BSBPEF402

Develop personal
work priorities
Learner Guide
 Table of Contents
Unit of Competency ..................................................................................................................... 4
Application ...................................................................................................................................... 4
Performance Criteria....................................................................................................................... 5
Foundation Skills ............................................................................................................................. 6
Assessment Requirements .............................................................................................................. 7
1. Plan personal work schedule .................................................................................................... 9
1.1 – Identify task requirements ....................................................................................................... 10
Planning work ............................................................................................................................... 10
Task requirements ........................................................................................................................ 10
1.2 – Identify own accountabilities in line with task requirements.................................................. 12
Task accountabilities ..................................................................................................................... 12
Task ownership ............................................................................................................................. 12
Your task accountabilities ............................................................................................................. 13
Organisational requirements ........................................................................................................ 13
1.3 – Assess barriers for performance of personal accountabilities................................................. 14
Barriers to personal accountabilities ............................................................................................ 14
Assessing the barriers ................................................................................................................... 14
Contingency plans ......................................................................................................................... 15
1.4 – Develop a personal work schedule .......................................................................................... 16
Documenting work plans .............................................................................................................. 16
Your work schedule....................................................................................................................... 17
Techniques to prepare personal plans and identify priorities ...................................................... 20
Business technology to schedule and plan ................................................................................... 21
2. Implement personal work schedule ........................................................................................ 22
2.1 – Communicate personal work schedule to relevant personnel ................................................ 23
Business technology features and functions ................................................................................ 23
Communicating work schedules ................................................................................................... 24
2.2 – Monitor own performance according to personal work schedule .......................................... 26
Monitoring performance .............................................................................................................. 26
Performance measures ................................................................................................................. 27
 2.3 – Document variations between expected and actual work performance according to task
requirements and communicate to relevant personnel................................................................... 28
Identifying and documenting performance variations ................................................................. 28
Preparing reports .......................................................................................................................... 29
Communicating performance variations ...................................................................................... 29
3. Review personal work priorities ............................................................................................. 31
3.1 – Seek and evaluate feedback from relevant stakeholders on own work performance ............ 32
Gaining feedback on your work performance .............................................................................. 32
Feedback methods and strategies ................................................................................................ 32
Evaluate received feedback .......................................................................................................... 33
3.2 – Analyse variations between expected and actual work performance .................................... 35
Analysing variations in performance ............................................................................................ 35
3.3 – Update personal work schedule according to internal and external feedback and changes in
circumstances ................................................................................................................................... 37
Changes to your schedule ............................................................................................................. 37
Making changes ............................................................................................................................ 37
References ........................................................................................................................................ 38
Unit of Competency
Application

This unit describes the skills and knowledge required to plan and prioritise own work tasks.
It also addresses the skills and knowledge to monitor and obtain feedback on personal work
performance.
The unit applies to individuals who are required to design their own work schedules and
work plans and to establish priorities for their work. They will typically hold some
responsibilities for the work of others and have some autonomy in relation to their own
role.
No licensing, legislative, regulatory or certification requirements apply to this unit at the
time of publication.

Unit Mapping Information

Supersedes and is equivalent to BSBWOR404 Develop work priorities.

Supersedes but is not equivalent to:
➢ BSBSMB408 Manage personal, family, cultural and business obligations
➢ BSBWOR424 Develop a time management plan.

Pre-requisite Unit

None stated

Unit Sector

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving – Personal Effectiveness

Performance Criteria
Element Performance Criteria
Elements describe the Performance criteria describe the performance needed to
essential outcomes. demonstrate achievement of the element.

1. Plan personal 1.1 Identify task requirements

work schedule 1.2 Identify own accountabilities in line with task
requirements
1.3 Assess barriers for performance of personal
accountabilities
1.4 Develop a personal work schedule

2. Implement 2.1 Communicate personal work schedule to relevant

personal work personnel
schedule 2.2 Monitor own performance according to personal
work schedule
2.3 Document variations between expected and actual
work performance according to task requirements and
communicate to relevant personnel

3. Review personal 3.1 Seek and evaluate feedback from relevant

work priorities stakeholders on own work performance
3.2 Analyse variations between expected and actual
work performance
3.3 Update personal work schedule according to internal
and external feedback and changes in circumstances
Foundation Skills
This section describes those language, literacy, numeracy and employment skills that are essential to
performance but not explicit in the performance criteria.

Learning:
➢ Develops strategies to reflect on own performance and obtain feedback.
Reading:
➢ Identifies and applies textual information from relevant sources to understand
organisation’s policies and practices.
Writing:
➢ Prepares written reports and workplace documentation that communicate complex
information clearly and effectively.
Numeracy:
➢ Analyses numerical information related work accountabilities.
Enterprise and initiative:
➢ Identifies and understands roles and responsibilities in relation to organisational
objectives, policies and procedures.
Planning and organising:
➢ Plans, organises and implements tasks to meet organisational requirements
➢ Uses the main features and functions of digital technologies and tools to complete
work tasks efficiently and effectively.
Assessment Requirements

Performance Evidence

The candidate must demonstrate the ability to complete the tasks outlined in the elements,
performance criteria and foundation skills of this unit, including evidence of the ability to:
➢ Develop, implement and review one personal work schedule.
In the course of the above, the candidate must:
➢ Identify personal responsibilities and barriers to their fulfilment according to task
requirements
➢ Prepare a personal work schedule
➢ Communicate work schedule to relevant personnel
➢ Monitor personal work performance to identify variations between expected and
actual work performance
➢ Review own work performance against workgroup objectives through self-
assessment and seeking and acting on feedback from internal and external
stakeholders.

