The ProjectWhen I started working at the Pacific Science Center, there had not been a dedicated Shop Manager for years. Behind any cultural institution is a secret sauce of institutional knowledge, legacy organizational styles, and a team of some of the most hardworking and optimistic people you'll ever meet. The PacSci Exhibit Shops were no different, and about 8 months after I started my work there as an Exhibit Technician, I was promoted to the task. The position was more than just maintaining the tools. It was a blend of redesigning our work culture and habits, developing systems for organizing and tracking tools, projects, and inventory, and creating standardized practices that maximized efficiency and creativity, and met our absolute need for safety.
Goals
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How did our physical environment affect our work culture?
Even better... how could I design our environment to improve our efficiency, safety, and satisfaction at work?
Coworker Robb Kunz basking in chaotic, cluttered woodshop before our big "spring cleaning"
Safety as a Systems Design Issue
My coworkers and I began to brainstorm how we operate as a team, and at what point in the process we "enter" a project. What could be different? A huge roadblock was our existing software and project tracking systems. We had inherited an old, clunky Sharepoint website that did not allow us flexibility or control. It created opacity between departments and team members, kept us one step behind, and did not let us learn from our past experiences.
One of the first tasks I took upon myself as the Shop Lead was a complete overhaul of our project management system, inventory tracking, asset records, and team calendar. We deserved a platform that was as nimble as our own building abilities.
One of the first tasks I took upon myself as the Shop Lead was a complete overhaul of our project management system, inventory tracking, asset records, and team calendar. We deserved a platform that was as nimble as our own building abilities.
Your physical space reflects your work culture; your work culture is defined by broader expectations. Our team need was to prioritize safety, and to achieve that, we actually had to take a huge step back and look at our department's functionality in our greater workplace. We constantly found ourselves running up against deadlines, and having to balance safety with the demands of our projects. How do we put the safety of people first, and create a new business model that becomes more efficient and transparent as a result?
Our department's workflow always seemed to be one step behind the demands of a project.
We were reacting instead of making conscious decisions.
What was stopping us from meeting our needs and operating more efficiently?
I chose to migrate us to Airtable, which met these needs:
For the first time in the history of the Pacific Science Center, Exhibit Ops technicians could view work orders from their phones while working on the exhibit that needed repair. We were able to add relevant photos easily and codify institutional knowledge that was previously only learned through oral training.
- Accessible through WiFi, and could be used on personal phones and on the exhibit floor (a huge difference)
- Enhanced transparency within our team so all members could view all projects, but only some could edit
- Enhanced transparency to other departments, allowing them to view our time availability on a macro scale
- Increased team member ownership of projects
- Prevented projects from "slipping through the cracks"
- Empowered Exhibit Ops's ability to negotiate deadlines and manage our own time
- Compatible with Management's existing needs for accounting & tracking, exportable to .CSV files
For the first time in the history of the Pacific Science Center, Exhibit Ops technicians could view work orders from their phones while working on the exhibit that needed repair. We were able to add relevant photos easily and codify institutional knowledge that was previously only learned through oral training.
Why Did Project Tracking Matter in Creating a Safer Work Environment?While this component of my push towards a safe work environment may seem nebulous, it was a clear step to me based on a human-center design approach to making a lasting difference in our work culture.
As leaders of our department, we had to make changes that set an example for our teammates and for how other departments would interact with us. We had to cultivate ownership of our own schedules and project management processes, and then know that our decisions would be respected. We could then grow our team to value safety and collaboration as an individual priority instead of as a second thought. Those two things could only happen once we had met our more hidden need to manage our own time. |
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Spatial Design and Work Flow
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Designing Spaces to Promote Safe Work CultureAnother component of designing safety into our work process was making incremental changes to our workspace. I have learned to front-load my time investment on projects as much as possible, to identify roadblocks and time constraints before I begin, so that I can already be developing solutions. A huge factor in my workflow, whether designing something physical or digital, is the state of your environment. As creative people, we are so affected by this! I find it extremely important to take the time to set yourself up for success. Where are the tools you need, and how do you make sure you can access them safely? How much time do you save by not making a custom hanging solution for those bar clamps, when they fall over constantly and you spend minutes each day avoiding the mess? Buckle down, invest the time, and invest in your workflow. You'd be shocked how something as thoughtless as wrangling 75 lbs of clamps daily increases stress and likelihood of accidents. I challenged myself with monthly design changes around the shop in order to make thoughtful solutions that would increase the team's safety, efficiency, and mood!
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