Personal Effectiveness and Communication

·         Time is a limited resource and managers time must be used to the best effect.

·         Urgency and Importance must be recognized and distinguished.

·         Task must be scheduled as per priority.

·         Every employee needs to add more value than he or she costs per hour.

ABCD method apply for Time management.

ABCD method for in- tray Management to organize the time

A= Act ( item immediately)

B= Bin (Worthless/irrelevant/unnecessary work)

C=Create (Plan for coming back to the item)

D= Delegate (To give other appropriate person to do the work) 

Time Management:

Time management is the process of allocating time to tasks in the most effective manner.

Effective time management:

                Goal setting                                                        Focus

                Action Planning                                                 Urgency

                Prioritising                                                           Organisation

Time Management Task

Identifying Objectives (Supervisor must do/ Could do/ like to do)

Prioritising and scheduling

Planning and Control

Goals (SMART):                -                     Action Plan                  Priorities                 Urgency                 Work Organisation  

A= Act ( item immediately) B= Bin (Worthless/irrelevant/unnecessary work) C=Create (Plan for coming back to the item) D= Delegate (To give other appropriate person to do the work)

              S        =   Specific

              M      =   Measurable

              A       =   Attainable

              R       =   Realistic

              T        =   Time-bounded

Organise :

              Organise your work in Batch

               Take advantage of your natural work patterns (Self-discipline)

Improving Time Management:

              Plan Each Day

              Produce a longer-term plan

              Do not be available to everyone at all times

              Stay in Control of the telephone.

Prioritisation involves identifying key results and key tasks.

Prioritising tasks:

              The relative consequences of timely or untimely performance

              Importance

              Dependence of other people

              Urgency

              Defined Deadlines/commitments

A job will be important to other task

Personal Time Management  5 common problems

              Procrastinating: When  a jobs seems boring then put it off for another day or time.

              Delegating Ineffectively:  Give the appropriate work to appropriate person.

              Mismanaging the Paper Work:  A short time organizing papers can save time.

              Holding Unnecessary Meeting: Object oriented meeting need to be arranged.

              Failing to set priorities : Setting priorities is a an essential part of the job.

Work Planning:

              Establishing priorities

              Loading , allocation of task

              Sequence of task

              Scheduling

Modern and Digital Transmission : New technologies require transmission systems. Such as:

              Mobile Communication

              Voice Messaging Systems

              Computer bulleting boards

              Videoconferencing

              Electronic Data Interchange: EDI is computer to computer data interchange.

Deciding on a Communication tool:

              The channel of communication will impact on the effectiveness of the communication process.

              Various tools: Tools should be used for proper place.               Conversation/Meeting/Presentation/Telephone/Fascimile/Memorandum/Letter/Report/           Electronic mail/ Video- conference

Office Automation:

              Organisation Structure:

              Office automation can encourage a tendency  towards decentralization of authority within an      organization.

              To give better customer service.

Ineffectiveness at work:

              The main ways in which employees can be ineffective

              Failing to- Communicate/Meet Deadline/Comply with job satisfaction/deliver the exact product                                                                 needed.

Ineffectiveness at work effects on the organisation: Deadlines are not met/customers get angry

Competence Frameworks and personal development:

              Competence Frameworks

              A competence framework sets out what an employee should be able to do and what the employee        ought to know.

              Coaching:

              Coaching is an approach whereby a trainee is put under the guidance of an experienced employee           who shows the trainee how to perform task. it is a short term process.

                        Step-1- Establish learning targets

                        Step-2- Plan a systematic learning and development programme.

                        Step-3- Identify opportunity for broadening the trainee’s knowledge and experience.

                        Step-4- Take into account the strengths and limitations of the trainee

                        Step-5- Exchange feedback

             

              Mentoring:

              Mentoring is a long- term relationship in which a more experienced person as a teacher, counselor,          role model, supporter and encourager, to foster the individual’s personal and career development.

                        Mentoring differs from coaching in two main ways:

1.    The mentor is not usually the immediate superior

2.    Mentoring covers a wide range of functions, not always related to current job performance.

              Career function and Psychosocial  functions are included in mentoring.

             

              Counseling:

              Counseling is an interpersonal interview, the aim of which is to facilitate another person in identifying     and working through a problem.

              When is counseling is needed:

                        To solve work or performance problem

                        In grievance and disciplinary situations

                        Such as promotion or relocation

                        On redundancy or dismissal

                        Domestic or dismissal

              Counseling Process:

              It is primarily a non-directive role.

i.      Advising (This is a relatively directive role)                             

ii.    Counseling (This is a relatively non directive role)

              Step-1- Review the current scenario : This is done mostly by listeing, encouraging them to tell their                                          ‘Story’, and questionning/probing to help them to see things more clearly.

              Step-2- Developing a preferred  scenario: This is done by encouraging the concerned people see their                                   desired outcome.

              Step-3- Determining how to get there: To develop action strategies for acomplishing goals, for getting                                   what they want.

Confidentiality:

              CIPD Statement on Counseling in the workplace is clear that employees must be made aware when         their comments will be passed on to the relevant authority, and when they will be treated completely             confidentiality.

Personal Plan and objectives:

i)           A personal development plan: It is a clear development action plan for an individuals which including formal training.

ii)           Self development  be defined as Personal Development

Systematic Approach to personal development planing:

               

                        Step-1- Select and Area of Development (SWOT – Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats)

                        Step-2- Set a smart learning Objective: What you want to be able to do or do better.

                        Step-3- Determine how we will move towards our objective: (Research/Evaluate/Authorisation)

                        Step-4- Formulate a comprehensive and specific action plan

                        Step-5- Secure agreement to your action plan

                        Step-6- Implement your action plan.

