We recently asked “Which operations-improvement methods are most valuable to business users?”
The answer was a surprise, but shouldn’t have been, because it’s at the heart of why clients say some methods work so well. Here’s the short story…
Quantum-Leap Results — Fast!
That’s what is wanted when a business problem or challenge has reached the point where a major change is needed to ensure continued business success, maybe even survival.
To meet that objective, business-process improvement projects dependably yield major results:
· Approaching 0% product and service defect rates
· 80% reductions in response and throughput times
· 90% reductions in waste costs, those that add no value to products or services
· Significantly improved customer service levels
· Increased overall asset utilization, productivity and throughput
But if not done correctly, such projects can also yield none of the above.
So what methods ensure dependable, quantum-leap results? Read on.
What’s Important?
The several answers to our original question were as interesting for what isn’t important as for what is.
Less important factors included the technical issues:
· Information technology and systems
· Operating process technologies
· Financial analysis tools
Most important were methods enabling the people issues:
· Fast, comprehensive analysis and problem-solving by project teams
· Fact-based, committed decisions by management teams
· Organized follow-through by project teams
Ah ha! So the key methods are those that organize the people involved for robust, team-based performance.
That shouldn’t have been a surprise since it’s consistent with a truism about business competition:
“Technologies can be easily copied or emulated.
But people-based business differentiators are very difficult to copy,
and offer powerful, sustainable competitive advantages.”
When considering people-based business improvement methods, three methodologies stand out as fundamental building blocks of high-performance organizations:
· Dependable Team-Based Work-Session Methods
· Rigorous Problem-Solving Methods (DMAIC, MAI, etc.)
· Comprehensive Project Methods
Those methods are summarized in the following sections. Warning ! The following paragraphs may put you to sleep if you’re not used to thinking about business processes at the foundation-detail levels. Skip to the “Business Magic?” section if you want to first see the Break-Thru Process overview before getting into the details of why it works.
Team-Based Work-Session Methods
Problem-solving groups of all types (work groups, management teams, major project teams) need to use a handful of dependable work-session methods (rules) to ensure speedy, comprehensive results. That sounds obvious and simplistic. But unfortunately, business cultures rarely practice good group work-session methods. The few companies that do get results that are appreciated by outsiders, but not often understood by them.
It's not rocket science. But consistent use of dependable group work-session methods pays dividends far above the average company. Train your entire workforce — shop floor to executive office — to practice these methods. Be dogmatic about it!
1. Clarify the session objectives. What are we trying to solve? What's the potential benefit? What if we're not successful? Is a work-session needed?
2. Establish group behavior norms for work session effectiveness, including specific roles for facilitator, administrative leader, etc.
3. Choose an appropriate method for sharing input information. Limit content to "need to know" items only. Mixture of verbal, visual and kinesthetic media.
4. Choose an appropriate method for analysis and prioritization. Force Field Analysis, Nominal Group Technique, Affinity Diagrams or a dozen others that have been adapted for group-work.
5. Choose an appropriate method for decision-making. Command, consultative, consensus. And get agreement on that method from the group in advance. No surprises.
6. Establish accountability for follow-up assignments. A good group-work tool is a Gantt-chart of 3x5 post-its on flip-charts taped together so their decisions about follow-up actions and responsibilities is clearly visible to all while doing the plan.
With practiced use of those rules, problem-solving sessions can be quick, thorough and conclusive, with committed consensus on the follow-up actions.
Rigorous Problem-Solving Methods
The work session methods above work well for problems that are well understood by the people involved and needs only some work to reach consensus on one of the alternate solutions. But what if the problem and root causes are less clear? Then it's often necessary to dig deeper using a more detailed tool set.
For deeper analysis, every business problem or improvement opportunity should engage the right people in a basic three-step process that helps them routinely make good decisions and put them to work quickly. As with the work-session methods above, you may want to train a broad cross-section of employees to use them, and so they become a natural cultural norm that people use automatically.
