prioritisation
index of contents
Time management and task prioritisation
Time is a constant. We cannot really manage, convert or change time. We can however organise our day within the time available to enable us to complete activities in a structured manner.
Many people believe that they do not have enough time to complete all tasks each day. If they work faster they make mistakes, become frustrated, disappointed and burnt out.
Personal Reflection/Discussion
- What does the term time management mean? Note what it means to you.
- Now discuss with others in your class or workplace and contrast your definition with what time means to them.
The major reason for managing your time is to balance all the commitments you have to make within the time you have available.
Hints and dangers
Correct alignment of goals will permit significant personal gain for a manager. However, the failure to do this correctly will equally result in these factors NOT being achieved:
- Greater workflow and focus on priorities;
- Reduced stress through greater focus and planning;
- Focus on priority concerns;
- Ability to tie task completion to a deliverable;
- Greater team success;
- Less mental fatigue;
- Attainment of deadlines (no backlogs or uncompleted task to burden the next planning period); and
- Ability to adopt a model of behaviour that reinforces and sustains goal alignment and attainment.
Characteristics of time management
- T ie goals to timelines
- R emove barriers to timely action
- E stablish a prioritised daily action plan
- A ction the plan - Do or delegate
- T est and evaluate success
Tie goals to timelines
The following time management techniques will help you manage your time more effectively and assist you to achieve your goals within the framework of your work.
Recording actions and times
Planned actions and goals need to be recorded in a way that lists all key dates and breaks down tasks to daily deliverables. Recording can be completed through use of personal diaries and planners.
The following items (in electronic or manual modes) will assist in recording actions and times:
- Personal planner
- A yearly Planner
- A Diary
- Action lists (daily, weekly, time period, etc.)
- Task priority plans
- Progress charts
- Project plans
Adopting Effective Time Management Techniques
Translating goals and actions into deliverables requires more than a good plan with allocated time. It requires the ability to manage time to complete the actions, in the priority order, on time, and in full!
Remove barriers to timely action
Time thieves are those factors that stop you from managing your time effectively. They need to be either removed or avoided by implementing clever personal and team time management strategies.
Activity 7
Time Barriers
It is easy to adopt practices that create time barriers. These are the barriers that impinge upon your ability to complete tasks on time. No matter how well you set priorities, the following barriers can prevent you from completing tasks on time. Examine the following list. Identify the 5 factors you believe present the greatest barriers to time in your current work.
_____________ Making decisions without data
_____________ Attempting to do too much
_____________ Disorganisation
_____________ Unsure of responsibilities
_____________ Lack of goals/planning
_____________ Duplication of effort
_____________ Red tape
_____________ Too much paperwork
_____________ Poor filing system
_____________ Inadequate resources
_____________ Untrained staff
_____________ Under staffed
_____________ Absenteeism
_____________ Personnel with problems
_____________ Untrained subordinates
_____________ Poor motivation |
_____________ Lack of cooperation
_____________ Interruptions from management
_____________ Continuous meetings
_____________ Too many bosses
_____________ Incomplete information
_____________ Poor self-discipline
_____________ Too many tasks
_____________ No standards of performance
_____________ Lack of resources
_____________ Poorly trained staff
_____________ Poor communication
_____________ Subordinates waste time
_____________ Unnecessary communications
_____________ Poor instructions
_____________ Lack of management decisions
_____________ Customer demands |
Activity 8
Solving Time Problems
After reading the list in the previous exercise, now l ist five activities you (personally) would generally spend too much time on during the day. These are 'time robbers'.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Now for each of the five activities that waste time in your day, identify strategies that would assist in overcoming the 'time problems'.
Problem 1
Problem 2
Problem 3
Problem 4
Problem 5
Activity 9
Work alone or in a small group to complete the following activity.
1. Using the 'time robbers' listed in the last exercises, decide on the two activities that the work team could adopt, and together resolve for everyone's benefit.
2. The team should brainstorm strategies to overcome those time robbers that most affect performance in the workplace.
3. Prioritise the strategies and compare your strategies with the rest of the group.
Problem (what) |
Strategies (how) |
Resources/Equipment required |
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4. Consider the team strategies and how these may assist YOU remove problems with personal and team time management. These strategies must improve time management and goal attainment. You may wish to continue to work in small groups to assist devise some individual strategies.
Time barriers may also exist in the operational context. It is important to analyse the use of your time during the workday to find the most productive times during the day and the least productive times.
The reasons why some times are more productive than others should be explored. Use the following exercise to reflect on your approach and how some of these time barriers can be addressed.
Activity 10
Analyse time commitments.
Most productive times of the day |
Why? |
From ......... to ..... |
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From ......... to ..... |
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From ......... to ..... |
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Least productive times of the day |
Why? |
From ......... to ..... |
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From ......... to ..... |
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From ......... to ..... |
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Not all time barriers in the work situation are under your control. The following exercise explores how barriers can be identified and managed.
Activity 11
Work alone or in a small group.
1. Devise strategies that you could use to discourage people from interrupting your work when you are busy. Use three scenarios:
Customers who interrupt task completion;
Management who interrupt task completion; and
Staff members who interrupt task completion
2. Take turns around the room for each participant to offer a suggestion as to how an individual may deal with this situation. Record your strategies. Work through each scenario.
