Processes are designed, developed, managed, and improved to provide value to a customer. This customer may be external or internal. The standard work or set of standard work should be considered as hypotheses that are continuously tested. The execution of a standard work is a PDCA cycle built with a set of planned activities to achieve expected outcomes. Since we cannot know for sure if the hypothesis is going to be validated, problems need to be anticipated. We also know that every process can be improved. We will therefore try to identify opportunities to improve it.

 

The graphic depicts three different flows:

1. The use of standard

2. The correction of problems to get back to standard

3. The experimentation of ideas to improve the standard

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In a well-designed process, team members are engaged to follow standard work, solve the problems they encounter during the day, and improve to achieve better results.

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In your organization, reflect on how well:

• Leaders provide team members with work that is highly specified as to the content, sequence, timing, location, and expected outcomes

• Team members adhere to the standards communicated, taught, and supported by leaders.

• Team members identify problems in real-time. They elevate them for containment and problem-solving.

• Team members conduct experiments under the guidance, support, and coaching of the leaders to gradually achieve the cascaded improvement goals.

• Standards are improved to avoid problem recurrence or to achieve the targeted improvement goals.

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Our roadmap to process, value stream, and organizational transformation follows our 4-step method:
Assess, Align, Build, and Integrate.