Interaction triggers enhance responsiveness in worksystems by combining cadence and event-based signals for effective team interactions.
Core Question: What causes an interaction to happen, time or events?
Cadence creates rhythm — but misses urgent situations. A critical blocker on Tuesday waits until Friday's review. Five days lost.
Event triggers add responsiveness. When a showstopper appears or a threshold is crossed, the system signals: interact now. Like the Toyota Andon cord — problem appears, line stops, help arrives immediately.
Cadence for rhythm, event triggers for adaptivity.
Details
Three Trigger Types
Trigger Type | When it fires | Characteristics | Examples |
Cadence | Fixed time intervals | Predictable, sustainable, creates rhythm | Daily Standup at 9:00, Weekly Sync on Wednesday, Monthly Review first Friday |
Event | Board state changed or should change | Responsive, immediate, condition-based | Showstopper marked, Threshold exceeded, Customer escalation, Incoming order |
Hybrid | Both combined | Stability + responsiveness | Weekly Sync + emergency escalation when critical blocker appears |
Designing Good Event Triggers
Event triggers must be designed carefully. Bad triggers create noise; good triggers create appropriate response.
Five principles for effective triggers:
- Objective & Measurable — Not "when there are problems" but "when blocked items > 3" or "when cycle time exceeds 10 days"
- Early Detection — Triggers fire in minutes or hours, not days or weeks. The sooner you know, the smaller the problem.
- Unavoidable Signal — The trigger is visible and demands attention. It can't be ignored or overlooked. Think Andon cord: the line stops.
- Fast Response Possible — The right people are available to respond. A trigger is useless if everyone who could help is unavailable.
- Specific Criteria — Clear, documented conditions. Everyone knows what triggers the interaction and what doesn't.
Practical Examples
Cadence-only system (common but limited): A team meets every Monday for planning and every Friday for review. On Tuesday, a critical blocker appears. It waits until Friday to be discussed. Five days lost.
Event trigger added: Same team, but with a rule: "If any item is blocked for more than 24 hours without a resolution owner, trigger an immediate Blocker Sync with the affected parties." Tuesday's blocker gets addressed Wednesday morning.
Hybrid in practice: An FL2 delivery team has a Weekly Sync (cadence) but also an escalation trigger: "If cross-team dependency remains unresolved after two Daily Standups, trigger an FL2 Dependency Resolution meeting within 4 hours."
Toyota Andon pattern applied: A team defines: "If anyone can't complete their committed work item by end of day, signal on the board (red flag) and the team lead initiates a 15-minute Problem-Solving session the next morning before standup."
Smells — When to Look Closer
- Cadence-only thinking: "We'll discuss it at the next standup" — even when the issue is urgent
- Event-only chaos: Ad-hoc meetings without rhythm; nobody knows when to expect interactions; calendar anarchy
- Vague triggers: "When there's a problem" or "when needed" — no clear criteria, triggers never fire or fire randomly
- Ignorable signals: The trigger fires but nobody responds; the system learns to ignore warnings
- Missing response capacity: Triggers fire but the right people aren't available; triggers become frustrating noise
- Over-triggering: Too many event triggers; constant interruption; no time for deep work
Related Patterns
- Meeting Cadence defines the rhythm — Interaction Triggers adds the event-based dimension
- Board → Activities reads the board for coordination needs — event triggers define when those needs become urgent
- Activities → Board makes outcomes visible — visible board state enables event triggers to work