"Great
coaches consistently get the most
out of
their people, because they consistently put the most
in to
their people."
- Brian
Souza
Article from Rhythm:
Isn't it funny how quickly our
workload can change? One day we're doing fine, managing our daily tasks, making
progress on our
priorities and feeling connected to our teammates. Then the
next thing you know, a project goes off track, a client has a problem, or a
teammate is out sick, and all of the sudden we're behind, feeling overwhelmed
and frustrated. Maybe it was just a bad day and tomorrow we'll be back on
track, or maybe it's the first in a series of days that has the potential to
wear us down, increasing our chances of making mistakes and significantly
effecting our outlook and energy.
It happens to everyone at some
point. In fact, it's probably happening to someone on your team right now. The
question is not whether it will happen. The question is who is it happening to
and how can you help. Someone needs a lifeline - a rope typically thrown to
rescue someone experiencing difficulties in the water - and someone on your
team probably has one. You just need a way to match these two up.
Ever had an employee walk in your
office and give notice and nobody had a clue?Here's an idea that has been
working for us, and maybe it will work for you, too. We created a Rock on everyone's Dashboards, for
the Weekly Huddle,
for every individual on our team called Employee Health. Each week, every
member of our team has a chance to reflect on their workload, how they're
feeling about it, and their overall feeling their week. We've established Red-Yellow-Green success criteria
for this Rock that is consistent for each person.
Green = feeling balanced.
This our goal. We all have very busy schedules, multiple responsibilities and
high expectations for ourselves and each other. The goal is not to be ahead, or
even caught up... just feeling somewhat balanced. Even though we may have had a
day or two of feeling behind or overwhelmed, overall, we feel like everything
is under control and we're on track.
Yellow = feeling
full. This does not necessarily mean we've got a problem or that we're
in trouble, just that we're in a period of time where our schedule is tight,
our plate is extra full, and if something unexpected happens, we may need some
help. While stating Yellow is not unusual and certainly not a sign of weakness,
we're all very careful not to overuse it. We take our Yellows very seriously,
and whenever we see this status in our Weekly Meeting, we pause to find out
what's going on and if there's anything we can do to help out.
Red = feeling overwhelmed.
This is one way for members of our team to ask for help. The Red status on this
KPI is rare, so you better believe we jump into action when we see it.
Sometimes this status reflects a personal situation that causes someone to be
out unexpectedly, or an unplanned project that is urgently assigned. Whatever
the cause, we will stay here until we develop a plan to overcome the issue. All
hands are on deck when we have a Red, and it's great to see the team pull
together to help out.
As a team leader, it's great to
have a visual indication of how everyone on my team is doing. I never want to
see anyone choosing Red more than two weeks in a row. And if I see a pattern of
Yellows occurring over time with anyone, I know to look deeper to see if their
responsibilities or projects have experienced scope creep.
As an individual on the team,
it's great to have this mechanism in place that causes me to reflect on how I'm
feeling every week. Without it, I can imagine that it might be easy to trudge
along week after week, living in the Yellow and Red area, not realizing I was
in danger of burning out
until it was too late. And many times, when I pause to status Green, I'm
reminded just how much I enjoy my work and how energized I am by the fast pace
and high expectations.
As a member of the team, it's so
reassuring to see the team jump into action to help out when someone needs a
lifeline. I think the willingness to status Yellow or Red and the positive
reaction of the team when it happens are signs of a very healthy, high
performing team.
So, how is your team doing? Does
anyone need a lifeline?
My Input:
Another tool to keep your pulse
on your employees overall morale is the
device from Celpax that is mounted on the wall at the door. Employees
push red, yellow, green each day as they leave. It tracks and provides the
overall trends daily, weekly, monthly. Low cost and paid monthly.
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