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Business Process Improvement (BPI)

Overview

Business process improvement is not a system or methodology in its own right. Instead BPI is really the application of systematic approaches to process improvement within the organisation; seeking to make business processes more effective and more efficient. By applying a systematic approach to process improvement efforts businesses can ensure that comparable improvements can be achieved across the business, be that within a single site, nationally and internationally. Further, by applying consistent methods, of which there are many, the organisation finds it easier to assess and measure the improvements identified and implemented.

Many of the techniques commonly applied to bring about Business Process Improvements were born out of manufacturing industry. Initiatives like Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma, which focus on the elimination of waste and variation in processes respectively, serve Business Process Improvement programs well.

Lean encourages the organisation to consider the customer first and foremost; adding value for the customer is paramount and anything else, however necessary, is waste to be eliminated (or at least minimised).

Six Sigma encourages the organization to understand the variables and variability within processes. Through the adjustment and improvement of the process the inherent variability can be reduced resulting in fewer defects.

In essence Business Process Improvement is about "doing things right (first time)" by reducing the variation and waste in processes.

Radical Thinking

By defining the organization's strategic goals and purposes, often summarised in a company mission statement, the Business Process Improvement Program clearly states:

By defining the organisation’s customers, both internal and external, the Business Process Improvement program clearly states:

Finally, the organisation must challenge itself, associates, suppliers and customers to identify and deliver improvements:

The goal of the Business Process Improvement program is to deliver radical change in the pursuit of radical improvement. In this sense, Business Process Improvement can be seen as distinct from the Lean, Six Sigma and other approaches that focus on smaller incremental improvements.

For example, consider a product line with low profit margins… Lean, Six Sigma et al programs might seek to remove waste and improve quality in the manufacturing process in order to increase profit… Business Process Improvement might question making the product at all!

The Whole Organisation

Because Business Process Improvement looks for radical improvements, do not underestimate the resistance that such programs may meet. To counter such resistance the Business Process Improvement program must come from the top of the organisation. As such they can only succeed with the full backing of the board; senior management and all the way down to the factory or office floor; and they can only succeed if the goals are clear.

At distinct levels in the organisation key Business Process Improvement roles can be identified as leaders, owners and improvement teams (managers and operators). While the scope and responsibilities of these roles are different and may vary at different levels in the organisation they work must together to deliver improvements.

Leaders

Leaders are responsible for creating business plans that deliver in-line with the organisation’s goals.

At a senior level this process includes the development of the organization’s mission, vision, and values (who are we, what do we do, why do we do it). While at lower levels, leaders are responsible for translating the organization’s mission, vision, and values into business objectives that ensure the whole organisation is pulling in the same direction.

Leaders should apply the Plan, Do, Measure, Review cycle to assessing the effectiveness of improvement initiatives.

Owners

Owners are those responsible for design of the new or revised processes that deliver to the business plans. The process owner is responsible for the creation, update and approval of documents to support the process. Depending on scale, owners are supported by a process improvement team who are tasked to think radically and create a high performance process.

Improvement Teams

The improvement teams should be made up of the managers and operators that will be responsible for managing and operating the new process as they can often be best placed to identify process improvements. However, due to resistance and perceived risk this if often not the level for delivering radical change.

Plan, Do, Measure and Review

All Business Process Improvements should apply to the Plan, Do, Measure, Review cycle when assessing the effectiveness of improvement initiatives in common with other improvement initiatives such as Lean and Six Sigma.

Conclusion

Business Process Improvement seeks radical improvement to achieve the organization's strategic goals, the organization’s mission, vision and values should provide clear direction for any Business Process Improvement exercise.

Business Process Improvement must recognise importance of aligning business processes to achieve higher customer satisfaction.

The “Plan, Do, Measure, Review” cycle at the heart of Business Process Improvement places considerable emphasis on performance measurement. Key Performance Indicators and benchmarks play an important role in improvement initiatives. Importantly performance must be measured internally to determine what scale of improvement has been achieved, and externally against “world class” performers (often competitors) to determine if the improvement is radical enough.

© 2011 Neustro Consulting Ltd