Knowledge Evidence

The candidate must be able to demonstrate knowledge to complete the tasks outlined in
the elements, performance criteria and foundation skills of this unit, including knowledge
of:
➢ Content of work plans including:
o resource requirements
o stakeholder needs
o workgroup targets
➢ Business technology applications to schedule tasks and plan work
➢ Methods of personal work performance review including:
o self-assessment
o feedback from others
➢ Techniques to prepare personal plans and establish priorities
➢ Methods to elicit, analyse and interpret feedback.

Assessment Conditions

Skills in this unit must be demonstrated in a workplace or simulated environment where the
conditions are typical of those in a working environment in this industry.
This includes access to challenges and situations to demonstrate the application of
performance evidence.
Assessors of this unit must satisfy the requirements for assessors in applicable vocational
education and training legislation, frameworks and/or standards.
Links
Companion Volume Implementation Guide is found on VETNet -
https://vetnet.gov.au/Pages/TrainingDocs.aspx?q=11ef6853-ceed-4ba7-9d87-
4da407e23c10
1. Plan personal work schedule
1.1. Identify task requirements
1.2. Identify own accountabilities in line with task requirements
1.3. Assess barriers for performance of personal accountabilities
1.4. Develop a personal work schedule
1.1 – Identify task requirements
By the end of this chapter, the learner should be able to:
➢ Obtain task requirements from the relevant source
➢ Check and confirm task requirements with the task originator.

Planning work
In any work environment, the first step is to plan what needs to be
done. It is important to take time to assess work and to identify
what is required, such as resources, deadlines, and goals.
This initial planning time will help you to make sense of the tasks
you have, so you can put things in order and identify what you will
be doing. You can look ahead at the practical arrangements that
need to be made and ensure things are in place when you and
others need them to be.
Techniques for planning work will include:
Assessing tasks and what needs to be done
Identifying resources for tasks, such as materials, equipment, or
team member’s skills
Prioritising tasks into a suitable order for working on (for
example, this may be according to deadlines, task difficulties, or when they were received)
Determining timeframes for tasks to identify how long they should take
Determining timeslots for when you will work on tasks
Identifying other persons (or stakeholders) who need to be included or involved in tasks.
To plan your work, you will need to identify all task requirements. This will enable you to
make the necessary task preparations.

Task requirements
Task requirements should be identified in your supplied work briefs, job requests, and work
instructions. These will apply to the tasks that are allocated or given to you by others. In
these requirements, there should be information to explain what the task is. They should
include the essential details that you need to know about, for example, quantities, who is
accountable, and recordkeeping. This may be given to you on paper or by digital means,
such as by email, task notifications, or through work records or systems software. They may
also be given to you in a spoken meeting or work briefing.
Other task requirements may relate to the tasks that are repeated or performed regularly
by you. These should be the tasks that you are used to doing, and they will be familiar to
you. There may be some differences each time, but essentially they will remain the same.
Task requirements for these may be found in your job description, your work/operation
procedures, or in discussions with your manager or the task originator.
Task requirements may include:
A description of the task and the task objective
A set of actions or instructions
Customer/client preferences
A reference of resource requirements
A timeline or deadline for when this must be completed.
The task requirements must be identified, along with any specific task instructions, so you
can make your own work plans. You should be prepared to clarify requirements or seek
confirmation of these from your manager/the task originator if needed. You should ensure
you are fully informed about your tasks, so your plans and schedule accurately
interpret work needs.
You should:
Check that you have the full details you require
Ask for any information or instructions that are missing
Clarify and confirm you have understood the task correctly
Discuss resource issues or any difficulties that need to be managed.
1.2 – Identify own accountabilities in line with task requirements
By the end of this chapter, the learner should be able to:
➢ Determine their duties and obligations for tasks
➢ Recognise their responsibilities in relation to the task requirements
➢ Follow organisational requirements for completing tasks.

Task accountabilities
As well as identifying task requirements, you also need to know your level of
accountability and responsibility in tasks. Your role and job description
should give you a basic understanding of this, but when tasks are
undertaken, different situations, stakeholders, and influences may
occur to make this unclear.
Task accountability is knowing and being responsible for
completing the task or the parts of the task you have been given
to do. This will relate to your own work role and to the roles of
those that you have a responsibility to manage. In the role of
manager, you will need to set a positive example for your team to
follow.
This is fulfilling your work duties and obligations with full awareness of how this impacts the
organisation and others. For example, when you complete an action, this may then initiate a
colleague to perform another action; their role in the task will be dependent on you
finishing this step first.
Therefore, task dependencies will directly affect other workers, and the timing of task steps
may be integral to making sure the task is completed successfully and on time. This is why
prioritising actions in work plans is so important; it allows you to look ahead to see how
work may cross over to other people or work areas. You can see when others need to be
involved in order to carry out their part.
Equally, accountabilities may relate to safety and quality. You should make sure that what
you do is carried out according to such standards. These will be set out in organisational
policies, procedures, and practices.

