Fact or Fiction: When we work together, as a team, we will accomplish more?

               FACT!

This is likely not a big surprise. However, putting everyone together and calling them a team does not make it so. Let's share a few critical keys for teams to come together, accomplish more, and work at their peak performance. 

1. Common Purpose

Use a team charter or goal statement to confirm everyone has a consistent and complete understanding of the team's aim and how to measure success. Benefits: alignment and faster on-boarding.

2. A Consistent Process

Define and use a work process map that clarifies the tasks and responsibilities of everyone's role. Sub-process (aka Swimlane) mapping captures the forms, templates, job aids, equipment, and systems to use for each defined task. 

There are big side benefits of mapping out the work process. You will learn a lot about each other and the work process, one team's learning:

Our process's data and Information: 

61 steps

24 handoffs, 34 wait times

Reject rate > 75%

49-106 days
10 approvals

This created a desire to improve quality and clarity of roles; resulting in significantly decreased handoffs, rejects, and # of approvals. Link to more

3. Provide Standardized Work Instructions to Follow

Process maps provide what to do. Standardized work instructions provide how to do a critical work task. A standardized work instruction provides a guide to follow. It includes resources need to complete the tasks, checklist of steps, tips, and quality self-checks. Benefits: deeper understanding, more consistent results, better quality, and faster on-boarding. Link to more

A process map and standardized work instructions create accountability, expectations, and trust in one another.

4. Team huddles

A routine forum for the team to come together. In a team huddle teams a) review their performance measures, b) share successes that can be adopted, c) discuss and resolve problems and barriers, d) establish actions and accountability to implement successes and solutions to problems. Benefits: build team relationships, more results, and trust in one another. "Productivity is up 10 fold!"  Link to more

Contact us to help in developing the team's individual and collective skills and implementing keys to accomplishing more.