Management Consultant shares his 5 week volunteer experiences
with a Healthcare provider in Tanzania - Oct / Nov 2012
Week 1 & 2:
My first two weeks have
gone by so fast and hectic. Find below a summary of my activities &
reflections.
Volunteer Related Activities Summary:
For the first two weeks
I was joined by Emili Whittaker (a friend of mine from work). It was fantastic
having Emili here to work with me.
Emili and I arriving into Dar Es Salaam
- First week - Emili and I prepared CCBRT (www.ccbrt.or.tz) for its first ever Kaizen event.
- Second week we led the team over 4 days to solve the
problem of the stock out of vital items required for the disability
hospital. It was very exhausting work yet very satisfying to see the
participants go through the process but more importantly to see how they
learned by following the process. Outside of the kaizen preparation and
kaizen event I gave the CEO and his senior leadership team in CCBRT
multiple introduction presentations to lean management (Visual Management,
The Tier Process & Standard Work for Leaders)
Working with Leaders of the organization on Problem Solving
Non-Volunteer Related Activities Summary:
Got to play soccer 3
times. Most impressively I got to play as part of an ex-pat team in the
national stadium of Zanzibar against a local team. Awesome!
About to play soccer in Zanzibar International Stadium
On Sunday I went on a
bike tour of the city's most poverty stricken areas. It was amazing to
see the reaction of the local kids as they screamed "mzungu" at me
while pointing and smiling. I must have high-fived about 50 kids. As "celebrity" as
the reception was - it was heartbreaking to see the living conditions these
children were surrounded by. With raw sewage flowing through the streets it
wasn’t surprising to find that diarrhea was the number one cause of infant
deaths. The images will live in my memory for a long time to come.
With local kids in the city
High point:
The excitement and
determination from the CEO to start installing a Lean Management System in his
organization after I gave him and his leadership team multiple presentations on
the topic. What really excites me about this is the extraordinary potential
that this will have in really transforming the way they manage their
organization.
Low Point:
Getting food poisoning
twice. I guess my western sensitized stomach disagreed with some of the local
food offerings. Fully recovered now - fingers crossed for the remaining three
weeks.
Inspecting some of the local food markets
How you can help:
I have nothing specific
at this moment, but watch this space.
Personal Message:
My main goal in my time
in Tanzania is knowledge transfer, I know I said this before in my previous
email but I want to restate this. Almost everything that I am teaching these
managers in CCBRT has been from my skills and experiences that I have learned
working in the West (US & Europe). I know what I am doing here, you can do
(and better than me), whether it is for organizations in our communities at
home or afar. On my 20 min taxi ride to CCBRT every morning I read a hand
painted sign at a shoe stand on the side of the road that inspires me every
time I see it. "Education is more powerful than money". 
My car ride view into work every day
We can make Poverty History.
________________________________________________________________________
Week 3:
Another week in
paradise!
Find below a summary of
my activities & reflections.
Volunteer Related Activities Summary:
I spent most of the past
week helping the team complete the Kaizen event for the stock out of vital
items in the hospital that we started the previous week. I am really pleased
with how this has progressed. Seeing team members react to the impact of this method
to solve problems is so encouraging. In their own words "we have never
gone about solving problems like this in the past, I want this process to
become our future". I also worked on preparing the next Kaizen that we'll
be starting this week – reducing errors in the monthly financial reports.
Teaching the team some problem solving tools
On Wednesday I gave yet
another Lean Management presentation to the CEO and his senior leadership team.
However this time it was different. (See high point below).
Non-Volunteer Related Activities Summary:
The soccer game I played
in the national stadium of Zanzibar two weeks prior had a TV crew from Zanzibar
TV show up. I got together with some of my fellow players on the
team and watched the 10 minute highlights recording they made which included
post game interviews. They made us sound like professionals! It amazing to
watch – they were so honored to have foreigners come and play against them.
I got to swim in the
Indian Ocean and a local pool in the evenings this week. So peaceful – it
really helped me clear my mind.
High point:
The reception to the
lean management presentation on Wednesday was probably one of the greatest
moments of my professional career. I got some great feedback prior to the
presentation that the leadership team was struggling with envisioning what lean
management would look like in their areas. My western examples were not
working. So this time I focused on CCBRT.