Task ownership
Tasks will ultimately be accountable to someone. There may be a chain of accountability
from the top down, which is relevant to each person’s role. You may or may not be involved
at the top level of this, but there will be someone above you who will be responsible (or
accountable) for your involvement. They will need to make sure you complete your work,
and they may be involved in checking or supervising actions in relation to this. In turn, you
may also be accountable for your team and their part in the task.
Task ownership will be at a management/decision-making level. This person (or persons)
will need to be kept informed and consulted with if issues or difficulties prevent the
successful completion of the task.
Your task accountabilities
Your accountabilities will be relevant to your role, skills, and knowledge. Your
accountabilities include the steps to complete the task and any other factors that are made
known to you. You should always clarify these accountabilities with the originator when task
management or situations are unclear.
For example, accountabilities can include:
Following organisational policies and safe operating procedures
Carrying out task requests and accommodating preferences
Appointing team members to perform task actions
Managing and supervising team members’ roles
Completing quality checks and processes
Communicating task progress and completion to stakeholders
Meeting individual and/or team deadlines
Following business regulations and requirements
Using equipment and tools safely and correctly.

Organisational requirements
Tasks will need to meet the expectations of the
organisation. Objectives will be set to guide you; they
will tell you what the organisation wants to achieve.
There will be long-term objectives that tell you what the
organisation is working towards, and there will be short-
term and task objectives that are focused on immediate operations. Objectives will be used
to form goals, and these will tell you what has been identified as being achievable at that
time.
Policies will tell you the organisation’s framework for conducting business; this will include
the legal and ethical business requirements that must be carried out. It can also include
incorporating the values and mission of the organisation; this can help establish the
approach the organisation wants its staff to take. As mentioned, procedures are the steps or
actions that staff must undertake to complete their tasks; these will be developed from
policies and best practice approaches.
The above organisational requirements must be known and followed. This will be found in
organisational documentation, plans, and from other information sources. For example,
your organisation may have a staff handbook or an information system that contains various
instructional texts. You should ensure you know where to access such guidance from and be
familiar with how this is written and structured. Information will be documented in different
ways, and you should read this to gain a full understanding of your organisation’s
requirements.
1.3 – Assess barriers for performance of personal accountabilities
By the end of this chapter, the learner should be able to:
➢ Identify potential barriers for the performance of personal accountabilities
➢ Address the barriers to meeting personal accountabilities with management
➢ Make plans to resolve the barriers to the performance of personal
accountabilities.

Barriers to personal accountabilities

During the planning stage, it is beneficial to look at the barriers that may prevent you from
carrying out your personal accountabilities with the task.
These may occur for different reasons, so for each task, you should take a few moments to
think about which barriers may exist or be relevant.
For example, barriers to performance of personal accountabilities may include:
A lack of time to complete the task
An unclear task objective
Competing work demands
Technical issues and equipment faults
One or more team members who are absent
Not having the materials or resources you need.
Barriers may be overcome through applying an appropriate
strategy or action; they should never be ignored. The planning
stage of the task should include looking at what may go wrong or
prevent the success of the task. Problems can then be addressed
in management discussions and contingency plans.

Assessing the barriers

Assessment of the barriers will include looking at how much these prevent your ability to
fulfil your role and accountabilities. It will mean identifying the severity of the barriers and
finding ways to suitably eliminate or manage these. You should identify the counteractions
that can be taken.
For example, if you have limited time on the task, which you know will prevent you from
meeting your personal accountabilities, you should inform your manager/management to
explain the difficulty. From this point, you can discuss ways to manage the timeframe. This
could result in you being given more resources or having an extension on the deadline for
the task.
Whenever a barrier is identified, you should:
Determine how this prevents the performance of personal accountabilities
Identify the actions that could be taken to resolve the barrier
Speak with management or the task owner to address and manage the barrier.
Contingency plans
Contingency plans focus on the problems and how they should be managed. They are an
essential risk management tool for organisations and can be developed for many aspects of
a business’s operations. These will be done as part of your initial work planning; this ensures
that the identified risks and difficulties of tasks are assessed before they ever occur.
An organisation can create contingency plans for various needs and for different
accountability levels within the organisation.
Contingency plans allow you to:
Identify the risks
Take a proactive approach to manage difficulties
Put in place countermeasures
Make decisions through an informed assessment and analysis.
Contingency planning will include identifying the likelihood and
consequence of actions and what will happen if you ignore those actions.
This knowledge will give you an understanding of the gravity of the
situation and will influence the approach that is taken to manage risks and
difficulties.
A contingency plan is developed by:
Identifying the risks and difficulties
Assessing the severity and consequence of these
Identifying your resource capabilities to manage the risks and difficulties
Choosing the most appropriate actions to overcome and manage the risks
and difficulties.
1.4 – Develop a personal work schedule
By the end of this chapter, the learner should be able to:
➢ Identify the features of a work schedule
➢ Create a personal work schedule for their needs.

