What is a Best Practice ?What is a Best Practice ? What is a Best Practice ?What is a Best Practice ?

What is a Best Practice?• A “best practice” is a quality management term. It means a

technique or method that, through experiences or research, is found most effective at achieving a desired result.

• Best Practices can be shared so that employees learn from one another.

• A “best practice” improvement is the direct result of a “partnership” whereby workplace teams come together to solve problems by understanding interests and implementing improvements to improve “old ways” of doing things.

How does Yale define “best practices” ?

• At Yale, Best Practices is a joint union-management initiative intended to foster labor-management partnerships through joint projects and the sharing of “best practices” throughout the University.

• Best Practices Projects at Yale University are focused on:• Improving customer service• Increasing productivity• Preventing and resolving conflict• Improving employee satisfaction• Discussing ongoing issues and changes in the

workplace• Promoting positive union relations

What are some examples of Best Practice Initiatives?

• Analyzing department workflow to streamline and eliminate non-value added steps.

• Documenting standard operating procedures to eliminate confusion and poor quality.

• Conducting customer/supplier exchanges to increase understanding of process inputs and outputs and associated customer supplier expectations.

• Conducting training needs assessments to develop training plans for improving associate skill levels

• Developing work standards to allow for evenly distributed work assignments.

• Resolving conflicts by understanding each parties interest and implementing solutions before issues escalate to formal grievances.

Getting to “best practices” at Yale requires a workplace culture willing to embrace the

following:

• Obsession for continuous improvement.

• Shared leadership and desire to explore all interests.

• Implementation of actions based on facts.

• Partnering with others while developing and implementing the “new way” for conducting business.

Practical tips for promoting a Union- Management Partnership

DO• Investigate all interest of impacted parties.• Tap into other individuals who may have experienced same or

similar problems to understand steps taken to implement best practices in the workplace.

• Stay focused on the issues and not the personalities. • Remember that incremental improvements leads to sustained

results in the workplace. Don’t • Jump to conclusions and implement a best practice without

proof that it works.• Receive input from one side. Seek to gain all pertinent

information required to make an informed decision.