Should I Call The Manager?: Decision Chart
Tools: Canva
Time: 2 Hours
Client: A manager at a hotel or retail store
Collaborators: Self as designer/developer and manager
Challenge:
A manager at a local hotel or retail space is constantly being called during his off-hours by employees. The employees are often asking questions they could find the answers to elsewhere or are confirming things they already know. The manager wants to provide them with a resource to help support them to learn independence and problem solving skills on the job.
Solutions:
I designed a decision flow chart to help the employees determine if they should call the manager or not. To design this version of the flow chart, I consulted with a hotel manager, who walked me through the types of things he would like his employees to consider before they call management in. I took notes, and developed those notes into an outline.
I then created the flowchart in Canva using shapes, text boxes, and lines. I shared it with the manager for feedback, implemented this feedback in my design, and shared out the final project.
Result:
For the implementation of this decision flowchart job aide to be considered successful, it would have to change employee behavior. I would want to follow-up with management to see if the volume of calls they receive during their "off-hours" has decreased.
Apart from lessening the amount of calls, I would also want to measure if the employees are making more decision independently on a daily basis. This type of data would most likely be observational: based upon manager observation.
It may also be helpful to poll employee opinion on the usefulness of the decision chart to find out if they are using it (and how often); and if they feel like the chart empowers them to make decisions instead of relying on management. Ultimately, I would use employee and manager feedback to make any changes to the produce and reimplement it.