Documenting work plans

When planning work, you will need to document what you decide to do. Your organisation
may use a particular type of work plan that is designed for your work environment. If not,
you can create a plan and schedule that suits your needs. All organisational documentation
should follow a consistent style and format, according to the document standards of the
organisation. Your organisation may have a document style guide for this purpose;
alternatively, you may need to refer to other document examples to obtain information
such as the font, text size, text alignment, and document colours.
The content of work plans may vary according to the purpose and can include:
Resource requirements, such as:
time
costs
people
skills and knowledge
tools and equipment
energy
raw materials
Stakeholder needs – for example, specific task instructions or
notifying a stakeholder when certain actions are completed
Workgroup targets – an outline of what needs to be achieved by
the team or work area; this can include individual and group target
achievements or performance figures
A work schedule – to document tasks in time periods; this will show you
where time is blocked out and what free time you have for other tasks (if any at all).
Resource requirements
Resources are the things that you need to complete tasks. Some resources will be freely
available to you, such as workplace equipment, while others will need to be requested or
procured. It is important to establish your resource needs so you can identify any shortfalls
and where to obtain these from. Some resources may take time to obtain, and you will need
to think ahead to make arrangements for these. If resources need to be purchased, you may
also need to obtain a budget to do this or seek permission for this from your manager or
finance department.
Stakeholder needs
Stakeholder needs may fluctuate depending on who they are, how much flexibility there is
in tasks, and how much interaction is possible. It will depend on your work and the
involvement you have with stakeholders. For example, you may deal directly with
customers and clients, or you may just liaise with your manager. There may be a variety of
options for stakeholders in tasks, or there may be none at all.
Stakeholders may include:
The customer or client
The business owner
Your manager
Other work managers or departments
Work colleagues or team members
Suppliers or manufacturers.
Workgroup targets
In order to meet organisational goals and
objectives, it is usual for employees and
workgroups to have performance targets set.
These targets will be relevant to the work that you do, such as reaching a particular
production figure, measure, or benchmark. Management will be responsible for establishing
these with you, and they should be in line with your skills, capabilities, and work area.
Targets can be specific to you and your role, and they may be developed for the workgroup
or team as a whole. When teams work together, targets can be relevant to the entire group.
This can involve shared tasks or tasks that are completed in stages by team members.
Numerical data related to work accountabilities
When planning work, you may need to access and read different numerical data. As in the
above text for workgroup targets, this may include specific target quantities or figures. This
information should be looked at carefully for your plans. For example, with target quantities
and figures, plans should incorporate realistic timelines to achieve these targets; this should
take into account resource capabilities, skills, and external influences such as the business
market or economy.
Equally, you may need to manage resources within a defined budget. Costs for materials
and other resources should be assessed and kept within certain financial parameters. This
type of data will need to be accurately identified and recorded as resources are agreed
upon. This may include making simple calculations to identify amounts and planning how to
procure resources over a period of time.

Your work schedule

Your work schedule should map out tasks in a clear format that is easy to read and follow.
As this relates to timelines, a work schedule is typically depicted as a graphic table or with
columns and rows that identify the days of the week. This may look similar to a seven-day
work planner, where there are blank boxes for writing in tasks and events.
They can include recognition of time periods, such as mornings, afternoons, or hourly time
slots. This is useful for scheduling multiple tasks at different times of the working day.
For example, a work schedule template may look like this:
Weekly work schedule

Week commencing: Name: Department:

 Hours Monday Tuesday Wednesda Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday
y

9.00-
10.00

10.00
-
11.00

11.00
-
12.00

12.00
-
13.00

13.00
-
14.00

14.00
-
15.00

15.00
-
16.00

16.00
-
17.00

17.00
-
18.00

18.00
-
19.00

Your schedule may just have a column left blank for you to fill in the time periods rather
than having the hourly time slots already written down, and you may want to remove
Saturday or Sunday if these days are not worked.
You can also include other columns to identify further details, such as employees with roles
and responsibilities or task deadlines.
Techniques to prepare personal plans and identify priorities
When preparing personal plans, you should use effective techniques that make this process
straightforward and consistent.
Along with those mentioned in section 1.1 of this unit, techniques may also include:
Consulting stakeholders to obtain the full facts and to discuss work requirements
Creating clear, documented plans that include all of the relevant information
Circulating plans for approval or notifying stakeholders of planned arrangements.
You should use techniques that allow you to gather the information you need, for example,
arranging formal work meetings and having effective digital technologies to capture task
information. Techniques also include using digital technologies and following procedures to
record, document, and circulate plans. Plan and schedule templates can be used or set up to
make repeated work planning easier and quicker to perform.
Establishing priorities
To establish priorities, there are some simple techniques you can use. This starts with asking
task originators or management for the deadlines and task timelines; it also includes
assessing tasks for their complexity and preparation time. Establishing priorities is about
having the correct knowledge about the tasks, work processes, planning and preparation,
and resources, so you can make the appropriate scheduling decisions.
Techniques to establish priorities include:
Writing a ‘to-do’ list to identify the tasks that need to be completed; you may have a list
that identifies all the tasks you have, and you may have another list for the tasks that you
plan to do that day
Having a master list that categorises different tasks according to type, deadline, project,
department, task originator, and so on; from the master list, you can access all the
information you have in order to create a schedule with priorities
Thinking ahead to identify a suitable order for tasks; sometimes all it will take is forward
planning to schedule tasks according to your priority criteria
Using the Eisenhower Matrix to identify a priority order by determining task urgency and
importance. This identifies four separate categories by which to prioritise tasks; in order of
priority, these are:
urgent and important
important but not urgent
urgent but not important
not important and not urgent.
Source ‘Eisenhower Matrix’ from TechTarget, retrieved from
What is the Eisenhower Matrix? (techtarget.com).
You will also need to be clear on what your criteria points are
for deciding priorities, for example:
When the task is required (date order)
The complexity of the task (a task may take longer to complete if there are
many different processes that need to be undertaken)
Who the task is for (e.g., a client who is only available on specific days)
To complete a work project so the organisation can send an invoice for payment.
Criteria may change according to the task and any current organisational
requirements or external influences. You may need to check what the criteria will
be on a regular basis.