I highlighted examples of lean management that they were already doing
(maintenance visual boards that were in the hospital wards that I helped them
create over a year ago), and I created two example with the support of the
department heads of the private clinic and finance department of what lean
management would look like in their areas. No more death by PowerPoint! It was
the "Ah-ha" moment I was looking for. I'm going to make the follow
through required by the CEO and his leadership team from moving this from
vision to realization my number one priority in my remaining 2 weeks.
Facilitating problem solving sessions
Low Point:
Realizing that I'm now
past the half way point of my trip. However this has motivated me to make the
most of my remaining time, especially the face time I have with the CEO &
his team – effective planning will be my ally as opposed to some of the "winging
it" meetings I've had with them to date.
How you can help:
I have nothing specific
at this moment, but watch this space. It's coming.
Personal Message:
I am of the opinion that
giving CCBRT the foundation blocks of a lean management system could be the
single greatest impact I give to CCBRT. The presentation was a moment of
personal insight to the team; however the real strength is in the intense
personal doing, reflecting, learning that the "Ah-ha" moments come
from, not from me or from particular tools. I told them that I really believe
that this can revolutionize the organization. I am not saying this to be
dramatic or to make myself look good. I am not saying this because I have a
good feeling or read an article in a book about it or I see their organization
as an "ideal" candidate. I saying this because I believe with ALL
MY HEART that this does work, I've seen it, I've resisted it, I've created
it, I've lived it, I've coached it. My eyes are watering up as I write this but
for a good reason, for it's the patients CCBRT will serve in the future that
are the real winners here.
_____________________________________________________________________
Week 4:
Another week in
paradise!
Find below a summary of
my activities & reflections.
Volunteer Related Activities Summary:
This week I led two
discussions with the senior leadership team on everyone's favorite subject –
time management.
Teaching Time Management Principals and Application Tips
As with us in the West – the classic "I'm too busy"
"I don’t have enough time" excuses were analyzed and exposed for the
misconceptions that they are (For those that don’t know me I am a fanatical
believer that lack of time isn’t the problem – but lack of clarity and
definition). I used the "Getting Things Done" model that I have
personally used and openly shared with them my personal successes and failures
using the model. Although there was a universal good feeling after
both discussions– it's all about application, which is a personal decision. I
left with a strong hope that at least some of them will start to apply this.
Explaining to some of the Leaders on the benefits of visual management
I had one-one coaching
sessions with 9 senior leaders this week. The subjects varied from lean
management and project management to developing people. My personal favorite
was when I met with one of the Doctors who are working on a CCBRT project that
is trying to build capability in ~9 maternal health centre's in Dar es Salaam.
She shared with me her successes and failures on this project. She
was adamant that the root cause of the failures in these health centers was
management – this affirmed my own personal belief that "everything rises
and falls with Leadership". She was so excited and fascinated to hear that
I was here to focus on the development of management – something she never
previously seen a focus on. I will continue this conversation with her this
week. I'm excited about how we can find ways to close this gap.
Non-Volunteer Related Activities Summary:
I got to observe the
official opening of the new
fistula wards at the hospital. What a moving ceremony. My personal
highlight was when one of the doctors during his acceptance speech spoke openly
of his faith in God and how he was so honored to be given the opportunity to
serve these women. It was a lump in throat moment. A man living a Life with
meaning and purpose, so inspirational.
No soccer for me this week
hurt my foot. Instead I had a swim in the Indian Ocean and later with a beer in
hand watched the sunset with friends. What a feeling.
High point:
Rehema - Rehema is the
manager the runs the private clinic within CCBRT. This week I was coaching her
on installing a lean management system within the private clinic. Observing her
run her first daily accountability meeting (equivalent to our Tier 1 meetings
in MMD) and then another time observing her explaining to visiting managers the
new system, made me beam with pride. In the 6 years I've been doing this – that
was the best debut performance I've ever seen. What a class act.
With Rehema, observing her teach her colleagues
Low Point:
Realizing that I've got
only 5 working days left with CCBRT before I fly home. I'm going to give it
everything this week. This will be my greatest week yet.
