FINDING SOLUTIONS WHEN HELP IS UNAVAILABLE

You will experience times when you are temporarily on your own with no one to whom you can turn for help. In such instances, you must still recognize the limits of your ability and be sure that your actions are correct. Had PNSN Frost been alone in the office when ET2 Door came in, he would have faced this type of situation. Probably, he could have groped his way to the solution decided upon by PN3 Doe, but that would have been the more difficult route to take.

In this type of situation, you can still benefit from teamwork. When you have a question, take either of two actions: (1) make a note of your question so that you can ask for help at a later time, and then take action after you receive that help; or (2) have the customer return when a qualified person will be present. In either case, be sure the customer understands why you are not taking action at that time. The best way to ensure that is by admitting, "I don't know, but I'll find out."

IMPROVING TEAMWORK

Now that we have looked closely at the team members' responsibilities to the contact point, let's examine some of the ways of improving contact point effectiveness. Improving contact point effectiveness is not the sole responsibility of the supervisor, or the senior petty officer, though that person must bear the bulk of the responsibility.

Studies of management have shown that the most efficient supervisors delegate responsibility for specific duties as soon as personnel demonstrate their ability to handle them. That does not lessen those supervisors' overall responsibility, but frees them from routine matters, which enables them to give more attention to nonroutine problems. Delegating responsibility also provides excellent training for junior members.

Delegating responsibility meets an important need in the member-recognition. The member who has acquired the ability to handle more difficult jobs and has indicated a willingness to assume more responsibility should be given greater responsibility. Giving a member greater responsibility provides an incentive for further improvement.

PLANNING THE LAYOUT OF THE CONTACT POINT

Large sums of money, a lot of talent, and an endless volume of energy went into the overall design, purpose,

and function of the Apollo capsule. Combined these components provided not only the technical means for the mission, but also an environment in which astronauts could perform at their peak ability. Few contact points have been designed this carefully. As a rule, the Navy merely provides a space to be used as the contact point; it is up to the members of the contact point team to make it functional.

A physical layout that provides maximum efficiency and convenience for the members but disregards customer accessibility will operate under a handicap. The opposite is equally true. Therefore, the physical arrangement (location of desks, counters, etc.) must provide for both the customers and the team members.

Specifying a layout for furniture or traffic patterns is impractical. However, in planning the furniture layout and traffic pattern, team members must consider the comfort of the customers as well as their own. Planning must not be based on the idea that "I'm the one who has to do the work; if someone has to be uncomfortable, let it be the customer." That attitude is not compatible with providing good service. Observe the following guidelines in planning the layout of furniture and traffic patterns:

l Provide a traffic pattern that prevents a line of customers from extending through a doorway.

l Provide a counter or table on which customers may fill out forms.

l Provide chairs at contact points ashore that are visited by dependents.

l Provide a measure of privacy in the arrangement of the contact point for those times when customers must provide information of a personal nature.

l Designate someone at large contact points to greet customers and direct them to the proper place. That should keep customers from waiting in a line only to discover later that they were in the wrong line.