Featured Article: Time Management - 7 Ways To Manage Your Time Effectively

TIME MANAGEMENT

" 7 Easy Ways To Manage Your Time Effectively "

Many practical and essential epoch-making achievements are accomplished through Time Management. No amount of knowledge, ability, skills or experience will make a man successful unless he manages himself effectively ; time must be properly used by all..

You may have wasted yesterday but you don't have to waste today or tomorrow, the choice is yours. Man is a time-conscious being. He should always be aware of the fact that time plays a key role in his activities throughout the day, This is evident by such frequently heard statements as these : " I would like to do " this " or " that " if I had more time, " I need to get all my work done, but I don't have enough time ".

Many people are failing to accomplish even the little things in life because of improper or poor time management. The difference between success and failure, in many cases, is lack of  time management.

A time-conscious man knows how to manage his time wisely. With time, we can do as we wish. Ways and means must be shared for making good time management.

The following will help you manage your time properly :

1st, you must resolve in your mind that you want to manage your time. Until this has been planned, you will never get the maximum results from any programme of  time management.

" Desire " is your daily motivation aspect for time management. If you have it, you can manage your time ; if you don't pursue, your attempts will be nominal, and results will flop.

2nd, you must understand the nature of time. It is not a sort of mystery or an abstract item that seeks to make you a slave ; it is merely a measure. It is possessed equally by all, and, is therefore, no respecter of persons. Time is active, it always moves forward and never stands still or moves backward ; it must be used now!

3rd, we must establish our priorities before we can properly manage our time ; we must know what comes up first. I believe the following also portrays some of the priorities of your daily activities :

a. your recreation and time of relaxation.

b. your public relations ; this includes your job and all situations that bring you in contact with people.

4th, the next practical step in time management is Planning. This means that each day must be planned well if we expect to get the best out of it. In simple terms, we must write down a list of things we plan to do during the day, and then be prepared to do them. The items for the day are listed according to their priorities : the best time for writing down the list is at night. This will give you ample time to concentrate towards a concerted planning of activities for the next day.

5th, at the end of each day, you must sit down and evaluate how you used your time during the day. The following 3 questions are essential in evaluating your time :

. Did it fit into the framework of your priorities.

. Did it help others ?

. Did it help you ?

6th, remember the following practical tips during the day as you maintain control of your time.

. Don't procrastinate ; start to work immediately on the items on your list.

. Set deadlines ; know what time you  should finish the work.

. Don't waste your time in idle day dreaming sessions

. Always leave your self a margin for possible changes that may be needed ; expect the unexpected.

. Learn to say " NO " ; this is a mark of maturity

.Use " short-cuts " and don't go if you can call

. Work on one thing at a time and do it well

. Don't let unscheduled interruption take away valuable time; get started now; don't put it off

. Remember you can't do everything at once; you must be selective; don't depend on the desires of others and work towards your goal.

. Don't rely on crisis or pressure; you might be discouraged

. Be sure you are properly organised.

. Reward yourself for a job well done when you have a good day or week of managing your time.

7th, don't become a ' time slave ' or a clock watcher. This will keep you so tensed and preoccupied with time that you will fail to properly use and enjoy it as you wish.

Proper Time Management  is not designed to make you a " time nut " ; it rather seeks to help you maintain good control of your time.

Credit : George Ofosu-Appiah

georgeofo@yahoo.co.uk

Business Article: The Use Of ICT In Modern Banking Practice In Ghana

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY (ICT) IN MODERN BANKING PRACTICE IN GHANA

INTRODUCTION:

An Electronic Visa Debit Bank SmartCard

The banking sector is the largest and most competitive

segment of Ghana's financial sector. Commercial banking

in the country dates back to 1894 when Bank of British

West Africa, now Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) 

Ghana Ltd, was established.

Later, Barclays Bank Ghana (BBG) Ltd was set up in

1917 followed by the Bank of the Gold Coast, now Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB) Ltd, in 1953.

After Ghana's Independence in 1957, the Government

of Ghana (GoG) established various commercial and developmental banks to meet the country's financing needs. Notable among them were National Investment Bank (NIB), National Savings and Credit Bank and Agricultural Development Bank (ADB).

Market Participation:

The Ghanaian universal banking sector is headed by the Regulator, Bank of Ghana (BoG), which is the Central Bank of the country.

At the close of 2010, the total number of commercial banks operating in Ghana with the Universal Banking License (UBL) were 27 with 7 of the banks namely Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB), Standard Chartered Bank (SCB), Cal Bank, Unique Trust (UT) Bank, Société Générale - Social Security Bank (SG-SSB), Home Finance Company (HFC) Bank and Ecobank listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE).

