Flow charts

There are a few different flow charts that can be used to organise workflow. We will examine the Gantt chart and PERT chart for the purpose of planning.

Gantt charts

Henry Laurence Gantt (1861-1919)

Gantt Charts are basically, a timeline with tasks that can be connected to each other. They can be created

with simple tools like Excel, but specialised tools like Microsoft Project make life easier

The critical path

Is the sequence of tasks from beginning to end that takes the longest time to complete. It is also the shortest possible time that the project can be finished in. Any task on the critical path is called a critical task. No critical task can have its duration changed without affecting the end date of the project.

Lead time

Occurs when a task should theoretically wait for its predecessor to finish, but can actually start a little early. The time that the tasks overlap is lead time. E.g. when replacing computers in a computer lab, you could actually start bringing in the new computers while the old ones were being packed up and moved out.

Lag time

The minimum amount of time that must pass between the finish of one activity and the start of its successor. For example, if task A is laying a house’s concrete slab, and dependent task B is putting up the house walls, there would need to be some lag time between the end of task A and the start of task B to let the concrete set. Lag time is shown in a PERT chart as an arrow with a duration but no task assigned to it.

Slack time

The amount of time an individual activity can be delayed with delaying the whole project

An example of a MS project Gantt chart.

Pert Charts

Stands for Program Evaluation and Review Technique

An example of a P.E.R.T chart

1. What is the minimum time it would take for the family to reach the footy game after getting the alarm goes off?

2. How much more time could dad walk the dog before eating breakfast got delayed? (Note: Mum insists the entire family eats together)

3. What is this amount of time called?

4. If mum skipped her 40 minutes shower, how much earlier would they get to the game?

Activity 12 Please click on the link

� How do Gantt charts and PERT charts assist us with our operational plans?

� Describe all the things you need to do (in sequential order) before you get here in the morning for class!!!

Delegating Work

Delegating job to others is a task that all effective managers undertake carefully because choosing the right person for the job is important to the successful; completion of the plan. Task to be delegated should match the abilities and attitudes of the person the task has been assigned, thus ensuring that the job is not only completed but well executed.

To delegate task effectively operational managers require to know the task details and the knowledge, skills and attitude of the person chosen.

Steps in successful delegation:

1. Choose the right person

2. Make sure you explain why the task needs to be completed

3. Delegate as above in sequential steps and choose the right time to delegate

4. Check for employee level of understanding

5. Provide support if and when necessary

6. Check back or follow up on progress of the staff member

Before delegating a task ensure that

� Decide on the task/s you could and should delegate

� Select the person to whom delegation can be made

� Consider the benefits required and all the factors involved before selection of the appropriate person

� Set the deadlines

� Specify the completion date for the overall task

� Set the checkpoints for specific outcomes

� Agree on acceptance of the task

� Provide information on the task, expected outcomes, performance standards and timelines

� Carefully explain the task

� Clarify the level of responsibility, authority and scope of decision making

� Check for staff understanding

� Emphasise accountability

7. Be clear regarding the task to be completed

Remember when you delegate work there are two very important things to remember:

a . You are still ultimately responsible for the task you have delegated

b. You must check for understanding by getting the staff member to explain the task back to you.

Activity 13 Please click on the link

� Explain to your fellow student the importance of the above two important delegating points?

� Refer back your notes previously discussed and explain how and why delegating is important as a management tool?

Motivating Staff

Focused and motivated staff is more productive. Beyond earning a salary, staff members want to contribute to the organisation and see that they are making a difference.

Good managers can increase staff job satisfaction by:

� Implementing - Job design

� Job rotation - Rotate staff duties whenever possible

� Enrichment - Teach staff new things about their job

� Enlargement - Give added responsibility to staff that deserve it

Giving positive specific feedback through:

� Undertake performance appraisals

� Being a guide rather than a boss

� Treat staff with respect and empathy

� Showing a genuine interest in their job and the employee

� Caring about their safety, health and general wellbeing

� Treating them personally, by using good manners and listening to them

� Giving staff achievable objectives

Some of the research on motivation talks about future incentives and rewards, which can be very successful in marketing and sales positions.

E.g..

� If you achieve this task by this date I will give you this reward or money.

� But remember MONEY does not necessarily motivate employees.

