Assigning ownership to prevent dropped tasks

The situation

Work was being handed between two teams and was dropped twice in a short period because nobody took ownership after the handoff. This was causing problems and needed to be addressed. The teams were looking for a solution to prevent this from happening again. They needed to find a way to ensure that each task was owned by someone until it was completed. This would prevent tasks from being dropped and lost, and would help to improve productivity and efficiency. The teams were considering different options for how to assign ownership of tasks

What they weighed

• One owner holds each job until it is done

  Chosen

• Every team member may pick up any job

What they decided

One owner holds each job until it is done

Why

Having one owner per task stops the drops that were happening, as shown by the evidence. This approach also builds on the existing system, which already assigns one holder to each handoff. By keeping one holder per handed job, the teams can ensure that tasks are not dropped and that someone is always responsible for seeing them through to completion. This approach is simple and effective, and it addresses the specific problem that the teams were facing

The first step

Implement the new system by keeping one holder per handed job with the take_work process

How they would know it worked

No handed job will be left open without a holder for more than a day

How it turned out

Not known yet. The result is added here when it comes in.