Success Criteria

Primary

• Increase CEM “Happiness” scores from 6/10 to 8/10

• Increase CEM retention from 20% over a two-year period to 60% over a two-year period

Secondary

• Increase participant engagement from 30% to >50%

• Increase client retention from 30% over three years to 70% over three years

Timeline

Primary

• Increase “Happiness” score quarter over quarter in year one

  • Should see initial trends moving up within one to two months with variations through the course of the year based on workflow

  • “Happiness” score offers immediate feedback on what’s working with this project and what’s not working.

• CEM retention should see a decrease in year one, with a continued decrease after two years. 60% retention over two years should be a realistic target based on the industry.

Secondary

• Increase participant engagement from 30% to >50%

  • This is tracked monthly, quarterly, and annually

  • A realistic timeline for participant engagement tied to this initiative is one year after the start of the initiative

• Increase client retention

  • Clients sign initial three-year contracts, so it would take a full three-year cycle to get a full data set for this metric

  • Year-over-year data will give a strong indication of client retention

Failing to Flourishing: Building a Thriving Team in a Complex Well-Being World

Objectives

My leadership project is a fresh look at past failed attempts to turn around the Client Experience Team at a small well-being company, using tools and learnings from the ORGL program. The challenges facing this team are significant and I can draw on concepts from each course as I lay out a plan to increase CE team satisfaction, engagement, and retention.

Background

In my most recent job, prior to starting in the ORGL program, I worked for a small well-being company call Aduro, I was part of a Client Experience Team (CE Team) that had the highest turnover rate, and lowest engagement and job satisfaction rate in the company by a wide margin. The team struggled with trust in leadership, both our department leadership and organizational leadership. The CE Team had strained relationships with internal partners and struggled to deliver consistent, replicable results to clients.

In my three years on the CE Team, I was part of several initiatives tasked with improving CE Team onboarding, CEM training and development, increasing engagement and improving retention. Unfortunately, while some initiatives showed early benefits, each effort fizzled for a myriad of reasons. As I look back through the lens of the ORGL program, my approach this time would be very different.

Competencies

While components from each course will be represented in some capacity in this change initiative, I will pull most heavily from the following courses:

        Team Building and Leadership (ORGL 550)

o   Framing through Lencioni’s Five Dysfunctions of a Team

• Absence of Trust (Invulnerability)

• Fear of Conflict (Artificial Harmony)

• Lack of Commitment (Ambiguity)

• Avoidance of Accountability (Low Standards)

• Inattention to Results (Status and Ego)

o   Building a foundation of trust and safety by leaning into vulnerability

o   Sparking conflict

learning how healthy conflict can help overcome artificial harmony and clear the way for authentic dialogue

o   Applying the principles of self-determination theory as a broad guide for this initiative

• Relatedness

• Autonomy

• Mastery

        Leadership and Human Potential (ORGL 515)

o   Implement concepts of dialogic organizational development

o   Building the language and skills for a growth mindset

o   Engaging creativity and innovation through design thinking

o   Viewing team culture through the conversations the team engages in – implementing the practices of appreciative inquiry

        Organizational Theory and Behavior (ORGL 615)

o   Systems thinking – builds on the idea from 605 to zoom out, to see and see again

o   Understanding how our assumptions hold us back from a new perspective or seeing the whole

o   Culture is created by successfully solving a problem – using this concept to rebuild the culture by giving the team different problems to solve

       Servant Leadership (ORGL 530)

o   Leading through listening

o   Giving ownership to those facing the challenge

o   Identification of values and implementing those values in the day-to-day skills we practice

o   Instilling a mindset of servant-leadership – how do we help others (clients, teammates, coworkers) thrive?

Client Experience Team Building Strategy