31511233/0412 © Business & Legal Reports, Inc. BLR’s Training Presentations Planning &...

31511233/0412 © Business & Legal Reports, Inc.

BLR’s Training Presentations

Planning & Organizational Skills


Goals

Recognize the importance of being well organized and making effective plans

Understand what it means to be well organized on the job

Know how to make more effective plans


Why Plan and Organize?

Meet goals Anticipate needs,

problems, and choices Make better decisions Be more efficient

and productiveDevelop, assign,

and monitor tasks


Why Plan and Organize? (cont.)

Make sure priorities are met Evaluate progressProvide workers with necessary

guidance and resourcesPrepare for crisis and change Achieve better results


Organize Yourself

Prepare for tomorrow, today

Check before you leave the house

Get an early startReview your schedule

and make adjustments


Organize Yourself (cont.)

Check your mailConsult with

key employees Check in with the boss Keep key items with you


Organize Your Work

Maintain an appointment calendar

Make lists Prioritize tasksFocus on priorities Be flexible


Organize Your Office

Neat work area Manageable desktop Clutter patrolOrder vs. organization


Organize Your Office (cont.)

Easy reach zone Maximum reach zone Stand-and-walk zone Storage


Organize Your Paper

Throw it away Act on it Put it aside File it


Organize Your Paper: Filing Strategies

Use comprehensive categories Employ secondary headings File in a continuous sequence Use cross-references Be specific when filing


Organize Your Paper: Dealing with Piles

Immediate action Low priority Pending Reading materials Everything else


Organize Your Computer

Establish a system for naming files

Maintain an effectivefiling system

Keep a working folder for current files


Organize Your Computer (cont.)

Organize your e-mail Organize bookmarks Clean up your

hard drive periodically


Organize Your Time

Prime time Delegation Interruptions


Organize Your Time (cont.)

Procrastination Meetings Phone calls


What You Need to Plan

Staffing Budget Schedules Training Resources


Why Planning Is So Important

Helps achieve goals Provides alternatives Prevents mistakes Gives you a greater ROI Helps you handle a crisis Helps prepare for change


Types of Plans

Immediate Short-term Intermediate-rangeLong-range


Elements of a Plan

Goals Strategies Schedules Activities


Elements of a Plan (cont.)

Procedures and methods

Resources Training Programs


Planning for the Unexpected

Build in flexibility Have a contingency plan Review and revise your plans Evaluate your planning strategies and tactics


Planning and Organizing Checklist

Do you prepare for tomorrow, today? Do you use an organizer and keep it handy? Do you make To Do lists and maintain an

appointment calendar? Do you prioritize tasks? Is your office organized for maximum efficiency? Do you manage your paper and computer files?


Planning and Organizing Checklist (cont.)

Are you an efficient time manager? Do you plan carefully and consistently? Do you develop short-term and long-term plans? Do you build flexibility into your plans? Do you always have a contingency plan? Do you evaluate and improve your planning

strategies and tactics?


Goals

Recognize the importance of being well organized and making effective plans

Understand what it means to be well organized on the job

Know how to make more effective plans


Summary

Planning and organizing are two key functions of your job.

The better organized you are, the more effective and successful you will be.

Effective planning allows you to achieve important goals and get the results you need.

Planning also prepares you to deal more effectively with crisis and change.


Quiz

1. Name three reasons why planning and organizing are important to your job.

2. Being well organized means preparing for tomorrow, today. True or False

3. Identify three ways you can organize your work better.

4. If you are well organized, you should expect to get all the tasks on your To Do list accomplished every day. True or False


Quiz (cont.)

5. Which items in your office should be in your “easy reach” zone?

6. Identify three steps you can take to better organize your computer.

7. You only need to concentrate on short-term planning. Long-range planning is something for upper management to do. True or False

8. Give three reasons why planning is important.


Quiz (cont.)

9. Name three elements of most plans.

10. You only need a contingency plan if you’re planning something you haven’t done before.

True or False


Quiz Answers

1. Planning and organizing are important for many reasons, including the fact that they allow you to meet goals; anticipate needs, problems, and choices; make better decisions; be more efficient and productive; develop, assign, and monitor tasks; make sure priorities are met; evaluate progress; provide workers with necessary guidance and resources; prepare for crisis and change; and achieve better results.

2. True.


Quiz Answers (cont.)

3. You can better organize your work by maintaining an appointment calendar, making To Do lists, prioritizing tasks, focusing on priorities, and being flexible to adjust to changes in priorities.

4. False. Don’t expect to get everything done. Focus on the high-priority tasks and make sure those get done first.

5. Keep items you use most frequently in your easy reach zone so that they will always be at your fingertips when you need them.



6. You can better organize your computer by establishing a system for naming files, maintaining an effective filing system, keeping a working folder for current files, organizing your e-mail, organizing your bookmarks, and cleaning up your hard drive periodically.

7. False. You need to develop plans for the intermediate- range (at least 3 months ahead) and long-range (at least a year ahead) as well as the immediate future (this week) and the short-term (this month).



8. Planning helps achieve goals, provides alternative, prevents mistakes, gives you greater return on investment of time and effort, helps handle a crisis, and helps prepare for change.

9. All plans involve goals, strategies, schedules, activities and tasks, procedures and methods, and resources. Some plans may also involve training and special programs.



10. False. It’s always a good idea to have a plan B, a fallback position, in case circumstances change or plans don’t work out as anticipated.

31511233/0412 © Business & Legal Reports, Inc. BLR’s Training Presentations Planning &...

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