My favorite example of this is the culture around fighter pilots when they perform after action reviews.
Within that, I believe the most powerful aspect is rank doesn’t matter in those rooms. General or Captain you are expected to open yourself to the criticism with humility. So much we can learn here in the civilian world.
My favourite part of the Hotwash is step 4. That 5-minute summary makes us focused on the essentials only, but what you'd do makes the act even better. Not only are we all forced to take responsibility, but no inaction is allowed going forward. We are all invested in this ship. Once it sinks, we all go down with it. Each person gets their turn and focuses on keeping people and actions separate (step 3).
In my media days, the news editor would convene a "post-mortem" each morning, to dissect yesterday's news coverage and identify gaps in how we covered a matter in relation to how our rivals handled the same story. The approach was more accusatory but there were lessons therein. You learned to be thorough and strive for uniqueness too. Like anything else that process could be improved further by focusing on objectivity.
Ultimately, there is no I in TEAM. Cliches' do work and keep reminding us of what is often just in front of our eyes.
Dealing with failure is never fun (Is it supposed to be though?). You give us some tips to better assess the root cause AND formulate a solid action plan.
In security (many years ago), I worked in a major city, overseeing multiple residential buildings. We were required to write incident reports. The way we were taught to write was to use: when, what, where, who, how, and why (W.W.W.W.H.W).
If I had known about an after-action report (AAR); I believe that would have been a game changer.
What ever extra we can add to give us that edge; I find valuable. Then again, I have always been an outsider. I don't know how well it would mesh with a large group of people.
My favorite example of this is the culture around fighter pilots when they perform after action reviews.
Within that, I believe the most powerful aspect is rank doesn’t matter in those rooms. General or Captain you are expected to open yourself to the criticism with humility. So much we can learn here in the civilian world.
Great post!
My favourite part of the Hotwash is step 4. That 5-minute summary makes us focused on the essentials only, but what you'd do makes the act even better. Not only are we all forced to take responsibility, but no inaction is allowed going forward. We are all invested in this ship. Once it sinks, we all go down with it. Each person gets their turn and focuses on keeping people and actions separate (step 3).
In my media days, the news editor would convene a "post-mortem" each morning, to dissect yesterday's news coverage and identify gaps in how we covered a matter in relation to how our rivals handled the same story. The approach was more accusatory but there were lessons therein. You learned to be thorough and strive for uniqueness too. Like anything else that process could be improved further by focusing on objectivity.
Ultimately, there is no I in TEAM. Cliches' do work and keep reminding us of what is often just in front of our eyes.
Good morning,
Dealing with failure is never fun (Is it supposed to be though?). You give us some tips to better assess the root cause AND formulate a solid action plan.
In security (many years ago), I worked in a major city, overseeing multiple residential buildings. We were required to write incident reports. The way we were taught to write was to use: when, what, where, who, how, and why (W.W.W.W.H.W).
If I had known about an after-action report (AAR); I believe that would have been a game changer.
What ever extra we can add to give us that edge; I find valuable. Then again, I have always been an outsider. I don't know how well it would mesh with a large group of people.
Thank you for your time.
-Joe