Feeding
Minds With Feedback.
The overall
concept for the business model we’re describing
in this book is, “Find great people, bathe them in massive
amounts of feedback about their work and performance – then
get out of their way to let them get the job done.”
They’ll make the right decisions. If they don’t,
they – and the entire organization – can learn
from their mistakes. The key is to institute this knowledge
by having individuals report what they’ve learned to
the group.
Feedback
is the critical counterbalance to the autonomy enjoyed by
self-directed
teams. This chapter will explain in more detail
the elements of the full-feedback environment as we’ve
developed it at The Phelps Group.
There
is a direct correlation between feedback and success. So,
we want feedback
from the same groups we depend on to help
measure our movement toward our vision: our clients, our clients’ customers,
our peers, suppliers, community and ourselves.
The tools we use to gather this feedback include: External:
- Client
survey – of
our performance by main client contacts.
- CEO-to-CEO
conversations to review agency performance and clients’ highest
needs.
- Reports on client successes/failures due to our work.
- Supplier
survey – of
our performance by virtually all who send us invoices
- Family
forum – we
share our business plan with our families
- Outside
classes – teaching
and taking classes
Internal:
- 360-degree
survey – annual
critiques for individuals by their peers/teammates
- Group
survey – critiques
for the agency
- The
Wall – written
feedback on the work
- The
WallBanger – weekly
snacks at The Wall for verbal feedback on our work
- The
Brainbanger’s Ball – a
focus group/brainstorming meeting on the work
- The
eBanger – using
email or the intranet to solicit ideas and feedback
- The
EyeBall – face-to-face,
1-to-1 feedback on the work
- The
PlayGround – occasional
group creative sessions of art directors, writers and others
- Spring
Advance – the
agency working as one group off-site for two days to set
goals and action plans
- Fall
Retreat – off-site
event where associates develop individual performance objectives
for the year.
- Monthly
1-to-1s – feedback from coaches and team
leaders on progress toward an individual’s objectives.
- Monday
Morning Meetings – to show finished work and
deliver educational minutes.
- Safe
environment – to
encourage candid opinions at any time.
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