Executive Assistants Event - 28th February 2013 at The Place Hotel,
Manchester
COLLATED TIME MANAGEMENT – SUMMARY
1. Interruptions:
- Delegate telephone calls to other colleagues when busy
- Designate coffee/lunch breaks
- Use headphones
- Surfing the net
2. Delegation:
- Delegate work when busy
- Forward telephone calls to other colleagues when busy
3. Organisation:
- Streamline emails
- Keep files and folders in a designated place
- Share files and folders in a shared drive
- De-clutter  organise desk and surrounding area
- Label things appropriately
- Be aware of deadlines
- Out of Office message
- Draft minutes ASAP after meeting
4. Personal Qualities:
- Be assertive  learn to say no
- Proactive
- Focused
- Concise
- Awareness
- Calm
- Don’t be too self-critical or perfectionism
- Do not procrastinate
5. Communication:
- Liaise with colleagues ensuring common purpose
- Liaise with Chair
- Consider telephone conference/Skype
- Ask for clarification when unsure
6. Planning and Organisations:
- Pre plan
- Prioritise and re-prioritise
- Stick to agenda
7. Factor beyond your control:
- Other people not reading emails
- In a crisis: Keep calm and carry on
- Car Parking (finding one)
COLLATED TIME MANAGEMENT – TOP TIPS
Top Tips 1
o Keep things in a designate place
o Structure – electronic share filing
o Pre planning and organisation
o Concise telephone conversations
o Assertive
o Proactive
o Concise
o Able to prioritise
o Be focused
o Thinking ahead
o Not allowing to be interrupted
Top Tips 2
o Organise your desk
o Spend time with the Chair (correct membership)
o Delegate phone calls to colleagues if you have to complete and important task
o ‘Can’t deal with you now, I’ll get back to you’
o Being aware
o File in a timely manner
o Keep calm, don’t panic
o Assertive
o Focused
o Planned ahead
o Prioritise
o Fast and smooth
o 3Ds: Do, Delegate, Dump
Top Tips 3
o Labelling things appropriately
o Culture challenge – become paperless
o Poss. Headphones
o Manage the interruption
o Give yourself more time
o Assertive – say NO
o Prioritise
o Focus
o Stay calm
o Plan
o Swan syndrome
o Touch papers/task
Top Tips 4
o Organised (what, when, where)
o Company objectives/priorities
o Forward thinking/planning
o Well prepared
o Prioritise/Re-prioritise
o Do, Delegate, Dump
o Focused
o Stay Calm
o Being assertive
Top Tips 5
o Replacing things where you found them – dedicated place
o Effective chair – is that necessary? Stick to the agenda
o Divert calls, keep conversations short and relevant
o Defer interruptions
o ‘Just do it!’
o Bin or delete junk mail
o Don’t panic and prioritise
o Learn to say no
o Don’t be too self-critical, learn to recognise when good enough is good enough
o ‘2 minute’ rule
o Self-discipline
Top Tips 6
o Losing things:
1. Separate folders for separate things
2. Organise desk
3. De-clutter
o Meetings:
1. Tele conferencing can cut down on time and travel
2. Clear purpose (Agenda), a clear Chairperson
3. Consider alternative technology
o Telephone: Forward phone to another colleague if busy
o Interruptions: Quiet place
o Procrastination: knowing when to be productive
o Junk paperwork: bin it and get rid of junk email
o Reverse Delegate: chase up
o Perfectionism: not overdoing things
o Emails: streamline
o Surfing the net: be focused => Crises: keep calm and carry on
Top Tops 7
o Designated place
o Talk to each other
o Be direct to switch/intranet
o Designated lunch breaks
o Out of office message
o PLAN, PRIORITISE, PREPARE, ASSERTIVE
Top Ten Tips 8
o Prioritise and reprioritise
o Plan
o Focus
o Understand environment
o Able to say no and delegate as appropriate
o Work relevant to organisational objective and priorities
o Task benefitted to patients