Smart Reading and Writing

15 Jul

High-Performance Management and Teams

Use Half a Page

The Half-Pager is a time-saving method for reading and writing management submissions.

This technique restricts all (non-form/template) submissions for things such as expenditure approvals or draft project proposals, to be limited to half a page.

There is no matter or issue that requires more than half a page to explain.

When you only have a half-page to use, it focuses your mind, you only say the salient things which are the things the reader wants to know, it keeps you on point. They are faster to write, read, analyse, decide upon, and you can provide a quicker turnaround.

Inexperienced staff often feel the more they write, the stronger their argument will be, when in fact, the opposite is usually true. Teaching your team members to be short and concise helps everyone. Make it a Team Rule and advise team members that you won’t read anything longer than a half-page.

Consider applying a similar rule to emails as well but specify a two-paragraph limit, or preferably just one or two lines.

Email example

A request from an experienced Project Manager for a new Server needed quickly. The project team had undersized their server requirements and the impact to the project if not resolved in 24 hours would be a several weeks delay. The email simply covered off that there were no spares available, nothing second hand either, that it had to be a new server. Request made for approval, the total capital cost shown, maintenance agreement cost shown, a note that information will be sent to the CFO for next year’s budget entries. Action. “Approved.”

Talent gone astray

I had a talented team member once who could not write anything in under four to five pages. It became a source of annoyance to nearly everyone with whom he communicated. Despite mentoring and even the offer of counselling, I had to let him go. It’s not uncommon for people to write long diatribes on the most trivial of matters as a way of disguising that they do not understand what they are writing about or that they lack confidence. These people need compassion and help.

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Russell Futcher

Russell Futcher lives in Melbourne Australia as an IT/Business Change Management Consultant. He is a recognised High-Performance Management and Teams specialist, an author, researcher and blogger. His 40-year career to date has been focussed on Change Management where he has gained a hard-earned reputation for someone who takes on complex jobs and gets things done. Frank and direct, highly regarded by peers and customers alike, highly motivational and passionate about fixing problems, improving performance and developing management and team talent.

Russell has held senior management positions across the Insurance, Banking, Health, Transport, Retail, Superannuation, and Technology sectors in some of Australia’s largest corporations. Qualified in Business and Executive Coaching, Management Development and Training and Education, he is also the developer of the ‘Best Practice IT Standards’ and the ‘High-Performance Management and Teams’ management model, author of five management books and three courses.

An experienced electronic and print media presenter who spends much of his spare time doing research into Management and Team behavioural dynamics. His favourite subject he says is - people, stating that “Everyone is fascinating, and I just like everyone".

http://russellfutcher.com