S9. Leverage Marginal Gains – Coach and Practice
This behaviour develops a leader’s ability to make continuous, incremental improvements that accumulate into significant impact.
Behaviour focus
Encouraging leaders to think in small steps, spotting where 1% changes can raise standards over time.
Purpose
To embed a mindset of constant improvement, where staff take ownership of refining details rather than waiting for big change.
| Action Steps | Key Questions | Practice |
| Identify micro-improvements. | What single process, routine, or resource could be improved slightly? | Ask the leader to select one aspect of practice to tweak this week. Review the outcome next time. |
| Test and review rapidly. | How will you know if the change made things better? | Practise running a two-week mini-trial. Debrief what was learned. |
| Share and spread success. | How will you help others learn from small wins? | Rehearse how to tell a short “marginal gain” story in staff briefing. Focus on brevity and clarity. |
| Maintain the improvement habit. | How can you make this mindset part of team culture? | Create a “1% better” board or segment in meetings where small ideas are shared. Practise introducing it. |