Part 3 of a four-Part Series

Part 1: Information Technology in Business
Part 2: Information Deployment
Part 3: Business Process Management
Part 4: Accelerating Returns and Paradigm Shifts

Our topic of discussion in the previous article was Information Deployment. This week we will discuss Business Process Management. Corporate strategy changes over time but always requires (more…)

Part 4 of a four-Part Series

Part 1: Organizational Design for Process Improvement
Part 2: Organizational Structure for Process Improvement
Part 3: Organizational Structure — Alignment by Product-Flow
Part 4: Organizational Leadership for Process Improvement

Last week we discussed the organizational structure (span of control and product-flow alignment) that leads to the foundation required for successful process improvement programs. This week we are going to look at (more…)

Part 3 of a four-Part Series

Part 1: Organizational Design for Process Improvement
Part 2: Organizational Structure for Process Improvement
Part 3: Organizational Structure — Alignment by Product-Flow
Part 4: Organizational Leadership for Process Improvement

In the last article we discussed organizational structure with a focus on span of control and how it relates to employee competence, real or perceived. Your span of control is simply the number of employees that report to you directly. Competent workers should have little need for managers to guide them. So, span of control is (more…)

Part 2 of a four-Part Series

Part 1: Organizational Design for Process Improvement
Part 2: Organizational Structure for Process Improvement
Part 3: Organizational Structure — Alignment by Product-Flow
Part 4: Organizational Leadership for Process Improvement

In the previous article we discussed the organizational design principles that lead to the foundation required for successful process improvement programs. This week we are going to look at Organizational Structure — your Org Chart. (more…)

Part 1 of a four-Part Series

Part 1: Organizational Design for Process Improvement
Part 2: Organizational Structure for Process Improvement
Part 3: Organizational Structure — Alignment by Product-Flow
Part 4: Organizational Leadership for Process Improvement

This month we are examining the organizational design principles that lead to the foundation required for successful process improvement programs. Tools like Six Sigma, Lean Thinking and Theory of Constraints are great but, (more…)

Part 2 of a four-part series

Part 1: How to Transform Objectives into Results?
Part 2: Identify Business Metrics and Business Situations to Drive Results
Part 3: How Much Time is Needed for Process Improvement
Part 4: How to Get Buy-in to Ensure Results

In part one of this series we talked about how the strategic dysfunction starts when we set the wrong business objectives. The right objectives start with reducing variation over increasing mean. We found that you are just chasing your tail if (more…)

Part 1 of a four-part series

Part 1: How to Transform Objectives into Results?
Part 2: Identify Business Metrics and Business Situations to Drive Results
Part 3: How Much Time is Needed for Process Improvement
Part 4: How to Get Buy-in to Ensure Results

Given a set of business objectives, can you identify the business metrics and diagnose the business situation outcomes needed to realize the objectives? (more…)

Part 2 of a four-part series

Part 1: Faster Change Management
Part 2: 7 Ways to Facilitate Change
Part 3: Problem Solving vs. Process Improvement
Part 4: How Delays Affect Change

You want to get change going within your organization. The question is how do you get started?

1^st Create a Change Baseline

Your own assumptions about what motivates people will determine the success or failure of your change program. If your assumptions are incorrect, (more…)

Part Three of a Four-Part Series

Part 1: What is Continuous Improvement?
Part 2: Which Business Process Should I Improve First
Part 3: Build Stronger Communication with Process Mapping
Part 4: Improve Process Control with Six Sigma Tools

Did you know that you should always create a process map for every procedure or system of procedures that you develop? And did you know that, like a table of contents, this will create stronger communication and better understanding in your organization? (more…)

Phase Five in a Five-Part Series

Phase One: Discovery
Phase Two: Planning
Phase Three: Development
Phase Four: Implementation
Phase Five: Re-Discovery

Now we turn the corner to our final phase: Re-Discovery.

Last year marked the 200th anniversary of the expedition of Lewis & Clark, and much has been written about their remarkable journey up the Missouri River and onto the Pacific. This band of explorers was aptly named The Corps of Discovery. In reality, The Corps made two trips, the second being (more…)