In my 15 years at Kaiser Permanente (managing call centers and now the California Claims Center) I’ve spent a lot of time fixing broken windows.

This hasn’t involved actual glass and putty (yet), but rather the “broken window theory” popularized by Rudy Giuliani as mayor of New York. The theory holds that by going after seemingly small issues like vandalism in abandoned buildings, communities can improve their quality of life and reduce more serious crime.

You can argue this as a political issue, but I’ve found that it holds true in the workplace. When things don’t work as they should—whether our systems, processes or relationships—people get frustrated. They waste time, energy and creativity doing workarounds rather than productive work. They’re more apt to let other things slide, especially if their concerns or suggestions go unheeded. It’s demoralizing, and performance of the whole unit suffers.

How UBTs can help

I have responsibility for about 1,200 staff members and 100 managers in about 75 locations, so there’s always something to fix—and the folks who do the work know exactly where to look. As unit-based teams grow (we now have 10 teams covering more than 100 people in our claims centers), they’ll be able to tackle many issues themselves. It’s very empowering for people to solve problems and improve their own work processes.

There’s always something to fix—and the folks who do the work know exactly where to look.

But for issues that cut across teams or departments, engaged leaders and sponsors are essential. For instance, a frontline claims processor can tell me how long it takes her to work through a particular glitch in our system. I can then look across the department, see what that’s costing us in lost time and productivity and have IT fix the problem.

That’s why I spend 20 percent of my time visiting the facilities and talking to people on the front lines. Some of this time is with individuals, hearing what’s going on, mentoring them or offering career guidance and advice. After one such conversation a staff member said it was the first time in 25 years on the job that a senior leader had talked with her about her work and ideas. It’s sad that it had taken that long.

What teams need to know

These visits also allow me to exchange ideas with the group. I always try to:

• Tell them how we’re doing as a department, why our work matters to Kaiser Permanente and our members, and what’s ahead.
• Ask what gets in the way of them doing their jobs and how we can remove barriers and make their work lives easier and more productive.

• Acknowledge their frustration, when it’s there, and promise to look into whatever issue is raised and report back the outcome. And I always do.

That doesn’t mean I can act on every idea or issue immediately; some things make sense or take priority and some don’t. Nor does it mean that it’s always my job to make everything right. Increasingly, teams will be doing this work themselves. Managers can often get more done by distributing power and leadership to others. In fact, the most frequent breakdown I see—broken work relationships—can only be fixed by those involved.

But when people understand the business, are part of the conversation and have the right tools and support, they can create a great workplace, where fixing broken windows is part of everyone’s job.