This document provides tips for simplifying processes to boost productivity. It discusses identifying unnecessary complexity from regulatory, organizational, tactical, and behavioral risks. Tools described for simplification include MURA (Minimum, Understandable, Repeatable, Accessible). The document also provides suggestions for auditing tasks, prioritizing valuable work, eliminating unnecessary tasks using the EOS test, establishing productive habits, measuring results, and asking questions to drive ongoing simplification. Specific tips target simplifying emails, meetings, processes, communication, and decision making.

1. Boosting your Team’s Productivity

2. Are you creating complexity?
 Regulatory
 Organizational
 Tactical
 Behavioral risk, Fear, Power, Control, trust, assumption.

3. Simplification tools
 MURA is the simplification tool.
1. M – Minimum
2. U – Understanding
3. R – Repeatable
4. A – Accessible
 Make things minimal, understandable, repeatable and accessible – but don’t
oversimplify.
 Ask questions like,
1. It is as Minimal as possible?
2. It is as Understandable as possible?
3. It is as Repeatable as possible?
4. It is as accessible as possible?

4. Audit your Workday
Current Tasks Valuable Tasks
1. Attend weekly meeting 1. Mentoring
2. Update progress reports 2. New product development
3. Answer emails.
4. Review HR Approvals
5. Ideations
6. Process Invoices.
7. Submit Expense Reports.
Prioritize the work based on the needs.

5. The EOS Test
 E – Eliminate
 O – Outsourcing
 S - Streamline
 Elimination Questions
1. Which of my tasks don’t bring value of the business?
2. Will anyone really miss this if I stopped doing it.
3. Which tasks can I start saying no to?

6. EOS Test
 Outsourcing Questions
1. could someone else do this for me without increasing costs?
2. Is anyone else already doing this and could that person take ownership of it?
3. if I had to hand off two of my responsibilities what do I give responsibilities,
what do I give away and to whom?
 Streamlining Questions
1. Which of any daily tasks could become weekly / monthly?
2. What steps could be eliminated from this task?
3. Same amount of work done in half the time and what would I do differently?

7. Establish Productive Habits
 Simplification code of conduct.
Habits in Consumer Packaging Company (Example)
1. I will eliminate any redundancies and unnecessary work and empower my
team to do the same.
2. I will not create false urgency.
3. I will push back if I think something is unnecessary.
4. I will use clear, Jargon – Free language, when I communicate.
5. I will keep my documents, meetings and conversations short.

8. Establish Productive Habits
Habits in Finance Company (Example)
1. I will empower others to make decisions without me.
2. I will be decisive and limit the amount of information is need to make a decision.
3. I will make information available to others (Unless illegal)
4. I will say no whenever possible.
5. I will not schedule a meeting that should have been amendment.
 Avoid two part sentence.
 Choose statements with a mix of habits.
 Ask for stakeholders feedback.
(Choose the Habits according to your organization and individual priorities)

9. Measure Simplification Results
 Review matrices for accidental consequences.
Example: Cost Savings.
Our Metrices Current Baseline Goal Timing
Reduce the amount
of time spend in
meeting
40% 20 One year from now
Reduce number of
approvals layers for
hiring
3 Director and Above
-2
Below Director – 1
Immediately

10. 10 Questions for Better Simplifying
 Minimal
1. What activities would I like to stop doing?
2. What should I start saying no to?
 Understandable
1. Can I eliminate any jargon from this document or message?
2. Can I explain this to people outside my business group?
 Repeatable
1. How can we modify this process so less training is required?
2. Can we create a template for this task or process?
 Accessible
1. How can we provide real-time access to information?
2. How can we make it easier for customers to do business with us?

11. Simplifying your email habits
 Resist the urge to check
 Turn off phone alerts
 Turn off computer alerts
 Use only subject line
 Write no scroll emails
 Limit the number of recipient
 Utilize NNTR (No Need To Respond)
 Institute email free fine periods

12. Spend Less time in meeting
 Kill Stupid meetings.
 End at untraditional times.
 Set phones on airplane mode.
 Conduct stand up meetings.
 Have an agenda
 Decline unnecessary meetings.
 Limit the number of slides.
 Establish weekly “meeting free” day.

13. Simplify everyday process
 Hold Bureaucracy buster session
 Create work arounds
 Revenue extra layers
 Simplify expenses
 Ask “Who will miss this?”
 Simply by committees.
 Implement a 1- over – 1 rule.
 Eliminate annual performance reviews.

14. Simplify your communication
 Say less, do more.
 Limit the number of slides.
 Turn presentation into one more page.

15. Simplify decision making
 Give people the opportunity to empower themselves.
 Decline unproductive meetings.

16. Kill stupid rules
 Focus on your sphere on control.
 Conduct a test.
1. suspend the rule.
2. measure the reaction.

17. Favorite tips for something
 Make the call
 Change the frequency
 Default to shorter meetings.
 Block out space or time.
 Establish meeting etiquette.

18. Time Management Tips
 Outline two a day.
 Be mindful of the time spend outline.
 Stay Golden.