Business technology to schedule and plan

Digital hardware and software will be used to schedule and plan work. The types
will vary depending on the setup of the organisation and what it needs to do to
work efficiently. Your organisation may use spreadsheet and planning software to
organise and document its work. If so, plans and schedules may be sent electronically by
email to staff, or most likely, this will be situated in a central information system for others
to gain access to when it is needed.
Technology systems with multiple user access mean that information and jobs can be
documented in real-time. This approach is used when work is processed quickly. Jobs and
tasks are logged in an administrative capacity for technical and production personnel to pick
up on. For example, an account handler in one part of the premises will book in a client’s
job, and this will then be seen in another part of the building in the production
department’s workflow system. This is one example of how technology can provide staff
with the ability to access and respond to work swiftly. In the case of scheduling and planning
your work, you may also have a system in place that allows you to see and keep track of
tasks and jobs as they become live.
You may also use business technology to create separate digital plans and schedules for
your work area. This can include using project management and scheduling software with
various digital features for organising, planning, viewing, and communicating work between
staff and work areas. This type of software can give you the ability to create live schedules
and visual charts, and to track work progress with different users as they record their part to
complete a task.
Business technology applications to schedule tasks and plan work include:
Microsoft Project Online
Teamgantt
Wrike
Mavenlink
Monday.com.
2. Implement personal work schedule
2.1. Communicate personal work schedule to relevant personnel
2.2. Monitor own performance according to personal work schedule
2.3. Document variations between expected and actual work performance according to
task requirements and communicate to relevant personnel
2.1 – Communicate personal work schedule to relevant personnel
By the end of this chapter, the learner should be able to:
➢ Use organisational methods to communicate with the relevant personnel
➢ Provide information in context to the person and their role.

Business technology features and functions

Following on from section 1.4 of this unit, business technology will have many different
features to carry out work functions – all with the intention of making your work life easier,
quicker, and consistent.
The main features and functions include:
Computers, devices, keyboards, printers, screens, and other physical items (your
hardware/tools to access and use technology)
Specific software that allows you to perform work (operational software), such as:
email to send messages
spreadsheets to record, sort, and make calculations with data
page layouts to write reports, letters, and other documents
calendars, calculators, and other office-based applications
web browsers to give you access to the internet
database programs to record, collate, and report information
specialised software for tasks, including system software to manage computer
systems, such as Microsoft Windows, and operational software, such as
project management applications and graphics software
Visual displays, computer interfaces, and dashboards to use and interact
with software
Menus and commands to perform tasks
The ability to store and record information and data
The ability to perform commands and functions with consistency and accuracy
Programmable settings that can be applied to perform repeated functions,
meaning that you don’t have to input settings manually each time
Work and communications can be performed in real-time.
Other features and functions will apply according to the type of technology used; for
example, mobile applications that can be used off-site.

In regards to planning and scheduling, you may use this to

Input task information
Sort tasks into categories and a priority order
Create written and visual work plans and schedules
Communicate with stakeholders, for example, to send notifications, to request information,
and to arrange meetings
Monitor and track work progress
Share task records and workflow
Report about tasks and compile task records.
Communicating work schedules
Communications in any work environment are essential. Without them, employees will not
know their roles or what the organisation wants them to achieve. Communications ensure
that everyone is made aware of the organisational factors that are vital and which must be
followed for it to function. It also gives the workforce the ability to have a collective
understanding of the workplace and its work.
When you complete your personal work schedule, you should communicate this with the
personnel that need to be kept informed or included. This initial communication may be to
seek confirmation or approval of your schedule, or simply as a way to keep others informed
of the next steps and actions.
You may need to communicate this in spoken conversations or meetings, or in writing, so
others can see what you have planned. Suitable methods will need to be used according to
the purpose of the communication; your organisation will have practices and procedures in
place to guide how this is done.

For example, communication methods include:

Formal:
work meetings
documented messages
printed plans and schedules
Informal:
team discussions
shared access to plans and schedules on work systems
electronic messages and notifications.
You may use different technologies to communicate your schedule,
especially with those who are not on site. This can include video
conference calls, texting, instant messaging, email, and social media.
In your communications, you may need to highlight specific points
regarding the schedule, and you should think about the information that
different personnel will need to know. Each type of person may have a particular interest,
and you should tailor communications to provide the correct focus each time. This is making
sure your communications have the right context for the receiver. For example, a manager
may be interested in knowing when the task will be ready for their team to work on,
whereas another employee may want to know how long they have been given to work on
their part of the task and what resources they will
have. They will be looking for specific details, and
your communications with each should provide
this.
When communicating the schedule, remember to:
Explain information in context to personnel
Speak or write clearly, to avoid confusion and
misunderstandings
Provide details in a concise manner to stop the potential for information overload
Check and confirm that personnel have understood the schedule.
2.2 – Monitor own performance according to personal work schedule
By the end of this chapter, the learner should be able to:
➢ Identify ways to monitor own performance against their personal work
schedule
➢ Carry out monitoring activities to determine own performance.

