2025-04-03
Heatmaps without hero numbers: a workshop discipline
Author · Mei Lin Tan
Heatmaps tempt people into inventing a “hero number” that summarizes an entire ward. We deliberately avoid that pattern in the Allocation heatmap studio. Instead, each session opens with a silent two-minute read: participants sketch what they think they see, then compare. Only afterward do we reveal the footnotes about sample windows and staffing tags. The approach slows the room—which is the point. Faster rooms often recycle old arguments. Slower rooms surface misaligned definitions before anyone commits to a headline. We close with a single action card, not a stack. If your team needs more actions, we schedule a second session rather than overloading the first.
Tags: heatmap · facilitation · wards