Ops Wall Orientation

How to Use the Op(eration)s Wall

When people show up at the farm to work (either community members, "day visitors," or people staying on the farm), the first stop is the operations wall. Ideally, we walk them through it personally. It can be done in 10 minutes before a huddle. This document gives key points to cover in the orientation. 

1. The Functional Area Map

   • We organize our work on the farm into functional areas - chickens, gardens, etc. 

   • Each area has a designated caretaker who is responsible for ensuring that the area is functioning as it's supposed to - they are the “go to” people if you have any questions. 

   • We try to make it easy for people to engage with the farm in a way that fits their level of interest and capacity. (See Pathways of Involvement for more information).

2. Chores and Projects

We divide our work into chores - the regular, repeating things that keep the farm running, like feeding the chickens - and projects - the special work that we do to build our capacity or make improvements. 

Everyone is invited to help out with either chores, projects or both! 

3. The Chore Board

   • The Chore Board lists all the routine tasks required to keep the farm going.

   • Each chore has a checklist and how-to sheet that lives in the functional areas workstation.

     • This information is also duplicated in the Spalding Valley Book of the Farm TOC

   • All the chores have to be done and chores are always our first priority.

   • Chore "training" is simple - reciprocal shadowing

     • To earn your chore badge, you start by shadowing someone until you feel you are ready to try yourself. (To sign-up to shadow, put your initial in the upper right corner.)

     • When you feel ready, you will then be shadowed until you both feel you are ready to do it on your own.

     • We follow-up the first 3 times you take on a chore on your own to ensure you're doing things correctly and answer any questions you might have. .

   • Once you have your badge, to sign-up, put your initials in the box on the chore board. 

   • When tasks are complete, put a checkmark in the box to let others know the task is complete. (If you fail to check the box, expect to hear from a caretaker asking about whether the task has been completed.) 

4. The Project Board

   • Lists our current priorities and the steps necessary to complete.

     • Each project has an owner and an action plan - details are listed in the Asana Sprint Plan.

   • We pull tasks at the daily huddle (though you can always pull a task - just check in with the project owner.)

     • When you have pulled a task, you add it to the pick-list to show that you are working on it.

     • Generally, we order the tasks chronologically and/or order of priority, to make it easier for others to know when/how to help.

5. Elephant Tasks

   • Lists tasks that aren't high priorities or are so big we just need to plug away at them.

   • Each task has a caretaker as its owner. Provided chores are taken care of, anyone can pull a task. Just add it to the pick list as you would any other task.

     • Always check in with the task owner before starting work to make sure you understand the farm's expectations for the task.

6.  Weekly Schedule

   • This shows the general shape of the day and week on the farm and our standing meetings. The particular shape of the week is established at our regular Tuesday Sprint Planning meetings. 

   • Huddle - happens every morning after circle when we go over the activities on the farm for the day.

     • Huddle answers the questions “what are today’s farm priorities” "who's doing what" and "who needs help"

   • Circle - happens after morning chores (usually around 9:00 am) and provides an opportunity for people to ground themselves and get their head's on straight.

     • Answers the questions "what do you need to be able to show up today" and "how do you want to live this day"

     • Completely voluntary and open to anyone who wants to join in.

   • Farm Walks happen every week and provide an opportunity for the fellow farmers to do some "ground truthing" on progress and talk through ideas for improvements. Everyone is invited and they are often informal learning sessions and a great way to learn about the different projects happening on the farm.

   • Hive Mind sessions are where we “navigate via tensions” and happen regularly on Thursdays at lunch and are open to anyone who wants to join in. Hive Mind is our chance to review and prioritize the tensions that have accumulated. It’s our Ask one of the farm stewards for more information if you are interested.

   • Groundwork Sessions happen regularly on Tuesday evening and are open to anyone who wants to join in. They are an opportunity to do a deeper dive to iron out our action plans. Ask one of the farm stewards for more information if you are interested

7. The Lifeboat Academy Manual TOC and Spalding Valley Book of the Farm TOC (which we refer to as the Book of the Farm is intended to be a "one-stop shop" for "How We Work"

   • It includes a Functional Area agreement for each Functional Area that lists the purpose, responsibilities, chores, and how-to guides for that area.

   • It also includes a "one-pager" for every project that lists the purpose and tangible goals and a rough roadmap for how to accomplish them.

If you have any questions about how to get involved, ask a farmer-caretaker.

• If you’re looking for a longer term relationship, you can join any of the guilds. Let us know and we’ll walk you through the process.