Teaming and Lean--Execution-as-Learning

“I can feel it, Curmudge.  I can sense that we are nearing the end of our discussion of Amy Edmondson’s book on Teaming (1).”

“She is indeed thorough, Julie.  She starts by telling us what she is going to tell us; then she tells us; and finally she tells us what she told us.  Any reader who doesn’t ‘get it’ is just not interested.  So should we fulfill our promise to discuss execution-as-learning?”

“It seems to be another way of depicting continuous improvement, as in the Toyota production system.  Organizations learn as they go.  ‘They can adjust, improvise, or innovate while at the same time successfully delivering products or services to customers.’ ”

“Edmondson uses Intermountain Healthcare as an example.  We described this in our posting back on February 16, 2012.  A team of clinicians identifies the best practice for a particular procedure.  Everyone follows the defined practice unless a patient’s condition indicates otherwise.  If improvements are identified, they are incorporated in the practice.  Prof. Edmondson calls this iterative process execution-as-learning, and its individual steps are diagnose, design, act, and reflect.  We call it continuous improvement and term the steps plan, do, check, and act.”

“Curmudge, it seems to me that good ideas are contagious.”

“And speaking of contagion, here’s an example of teaming, Lean, and execution-as-learning in the construction industry.  It’s called Integrated Project Delivery or Integrated Lean Project Delivery (ILPD) and is used often in construction of health care facilities.  As described by Walker, ‘the building owner, architect, and general contractor are tied together in an interrelated contractual relationship.  The architect and contractor combine their respective contingencies together and are held jointly accountable for all construction errors and omissions.  This incentive means collaboration and united problem solving based on relationships, as opposed to adversarial teams found in traditional design-bid-build delivery.’  This process ‘demands regular meetings to communicate and discus issues, discover options, and find the best solution to optimize the project as a whole.’ “

“Wow, Curmudge, that certainly requires a lot of teaming across boundaries and execution-as-learning.  I understand that it has been used here in Appleton.”

“I don’t know which came first, ILPD or Teaming, but they are certainly interrelated.”

“Back in our first discussion on this topic you promised to report on what the book said to you.  What, Old Guy, was the main message?”

“First of all, the book wasn’t filled with hand-waving platitudes, like having respect for people.  It gave specifics such as why and how a leader must develop psychological safety.  Second, Edmondson’s teaming team might be viewed as a metaphor for a whole organization.  If everyone performed as she proposes for a team, wouldn’t it truly be a learning organization?  Then we all would be ‘doing the right thing.’ “

“That’s all, Curmudge?  You have nothing more profound to say?”

“What do you expect, Julie?  This was written in my bedroom.  At my age, the only profound thing I do there is sleep.”

Kaizen Curmudgeon    

               

1.  Edmondson, Amy C.  Teaming.  How organizations learn, innovate, and compete in the knowledge economy.  (2012, John Wiley & Sons).