Activity 14 Please click on the link

� If you were a manager how would you motivate staff?

Importance of meetings in the planning process

Brainstorming in meetings

Brainstorming is the action of voicing ideas and suggestions that deal with a situation before knowing if these ideas and suggestions are right or wrong. The fundamental function of brainstorming is to share with others any raw ideas to arrive through a process of debating and discussing the suggestions made by all parties involved in the brainstorming session to a conclusion to which all parties in the meeting agrees to.

Brainstorming most of the times help managers to find a solution in situation where it seems there is no solution. They will try the unorthodox or uncommon way to tackle a problematic situation that generally provides the solution to that situation.

A successful brainstorming session will attain the desired outcome after a careful examination of the suggestion made in the meeting.

Activity 15 Please click on the link

� In small groups brainstorm what would you do to ensure that everyone involved in the planning process is informed about their role and responsibilities are.

There are basic steps in the brainstorming process.

Step 1: State the problems and provide any background information

Step 2: Explain the brainstorming process and rules

Step 3: Write up the problem or issue and invite input i.e. solutions, strategic ideas

Step 4: When the ideas have finally stopped flowing read over what’s been written. Sometimes this generates some more ideas. Then have a five minute break.

Step 5: Evaluate the ideas by: Ranking them and selecting them against certain criteria. For example timelines, budgets, Innovations, organisational goals allow for some debate and argument at this point.

Step 6: Select the idea or strategy to be implemented and make sure everyone agrees and supports the idea.

Step 7: Develop an implementation plan: Who will carry out the strategy? Over what period of time? With what resources and support? (Document this as an action plan)

Step 8: Identify performance indicators (ie: how will you know when the idea or strategy is implemented successfully)

Step 9: Identify the monitoring and review process

Step 10: Get the team back together when the idea or strategy has been implemented and review not only what was done and whether it was successful, but also how it was done.

Then implement the idea or strategy as a permanent feature. Or, if it has not been successful, go back to Step 1 and check whether you have defined the issue adequately.

� Applying the rules for brainstorming

� Keep things friendly and informal; encourage humour and fun

� Encourage everyone to participate

� Focus initially on quantity, not quality, of ideas

� Anything goes: encourage participants to say anything that occurs to them, even if it seems silly. Good ideas often come from apparently silly ones that may have been rejected in

� Serious discussion

� Allow for some silence – don’t finish the activity just because of a pause in the flow of ideas

� Discourage negative responses like: “That would never work” or “We’ve tried that before”.

� It is important to always check that the problem has been finally settled, or that the task is complete. Sometimes long-term follow up may be requested

Meeting Agendas

Agendas are used to formulate the direction of a meeting. A constructive Agenda is normally formulated by the feedback from all staff that is going to take an active part in the meeting.

Therefore it is critical to collect the information prior to the meeting taking place, so all staff has an active say in the creation of a formulated Agenda.

Introduction is normally first on the list for an Agenda, closely followed by “minutes” or records which shows what has occurred at the last meeting.

Sample Meeting Agenda Template

Meeting of (insert department name) Committee
Date of meeting:	Agenda Items:

Attendance	President (name)
	Secretary (name)
	Members of committee
Apologies
Minutes of the previous meeting		Moved that the minutes of the meeting held (date) be confirmed as a correct record.
Matters arising from the minutes		E.g. Tasks that should have been completed
Correspondence		Inwards/outwards
Reports		e.g. Finance, facilities, volunteer co-coordinator
Motions of which notice has been given		e.g. “that the excursion will go ahead”
General business		e.g. Issues of concern to members
Next meeting		Date, time and venue for the next meeting
Closure		There being no further business, the Administrator thanks the members for attending and closes the meeting at (time):

Sample of Meeting Minutes Template

Planning Meeting

Meeting date:

Time:

Location

Topic (1) discussed:

Action (1) to be taken:

Dead line or expected outcomes (1)

Topic (2) discussed

Action (2) to be taken:

Dead line or expected outcomes (2)

Topic (3) discussed

Action (3) to be taken:

Dead line or expected outcomes (3)

Business arising

Next meeting

Meeting closed

Activity 16 Please click on the link

� Write your own agenda for a “Staff restaurant meeting” that include all staff in two weeks time, starting at 9:00 a.m.

