Time Management Training

Time management skills are essential in fast-paced, modern work environments where employees are juggling multiple priorities. When you have a team that is proficient in time management techniques, goal setting and decision-making, you’re better able to achieve outcomes. In this increasingly complex world of work, employees are dealing with more than one task and need effective time management tools. The purpose of this workshop is to prepare teams with time management strategies they can take away and apply on the job immediately.

Working with organisations in Melbourne, Sydney and across Australia, we know that teams need to flex across different tasks and multiple challenges. Here’s a few of them:

1. Increased responsibility: More and more, employees are given greater responsibility and autonomy than ever before – especially in hybrid working environments. Team members are expected to take ownership for managing projects and tasks and be accountable to results. Employees who can manage their time and prioritise will cope better in this type of working environment.
2. Work-life balance: Balancing work and personal responsibilities is challenging but employees skilled in time management strategies are better able to flex and juggle across both. This gives them an edge on dealing with multiple priorities and delivering on responsibilities in both work and life.
3. Complex world of work: Living in a ‘VUCA’ (volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous) environment means that teams need to be able to cope with multiple tasks and constant challenges. Covid recovery, economic instability and hybrid working have all changed the way we experience work. Time management skills help us balance priorities to stay productive and keep stress at bay.
4. Constant upskilling: Professional development is not an event and upskilling is continually required in a world of work that is constantly evolving. Employees need to continue to grow competencies and stay current, so they must manage their time effectively to include upskilling as part of their work rhythm.
5. Less time: In the current work context, there is a perception that there is ‘less time’ for tasks – because employees are often spread across different roles, teams or projects. There is a lot of flexibility required in modern workplaces that can make it feel like there’s ‘less time’ for everything. Good self-management techniques help employees see that it’s more about good prioritisation and organisation and less about time.

Overall, these challenges can make it more difficult for teams to achieve outcomes if they’re not skilled in time management and prioritising. However, with the right support such as this Time Management Training Course, coaching sessions, and time management tools, employees can thrive in this complex world of work.

With the help of this Time Management Course, skills that teams can put in place to enhance performance include:

1. Personal development: This involves the ability to recognise and regulate one’s own emotions and overcome defeating behaviours like procrastination. Employees can improve their personal development by engaging in reflection, by seeking feedback, and by challenging themselves not to engage in ‘time wasters’ and use time well. 
2. Priority setting: Time efficient employees successfully manage tasks and responsibilities to stay focussed on priorities and goals. Employees can develop this kind of skillset by identifying high value versus low value tasks, clarifying expectations and deadlines, and flexing and adapting where needed. Simple and effective project management principles can be applied to managing one’s own workflow, not just to team projects. 
3. Teamwork: Collaboration and teamwork contributes to a good time management strategy when goals and outcomes are shared. Work is evenly distributed relative to people’s strengths, so team members are working at their best and applying energy to the right tasks. 
4. Critical thinking skills: When employees engage in better decision-making because of sound critical thinking skills, it helps to reduce inefficiency. They properly assess problems or challenges to decide on an action plan. Critical thinkers can also talk themselves out of moments of procrastination and uncertainty. 
5. Becoming active learners: Active learning is a critical skill for employees in today’s work environment, as they often need to upskill quickly to keep up with expectations. Employees who stay committed to being active learners continuously apply what they’ve learned on the job, increasing efficiency and output.

By developing competencies in these practical skills, teams can grow capability in time management to handle multiple priorities in the workplace.

What is Time Management Training?

Our Time Management Training Course is specifically designed for teams to develop skills in managing tasks and energy levels. It aims to provide participants with the skills, tools, resources and confidence necessary to manage increasingly complex work environments. Our experienced facilitators have worked with teams across Australia and draw from case studies and shared experiences to offer meaningful advice, practical strategies, and stories to learn from.

Why should my organisation offer Time Management Training?

Being part of Time Management Training can help teams improve their ability to use their energy wisely, manage multiple priorities and collaborate better. It can also help participants to break through self-defeating behaviours like procrastination that might be holding them back. The workshop experience is designed to help teams learn from each other and see how they might help each other excel in applying time management techniques.

Who can attend Time Management Training?

This Time Management Training Course is designed for teams. The skills we focus on build competency in time management techniques that are more than just ‘to do lists’ and ‘SMART goals’. However, this training can be easily customised for emerging leaders, frontline leaders, or middle management as well. A team leader might want to be involved in the session with their team too.

Is Time Management Training only available in person?

This Time Management Training Course can be delivered in an in-person, virtual or hybrid format; depending on the organisation’s set-up. It is a highly interactive session, typically made up of strategies, discussions and a series of activities to support on the job application. The training can be complemented with coaching sessions with a Thinka coach. Coaching plays an important role in challenging old behaviours and building fresh confidence and capability in each of the participants. Organisations might also opt for a blended program that makes use of eLearning modules and other forms of media as part of an online course.

Mattel APAC
Managing Workload, Productivity & Prioritisation

1. What was the objective?

This workshop was originally delivered in 2021 and after it proved to be effective, it was delivered again in 2022. Mattel wanted their employees to empower themselves to enhance time management skills in productivity and prioritisation. Learning outcomes were about helping employees to manage their workload, boost their productivity, and organise their workflow with greater effectiveness.

2. How did we do it?

The key learning areas in this workshop included understanding how to design productive working rhythms, how to juggle different workflow requirements, and how to apply the ‘tiny habits’ principle to workflow management strategies.

3. How was it integrated and what were the results?

The learning was integrated through self-reflections, activities, polls, videos and other interactive elements in the workshop, linking back to participants’ roles at work. This meant we could encourage participants to think about their own jobs and how they can be accountable for their own time, productivity, and prioritisation at work.