Ghana continues to attrack banks with geographically diversified origins and has not been exempted from the new wave of cross-country expansion by banks across Africa. Thus, some of the banks in Ghana presently trace their ownership not to only Ghananians, but also other African, European and Asian countries.

Innovative Products and Services:

The keen competition in Ghana's banking sector has made it expedient for Ghanaian banks to focus on product development and quality services delivery as the main channels for effective competition. Banks are now introducing new products aimed at satisfying the unique tastes and preferences of their clients.

For instance, Personal Loan products have become very attractive due to the declining interest rates and so is Private Banking and E-commerce banking services.

ICT / E-COMMERCE PRODUCT AND SERVICE DEVELOPMENT

With the surge advancement in ICT globally, most banks all over the world are now appreciating the essence of improving upon their already existing Communication, Electronic, Internet, Mobile and Digital TV banking products and services.

Of  late, Ghanaian Banks are introducing new and exciting E-commerce products and services to attract more and more customers from different cultural backgrounds. Whether you are a tertiary school student who wants to pay your professional exams fees on the internet through your bank account or an employer of a big business who wants to effect staff salary payments online, banks in Ghana now have the right solution for you.

I will now take my time to discuss some of the amazing electronic banking products offered by some of the banks in the country.

E-ZWICH:  The Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems Limited (GhIPSS), a subsidiary of the Bank of Ghana (BoG) in April 2008 introduced an electronic banking product known as the E-zwich.

An E-zwich Card and POS Device

E-zwich is the brand name for the National Switch and Smart Card Payment System and it is an innovative method for improving accessibility to banking and retail services in the country. It (E-zwich System) links the payment systems of all commercial banks, savings and loans companies and rural banks in the country.

The E-zwich Card which is a smartcard can perform various banking and retail functions such as:

 . Cash Withdrawals

. Payments For Goods & Services

.Money Transfers

.Payments of Utility Bills (ECG,GWC,etc)

all from any E-zwich Point of Sale (POS) device or ATM across the country.

The E-zwich smartcard  is different from the traditional bank debit / ATM card because E-zwich cardholders benefit from the highest security standards through the biometric (finger print) client authentication system .  By implication, a stolen or lost card cannot be used by anyone except the owner.

The E-zwich Smartcard is currently the only card in Ghana that provides the convenience of nationwide access as well as greater control over transactions for cardholders, retail merchants and other corporate users.









Barclays Bank Ghana (BBG) : On Thursday, February 4 2010, the Management of Barclays Bank Ghana (BBG) Ltd, under the  distinguished leadership of Mr. Benjamin Debrah, the Managing Director, relaunched an innovative Internet Banking product called the Barclays Integrator.

This state-of-the-art internet banking product will among other things offer customers the opportunity to transfer local and international funds between their own accounts, effect staff salary payments and transfer funds to 3rd parties.
The product also allows customers to access their accounts, print bank statements and effect payments from anywhere in the world online.

The Barclays Integrator has a 128 bit data encryption which provides additional security, establish a secure online banking solution and prevents access by unauthorised parties.
The bank (BBG) is convinced that this leading-edge internet banking product will provide secure, reliable, convenient and fast online banking solutions via the internet to prospective clients.

A Visa Prepaid Cash Passport Card

Barclays Cash Passport:   BBG Ltd, also offers it cherished clients a US Dollar Visa Branded Prepaid Card known as the Barclays Cash Passport.
This prepaid visa electronic card is specially designed for travellers and holidaymakers, and allows them easily access funds loaded on the card from anywhere in the world without the inconvenience of carrying travellers cheques or cash. The card works on all Visa branded ATMs worldwide.








Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) : SCB Ghana Ltd, the nation's premier commercial bank, now uses a newly enhanced Mobile Banking service that gives customers a fast access to their bank accounts through a GSM Mobile Phone.

This mobile banking service uses an advanced USSD ( Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) menu based technology, the 1st of its kind in Ghana, which makes it more secure, convenient, fast, simple and very reliable.

An Ad on Mobile Banking Service

A USSD Technology is a protocol used by GSM cellular phones to communicate with the service provider's network. USSD can be used for Wap Browsing, Prepaid Callback Service, Mobile-Money Services, Location-Based Content Services and a lot more. Unlike Short Message Service (SMS) messages, USSD messages create a real-time connection during a USSD session. The connection remains open, allowing a 2-way exchange of a sequence of data. This makes USSD services more responsive than services that use SMS.

With the SCB mobile banking service, a customer of the bank can among other things:

. Make balance enquiries

. Request mini-statements

. Pay utility bills - ECG, GWC, DStv etc

. Make intra-account transfers

. Request cheque books

. Get alerts on account transactions

Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB) : Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB) Ltd, is now upgrading its inter-branch telephone communication system with a Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) technology which when implemented will help the bank cut down communication cost.

