Lucy Miller
Since November of 2000, Lucy has served as a Training Associate with VCU’s Rehabilitation Research and
Training Center in Richmond, VA. In this capacity, Lucy provides training and technical assistance on a wide
variety of topics with emphasis on how paid employment affects Social Security disability benefits and using
work incentives to promote employment outcomes for SSA disability beneficiaries. In addition, Lucy has over
20 years of experience in all aspects of supported employment implementation for adults with significant
disabilities in both urban and rural settings. Before joining VCU, Lucy served as a Vice President for Career
Resources, Inc., a nationally recognized leader in One-Stop and Welfare-to-Work services in the greater
Louisville, KY metropolitan area. Prior to this, Lucy worked for over 10 years at Seven Counties Services, a
regional planning authority for mental health, mental retardation and chemical dependency services.
Effective Time Management Strategies
for CWICs
Lucy Axton Miller
July 2011
VCU WIPA NTC
Training Objectives
Upon completion of this training, participants will:
• Describe the difference between “urgent” and “important” WIPA
activities and give examples;
• Identify the most common time wasters CWICs encounter &
describe strategies for minimizing these activities;
• Identify and describe six guidelines for effective time management;
and
• Identify specific strategies for applying the six tenets of time
management to WIPA activity.
Why Time Management Matters
1. CWICs have a limited amount of time in relation
to beneficiary needs – CWICs cannot be
everything to everyone – they must ration their
time and expertise.
2. There is an increasing emphasis on OUTCOMES
and RESULTS! WIPA projects are held
accountable for achieving certain goals. CWICs
who do not manage their time effectively will
not meet SSA’s expectations.
Importance vs. Urgency
• “Importance” refers to how closely an activity
reflects your values, mission or your high
priority goals.
• “Urgency” refers to how pressing an issue is
with regard to time.
• Managing your time well means that you focus
more on the importance of an issue as opposed
to merely its urgency. Of the highest priority
would be issues which are both important AND
urgent.
Importance - Urgency Grid
Quadrant 1:
Low Importance - Low Urgency
Quadrant 3:
High Importance - Low Urgency
Quadrant 2:
Low Importance - High Urgency
Quadrant 4:
High Importance - High Urgency
Importance vs. Urgency
Let us review some examples of common
service requests that CWICs receive.
Go to page two in the handout “Effective Time
Management Strategies for CWICs” to find
the importance-urgency grid.
How to STOP Trying to be Everything to
Everybody
• Stay focused on your mission;
• Enforce the boundaries of your role; and
• Learn to say “NO” without hesitation or guilt.
– You are not obligated to provide WIPA services to
people who are clearly not interested in working.
– You are not obligated to help solve every problem.
– You are not obligated to do everything yourself.
Time Bandits
A “time bandit” is an activity which consumes time but
results in very little benefit in relation to the WIPA
mission.
A “time bandit” is NOT simply a task that takes up a lot
of time. Some very IMPORTANT activities are time
consuming but well worth doing!
Top Time Bandits for CWICs
• Ineligible callers;
• Eligible callers who have no intention of pursuing
employment;
• Inefficient methods of verifying benefits from all
sources;
• Face-to-face meetings and transportation time; and
• Record keeping – including ETO data entry.
• Others? What time-bandits frustrate you the most?
Handling Ineligible or
Low Importance Callers
• Find ways to screen calls BEFORE they reach CWICs;
• Start ALL initial calls with screening questions;
• Take control of calls in the first few minutes and
maintain control;
• Manage caller expectations early on and train
referral sources on boundaries;
• NEVER meet with anyone whose importance has
not already been established; and
• Use referral forms that document eligibility and
importance.
Verifying Benefits
• Establish the benefits verification procedures rules
with each agency in advance and follow these
procedures.
• Do not over-complicate verification – use any
reliable documentation the beneficiary has.
• Develop relationships with contacts in the various
referring agencies so you have a go-to person to
contact.
• Spending time resolving benefits problems
uncovered during verification is part of the service
CWICs offer – this is not wasting time!
