Office Management Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Office Managers, Senior Administrators and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 16 Nov 2026 Course code SD-OA-033

Before you join: Participants should have practical experience in office administration, executive support, reception, facilities coordination or a related business support role.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Office managers are expected to keep essential services reliable while handling competing requests from leaders, employees, suppliers and visitors. The role combines operational coordination, communications, records control, meeting administration, purchasing, facilities and team support. Without clear procedures, ownership and reporting, routine work becomes reactive, costs become difficult to track, and service failures can disrupt the wider business.

This course develops the practical methods used to run an office as a controlled service function. Participants learn to define service standards, map workflows, prioritise requests, prepare executive communications, manage records, coordinate meetings and events, monitor office budgets, control purchasing and oversee facilities arrangements. They also apply RACI, SIPOC, Eisenhower Matrix, MoSCoW prioritisation, ISO 15489 principles and PDCA improvement cycles to recurring administrative work.

Teaching combines instructor briefings with office-based cases, group analysis, simulations and structured planning. Participants work with realistic scenarios involving delayed supplier invoices, confidential records, executive meeting actions, facilities incidents, urgent requests and service backlogs. They leave with an Office Management Operating Toolkit containing reusable templates for service delivery, procedures, records, meetings, budgeting, risk control and performance reporting.

The course suits experienced administrators moving into office management, office managers seeking more consistent controls, and professionals responsible for business support, workplace services or executive administration. It is also valuable for managers who supervise administrative teams and need clearer service expectations, reporting and accountability.

What you will be able to do

  • Build an office service catalogue with defined owners, standards and response times
  • Map administrative workflows using SIPOC and standard operating procedure formats
  • Prioritise competing office requests using Eisenhower Matrix, MoSCoW and Kanban methods
  • Prepare decision-ready executive briefings, meeting records and action logs
  • Apply ISO 15489 principles to file plans, retention schedules and access controls
  • Monitor office budgets, purchasing controls, supplier performance and spending variances
  • Develop facilities, incident and business continuity controls for office operations
  • Create a 90-day office improvement plan supported by KPIs and risk registers

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Greater confidence setting service standards and administrative priorities
  • Reusable methods for handling urgent requests without losing planned work
  • Stronger credibility when reporting office issues to senior managers
  • Practical controls for confidential records, suppliers and expenditure
  • A documented plan for improving an existing office operation

For your organisation

  • More consistent response times for internal office service requests
  • Fewer administrative errors through documented procedures and checklists
  • Better control of office spending, purchasing approvals and supplier commitments
  • Improved traceability for records, meeting actions and operational decisions
  • Earlier identification of facilities, continuity and service delivery risks

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can define an office management remit, service catalogue and accountability structure.

  • Office manager remit, authority boundaries and service-level expectations
  • Stakeholder map distinguishing decision makers, service users and suppliers
  • RACI matrix assigns accountable, responsible, consulted and informed roles
  • Office service catalogue defines requests, owners, standards and response times
  • Escalation paths separate routine decisions from exceptions requiring approval
  • Daily management board tracks commitments, blockers and due dates

Participants can standardise recurring office processes with clear controls and ownership.

  • Process maps expose handoffs, rework loops, delays and control points
  • SIPOC diagrams define suppliers, inputs, process steps, outputs and customers
  • Standard operating procedures specify triggers, steps, evidence and ownership
  • Control checklists prevent omissions in recurring administrative transactions
  • Root-cause analysis uses five whys and fishbone diagrams
  • Version control protects approved forms, templates and procedural documents

Participants can plan office work, manage competing demands and delegate effectively.

  • Eisenhower Matrix distinguishes urgent work from important planned work
  • Time blocking protects preparation, approval and follow-up commitments
  • Kanban boards visualise work-in-progress limits and stalled requests
  • MoSCoW prioritisation ranks must-have, should-have, could-have and won't-have requests
  • Delegation briefs define outcome, authority, deadline, constraints and check-ins
  • Workload capacity estimates compare available hours against demand

Participants can communicate office decisions, requests and exceptions with clarity and discretion.

  • Communication plans match message, audience, channel, timing and owner
  • Plain-language emails state purpose, action, deadline and supporting context
  • Executive briefings separate recommendation, evidence, decision and next actions
  • Telephone escalation protocols record facts, commitments and follow-up ownership
  • Conflict de-escalation uses active listening, neutral language and agreed actions
  • Confidentiality classifications govern recipients, storage, printing and disposal

Participants can apply practical records controls to protect information and maintain traceability.

  • ISO 15489 principles guide records creation, capture, retention and disposal
  • File plans apply consistent naming, metadata, access and retention rules
  • Document registers track versions, approvals, distribution and review dates
  • Access permissions apply least-privilege principles to sensitive office records
  • Retention schedules distinguish operational, legal, financial and archival records
  • Secure disposal methods cover shredding, deletion and disposal certificates

Participants can organise decision-focused meetings and coordinate office events with clear follow-through.