Monitoring performance
When the schedule is implemented, you will need to keep a check on your performance to
make sure that you are completing tasks as needed. This can include monitoring your time,
work progress, and work quality. There must be some control and management for the
success of tasks.
Your personal schedule will identify what needs to be done, but it will depend on how
detailed this is as to whether this will provide all the information you need in relation to
performance requirements. Other task-related information may provide you with more
details, and this can be used to assess if tasks are being carried out as planned.
To monitor your performance, you can:
Check your task status against the schedule to assess if you are
where you should be; from this point, you can evaluate if you
need to alter your performance
Create a checklist that you can apply to the tasks you work
on; this way, you can have a consistent set of check points (or
standards) to monitor your performance against
Use an activity log to keep track of your task performance; this
can include logging time, task issues, and notable achievements
Perform a self-reflection or assessment to look at how your
performance went; this can include asking questions, such as:
how well did the task go?
was the planning and preparation appropriate?
how well did I manage task difficulties?
what could I do to improve task performance?
Ask for feedback from other personnel; this can be structured around four or five
statements or questions that will help you to assess your performance. You should be
willing to listen to what others have to say and be ready to take on board any feedback that
may be negative.
Other methods can also be used, such as comparing your current performance against past
performance records. This can highlight where changes have been made and whether you
need to make further improvements.
Conduct a job analysis
An analysis of your job is where you look at your job role, responsibilities, and
accountabilities, and you determine how well you are performing these. It can be used to
identify where gaps in your performance lie. You can use these results of your evaluation to
identify if you have any skills development or training needs.
Review your work goals
Take a close look at how you are handling your workplace and personal goals. If you feel you
are not reaching these goals on a regular basis, it could be a sign that there is a skills gap.
This review will help you focus on if and where improvements are required.

Performance measures
You can also use or establish specific measures that will tell you if your performance is on
track. This can include time targets, task completion rates, quality indicators, or other
measures that will tell you if you are meeting your performance requirements. You may
establish these as part of a project management approach, whereby performance statistics
are recorded and used to analyse performance at a later date.
The SMART acronym
Performance measures will be related to your own and the organisation’s work goals and
capabilities. When measures are set, they need to be achievable; the SMART acronym can
be used to guide the development of performance measures (or key performance
indicators). It is often used in goal-setting.
SMART is an acronym that has a number of different variations:
➢ S = specific, significant
➢ M = measurable, meaningful
➢ A = attainable, achievable, acceptable, action-
oriented, agreed on
➢ R = realistic, relevant, reasonable, rewarding, results-
oriented
➢ T = time-based, time-bound, timely, tangible, trackable.
These five aspects will help focus on developing measures that can be
reached. This ensures that you think about your suggested measures to make
sure they are feasible for the work environment.
2.3 – Document variations between expected and actual work performance
according to task requirements and communicate to relevant personnel
By the end of this chapter, the learner should be able to:
➢ Identify performance variations and record these according to organisational
requirements
➢ Prepare reports to convey variations and related information
➢ Follow a communication plan to keep others informed about work
performance.

Identifying and documenting performance variations

Your work will involve recordkeeping. This will be relevant to what you do and may include
logging task actions and writing task notes. When making records that relate to work
performance, you should keep a check on any performance variations that occur and write
these down. This may be something that you do within general work recordkeeping, or you
may need to write a task report that identifies this.
There may be different reasons for variations between expected and actual work
performance, and it will be useful to identify what these factors are. They will help you and
the organisation to assess and make future improvements. These differences should be
watched for and recorded.
Variations between expected and actual performance may relate to:
Unforeseen incidents or delays
A change in the work schedule
Differences in quality standards
External factors, such as delays in receiving supplies
Holiday periods
Machine faults or breakdowns
Errors in performance
Staff absences.
Any differences in performance should be documented according
to organisational recordkeeping requirements. This may relate
to time, productivity, skills, resources, people, processes,
and any other relevant influences.
Organisational recordkeeping will include elements such as:
The type of record/document (e.g., digital or paper record)
The style and format of the record/document
The required information and how it is written

The level of formality, such as signing and dating a task record

The frequency of recordkeeping.
It should be noted that variations in performance will not always be negative; you may find
that performance has excelled in some way rather than it lagging. Your record of this will
help you and others to understand this and how you can sustain good performance.
Preparing reports
Reports will follow a structure that includes a summary or introduction, the key points, the
main content, a conclusion, and possibly recommendations or next steps. Different subject
matter and types of reports will add variations to how information is presented, and you
should be clear on the purpose of your report and what the organisation will expect to
receive.
Reports that are complex and have different types of information (or just lots of it) will need
to be looked at carefully. Information should be separated and laid out in a reader-friendly
way, for example, using paragraphs and headings to separate and order information, adding
in tables, charts, or graphs to draw attention to key points, and not filling up the page with
text so that it overwhelms readers. Using simple techniques such as these will make your
report easier to navigate and read; features such as headings, a contents table, and
information sections will make this easier for recipients to refer to.
When preparing reports, remember to:
Use just the information you need
Plan the layout and content to provide a structure that is suitable for recipients
Include simple features to separate and order text and data
Check spelling, grammar, and meaning (a short break in between writing and checking will
also make sure you have a fresh pair of eyes to pick up on any errors).

