Visual management board

What is a visual management board?

It’s a very visual reminder with the boards that they use to chart their progress and their success. So it’s something that even as a new person arriving in the middle of the pandemic was very visible and they were very proud of, and as part of day-to-day work they were happy to chat about it." Deputy Medical Director

A visual management board is a communication tool to allow teams to keep track of continuous improvement where multiple, complex improvement or assurance programmes are running.​

A visual management board:

  • displays the team’s current improvement activity, priorities and related data
  • includes the box score and process maps, and
  • provides the content and focus to drive weekly huddles. 

A visual management board can be displayed in many ways, such as a whiteboard, paper on the wall or it can be digital/virtual. The board should be easy to change and update with new data and analyses. 

The board should be displayed in a physical area or stored digitally in a way that is convenient but offers a level of privacy. The improvement work within the team should be delegated where possible, and team members should ensure the board has the most up-to-date information.

 

What is displayed on a visual management board?

 

 

 

Why use a visual management board?

A visual management board:  

  • allows the whole team to get on the same page quickly
  • provides graphical display of performance over time
  • ensures opportunities for improvement are easy to identify 
  • is always visible so that staff not able to attend the huddles can review and add ideas to it 
  • shares success and shows where improvements have worked, and 
  • increases awareness and interest in cost and waste, and efficient use of staff capacity.

 

What are the benefits of using a visual management board?

  • Makes it easy to see weekly data and discuss progress in the huddle
  • Keeps the team focused on organisational priorities
  • Keeps track of tests of change and sustained improvement

 

Key insights about visual management boards

  • Visibility of the board is key to the success of the huddles and to maintain the profile of improvement activity between huddles. 
  • Digital visual management boards have helped teams that couldn’t meet face to face.
  • The visual management board can be used to capture any frustrations or improvement ideas that might normally only arise in informal conversation between colleagues.