The three steps are summarized as:
· Measure — To know the facts of our situation
- How well we’re meeting our customers’ requirements
- How we’re doing versus our benchmarks
- How we’re tracking on the improvement projects we planned
- How we’re doing relative to the competitors
· Analyze — To understand how to reach our potential
- Identify improvement opportunities indicated by the measures
- Analyze business processes to identify improvement opportunities
¼ Waste reduction
¼ Process and workload balancing
¼ Simplification
¼ Automation
- Develop and test alternate solutions
· Improve — To accomplish our planned improvements
- Experiment with potential solutions (this is easier than arguing about it)
- Plan how to implement the solution quickly
- Determine how to sustain the gain before you implement
- Adjust and repeat until desired results are achieved (PDCA)
Note that MAI is core content of the well-known Six Sigma DMAIC methods for business process improvement (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control). The Define and Control steps of DMAIC still need to be done, but often the battle is lost in the three middle steps. So a focus on MAI places special emphasis on fact-based, real-time decision-making. That’s an important distinction in business cultures where little patience for working the “details of the journey” can easily lead to “Ready, Fire, Aim!” results. Measure, Analyze and Improve are core elements of fast-paced, but comprehensive CA or CI processes (corrective action or continual improvement).
Break-Through Project Methods — Results in a Week, Day or Hours!
The Break-Through Project methodology adds the “nuts-and-bolts of effective business teams” to your technical problem or project. A recent CEO Notes newsletter headline stated: “It’s not finance. It’s not strategy or technology. It’s teamwork that generates the ultimate competitive advantage.” That doesn’t happen automatically by giving a work group a “team” name. It takes structured methods that enable a work group with the tools needed to become a real team. The Break-Through Project Method is a basic tool for that type of team-work.
It’s main elements are:
§ Project scope definition with the project sponsor
- Scope of problem or subject business process
- Identification of project team resources required
- Selection of appropriate “work session rules”
- Logistics for the work session(s)
§ Project team work sessions (3 hours to 30 hours, scope dependent)
- Effective group work-session methods (including the basics as outlined in the Team-Based Work-Session Methods section above)
- OJT as needed in process-improvement or problem-solving methods like DMAIC (or MAI as outlined in the Rigorous Problem-Solving Methods section above)
- Team development to depth commensurate with project scope, including strengths deployment strategies, working norms agreements and the full compliment of "practical nuts-and-bolts" of team development (not team "motivation" exercises)
- Solutions development
- Implementation action planning
§ Tangible products to institutionalize the change (dependent on project type)
- Solution(s) descriptive outlines
- Process design maps
- Sketches of physical asset changes (space, equipment, tooling,…)
- Roles and responsibilities charts
- Charters for sub-projects
- Follow-up project work plans
Notice that several of those elements are focused on the “people issues” — that is, the things they need to do together to solve problems and improve business performance.
Also, notice that there’s no rocket-science or magic in them. The “nuts-and-bolts of effective business teams” are simple pieces. Common sense, not commonly applied.
But a word of caution is in order. Don’t underestimate the complexity of assembling the "simple pieces." Do expect to spend significant effort in understanding how the pieces must fit together, and how they must be presented to facilitate a project team work session. “Ready, Fire, Aim!” is especially ineffective in team-based project situations. Conversely, careful planning and execution pay huge dividends in team project results. Remember: The "soft stuff" (people process) is actually the hardest stuff to do effectively.
Business Magic?
Chances are that your eyes began to glaze over while reading the three previous sections. The “nuts-and-bolts of effective business teams” aren’t exciting.
But the results of using them carefully can be dramatic, almost magical! That’s because they’re like the lever you use to move a massive weight with a light touch — the power is in providing a solid foundation and placing the fulcrum correctly.
Break-Through Methods
Business teams are often confronted with problems that are viewed differently based on the viewers’ positions in the business. They often find it difficult to agree on a course of action if they don’t have effective methods to achieve a common view.
Business teams are usually surprised at how effective they are when using good work session methods. The surprise comes with discovering team-based methods that are typically not part of business-school curriculums, despite the fact that team-based methods are a key ingredient in leading businesses. Fortunately, with some coaching, effective work-session methods can become a common paradigm in any business culture.
Need Help Getting Started?
You can learn a lot by just seeing how an expert facilitates a management team, problem-solving team or project team. The process and results can be eye-opening for everyone involved. Nothing magic takes place. But it is amazing how much can be accomplished in a short period of time, with credible, experienced assistance.
Call us if you want to try any of the Break-Through Methods or are considering outside help to get one of your teams through a difficult problem-solving or planning session. Cumberland consultants have operating management backgrounds, so they’re adept at relating the “soft” (but critical) team stuff to the “hard” operations, engineering or information systems issues at hand. We also have packaged methods for starting process improvement activities off on the right foot. There is also a fair amount of flexibility in them to meet individual needs.
Good luck!
The CUMBERLAND Group
For additional information contact Rainmakers at 847/251-3327
