Ortho Tribune Asia Pacfic Edition No.1, 2016

Ortho TribuneAsia Pacific Edition | 7+8/2016 20 ORTHO TRENDS By Lina Craven,UK It is said that all teams are groups, but not all groups are teams.What separates the two is interdepend- ence. A true team is focused on a common purpose; team members support one another and enhance each other’s work and contribu- tion. Andrew Carnegie captured this accurately when he said, “Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon re- sults.” I know that achieving the ulti- mate team is possible, because when I was a dental nurse many years ago in America, I was part of an ultimate team. What made us great was our leader, Dr Derick Tagawa. He and his partner had a very clear vision and they knew exactly what was needed from each one of us to ensure the practice achieved its desired re- sults. In turn, each one of us knew that every challenge we faced was an opportunity for per- sonal, professional and practice growth. Practices with a motivated, focused and empowered team produce excellent results; conse- quently, patient satisfaction is high and practitioners realise increased financial rewards. Achieving such a team is not pie inthesky,butitdoesrequirecom- plete commitment from the whole team. Based on my own ex- perience of being a part of a high- performing team and my obser- vations as a consultant to prac- tices, here are my key principles for the creation of an ultimate team. Do not confuse being the boss with being a leader. Leaders set the tone for the practice. They lead by positive example. Suc- cessfulteamworkstartsatthetop with leaders who provide strate- gic vision and establish team goals. Effective leaders clearly de- fine their vision and share it with theirteamtoestablishacommon purpose. Any successful relationship can only survive if values are shared, believed and agreed upon; values like honesty, respect, integrity, commitment to each other, com- mitment to the practice success. Shared values help to build an effective team and to establish its culture, conduct, rules and policies. The key is to ensure the entire team agrees on the same values and is prepared to work by them. According to the world’s finest flight demonstra- tion team (the Blue Angels, US Navy), “without shared values, peak performance isn’t possible” and “a team’s values must align with its purpose, mission, and actions”. Every team member, from the leader to the cleaner, must learn to communicate clearly and effec- tively. Successful relationships are built on positive, honest and open feedback. Is information shared openly and honestly in your team? Does gossip or nega- tivechatterexistinyourpractice? Team members must learn to ad- dress concerns, deal with conflict and accept responsibility for the success of other team members. When conflict occurs, it must be dealt with honestly, directly and openly as soon as possible and in line with the team’s adopted values. Foster positive attitudes and creative thinking—attitudes caneithermakeorbreaktheteam dynamics, so there is no place for negative people. Doallyourteammembershave clear and up-to-date job descrip- tions? Are they all qualified to undertake their roles? Are there written procedures for every area of the practice? I often hear team members say they are not sure whoisresponsibleforsomething, or they do not have a job de- scription, or they were promised training when they started, but have not yet received any owing to the practice being too busy. Empowerment results from clear- ly defined roles and practice procedures and a shared under- standing of one another’s roles. Cross-training increases efficien- cy and makes each person more productive and valuable to the team. Each team member is a cog in the practice’s wheel of success. However, many are often under- utilisedtohisorherfullpotential and thus become bored or com- placent. Dr Tagawa believed in providingthebesttrainingforhis staff. He also recognised that he may lose some individuals who desired greater career progres- sionthanthepracticecouldoffer. He knew nevertheless that those who remained would perform at their peak and more than justify his investment. Every morning in Dr Tagawa’s practice as part of our commit- ment to the team, we would meet 10 minutes prior to the start of the day to prepare for the show. The head receptionist had a sim- ple but effective system for up- dating us with vital information, including how many patients we would be seeing, special recog- nitions (like patients’ birthdays), identifying difficult patients, where staff were expected to be (from the rota) and anyone off thatday.Itonlytook5minutesfor theupdateand5minutesmoreto review the day before regarding what had worked well and what had not. It helped us to focus on the day ahead. Walt Disney once famously said, “You can dream, create, de- sign and build the most won- derful place in the world, but it requires people to make the dream a reality.” Imagine a girl visiting Disney World hoping to see Cinderella, but when she encounters her, Cinderella is chewing gum and has a can’t-do, won’t-do attitude. Is Cinderella playing her role? It takes the right attitude and focused commit- ment from every member of the teamtoturnthevisionintoareal- ity. When that patient your prac- tice dreads is due to arrive, how do you all respond? With “I will not take any nonsense from this patient today!” or “I’ll show her who’s right!”? When we choose the right attitude and choose to stay true to our purpose, we will help others to do the same. A can- do attitude makes the impossible possible. Consistency is critical to creat- ing the ultimate team; it fos- ters credibility and trust. Ken Blanchard and Sheldon Bowles wrote in their book Raving Fans, “customers allow themselves to be seduced into becoming raving fans only when they know they can count on you time and time again”. This is also true for teams: justreplacetheword“customers” with “team members”. I often hear people say things like “one day we’re instructed to some- thingandthenextdayitbecomes something else”. If you want to be part of the ultimate team, be consistent. Itissaidthatwhatmotivatesin- dividuals the most is recognition —a pat on the back or a word of praisehereandthereforajobwell done. Embrace this principle and, although it may feel awkward at first, if it is done often enough it becomes a habit. Sam Walton, founder of Wal-Mart Stores, said: “Appreciate everything your as- sociates do for the business. Nothing else can quite substitute for a few well-chosen, well-timed, sincere words of praise. They’re absolutely free and worth a for- tune.” Building the ultimate team does represent a challenge, but onceachieveditishugelyreward- ing. There is no point implement- ing one principle in isolation. It is like baking a cake without the eggs. Individuals play the game, but teams win championships What it takes to build the ultimate practice unit “Successful leaders embrace the power of teamwork by tapping into the innate strengths each person brings to the table.” Blue Angels, US Navy Lina Craven is founder and Di- rector of Dyna- mic Perceptions, an orthodontic management consultancy and training ﬁrm in Stone in the UK, and has many years of practice-based experience. She canbecontactedatinfo@linacraven.com DTUK0116_21_OTCraven 28.07.16 13:45 Seite 1 DTUK0116_21_OTCraven 28.07.1613:45 Seite 1

Ortho Tribune Asia Pacfic Edition No.1, 2016

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