  • Meeting purpose statements determine attendees, decisions, agenda and preparation
  • Agenda design allocates time, pre-reading, discussion and decision points
  • Minute templates record decisions, actions, owners and target dates
  • Action logs distinguish commitments, dependencies, risks and overdue items
  • Event run sheets coordinate venues, suppliers, contingencies and responsibilities
  • Post-meeting follow-up confirms actions, circulates records and tracks completion

Participants can monitor office expenditure and apply sound purchasing and supplier controls.

  • Office budget baselines separate fixed costs, variable costs and contingencies
  • Purchase requisitions document business need, specification, cost centre and approval
  • Three-way matching compares purchase orders, receipts and supplier invoices
  • Spend trackers identify variances, commitments, recurring costs and forecast gaps
  • Supplier scorecards assess price, service, quality, delivery and responsiveness
  • Segregation of duties reduces purchasing errors, fraud and unauthorised spend

Participants can coordinate workplace services, assets, incidents and continuity arrangements.

  • Facilities inspections identify hazards, defects, occupancy issues and maintenance priorities
  • Asset registers record location, custodian, condition, value and replacement dates
  • Service-level agreements define scope, response targets, exclusions and remedies
  • Business continuity plans assign recovery priorities, contacts and alternative arrangements
  • Visitor management controls access, badges, sign-in records and evacuation information
  • Incident reports capture facts, immediate actions, evidence and escalation decisions

Participants can coordinate administrative staff, support capability and address service performance.

  • Onboarding checklists coordinate access, equipment, introductions and mandatory policies
  • Training matrices identify required skills, expiry dates and development priorities
  • Performance conversations use SBI feedback: situation, behaviour and impact
  • Shift rosters balance coverage, capability, leave and peak demand
  • Psychological safety encourages early reporting of mistakes and concerns
  • Team huddles review priorities, service issues, risks and handovers

Participants can measure office performance and produce a practical improvement plan.

  • Office dashboards combine service volumes, turnaround, backlog, cost and satisfaction
  • Key performance indicators use defined formulas, sources, owners and targets
  • PDCA cycles test improvements, check results and standardise successful changes
  • Risk registers score likelihood, impact, controls, owners and review dates
  • Monthly reports turn operational data into decisions, exceptions and actions
  • 90-day action plans sequence priorities, measures, sponsors and review points

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Office service catalogue template
  2. Standard operating procedure template
  3. Administrative workflow SIPOC model
  4. Meeting agenda and action log pack
  5. Office budget and supplier scorecard
  6. 90-day office improvement plan

Who should attend

  • Office Managers — need structured methods for controlling services, people, suppliers and facilities
  • Senior Administrators — preparing to assume broader office management responsibility
  • Executive Assistants — responsible for senior-level coordination, meetings and confidential information
  • Facilities Coordinators — managing workplace services, vendors, assets and incident reporting
  • Administrative Team Leaders — setting work priorities, procedures and performance expectations
  • Business Support Managers — seeking consistent controls across administrative service teams

Skills and tools covered

Office service managementWorkflow standardisationRecords controlMeeting governanceBudget monitoringOperational reporting

Tools and standards

RACI matrix, Eisenhower Matrix, MoSCoW prioritisation, ISO 15489

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings followed by practical analysis of office management scenarios. Participants assess service requests, map processes, draft procedures, prioritise workloads, review documents and prepare management reports. Group exercises address meeting control, supplier issues, records handling, facilities incidents and staff coordination. Simulations test decision-making under competing demands. Individual application planning helps participants adapt the methods, templates and measures to their own office responsibilities after the course.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have practical experience in office administration, executive support, reception, facilities coordination or a related business support role. They should be familiar with routine office documents, calendars, email, spreadsheets and basic purchasing or expense processes. Prior supervisory experience is useful but not essential. The course does not require formal management qualifications, accounting expertise, specialist facilities certification or prior knowledge of ISO standards. Participants should be ready to discuss their current office processes and recurring service issues.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants should have experience in office administration, executive support, facilities coordination or business support. Formal management qualifications and prior people-management responsibility are not required.

Bring a laptop if possible, plus examples of non-confidential office forms, procedures or recurring service issues. Course materials and working templates are provided.

It is designed for office managers, senior administrators, executive assistants, facilities coordinators and administrative team leaders. It also suits professionals moving from support roles into responsibility for office operations.

Executive assistant courses focus primarily on senior executive support, while facilities courses focus on buildings and workplace systems. This course addresses the broader office management role, including workflows, records, meetings, budgets, suppliers, teams and service performance.

Participants can use the templates to document services, standardise procedures, track actions and report performance. The final improvement plan identifies priorities, measures, owners and review points for the next 90 days.

The programme runs from 08:30 to 16:30 each day, with approximately 6.5 contact hours daily. Time is divided between instruction, case analysis, group work, simulations and individual application planning.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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