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Create an Organizational FAQ

ORGANIZATIONS HAVE many nuances, policies, and procedures. Those who have not been around a long time can truly benefit from a frequently asked questions (FAQ) resource or “fact of the day” to bring them up to speed on organizational norms, facts, policies, and events. Simply send out an e-mail to current team members and ask this question: What do you wish you had known about our organization when you started? You will get any number of interesting responses to help those new to your team acclimate more quickly. Even veterans on your team will learn a few hints, tips, and organizational nuances. Start your meetings with these interesting tidbits of information.

Another great source of information is company award applications (such as for industry awards like ISO-1000 or the Malcolm Baldrige Award). Often, these highlight a number of worthwhile and interesting facts about your organization, as well as where the organization is headed in the future. The quicker those around you can discuss the organization from top to bottom, the quicker they will be in a position to help you lead the organization.

You may be thinking: When will I find time to develop an FAQ? Our organization is huge! Allen and Kusy are insane! Ask those around you to help with the project. Assign it to a high performer. Or, rather than give superfluous work to this individual, assign the FAQ process to an intern.

As part of this process, remember the importance of incremental steps. You don’t have to do it all right away. Find those areas that will be most effective and require the least amount of resources. This simple task could serve as a great project that can have a significant effect on your department or division. The quicker team members receive the information, the quicker they can add value to your area.