Communication and Time Management Training Course

Participants can select appropriate channels and structure messages for clear action and decision-making.

• Communication purpose, audience and channel selected before drafting any message
• Plain English principles remove ambiguity, jargon, buried requests and unnecessary qualifiers
• Seven Cs framework checks completeness, concision, clarity, correctness, courtesy and concreteness
• BLUF structure places the decision, request or recommendation first
• Active listening uses paraphrasing, probing questions, summarising and confirmation
• Tone adjusted for senior leaders, peers, customers and sensitive situations
• Communication records distinguish decisions, actions, owners, deadlines and open questions

Participants can manage email and written correspondence efficiently while preserving accuracy and accountability.

• Subject lines state action, topic and deadline in searchable language
• Email triage applies delete, delegate, defer, do and file decisions
• Message templates handle meeting requests, status updates, reminders and escalations
• Paragraph structure separates context, required action, supporting facts and next steps
• Proofreading checklist catches names, dates, attachments, formatting and unintended tone
• Version control prevents conflicting documents and lost approval trails

Participants can communicate assertively, gather accurate information and address difficult issues constructively.

• Assertive communication distinguishes requests, boundaries, disagreement and personal attack
• DESC script structures difficult conversations around facts, effects, needs and consequences
• Closed and open questions gather precise information under time pressure
• Telephone messages capture caller, purpose, urgency, callback details and promised action
• Escalation conversations frame risks, options, recommendation and required decision
• Feedback uses SBI: situation, behaviour, impact, then agreed next action

Participants can coordinate productive meetings and maintain reliable records of decisions and commitments.

• Meeting purpose determines whether to inform, consult, decide or solve
• Agenda design assigns outcomes, timings, owners, pre-reading and decision points
• Calendar invitations specify location, access details, attendees and preparation required
• Chairing techniques manage contributions, digressions, conflict and timeboxes
• Minutes distinguish decisions, action owners, deadlines, rationale and unresolved items
• Action logs track commitments through reminders, follow-up and closure evidence

Participants can organise work against priorities, deadlines and available capacity.

• Eisenhower Matrix separates urgent-important work from scheduling, delegation and elimination
• ABCDE method ranks tasks when multiple deadlines compete for attention
• Time audit identifies recurring work, reactive demand and avoidable delay
• Weekly planning reserves capacity for priorities, administration, interruptions and contingencies
• Daily task lists translate commitments into next actions and realistic durations
• Batching reduces context switching across email, filing, calls and routine approvals

Participants can allocate work appropriately and negotiate priorities when demand exceeds capacity.

• Stakeholder expectations clarify service levels, turnaround times and escalation thresholds
• RACI matrix distinguishes accountable decisions from supporting and informed roles
• Delegation briefings define outcome, authority, constraints, deadline and check-in points
• Kanban boards visualise work-in-progress, bottlenecks, dependencies and completed actions
• Dependency mapping identifies prerequisite approvals, inputs, handoffs and critical dates
• Renegotiating deadlines presents workload evidence, trade-offs and alternative commitments

Participants can protect focused work time while remaining responsive to legitimate urgent needs.

• Interruption log distinguishes genuine emergencies from habitual requests and self-interruption
• Office-hour agreements protect focus time while maintaining accessible service
• Boundary statements decline or defer requests without damaging working relationships
• Pomodoro Technique structures focused work intervals and planned recovery breaks
• Stress signals trigger practical reset routines before errors and poor judgement
• Contingency lists prepare handover actions for absence, overload and urgent cover

Participants can manage stakeholder expectations and handle sensitive communication with appropriate care.

• Stakeholder maps classify influence, interest, information needs and communication frequency
• Communication plans align updates, channels, owners, timing and escalation routes
• Confidentiality decisions apply need-to-know access and secure document handling
• Cross-cultural communication checks assumptions about directness, hierarchy, silence and deadlines
• Service recovery responses acknowledge impact, explain action and confirm resolution timing
• Managing upward presents concise briefings, options and decisions required from executives

Participants can establish a practical personal effectiveness system and implement it after the course.

• SMART objectives convert course priorities into measurable workplace improvement targets
• Personal operating system combines calendar blocks, task lists, inbox rules and reviews
• Weekly review reconciles commitments, deadlines, waiting items and unfinished priorities
• Communication audit identifies recurring failures, audience gaps and avoidable rework
• Manager alignment conversation agrees priorities, service standards and development support
• Thirty-day application plan schedules habits, measures and review dates