Communicating performance variations

When variations have been identified and recorded, they should be reported to the relevant
personnel. There will be procedures and practices in place for communications, and you
should be familiar with the expectations of your organisation regarding these.
This will include:
How you communicate and report, such as:
a formal meeting
an informal work catch-up
a written report
an emailed summary of the task

Timelines for communicating and reporting

The arrangements for communicating and reporting (such
as organising a meeting)
The personnel that need to be included in communications
and reports
The confidentiality requirements of communications and
reports
The storage and recordkeeping requirements for communication and reports.
All communications should be thought through and planned. Information should be collated
to include the relevant points, which are then conveyed concisely and in an appropriate
order and structure. You should think about what information needs to be relayed first and
whether additional explanations or evidence are required to provide clarity. This will
depend on your audience and their existing level of knowledge. Language should be
unambiguous to prevent misinterpretation; it should be professional in its delivery and
presentation.
Develop a communication plan
Usually, these types of communications should be kept as brief as possible, and you should
stick to the key points to make sure the message is given clearly. It will help to create a
simple communication plan so that, at various times along the way, you know when to
communicate your progress to others. This approach is about establishing upfront when and
how to report and communicate different types of information.
To create a communication plan for your tasks:
➢ Establish consistent reporting and communication
standards, which are in line with your organisation
➢ Determine the information that needs to be
documented and reported, so documentation follows a
consistent format
➢ Design efficient reporting and communication systems, so
the recipients can understand them (especially if they are
distributed electronically)
➢ Build custom reports with tables and views for ease
of time and energy; creating or using templates will mean
that information fields and categories are always in place
➢ Automate standard reports across systems and programs
where possible and relevant
➢ Understand the applications and methods fully, or your communications
may appear confused
➢ Determine who needs to be included in communications, and who needs to
receive reports and messages
➢ Report to management in a timely manner to demonstrate your professional
approach to the task.
3. Review personal work priorities
3.1. Seek and evaluate feedback from relevant stakeholders on own work performance
3.2. Analyse variations between expected and actual work performance
3.3. Update personal work schedule according to internal and external feedback and
changes in circumstances
3.1 – Seek and evaluate feedback from relevant stakeholders on own work
performance
By the end of this chapter, the learner should be able to:
➢ Use suitable methods and strategies to gain feedback from stakeholders
➢ Assess feedback constructively to determine their own work performance.

Gaining feedback on your work performance

To make sure your performance is meeting your own and the organisation’s expectations,
you should seek feedback at different times from those persons who can give you an insight
into this. You may already have a yearly performance review as part of the organisation’s
employee management structure, and this will give you a management perspective in
relation to organisational and employee goals.
For ongoing and other performance needs, you should seek feedback for your own
continuous development.
For example, you may want to seek feedback from:
Team members
Colleagues
Managers
Clients/customers
Suppliers and other business contacts.

Feedback methods and strategies

There are different ways to gain feedback, and you should think
about the methods that are appropriate to your work
environment. For example, feedback systems may already
be in place to gather feedback from clients and customers, so you
may simply need to gain access to the feedback that applies to your tasks/work area.
For specific feedback that is relevant to your performance, you should think about the
methods that can be used. For example, you may want to speak with a colleague to gain
feedback on a recent task that you worked on together, and you may want to conduct a
team meeting to discuss performance and how situations were dealt with.
Feedback methods may include:
Formal/informal performance appraisals
Feedback from others in debriefings and meetings
Feedback from questionnaires or by other written methods
Personal, reflective behaviour strategies
Routine organisational methods for monitoring performance.
Strategies to seek feedback should also be thought about and used. This will determine the
purpose for obtaining feedback and will help you to establish the correct tone and
approach.
To develop a strategy, you should determine:
The information that you want to obtain (for example, does it relate to a specific task or is it
on general performance?)
Who can give you this feedback
The method(s) you can use to gain this feedback.
Other factors, such as timelines to seek and obtain feedback, should also be considered. You
should identify what is feasible and appropriate to do with the resources and time that you
have.
Strategies to obtain feedback can include:
Asking stakeholders three to five different questions about your performance (structured
questions will give stakeholders clarity)
Having discussions with stakeholders to seek their opinions and perspectives
Arranging a team debriefing session to discuss task management and
performance
Having an anonymous feedback process, where stakeholders will feel more
comfortable in giving you honest feedback
Conducting informal chats with suppliers and contacts to talk about
performance in relation to industry standards.
When seeking feedback directly with stakeholders, it is important to make
sure that you are ready to listen to what others say. You should let
stakeholders know that feedback, good and bad, is valuable and will be taken
constructively. For others to provide honest feedback, you will need to
ensure they are invited to do so without consequence or damage to existing
relationships. You should be ready to acknowledge that you don’t have all the answers and
that there will always be room to learn and grow.