Choosing a Chairperson for the meeting

The chair person can be any selected individual, who may be comfortable in running the duties of the “chair”. This person controls the meeting.

The duties of the “chair” normally consist of:

� Time Management

� Keeping all staff members on the right track

� Giving all staff an opportunity to express their views

� All objectives are communicated clearly

� Relevant action plans are created

� Ensures the meeting finishes on time.

� Ensures meeting minutes are written after the meeting

Presenting information at a meeting

The start of a meeting:

a. Make sure you introduce yourself and any new staff members

b. Start your meeting with something positive that the staff are aware of and agree with.

c. Be positive and flexible.

d. Listen with respect to other people’s opinion

e. Be prepared to take on recommendations

f. Be constructive in terms of your response to other people’s questions

The Core or Contents of a meeting

During the meeting, you may need to simplify the information so all the staff can understand the main points of the project.

� Set objectives- Decide what outcomes are required

� Prioritise the objectives and how they will be measured

� Decide on the most effective way to create a “team action plan” against these objectives

� Use open questions to identify what must be done

� Ascertain who is responsible for what task

� Work out when each task needs to be completed

� Discuss what resources are needed so that the team’s operational plans can be implemented

� Then monitor measure and review for a final decision.

The End or Summary of a Meeting

Commitment and success will flow through to all team members if they contribute to the agreed Team Action Plan. Summarise the plan, set deadlines, be clear on individual responsibilities. Finally, document the process and review at the next meeting

Activity 17 Please click on the link

� Explain how brainstorming can assist you as a manager to achieve your operational work goals.

Activity 18 Please click on the link

� In small teams use your agenda from before and pick one person as your chairperson to run a quick meeting about the Christmas day function when you are booked out.

� Your trainer will pick one team to run their meeting in front of the rest of the class. (You have 20 minutes to practice and plan for your meeting).

Monitor Plans

What is Monitoring?

Monitoring is the regular observation and recording of activities taking place in a project, programme or plan. It is a process of routinely gathering information on all aspects of the project.

To monitor is to check on how project activities are progressing. It is observation; –– systematic and purposeful observation.

Monitoring also involves giving feedback about the progress of the project or plan to the personnel involved and beneficiaries of the project or plan.

Reporting enables the gathered information to be used in making decisions for improving project performance.

Purpose of Monitoring

Monitoring is very important in project planning and implementation.

It is like watching where you are going while riding a bicycle; you can adjust as you go along and ensure that you are on the right track.

Monitoring provides information that will be useful in:

� Analysing the situation among the people involved and the project;

� Determining whether the inputs in the project are well utilized;

� Identifying problems facing the community or project and finding solutions;

� Ensuring all activities are carried out properly by the right people and in time;

� Determining whether the way the project was planned is the most appropriate way of solving the problem at hand. We will now look at what and how you can monitor and observe staff in the workplace.

What does need to be monitored?

All work areas of a department in an organisation need to be monitored so that it is possible to evaluate qualitatively and quantitatively all processes, systems and predetermined action and measure the outcomes of such actions and processes. It is because of monitoring that it is possible to know how well we are achieving the stated objective and visualise how well the plan is unfolding or rolling out.

Here below are some example areas that requires monitoring in an hospitality setting:

� The workflow in the kitchen or on the restaurant floor

� Gaps between service periods (i.e. 2pm -6pm lunch and dinner)

� The workload of staff

� The time it takes to complete a task

� The individual job design of employees

� Busy work periods

� What do you need to monitor??

� Controlling costs/expenses

� Improving Quality (products/services)

� Increasing sales

� Improving the levels customer satisfaction

� Lowering employee turnover

� Reducing or maintaining stock levels

How to Monitor (monitoring methods)

� Walking around the workplace

� Observation and asking for staff feedback

� Obtaining customer feedback

� Using mystery shoppers

� Timing work procedures

� Use of checklists

� Staff appraisals

� Having effective job descriptions

Steps in Monitoring

1. Work out what needs to be monitored

2. Decide on methods or measures to use

3. Compare what is happening with what should be happening!

4. Take action as appropriate.

Monitoring systems

Qualitative system – As the word suggest qualitative monitoring refers to the quality of the organisation processes and outcomes or output that is monitored and measured. Measure and monitor quality involves the identification of quality standards and because of the nature of quality, the most appropriate methods generally are different forms of written report that identify and explain how good a process or outcome is. In other word to measure quality a clear statement of the level of excellence that needs to be achieved by the task that is monitored is required.