How you can help:
It's coming. Keep
watching this space.
Personal Message:
My experience in Africa
over the last 4 weeks has made me reflect on my strong belief that "talent
is universal, opportunity is not". Rehema, her fellow managers and
millions of people in Africa have (if not equal) more talent than me and you.
However, they have not had the opportunity you and I have gotten to date. Only
one thing can change that. Investing in People. Education is the greatest
accelerant of human potential. Not just the education that comes from schools
and universities, but the education that comes from the continued development
of skills and behaviors throughout ones career. My experience with briefly
working with Rehema was a simple yet beautiful story of the power of knowledge
transfer that will live with me for a long time to come.
________________________________________________________________
Week 5:
I arrived back in the US
yesterday.
Find below a summary of
my activities & reflections from my last week with CCBRT.
Volunteer Related Activities Summary:
This week I led my final
discussions with the senior leadership team on time management focusing on
Stephen Coveys "First things First" from the "7 Habits of highly
successful people". Once again I openly shared with them my personal
successes and failures with time management. I challenged them to go and create
a personal vision, mission & identify roles and goals for 2013. This really
caused some anxiety, in the words of one of the participants "this
exercise exposes the truth … which some of us are afraid to face". I feel
confident that some of them will rise to the challenge.
I also executed Edward
Deming's "Red Bead Experiment", self described as the most ridiculous
and silly training that you will ever do, but will never forget. I believe they
really absorbed the learning's of the experiment. Best of all, I handed the kit
to one of their employees who is going to run this for the managers that were
not able to attend. This for me was what I wanted most - to pass the skill on.
As with last week I had
more one-one coaching sessions with the leadership team. It was so rewarding to
see them be challenged during our sessions. They literally asked me 100's of
questions! On Tuesday evening I gave a lecture to ~150 MBA students on Lean
Management at a university in the city. I got a wave of offers from the
University staff and students to return - but I unfortunately had to decline.
You can't even imagine how hungry these professionals are for this knowledge.
Teaching MBA students at a local university
Non-Volunteer Related Activities Summary:
The President of
Tanzania came on Tuesday afternoon for a check handing over
ceremony. It was great to see how CCBRT employees were so excited with the
visit of the President. Lots of security, it was a big deal. My moment came
when just a few minutes before he departed when I reached out for a handshake.
Got it. The rest of the week I was boasting to my Tanzanian colleges that I got
to shake hands with their President.
High point:
There was so many. What
stands out the most were the moments where I watched the student become the
teacher. After weeks of coaching someone, there is no greater feeling than to
see them share the knowledge with others. I had the privilege of witnessing
this multiple times.
Observing the student become the Teacher
Low Point:
For the 3rd time of my
trip I got food poisoning. I thought that would win the "low point"
award for the week. But not this time.
It was my reflection on
certain elements of the future that got me down. Everyone needs a coach in
their career - I would be nowhere near as effective here in CCBRT without the
coaches I have had in my career. It is a lump in throat moment knowing that
they still need more help, they still need more coaching, but they don’t have
access to the same reservoir of talent as we do here in the West. It motivated
me however to find help for them. I know we can do something about this.
How you can help:
Need more time to
articulate my thoughts - I will put together something in the next few days.
Personal Message:
On Friday afternoon,
CCBRT staff gave me a going away / thank you presentation. They thanked me for
the time I spent with them and the knowledge shared. In my response I told them
that I was one of the most privileged people on earth. Lucky to have been born
in a developed country, lucky to have been born to two great parents, lucky to
have received a world class education, lucky to have a healthcare system that
if needed was always there, lucky to get experiences in the West where I
received so much development to be in a position where I could give back. The
truth is that it is my honor to serve them. My experiences in CCBRT have made
me a better person; there is no greater compliment that I could give them. They
are my heroes.
Engaging with CCBRT Patients (childeren with disabilities) in the community - Helping these children reminds me of the ultimate goal of me volunteering here and the challenges that lie ahead
I have so many photos
and videos to share, but need to put them together to tell the story. I hope to
share this with you in the next few days in addition to the times that I will
be presenting in person. Thanks for reading these emails so far. It really made
a difference to me knowing that you took time out of your day to read.
Michael