Again, to boost the bank's delivery channels to customers, GCB has procured 50 ATMs to be installed at strategic locations for the conveniency of its customers. It is interesting to know that all these ATMs are E-zwich adaptable.

GCB Ltd, believes with their newly improved e-banking services such as:

. Commernet Plus (GCB Internet Banking)

. Smart Pay (Electronic Bill / Fee Payment System)

. Mastercard Debit Electronic Cards (Globally Accepted Electronic Card)

.Readycash ATMs (24/ 7/ 365 ATM Service)

their clients will now enjoy a more relaxed and easy banking experience.

Ecobank Ghana Ltd : Ecobank Ghana, a subsidiary of Ecobank Transnational Inc., (a Pan African banking group), which begun banking operations in 1990 and has the honour of being the 1st bank to introduce a Visa Credit Card in the country also offer differentiated e-banking featured products.

 The Ecobank Ariel-Online Payment Product, Ecobank E-Collect (an Electronic Collection Service) and Ecobank Visa Classic and Prepaid Electronic Cards are some of its electronic banking products solutions on the Ghanaian banking market.


Its (Ecobank Ghana) visa credit card, known as the Ecobank Visa Gold Credit Card, is an unsecured credit card and gives a line of credit without the need to put money upfront to secure the debt. The credit card is offered to both clients and non-clients of the bank to conduct business transactions in a more flexible and relaxed way.

GTBank Range of  Visa SmartCards

GTBank Ghana Ltd : Guaranty Trust (GT) Bank Ghana (the Ghanaian subsidiary of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, one of Africa's foremost banking groups) which was adjudged the Best Bank in Ghana at the 9th Ghana Banking Awards for 2009, was registered in October 2004 and obtained its Universal Banking License form the Bank of Ghana (BoG) on 23 February 2006. 

GTBank Ghana, a leader in electronic banking service in the country offers its clientele with these exciting e-banking products and services :
 . GeNS - GTBank Electronic Notification Service (An instant Email & SMS alerts service on all account transactions)
. GTBank Visa Debit Electronic Smartcards
. GTBank Mastercard  Debit Electronic Smartcards
. GT Internet Banking Service
. GTBank SMS Banking Service
. China Union Pay Cards (Chinese residents in Ghana and Business Executives with China Union Pay Cards can withdraw cash and perform other bank activities on GTBank ATMs nationwide)

Recently, the bank introduced another avant-garde E-commerce service, the GTBank Automated Payment System (GAPS).
GAPS is a web-based solution that simplifies the processing of payments in batches using a secure connection over the internet. Some of the features and benefits of GAPS include :

. Provides an efficient and effective means of executing payments to contractors, suppliers, employees.
. Excellent information resource providing online real-time account monitoring.
. Instant value to GTBank's beneficiary account holders.
. Improved transaction processing time.


GTBank is rest-assured that with its inventive E-commerce products and services, it will pave the way for the commencement of  unrivaled banking operations in the country.




Zenith Bank Ghana Ltd : Lastly, Zenith Bank Ghana Ltd, a subsidiary of Zenith Bank Plc (one of the largest banks in Nigeria and operates in 4 different countries including Ghana, Sierra Leone, South Africa and the UK), has carved a niche for itself in the banking industry of Ghana with its spectrum of e-banking products and services. Notable among them is the Zenith Visa Classic Credit Card.

A customer of Zenith Bank Ghana who applies for this kind of credit card can spend any amount within his credit limit wherever Visa Cards accepted worldwide. This credit card can be used on :

. All Visa Branded ATMs Worldwide

. Local and International retail outlets that accept Visa cards.

. The Internet, for online purchases and payments

The bank also offer the following Visa Electronic Card products:

.Visa Platinum Debit Card

. Visa Classic Debit Card

. Visa Classic Prepaid Card

Amazingly, all these Visa cards are smartcards and can make online payments and purchases on the internet.

A Zenith Visa Platinum Electronic Smartcard

Other e-banking service solutions provided by Zenith Bank includes:

  

        

. E-Ticketing -   An Online Booking and Payment of air flight tickets.

. Z-Mobile    -   A Newly Branded Zenith Mobile Banking Service

. Z-Prompt    -  An SMS Account Transaction Notification Service

CONCLUSION :

Personally, I believe all these newly developed ICT / E-COMMERCE banking product and service solutions have given banking in Ghana further impetus as a major banking hub in Sub-Saharan Africa.

By : OWURACHY

owurachy@myself.com