Those of us in the shipping industry know that trucking is one of the most important and largest revenue generating segments in the business. It is also one of the least known and most misunderstood segments. When most people think of trucking, they envision a solitary driver behind the wheel of a tractor-trailer for hours on end, crossing the country in a lonely pattern of complex routes. Surely, that portrays an accurate image of one phase of the trucking industry’s process of delivering product. The entire process, however, can only be accomplished by a myriad of complex, interdependent groups of people. These teams consist of cross-functional, multi-talented members.
How many outside observers would realize this? Aren’t we talking about goods purchased from a vendor, possibly stored in a facility for a period of time, then delivered by truck to a final destination for sale to consumers? Not such a difficult or complicated process at first glance. Yet, this does illustrate that there are indeed teams of people working together to accomplish an end goal. These teams are not merely composed of the driving force; they include administrative staff, managers, warehouse operators and other support functions.
Dynamic vs. static routing:
In today’s world of cutthroat competition for market share and profit margins, you had better be able to design and maximize your company’s cross-functional teams. And you had better be able to avoid the pitfalls of complacency and dysfunctionality that can plague teams. Understanding how to lead and motivate cross-functional groups of employees can provide you with top dog teams that will be the foundation of your company’s success.
Working with cross-functional teams successfully requires the same tools found in the usual teambuilding kit: 1) determine team goals, 2) identify team members, 3) establish role clarity; 4) choose measurements, evaluation standards, motivations, and incentives; and 5) develop communication, conflict resolution, and feedback methods. There is a critical enhancement to tool number 3 that is necessary when teams are cross-functional: educate team members regarding each other’s roles. It’s not just an understanding of your own role, but also an understanding of the interdependence of every person’s role and its impact on the team’s overall achievements, that is important.
As the human resources manager for a national food distribution company, I have had the opportunity to work with top dog teams and their leaders. These leaders have built strong, flexible, and well-educated teams and have motivated them to top performance through team competition incentive programs. They are among the best performing teams I have had the pleasure of working with during my nine years of human resource development experience.
Pre-trip inspections:
There are many things we do to encourage our teammates to top performance. One of our most recent successes was an incentive program implemented at our driver domicile with the expectation of improving these key performance indicators (K.P.I.’s): safety (our number one goal), on-time delivery, perfect orders, attendance, cases per mile, and miles per gallon. Our purpose for establishing the program was to improve not only individual performance, but also to encourage better communication among team members. Members of these teams, who normally have little opportunity to interact due to shift schedules, now have the opportunity (and a purpose) to establish relationships with each other. With these objectives in mind, we agreed to pilot the Top-Dog Team program for one full quarter and we announced the beginning of “The Winter Games.”
Attempts to separately incent single function teams, such as the administrative team or the driver team had not produced the pervasive results needed to move the company forward with the speed and agility the industry is currently demanding. The formation of cross-functional teams within the company was recommended and embraced. We knew our objectives and had our vision. Could every teammate participate as a contributing member of one of the teams? Was there an opportunity for each functional role to be represented on all teams? Our next step was to identify each of the possible team members. Based on our number of employees, we determined that we needed six teams of seven members.
Dispatch the route:
Team captains were selected through seniority. Employee names were written on squares of paper and placed in bowls by job category. The six captains drew names, by turn, from each of the bowls until all names had been selected. The final teams at this domicile had one administrative teammate, two or three driver helpers, and three or four driver specialists.
Each team then chose a name for themselves. Amazingly, this phase of the process itself brought out a sense of camaraderie and excitement among the teams. Jokes and challenges began to fly. Energy levels elevated. Serious discussions began around which key performance indicators should be measured, and by what methods and standards they should be measured. Ten of the most critical performance issues were selected for monitoring.
Deliver the goods:
Each key performance indicator was assessed a numerical point value. At the end of each week, managers calculated each team’s total points. The team with the most points was recognized as “Team of the Month” and awarded a small prize. At the close of the quarter, the grand prize, a dinner cruise, was awarded to the top dog team.