Quantitative System – In this case the monitoring systems monitor and measure process and outcomes of particular tasks in a quantitative way. This system requires data to be collected recorded and measured. Managers here look at numbers, quantity, capacity, size and other quantifiable aspect of the process or outcome. This provides clear details and statistics that once examined provide a clear picture in a numeric fashion of the efficiency and effectiveness of the process or outcome monitored.

Characteristics of an effective monitoring system!

Accuracy - The information is accurate and reveals the facts needed for appropriate action

Timeliness - Information is available in sufficient time for corrective or other action to be implemented

Economy - The benefits of gathering the information are greater than the costs of gathering it!

Ease of understanding - Information is understood by those that it affects and by those who will take action on it

Meets needs - Meets the needs of individuals and the organisation.

Activity 19 Please click on the link

List one qualitative and one quantitative monitoring tool and explain what they measure.

Describe how they work

Evaluation process

Progress Reporting

Written and verbal reporting is an important method of keeping in touch with how a task is progressing and whether it is on time. It keeps the communication lines open so that everyone is aware of what other team members are currently doing. Progress reports should be part of your organisation’s management system. Progress reports are written on request or as needed, rather than at regular intervals. Management often compares the current report to previous reports on file as this gives a clear overview of progress on the project. The report findings should be presented in positive language with an emphasis on achievements and progress. Aim to maintain balance by reporting on successes and evaluating any problems encountered or anticipated.

Outline of a progress report

Introduction:

Purpose Statement - Identify the report’s purpose with a subject line. Open the report with the current status, work or goals completed.

Body:

Information - Follow with positive features. Present any problems and state how they have or will be resolved. Include schedule of costs.

Conclusion:

� Point to the future

� Timelines

� Recommendations

Comments:

Evaluation is about learning and incorporating the results into ongoing planning. Evaluation of your operational plan will help you when you develop your next plan. Reflect critically on what action is suggested. As a result of this evaluation you can identify valuable lessons that will help you in strengthening how your plan is operating.

Project planning and design

Many organisations are hungry for information about what areas of the business are working and why. Using evaluation results as material builds up a pool of critically needed information. Sharing best practices and lessons learned. Evaluating results can point to areas of your work that requires additional research or attention. Evaluating results can start a learning process that will build your organisation’s critical expertise in a particular area.

Activity 20 Please click on the link

� Writing a Hospitality Operational Plan:

You must now choose one area of your choice from within the Hospitality industry and design your own specific outline and bullet points of an operational plan.

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Activity 21 Please click on the link

� Questions that you should be now able to answer…

1 How would you delegate effectively?

2 What are the steps in the planning process?

3 What are flowcharts and why are they a useful tool when planning?

4 What is a contingency plan and why is this necessary in the workplace?

5 What are the characteristics of an effective monitoring system?

6 What are the four management functions?

7 How do different managers operate?

8 What is multi-skilling?

9 Why is it important to consider legal issues in the workplace?

Class Activity

PART A

In a team environment you will plan and build a tower out of straws. Each team will be given a similar number of drinking straws, a roll of sticky tape and a pair of scissors. The task is for the team to design on paper and then build a tower structure out of the straws and sticky tape. The draft plan must be submitted to your teacher for approval before commencing the construction.

Complete and submit to your teacher the SWOT Analysis of your plan before starting the construction. Write down your findings.

PART B

Before you start the construction of the tower in Part B of this task, think, analyse and discuss the plan within your team.

Straws Activity Instructions

Time allowed is 30 minutes

Each straw cost 1 Point (Financial Unit)

The structure MUST:

Be free standing and self supporting

MUST carry the names of each team member on a flag that must be secured to the structure, but MUST NOT be secured by sticky tape

The flag MUST be more than 20cm from the base and MUST NOT be stuck to the top of the structure.

Marking Criteria for the Straw Activity
Economy	40	20	15
Stability	40	20	15
Artistic expression	40	20	15
Height	50	30	20

Thank you for your attention