ACCA Applied Knowledge · Business and Technology · Personal effectiveness
Priya, an audit junior, has four tasks on Monday morning. (1) A client query due to be answered by the end of the week, which will take two hours. (2) A request from her manager for figures needed in a meeting starting in one hour. (3) A routine filing task with no deadline. (4) A social email from a colleague. Using the urgent/important matrix, which action is the BEST first step?
Priya should do the manager's meeting figures first. They are both urgent, being needed within an hour, and important, as they support a meeting. The client query can be scheduled later because its deadline is the end of the week, while filing and social email are low priority.
- ADeal with the manager's request for the meeting figures first, as it is both urgent and importantCorrect
- BStart the routine filing task first, as it is quick and can be ticked off the list
- CAnswer the client query first, because client matters always take priority over internal requests
Explanation
The figures are needed within an hour and support a meeting, so they are both urgent and important and should be done first. The client query is important but has a week-long deadline, so it can be scheduled afterwards. Filing and the social email are neither urgent nor important. Saying client matters always come first ignores the deadline difference.
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