With improved safety as our primary goal, one of the K.P.I.’s immediately identified was the absence of any chargeable accidents or injuries. For each accident or injury-free week, the team would earn 20 points. For each week of perfect attendance by all team members, the teams would earn 10 points. Customer compliments were assessed points. Accurate and complete route and wages paperwork from administrative, management and drivers earned additional points. The helpers were responsible for double-counting product at each stop to ensure perfect deliveries. Administrative staff responsible for the complicated blend of dynamic and static routing of customer stores could affect the cases per mile and the miles per gallon measurements. Drivers following safety regulations and adhering to fuel efficient speed limits could affect the miles per gallon measurements. Each team member had their own unique impact to the performance of the team as a whole and to their individual productivity levels.
The team members took great interest and pleasure in voting on a variety of incentives. Prizes ranged from low or no-cost rewards, such as priority parking spaces, bulletin board photos or minor work schedule changes, to more expensive rewards such as company-logo merchandise, free dinners, a paid day off, etc.
As the final step in the development of the program, we turned our attention to the remaining teambuilding tools—communication, conflict resolution, and feedback. Communication methods were most easily identified—bulletin boards, voice mail motivational messages and winner announcements, banners, flyers and team meetings. Team captains also drove the motivation and morale of the team through their meetings and through peer review. Conflicts in point assignment that could not be handled by the team captains were elevated to the senior managers. Individual performance feedback was handled by the management team in one-on-one coaching or disciplinary sessions. Clear guidelines for each aspect of this team incentive program were then in place and easily administered.
Check Point:
Integral to this process was the on-going education of the team members regarding the challenges, responsibilities, and interdependence of the various team member roles. For example, the better understanding that a driver had of the needs and the barriers that the payroll clerk faces, the more attention he or she paid to the route delivery documentation turned in at the end of the route. The timeliness and accuracy of a paycheck depends on the clarity and accuracy of the annotations the driver makes to the route delivery documentation. This tended to encourage careful processing. Our senior managers identified numerous examples of this type of learning and encouraged team members to spend a few extra minutes together whenever possible to observe some of the daily details of someone else’s work.
Education on the use of other teambuilding tools, such as communication, conflict resolution and feedback techniques, also facilitates an individual’s transition to teamwork. This would give your team members agility and an edge in coping with the daily operational obstacles they face. More importantly, it would provide them with the tools to interact effectively with teammates, suppliers and customers.
Don’t forget to chock the wheels. If you are planning to design a cross-functional team incentive program based on competition, here are some guidelines to consider:
•Keep the program design simple and focused.
•Plan for administrative issues, such as time management, tied scores, the need for constant motivation, etc.
•Ensure that teams are each composed of cross-functional representatives with clear understanding of the impact of their contributions to the team.
•Educate all team members about other roles and responsibilities.
•Rotate team members to avoid putting the burden of work on the same members, allowing others to become complacent.
•Clearly define your performance measurements and evaluations standards.
•Monitor the poorer performing team(s) closely. If a team fails (real or perceived) two months in a row, members may become de-motivated and give up. You may need to make adjustments to motivations, provide reinforcement training, etc.
Quintessential customer service. The benefits to be seen of a successful team competition are impressive. You will experience improved morale and increased participation in teamwork. You will see trends develop which will help identify coaching opportunities for individual growth and improvement. Peer pressure will come into play as a strong motivator for increased efforts. You will have an opportunity for company-wide recognition of achievements, such as annual award ceremonies. You will be enabling your team to grow and achieve new levels of productivity and performance. And, finally, your clients will reap the rewards of your efforts through greater customer service.
As leaders and managers in the trucking industry, it is our hope and mission to develop top dog teams within our organizations. Competition is a powerful incentive and cross-functional teams are becoming prevalent in the business world. Learning how to motivate these teams and disseminate an appreciation for each member’s contributions deep within the ranks of the industry will serve our employees, our companies, and our clients well.
Abridged version published in Food Logistics, July/August 1999, “Top Dog Teams: Incenting Cross-functional Teams.”
Using Competition to Incent Cross-functional Teams By Donna Galatas
