The FDC Blog

28 Aug 2012

Time Management for SMEs

An area in which businesses can epically win or fail; time delegation and management is often overlooked by many. Tasks and work schedules are repeatedly undefined, leaving the majority of duties with an unclear agenda. This not only demotivates employees to get the job done, but also leaves them feeling unaccomplished and unenthused. A sound workload plan and structured programme will refine your company’s productiveness massively.

The full potential of a business can only be reached when time is managed effectively within. ‘Manage your resources correctly to become efficient with time’ is certainly a better way of looking at the scenario. Optimum performance is only achieved through successful delegation and proper use of technologies at hand.

Identify time perpetrators

What tasks take you the longest time to complete? Are there some daily duties which are deemed absolutely necessary but grind your day to a halt? These are the key areas in which you should focus first. The most important thing to remember is that EVERY assignment can be streamlined in some way or another. Analyse your working day and categorise your schedule; you will soon detect some timeframes which need improvement. Colour code in red the tasks which you feel you struggle to fit in, and not only do this for yourself, but ask for your staff to do the same, highlighting the reasons why and suggestions for improvement.

Analyse and research

Once you have all of the information in front of you, it will be clear what can be improved upon and what daily tasks eat up the most time. With 46% of business owners stating that they take on 3-4 roles each day, it’s not surprising that schedules can become mixed up and over-run. Now is the time to think about resources; which tasks could potentially be quicker completed with the assistance of a colleague, or even automated through a piece of generic or custom built software? Keep your mind open to ideas…Investment means return! You have a vast amount of resources available at your fingertips, whether they are human or digital, make the most of them.

Delegate and refine

With a fresh organised plan of your working week in place, it is important to stay dedicated and stick to your schedule religiously; else all of this will be a further waste of time! Set short term goals and factor in some ‘free’ time in the week for any unplanned instances which may occur. Part-allocate any of your tasks which are extremely time-heavy to one or more members of staff but remember the importance of communication between yourselves. Eliminate any tasks which have proven to be unsuccessful after analysis – if they aren’t bringing any positives to the business, why are they in place? Don’t be afraid to begin a new regime, a business which grows is one which changes…..

By Sam Hurley