Evaluate received feedback

When feedback is received, you must evaluate and understand what this means in regard to
your performance. You need to identify the right response in order to make positive
changes. An ordered approach to collating feedback and assessing comments will help you
to do this.
Strategies can also be used to guide your reflection and evaluation, for example:
Collate similar comments together
Identify reoccurring themes
Separate feedback into categories, such as processes, communications, and leadership
Have a clear point of focus that you want to reflect on or evaluate
Identify an overall perspective from your feedback
Remember to assess feedback constructively and take an
objective approach
Think about the context or circumstances that may have
influenced feedback
Note down significant points that you want to revisit later
for a more in-depth evaluation.
The result of feedback will tell you what other people’s
perspectives and viewpoints are. This should be used to
form your understanding of your performance and what
you may need to do to adjust or change this. Other
organisational influences and situations may also need to be incorporated to gain a fuller
understanding. You should document your evaluations for your assessment and analysis.
Self-assessment
Following on from section 2.2 of this unit, self-assessment and reflection can be a great way
to understand your performance. To do this, you will need to be prepared to take a rational
and unbiased approach; you should establish the right environment for performing this,
such as a particular time of day or a quiet space.
Self-assessment, or reflection, is:
Thinking about your experiences
Understanding what you did and how this affected outcomes
Identifying what went well and what could be improved.
You can formulate questions in relation to your performance or look at feedback and
evidence to see which points should be addressed. Write down your findings and use these
to determine improvements and needs. For example, a self-assessment may highlight a
need for skills training or a change in your management approach.
3.2 – Analyse variations between expected and actual work performance
By the end of this chapter, the learner should be able to:
Assess performance data using different analysis methods
Look at differences between expected and actual performance to determine conclusions.

Analysing variations in performance

In your evaluations, you will be presented with a
wealth of information that you can use to analyse
variations between expected and actual performance.
For example, this may include:
Comparisons in performance
Outcomes from different tasks
Different approaches to manage and perform activities
Feedback on different projects.
Numerical assessment
One way to assess this is to analyse performance data
(your quantitative data), such as hours to complete tasks, resource spending, and
productivity figures. The relevant sets of data should be collated, sorted and, cleaned.
(Cleaning data is where you check that figures are written in a consistent style, such as
decimal point values and removing any figures that do not apply).
You can then look at your performance results and compare them against each other to
identify any differences. What you find can also be used to analyse specific areas of
performance.
You may have spreadsheet software to sort and review data, or you may use analysis
software to do this for you. Your results and conclusions can be interpreted visually, such as
line graphs, pie charts, or column graphs. This will make it easier to show your conclusions.
Non-numerical assessment
Non-numerical data can be assessed for its value, worth, and accuracy. This will require a
hands-on approach as it may not be possible to spot significant factors from running an
analysis program. This type of data also includes opinions, perspectives, and personal
accounts (your qualitative data).
Analysis can be performed on non-numerical information as well as data:
Comparison analysis – comparing instances, results, or other factors against each other
Descriptive or content analysis – looking at your performance information and data and
seeing what this shows you
Exploratory data analysis – looking at the connections within data; you can also run
automatic analysis to find this out
Grounded analysis – looking at what your information reveals without having a defined
purpose in mind
Discourse analysis – assessing the social context influencing information results and
activities
Causal analysis – assessing the causes and relationships with information and data to see
how changing factors could influence activities
SWOT analysis – performing a ‘strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats’ analysis
on your performance.
You can analyse data to find out a range of needs; to do this, you need to be methodical and
considered in your approach. You should take the time to understand what analysis tells you
and be prepared to carry out more analysis if results are unclear. Digital technologies will
also make this more efficient and can reduce any potential errors in analysis applications.
However, you will need to be able to interpret your results, and this will require you to have
a good understanding of the processes that you use.
3.3 – Update personal work schedule according to internal and external
feedback and changes in circumstances
By the end of this chapter, the learner should be able to:
Use evaluation and analysis to determine changes to personal work schedules
Following organisational requirements to update personal work schedules.

Changes to your schedule

Your evaluation and analysis will reveal where, if at all, you need to make changes to your
work schedule. For example, you may have discovered that changing the order in which you
carry out leadership or management activities can improve your team’s efficiency.
Changes to your work schedule may include:
Allocation of time
Communications
Work priorities
Supervision and leadership
Roles and responsibilities.
When changes are found, you should plan how to adjust
activities or needs and then include these in your schedule. You
may need to discuss changes first with your team and/or
management to obtain their input or to seek management
approval.

Making changes
Your schedule should be updated to accurately show what you
have decided and agreed upon. You should create a new schedule version according to your
organisation’s documentation requirements.
This may include:
Having a new version number or code for your schedule
Documenting the date the schedule was created or updated
Keeping old versions of your schedule for recordkeeping requirements
Sending or circulating your revised schedule to others.
You should take care to check that information is correctly inputted, and that schedule
changes do not impact other activities or affect the layout and presentation. You may need
to alter its appearance to accommodate changes in the information, such as adding
additional rows or deleting information sections. A final spelling, grammar, and meaning
check should be performed to check this is correct.
 References

These suggested references are for further reading and do not necessarily represent the
contents of this unit.
Websites
‘Eisenhower Matrix’ from TechTarget: What is the Eisenhower Matrix? (techtarget.com)

All references accessed on and correct as of 21.04.2021, unless otherwise stated.