Face-to-Face Meetings
• Recognize that face-to-face contact does NOT
necessarily result in better quality services.
• CWICs are not obligated to ‘always’ provide services in a
face-to-face manner.
• Do not meet with beneficiaries or their representatives
unless the issue at hand cannot be dealt with by phone
or email.
• Do NOT routinely attend meetings about beneficiaries
without assessing the importance of the activity.
• Use three-way calling or conference calling to convene
small groups of people.
Record Keeping and Data Entry
• Are you creating needless paperwork? Files only need to
meet the SSA standards.
• Reduce duplication of effort – type case notes into ETO
and print pages out as needed – complete ETO baseline
during initial interviews.
• Set aside one hour each day to complete ETO data entry
and maintain files. Do not answer calls during this time.
• Use the standard BS&A descriptions – keep copies of
BS&As to use as templates – do not write BS&As/WIPs
for people who do not need them!
What other time bandits do you struggle
with?
Have you found ways to minimize time
wasters that you can share with others?
Guidelines for Effective Time
Management
Plan ahead & schedule tasks
Prioritize important tasks
Set limits & enforce them
Simplify everything
Delegate whenever possible
Review and revise
Plan Ahead & Schedule Tasks
• Work off of prioritized to-do lists.
– Do It – this needs to be done immediately
– Delegate It – it needs to be done, but someone else can
take care of it
– Defer It – it needs to be done, but it can wait
– Dump it – it is not important, get it off your plate
• Schedule set times to get specific tasks done and stick to your
plans!
• Use electronic calendar systems that allow you to program preplanned events.
• Maximize the use of ETO prompting features.
• Make appointments for everything possible!
Prioritize Important Tasks
• Candidly review how you spend your time – enlist help from team
members.
• It is OK to spend a lot of time on important tasks.
• It is OK to serve fewer people as long as the people you serve are
the most important ones.
• Invest time in prevention activities.
– Ongoing follow-up
– Teaching beneficiaries to report earnings
– Teaching beneficiaries and support people to manage benefits
• Time spent obtaining training and technical assistance is ALWAYS
worthwhile!
Set Limits and Enforce Them
• Know what your boundaries are – seek help when
you are unsure.
• Inform ALL stakeholders of your boundaries in clear
terms.
• Enforce your boundaries consistently and
unapologetically.
• Say “no” to tasks that are not important .
• Do not feel guilty.
• Manage interruptions – turn off the phone and
email when necessary.
Simplify Everything
• Evaluate everything you do and find ways to
simplify – use input from others.
• Stop performing tasks that do not result in
positive outcomes related to your mission.
• Avoid duplication of effort across personnel in
your project.
• Minimize “re-work” – do a task ONCE and do it
correctly.
• Focus on working SMART, not working hard.
Delegate Whenever Possible
• Clearly identify everyone in the beneficiary’s circle of
support and obtain contact info on these individuals.
• Develop relationships with key players and involve them
whenever possible.
• Always ask if a task can be delegated before committing
to doing it yourself.
• Focus time and energy on teaching beneficiaries to
perform tasks themselves instead of doing things for
them.
• Teach community partners about work incentives so
they can help dispense information.
Review & Revise Time Management
Strategies
• Work with your team to evaluate effectiveness of time
management efforts.
• Do not be afraid to point out areas in need of
improvement.
• Be prepared to offer suggestions for improvement –
participate in the solution!
• If something is not working – CHANGE IT!
• Include time management goals in employee evaluation
and project quality assurance plans.
Time Management as a Team Issue
• Managers must make effective time management a
priority and should monitor staff time.
• Work collaboratively with team members to distribute
tasks to save time and reduce duplication.
• Strategize as a group on ways to eliminate or mitigate
time bandits.
• Look to agency administrative staff for help.
• Do not be afraid to challenge the status quo.
Final Thoughts
• YOU are responsible for knowing what activities
are important;
• YOU are responsible for controlling how your
time is spent;
• YOU are the one who ultimately will be held
accountable for the results you achieve; and
• YOU can change the way you manage your
time!