As a small company, it is important for our Design Team to stay productive. Generate quality proposals fast and a lot of them; because these proposals essentially establish the life-line of our revenue.
Well balanced and consistent productivity is a fruit of the culture of execution. This is where we struggle to keep up. Most difficult aspect of an execution oriented culture had been creating a "cadence of accountability". We have taken a few steps in the right direction and we are already seeing some improvement. These steps include:
By 9 AM on Monday, Weekly Action Plan (we call it Project Card) for the Design Team is presented to the team and discussed. On this plan, we map out the following items for the week:
Well balanced and consistent productivity is a fruit of the culture of execution. This is where we struggle to keep up. Most difficult aspect of an execution oriented culture had been creating a "cadence of accountability". We have taken a few steps in the right direction and we are already seeing some improvement. These steps include:
- Weekly Planning Call on Monday morning (less than an hour)
- Daily Design Call by 9 AM (15-30 minutes)
- Friday focus: Weekly Team Productivity Evaluation (less than hour)
- Daily short reports from team on their progress (what has been completed and next steps)
By 9 AM on Monday, Weekly Action Plan (we call it Project Card) for the Design Team is presented to the team and discussed. On this plan, we map out the following items for the week:
- Design proposals due, or targeting to submit before deadline
- Design or proposals we want to substantially complete
- Information or directions on projects waiting for (i.e., list of issues by site)
- Site Surveys scheduled
- JDSU walk scheduled
- Close-out packages need to be submitted, etc.
- ATP / Pre-con walks scheduled
- Database or Mobile Programs to be completed
- Targeted list of training.
Daily Design Calls and Friday Call:
On Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays by 9 AM we start a short 15-30 minutes design call. On this call, we discuss who is working on what, issues and resolutions. We also discuss progress in training.
On Fridays though, we stretch the call a little to quickly evaluate week's productivity, and also take very quick look at next week.
Daily Report:
Engineers also submit a short daily report at the end of the day. In this report engineers record their progress on individual project and the 'next action item'. At the end of the week, these reports become the basis for their performance evaluation - especially their productivity.
Note that, most of these daily meetings last between 20-30 minutes. Weekly planning call can go to almost 1 hour, but we try to contain that too.
On Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays by 9 AM we start a short 15-30 minutes design call. On this call, we discuss who is working on what, issues and resolutions. We also discuss progress in training.
On Fridays though, we stretch the call a little to quickly evaluate week's productivity, and also take very quick look at next week.
Daily Report:
Engineers also submit a short daily report at the end of the day. In this report engineers record their progress on individual project and the 'next action item'. At the end of the week, these reports become the basis for their performance evaluation - especially their productivity.
Note that, most of these daily meetings last between 20-30 minutes. Weekly planning call can go to almost 1 hour, but we try to contain that too.
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