A simple and effective way to save you time and money.

Everyone has been in the situation where you reach over some items that you rarely need to reach something you use every day. In our office, it used to be the coffee station. 

We started out placing the ground coffee in the front and the filters on top of the cans.  It was fine for a few days until someone brought in Chinese food and the leftover fortune cookies were placed in front of the coffee.  Next, some extra napkins miraculously appeared and were placed in front of the fortune cookies until the coffee ended up in the back of the cupboard, the filters were moved into the drawer, and we had to reach over all the other stuff, making the daily task of making coffee unnecessarily difficult.  It slowed us down and started our day with frustration from looking around for the items needed to do the job.

So, why did intelligent and logical people create a circumstance that was so illogical?

The answer is that they didn’t have a system that simply and effectively drove solid decisions about the placement of items in the office.  Additionally, there was no expectation communicated to staff members about where the items should be placed.

The reality is, the activities of everyday life sometimes throw logic out the door and we don’t take the time to think.  The simple idea of having a place for every item, referred to as Workplace Organization, and keeping the items in their place can create hundreds of hours of time-savings per year for your practice.

In simple terms, Workplace Organization is the task of making the intelligent and logical decisions about the placement of items based on need.  Visual Controls are the set of simple reminders that let people know where things belong, visually and at a glance.  At PRISM, we help practices install sustainable systems for improving efficiency, and Workplace Organization with Visual Control is one of these simple systems.  

In a PRISM Workplace Organization project, we start by finding a person with in the office that is naturally good at keeping things organized.  We build upon this person’s natural aptitude and highlight their skill on behalf of the organization.   We are after sustainable gains, and having the role model identified within the company is a great way to keep the process alive. 

Next, we ask the leadership and the organizational role model to document the standard of workplace organization and a set of guidelines for decision making.  These guidelines tell staff members how to prioritize tools based on use and also include descriptions about where the tools should be located based on need.

Finally, using the guidelines set by leadership and the organizational role model, we select a pilot area within the office to “re-organize,” typically someone’s desk or workplace.  The person whose workplace is getting re-organized must classify every item in their area according to the guidelines.  Each item is then put in its appropriate place in a much more logical manner.

The big trick here is to designate a home for each item and physically mark where that home is using things such as markers, tape, and label makers.  This visual control is key to the sustainability of workplace organization.   In the end, you wind up with increased productivity, less wasted time, and a reduction in errors.  Work becomes easier and you and your staff are less rushed and frustrated. 

Overall, the concepts of Workplace Organization and Visual Control are simple, yet effective, ways to increase the efficiency of your practice.  Practices that utilize these concepts end up being more productive and employees tend to be happier and less stressed-out.

Now, I think it’s time to go make a quick pot of coffee.

John Casey is the Chief Operating Officer for PRISM, a non-profit corporation that assists medical practices with re-engineering their workflows and processes to improve patient care, improve efficiency, and reduce costs.  For more information about PRISM, please contact John at 248-709-6669 or email him at jcasey@prism1.org.