Peer Assist Overview
Every day in organizations, people struggle to solve new, complex issues using only their own knowledge and existing resources and techniques. This is a not an ideal approach, as it takes longer and usually leads to sub-optimal solutions at best, or failure at worst. In spite of this, managers and their teams continue to struggle using this approach because they don't have any other way to get a solution.
The irony is that there are actually few circumstances in which a challenging issue is really new; rather, it is the context of the problem that is new. By putting the issue and its context together with outside expertise and knowledge, teams can identify the real underlying issues, identify new approaches and solve the problem more easily. This is the essence of the Peer Assist:
A facilitated workshop to help teams learn this skill, The Peer Assist is a one to two day facilitated meeting involving two groups of professionals: a team that is trying to deal with the critical business issue, and a team of subject matter or domain experts whose knowledge and experience can be tapped. The ability of the Peer Assist to tap into new expertise makes it a valuable tool that yields immediate insights and results.
A means to finding new paths, or getting “unstuck” From a problem .
A project team at a major defense company was tasked by the CEO and Chairman to improve the probability of winning a multi-billion dollar contract with the US Air Force. The challenge was that the company had little experience as a prime contractor and while the program team had superior technology, the indications were that their prospect was leaning towards a competitor's bid. The program manager asked for a Peer Assist to help the team discover how they could improve their chances of winning the deal. The Peer Assist brought together the program team and colleagues from other parts of the company as well as outside it. In the workshop, the visiting peers provided significant insights into defining both the client needs and how to get the company management to help the team structure a prime contracting bid. The effort helped the team solidify its position with the customer and win the next phase of the contract.
A tool to create new relationships and new value across teams and corporate silos.
In the mid-1990s, oil company executives responsible for oil drilling platforms in the North Sea noticed that some wells were significantly more productive than others in the same field. The senior management of the company was troubled by the results and charged the managers with solving the problems within three months. After reviewing his options, the managers decided to hold Peer Assists for the teams from the weaker performing platforms by bringing in their peers from higher performing rigs. The two-day sessions led to an exchange of new ideas and, leading in turn to dramatic increases in productivity at the lower performing wells and surprisingly, additional improvements at the others.
A methodology that facilitates successful change from within .
The executive in charge of worldwide sales for a major provider to the financial services industry was faced with the challenge of improving the sales and ongoing account management for the company's top 25 clients (who represented a significant portion of the firm's revenue of close to half a billion dollars) Factions from different divisions wanted to retain control of the accounts, it was difficult to get a single view of the clients relationship with all parts of the company, and it was clear that the current global accounts team was not getting the traction they needed. In addition, major clients were changing how they purchased and used the company's products and wanted to consolidate the relationships. The executive asked for a Peer Assist to help his team understand how to best organize across the company to serve the key accounts and how to execute the changes given the existing organizational challenges. The Peer Assist brought together the global accounts team and colleagues from other parts of the company as well as key clients and managers from firms outside the industry who had addressed similar challenges. In the workshop, the visiting peers provided significant insights into defining both the structure and approach, and as it included members from other division and functions, it helped create the groundswell of support that enabled the change to be supported and occur.
A simple technique with demonstrated cost and time savings. The Peer Assist is based upon work pioneered by BP Amoco in 1994, which documented over $750 million in savings in the first three years of using it. Today, many corporations use the Peer Assist to tackle firm wide issues that have strategic impact on revenue, customer satisfaction, and employee effectiveness. It is focused, requires a small investment and generates both expected and unexpected positive results.
For more information :
For more information on whether a Peer Assist could help your organization take a new approach to solving complex issues, please contact
Nathaniel Welch
Welch Consulting
37 Main Street, Suite 4
Concord, MA 01742
978-369-1886