EAC Time Management & Prioritization 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: An executive asks you to schedule a recurring weekly sync while also requesting you rearrange three existing appointments to accommodate a last-minute board member visit. What is the BEST approach?
- Decline the recurring sync until the board visit is resolved
- Handle the urgent board visit rescheduling first, then set up the recurring sync (Correct answer)
- Set up the recurring sync first since it affects more future dates
- Ask the executive to choose only one task to handle today
Correct answer: Handle the urgent board visit rescheduling first, then set up the recurring sync
Urgent, time-sensitive tasks like accommodating a board member visit take priority over routine scheduling tasks like setting up recurring meetings.
Question 2: Which time management technique involves working in focused 25-minute intervals followed by short breaks?
- Time blocking
- The Pomodoro Technique (Correct answer)
- Eat the Frog
- The 2-Minute Rule
Correct answer: The Pomodoro Technique
The Pomodoro Technique uses 25-minute focused work sessions (pomodoros) separated by 5-minute breaks to sustain concentration.
Question 3: Your executive has back-to-back meetings all day. A C-suite peer requests an urgent 30-minute call. What should you do FIRST?
- Schedule the call for the following day without consulting the executive
- Immediately block time by canceling the least important existing meeting
- Alert the executive and ask which meeting can be shortened or rescheduled (Correct answer)
- Tell the C-suite peer the executive is unavailable all day
Correct answer: Alert the executive and ask which meeting can be shortened or rescheduled
Always consult the executive before altering their schedule, especially when the change involves peer-level or senior stakeholders.
Question 4: When using the ABC prioritization method, a 'C' task is BEST described as:
- Critical and must be done today
- Important but not urgent, can be delegated
- Nice to do but has no significant consequences if delayed (Correct answer)
- A task requiring collaboration with multiple stakeholders
Correct answer: Nice to do but has no significant consequences if delayed
In the ABC method, 'C' tasks are low-priority items with minimal consequences if postponed, unlike 'A' (critical) or 'B' (important) tasks.
Question 5: An executive assistant notices that her executive consistently runs over in afternoon meetings, causing cascading delays. The MOST effective proactive solution is to:
- Add a 15-minute buffer between all afternoon appointments (Correct answer)
- Remind the executive mid-meeting via text to wrap up
- Reschedule afternoon meetings to mornings
- Block the last 10 minutes of each meeting as 'transition time' on the calendar
Correct answer: Add a 15-minute buffer between all afternoon appointments
Building buffer time between appointments absorbs overruns and prevents cascading delays across the executive's schedule.
Question 6: Which of the following BEST illustrates 'batching' as a time management strategy?
- Responding to every email immediately as it arrives
- Grouping all expense report reviews into one dedicated hour each Friday (Correct answer)
- Alternating between phone calls and report writing throughout the day
- Delegating all low-priority tasks to an intern
Correct answer: Grouping all expense report reviews into one dedicated hour each Friday
Batching groups similar tasks together to reduce context-switching overhead and improve efficiency.
Question 7: A new urgent project arrives while you already have a full task list. According to sound prioritization principles, you should:
- Add it to the bottom of the list and work through tasks in order
- Immediately drop all current tasks to focus solely on the new project
- Assess the new project's urgency and importance relative to existing commitments, then reprioritize accordingly (Correct answer)
- Ask a colleague to take over all your current tasks
Correct answer: Assess the new project's urgency and importance relative to existing commitments, then reprioritize accordingly
Effective prioritization requires evaluating new tasks against existing ones using urgency and importance criteria rather than defaulting to order of arrival.
EAC Time Management & Prioritization 2
An executive asks you to schedule a recurring weekly sync while also requesting you rearrange three existing appointments to accommodate a last-minute board member visit.
What is the BEST approach?