Conflict:

              Key approaches to managing disagreements and conflicts include understanding the problem and the               personalities involved.

How does conflict arise:

              Shortage of Power and resource

              Individuals and team goal, interests and priorities

              Difference in personality between individuals

              Difference between work methods, timescales and working style

Note: Difference and competition by themselves do not lead directly to conflict: they can even be positive        forces, helping people to solve problem s or lift their performance.

Conflict can escalate or deteriorate into destructive conflict because of :

              Poor or limited communication

              Poor Co-ordination

              Status barriers (The superior asserting authority (do it because I said so))

              Work demands put pressure on individuals and team.

Managing your own interpersonal conflicts:

              Communicate –Direct/informal discussion with the person concern

              Negotiate -  Compromise- A mutually satisfying solution: a win-win

              Separate If personality  clash is the main source of conflict, if the problem persist you may need to            physically separate you in different areas, duties or departments.

Managing conflict in the team

              Management responses to the handling of conflict.

Response:

§  Withdrawal

·         Supression

o   Dominance

§  Compromise

·         Collaboration

o   Encourage co-operative behaviour

Method:

              Win-lose-              This is quite common – It is critical to the win-win approach to discover why both                                                                                             parties really want. Win-Win is not always possible.

                                                                                                One Party gets what (s)he wants at the expense of the                                                                                                                 other party.

              Lose-lose               This sounds like a senseless outcome but actually compromise comes into this                                                                 category. It is thus very common.- Neither party gets what (s)he really wanted

              Win-win                 This may not be common, but working towards it often out the best solution.

                                                Both parties get as close as possible to what they really want.

The limits of our ability and authority to resolve relationship issues:

·      Beyond our authority

·      Beyond our ability

Formal Grievance (complain) procedures:

A grievance occurs when an individuals thinks that he or she is being wrongly treated by their colleagues or supervisors (unfair workload, unfairly appraised in he annual report or unfairly blocked for promotion, or discriminated against), that is, when working relation break down.

Grievance (complain) procedures

              Step-1- Grievance Explained to the individuals immediate boss. Employee have the right to be                                                  accompanied by a colleague or representative such an interview.

                        Step-2- If the immediate boss failure to resolve the matter then report it to next level of                                                                    management.

                                Step-3- Cases referred to higher manager and also reported to HR Department/Personnel                                                        department

ACAS = Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service (A code of practice issuing body-latest edition 2003)

Communication in the Organisation:

               Communication is a two way process involving the transmission or exchange of information and the provision of feedback. It is necessary to direct and coordinate activities.

               Communication is required for Planning, co-ordination and control.

Importancy:

              Management decision-making requires data.

                        Interdepartmental co-ordination depends on information flows.

                                Individuals motivation and effectiveness depends on communication.

Direction of communication:

              Downwards-Upwards (Vertically),

              Sideways/Horizontal (Lateral),

              Diagonally

Communications Patterns or Network:

                                i)Circle (Clowest)    ii)Chain (3^rd fastest)     iii)  Y (2^nd fastest)     iv) Wheel (Fastest)

Job satisfaction:     Highest (?)                 2^nd highest                         3^rd highest             Lowest

 Internal information:

              Data and information come from sources both inside and outside an organisation.

              Inside:  Accounting Record, Employee information from Payroll System

              Outside: Tax rule from tax authority. Customer demand from outside market.

Environmental Scanning:

              The phrase environmental scanning is often used to describe the process of gathering external information. Which is available from a wide range of source.

Efficient data collection will depend on the nature of the organisation, cost and efficiency.

                                                Data is the raw material for data processing

                                                                Information is data that has been processed

The Qualities of good information: ACCURATE

              A= Accurate,  C= Complete, C= Cost-beneficial, U= User-targeted, R= relevant, A= Authoritative,

              T= Timely, E= Easy to use

Organisation require different types of information systems:

i)           Strategic                       ii) Management/tactical                               iii)  Operational

Communication Process:

              Sender   -           Coded Message-Medium-Decoded Message       -          Receiver-Feedback                                                               Distortion                                                                                           Distortion

Distortion: The meaning of a message can be lost at the coding and decoding stages.

Effective Communication:

              Directed to appropriate people

                        Relevant to their needs

                              Accurate and complete

                                    Timely

                                         Flexible

                                                Effective in conveying meaning

                                                     Cost effective

Information communication supplement the formal system

The Grapevine: K Davis using ‘echo-analysis’ technique

              It is quickly, Selective but grapevine does not fill a gap.

Importance of information communication:

              Mintzberg’s roles of management reassessing the informal communication. Managers rather than staff, rely on the grapevine, as opposed to formal communication channel.

Interpersonal skills:

              Interpersonal skills are needed in order to understand the manage roles, relationships, attitudes and        perceptions. They enable us to communicate effectively and to achieve our aims when dealing with   other people.

             

The abilities are:

              Body language

                        Listen attentively and actively

                              Put others at their ease, to persuade and to smooth over difficult situations

                                   Use communication media iimediately

                                     Sum up or conclude

                                                Leadership or inspiration

More other interpersonal relationship:

i)           Goal              ii) Perseption    iii) Roles      iv) Resistances   v) Attitudes              vi) Relationships

Barriers to communication:

              Distortion

              Non-verbal signs

              Overload

              Difference in social, racial or educational background

Communication difficulties at work:

              Status    

              Jargon

              Suspicion

              Priorities

              Selective Reporting : Subordinates giving superiors incorrect or incomplete information