Thursday, November 1, 2012

Thinking Out Loud


Every morning around 9am I gather together with around 10 of our key team members for morning briefing.

It's something I picked up from my days working in hospitality where each morning the executive management team would sit in the General Manager's office and each manager would give a quick summary of what was happening in the hotel that day.

Attendance was compulsory.

As Teamwork Oz grows I have become reliant on these briefings to keep me in touch with our clients, our team members and our suppliers.

But what I love the most about these briefings is what I call thinking out loud.


The glass wall doubles as a whiteboard
Some of our best ideas come from these briefings. The simplest comment from a staff member can spark a discussion that turns our 10 minute briefing into a 30 minute discussion and brain storming session. 

Each morning, the briefing points are documented in our team room, which is an electronic collection of all Teamwork Oz meeting minutes, weekly summaries and reports, ideas and action plans.

To support and encourage the team to think out loud we adopted some initiatives that help to generate an atmosphere of comfort to ensure team members have the vision to know what needs to be talked about and to offer suggestions and solutions.

We have whiteboards in every office and area in the building. But i love to just use the glass in the boardroom when I am thinking out loud.  Sometimes I'll just wander into the main office area and start thinking out loud. Somebody is always willing to join in.

The leisure area is a relaxing place to meet
We have also recently created a leisure area for team members to relax in. They can take their work in there, they can eat their lunch there or they can have meetings in there. As long as it is used, I am happy.

So, as I continue on the exciting path Teamwork Oz is taking me down, one of the things that keeps me excited and engaged at work is the ability to keep our organisation and its service offerings at the front of the pack. 

And not just coming up with new ideas but following those ideas through.

Robert Saltalamacchia
www.teamworkoz.com.au

No comments:

Post a Comment