With 9-5 turning 24/7, more employees turn to time management training with a twist, that is, training that includes using software that they use every day.
Martin Dufficy, managing director at training and consulting firm TMI in UK, told Personneltoday.com that “about half of its customers who request for time management courses want it related to Outlook or Lotus Notes training—mostly the former—because they want time management applied across the corporate email network.”
For Warren Mint, managing director of training provider Total Success, the potential of Microsoft Outlook is not being maximized, pointing to it as one reason why time management trainings are on the rise. “One reason for the growth in time management training is our failure to use systems such as Outlook to their full potential,” Mint told Personneltoday.com.
“Microsoft Outlook is the one thing that can allow us to manage our time effectively,” Mint added. “But a lot of people still only use it for e-mail. They probably use only about 5% of what it can do.”
According to the Mint, there should be emphasis on learning how to get the most out of the time management functions on the system, such as e-mail, tasks, shared calendars, contacts and meeting planners.
As reported by Nadia Damon, Personneltoday.com wrote: KBR, a global engineering, construction and services company, required its staff to take up time management training with Microsoft Outlook, which was a one-day in-house course.
After the training, which was attended by twelve people and covered such topics as managing emails, managing deadlines, delegating, etc., its building services office manager, Joanne Hinds, believed the attendees seemed to be managing their time much better.
“I have noticed a difference in my staff,” Hinds told Personneltoday.com. “It has definitely helped me - especially with managing my e-mails, and I don’t feel like I am fire-fighting all the time.”
