Have you and your team ever wished you had more time to tackle a long-postponed organizational project? The team here at Barron's Advisor was feeling that way, and this summer we decided to take action, diving into projects we had relegated to the back burner for too long.

We called it "Maintenance Week." The term is typically associated with building or home management where the idea is to set aside one week for small repairs. The concept fit the kinds of projects we had in mind and likely would work for many financial advisory practices as well. First we chose one week over the summer without major deadlines that we felt presented a good opportunity to shift focus. We canceled our regularly scheduled meetings and put a hold on continuing initiatives. Then we began to collect ideas for maintenance week projects.

We started with a simple spreadsheet, listing ideas and assigning leaders. The leaders assembled task forces made up of three or four team members for each project. Each leader scheduled a kickoff meeting.

After the first meeting, we broke off so individuals could work on the related tasks. The taskforces met one or two more times, as needed, to review progress and ensure everyone agreed on next steps to get each project to completion. We used this process to complete eight projects throughout the week.

Here are two examples from our list of projects that advisor teams could consider tackling during their own maintenance week:

Elevate AI notes. We found we were all a bit confused about how to put AI-generated notes from internal meetings and calls to good use. We were hitting that wonderful new "AI Notes Button" at the beginning of every meeting. The problem came after the meeting. Were the notes accurate? Who was reviewing and correcting them? Where were they saved? Was the team taking action on the discussion?

We tackled this issue by coming up with a system. We decided that within 24 hours of a meeting, a designated team member would be tasked with reviewing the notes, saving them to an appropriate folder, and then sharing the final version with attendees from the meeting.

We are already finding this process to be fruitful. Because we're more confident the notes are correct and know where to find them, we are using them more as a resource. We are also executing tasks more efficiently after meetings, as all team members have a clearer understanding of what everyone had agreed to do during the meeting.

Declutter digital storage. Another project that had been on our to-do list for years was to improve the organization of our digital folders. Although we had a system in place for using shared storage, team turnover and inadvertently misfiled documents had left us feeling disorganized. By taking the time to clarify file saving locations, clean up outdated files, and implement updates, we are now finding it much easier to locate information, saving everyone time.

Planning ahead. Maintenance week doesn't have to be during the summer. Look for a week where there is natural downtime and you can afford to have the team pause their regular meetings and continuing tasks long enough to accomplish those "nice-to-have" projects.

If it is too late for this summer, consider setting aside a week in the future and creating a shared document where the team can contribute potential projects throughout the year. Leading up to the designated week, appoint a project manager to prioritize the list and keep everyone on schedule. This could be a great opportunity to give newer team members an opportunity to make decisions and engage with the business in a more strategic way.

Everyone wants to set their team up for success, but taking action on organizational projects is difficult when there are imminent deadlines and significant priorities that demand focus. Maintenance week can be a great way to make use of a quieter period to help your team be more organized, prepared, and efficient. That can contribute to an environment where colleagues are happier, less stressed, and able to accomplish more all year.

Dorothy Gelormino is director of wealth management partnerships at Barron's Advisor, where she manages key relationships with wealth management clients, as well as leads attendance acquisition and registration strategy for Barron's Advisor Summits. She is a graduate of Hofstra University and volunteers as a career coach and mentor for young athletes