3. List those strategies that you may be able to use in your workplace.
Establish a prioritised daily action plan
To use time effectively you need to not only avoid time robbers and situational problems, but also you must allocate priorities to tasks and allocate a time for completion. The time for completion should reflect when in your day you can be most productive. This reflects the reality that some tasks can be completed better at specific times during your day.
Always analyse your daily time keeping; check and recheck adherence to timelines. Your daily to do list, and/or electronic or personal diary should record when tasks are to be completed right down to the hour, not just the day or week. This permits you to establish routines for task completion that ensure effective use of time. This enables high priority tasks to be completed in a time frame when you know they can be completed, not when they will be interrupted by time barriers.
The allocation of tasks to these times is then completed to form a daily prioritised task, or action list.
Activity 12
Personally reflect on a priority task you have to regularly complete on a regular basis. Now answer the following:
What time of the day do you get the most interruptions?
From ......... to ......
What time of the day is the most constructive time for you to complete your own tasks?
From ......... to ......
Do you do this task when you have least distractions? If not, why not?
Now consider the following:
1. Which barriers would you or your team most often encounter in the workplace?
2. How can you overcome the barriers?
3. Discuss your barriers and strategies to overcome them with a partner.
Dangers
Never plan important tasks to be completed when you are most likely to be interrupted. This is a simple rule, but one hard to achieve and adhere to!
Prioritising your day
There are three types of priorities:
High Priority (H)
They may be tasks that must be completed immediately or within a defined timeframe. There may be a crisis or urgent problem that has occurred.
Medium Priority (M)
These are tasks which have a longer completion date and /or are relatively easy to complete.
Lower Priority (L)
These tasks can be completed when time permits. They often do not have a completion date and /or do not require any work to be completed before a set date (eg. chair a meeting).
A daily to do list
To plan your time well it must be in writing and a daily To Do List has many advantages.
a) The daily To Do List must be completed prior to starting the day and they must be written down.
b) You do not have to try to commit tasks to memory. Writing them down will eliminate the chance of forgetting important elements of the day.
c) Tick off tasks as they are completed. This enables you to keep track of your time.
d) You feel a real sense of job satisfaction when you have completed a task.
e) It will help you start again.
f) It provides a documented record of your daily activities.
g) A To Do List can be a motivator for other workers if they see your organisation.
How to keep a to do list
- Plan your time each day.
- List all activities for the day on a pro forma in a folder. Do not forget tasks that are left over from the previous day.
- Keep the list in a conspicuous place in your work place.
- Save less demanding work for when you are not quite so alert or when there are likely to be interruptions.
- Complete tasks well before deadlines in case urgent unexpected tasks occur.
- Plan by writing down tasks as you think of them. Remember to write down routine tasks.
- Tick off items as they are completed.
Dangers
Once time and the actions to do are set, adhere to them. The more you waver and move times or actions the more your time management system will continue out of control.
Even in the most dynamic environment a manager must have an accurate record of what needs to be done, and by when. In effect, the more hectic the environment, the greater the need to record targets and manage time allocation to their attainment.
Without a clear priority list of tasks it can be difficult even to decide which task to begin. By writing down in note form everything you have to do makes time management easier. You then prioritise your notes in order of High (H), Medium (M), Low (L) priority starting on the highest priority.
Hints
- Be realistic when setting deadlines for completion
- Undertake the priority or most difficult task while your energy levels are high
- Allocate a set time each day for difficult on going tasks
The final issue in a "To Do" list may be for a supervisor or senior team member to decide what and where another team member may be able to assist. One of the most effective time management techniques is to delegate certain tasks to an appropriate person. Good delegation skills may in fact be a means to improve team performance through allocation and prioritisation of tasks across a number of individuals.
You must look at your tasks and see if there are things that someone else may be able to do.
- Can the tasks be done by someone else?
- Should the task be done by someone else?
- Is someone else better qualified to complete the task?
- Who are the people you can delegate work to?
Delegation should be part of a manager's job. It may not be easy to delegate a part of your job to another person, particularly if you think it might reflect badly on your performance. A process of effective delegation will minimise problems associated with passing on work. It can provide impetus for other staff members and will assist in their development. In team planning sessions or meetings, explore how participative mechanisms can be set to allocate tasks and responsibilities.
DAILY TO DO LIST
ACTIVITY |
COMPLETION |
TIME REQUIRED |
PRIORITY
High (H)
Medium (M)
Low (L) |
Delegate To |
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Test and evaluate success
Time management requires personal commitment, by the manager and by staff. To examine if behaviour has changed and commitment to time management has been achieved, assess the following.
- What evidence is there that time is being managed?
- How do we know priorities are being completed on time, in full?
- Is there an intent to continue and to continuously improve?
Maintaining time management in teams and continually improving goal attainment are only possible when behaviours change. Changes include thinking about when priority tasks are completed, how each individual respects others' need for time to complete their tasks, communicating strategies for effective task completion or removing time barriers, and so on. List behavioural changes you can identify as evidencing individual attitudinal change and a more sustainable appreciation for time management.
Behaviour Change |
Evidence
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