This study investigated time management issues of Turkish secondary school managers (principals and vice-principals) in their perception. Firstly, the effectiveness and perceptions of managers on time management; secondly shaping factors of time management and lastly time management strategies were examined in this study. Survey was used to investigate those perceptions and a psychometric test, background information sheet and questionnaire were used to collect data in the research. 51 principals and 156 vice-principals from 51 secondary schools in a city in Turkey formed the sample of this study and the overall response rate was 41.5% in this study.

It was found that the time management effectiveness of Turkish secondary school managers was ‘effective’ and their average time management score was 69.3% from psychometric test. Moreover, most of the managers thought that they were good or very good time managers. They perceive time as a subjective notion and they believed that time could be manageable. Most of the managers viewed time management as a planning activity and a means of maximising the productivity.

Moreover, most of the respondents saw educational policies as a shaping factor of time management. Females managed their time better than males and the managers aged between 36 and 50 were better time managers than those from other age groups. Furthermore, the management position of managers was not a significant shaping factor on time management and the managers in Anatolian high schools and its varieties managed their time better than managers in trade or senior high schools. Most of the respondents in this study assumed that time management strategies were helpful to manage time more effectively, and many respondents used at least one time management strategy to manage their time. Moreover, the research participants suggested planning and prioritising the tasks, making the best use of the most effective times, seminars about time management, agenda usage, not postponing anything and time management lessons in the universities as time management strategies.