Read this article about BOCC Palm Beach County, Finalist in the Best Achievement of Operational Excellence in Government, selected by the independent judging panel, for the 2020 Business Transformation & Operational Excellence Industry Awards program.
For decades organizations have struggled with creating a culture of sustainable productivity. How do you tie strategy, vision, mission, goals, metrics, and employees all together to create a culture that thrives? Most organizations have put all their eggs in one of these baskets, however, the answer lies in the integration of them all. Our ultimate goal should be to create something sustainable, long after we leave. It has to be woven into the fabric of the organization. It requires a “cultural” transformation. So, let’s talk about the RECIPE for success and how each ingredient integrates with the others to form a well-baked highly productive sustainable organization.
This is our Operational Excellence Model:
Servant Leadership – Committed Leadership, Board of County Commissioners and the County Administrator
The first ingredient is usually assumed and taken for granted but is essential to a healthy organization. I call it “Servant” Leadership. Servant leadership is a leadership philosophy in which the main goal of the leader is to serve. This is different from traditional leadership where the leader's main focus is the thriving of their company or organizations. Organizations that embrace servant leadership operate with the client, customer and employees need in mind. They recognize that serving its “constituents ” develops loyalty and trust that ultimately creates positive vibes and an environment of success.
Vision – We re-engineered Vision, Mission, Values, Goals and Strategic Priorities and Promoted buy-in county-wide.
Every employee must have a clear understanding of where the organization is headed. Without a Vision, the people perish. Establish a clear, precise vision that is the “north star”. I often ask organizations if your 5-year vision was across the room and you walked into it, what would it look or feel like? Develop a vision without regard to any restraints. What would you like the organization to ultimately look like 5 years from now?
Mission
Most organizations have mission statements. However, they cover a full-page and often most employees do not know what it is. The mission statement is the call to action. It tells the organization what it is committed to doing. For instance, “Using our portfolio of brands to differentiate our content, services, and consumer products, we seek to develop the most creative, innovative and profitable entertainment experiences and related products in the world.” – Walt Disney. The mission statement is the most critical piece of information that each employee should be given. I encourage organizations to put it on the back of their business cards, open each meeting with the mission statement and include it in email signatures.
SWOT Analysis – Over 30 Departments participated in the SWOT Analysis
The one area where many organizations fail is in understanding its Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. Organizations need to do an open and honest assessment of what’s working and what needs improvement. Success is when organizations leverage their strengths, address weaknesses, seize the opportunities and mitigate any threats.
Strategic Priorities – All 30 plus departments are aligned to the Strategic Priorities.
Based on the assessment of the results of the organization, the vision, and mission of the organizations, strategic priorities should reflect the top areas that need to be addressed. Usually 5 to 6 strategic priorities that enable the organization to achieve its mission. These priorities provide the marching orders for all departments to collaborate but also serves as a check and balance on where budget and resources should be applied.
Performance Management Scorecards – Our eKPI System is Award-winning and every department has Scorecards and Trend Analysis and used during budget process.
Measuring success is key! I often tell organizations, if you want to lose weight, you have to be willing to get on a scale. Organizations have to be willingly measuring their performance based on data. Balanced Scorecards of Key Performance Indicators tell you if what you are doing is working. It also highlights areas of concern and allows organizations to quickly take action.
High-Performance Teams – Board of County Commissioners approved Cross-Department Teams to break silos and address each Strategic Priority
Lastly, the most important component of any organization is its people. Many organizations take for granted the need to engage employees. Statistics show that organizations thrive when employees are engaged. Also, employees who are engaged perform better. So how do we engage employees and get them committed to the vision, mission, and strategic priorities of the organization? I recommend High-Performance Teams. The common definition of a high-performance team is a group of people who share a common vision, goals, metrics and who challenge and hold each other accountable to drive results. They have a clear vision of where they are headed and what they want to accomplish.
I encourage organizations to build teams throughout the organization that works on goals that tie to the strategic priorities. At Palm Beach County we have created “Stat” Cross-Department and Cross-Functional teams that use data to analyze process, review metrics and propose solutions. Teams are using the principles of Lean Six Sigma to reduce waste, make processes lean and to drive a culture of continuous process improvement. Best practices for developing these teams include ensuring cross-discipline representation, using data to define problem and solutions, leaving titles at the door and relentless follow-up and accountability.
So there you have the recipe: Servant Leadership, Vision, Mission, SWOT Analysis, Strategic Priorities, Performance Scorecards, and High-Performance Teams. It is the integration of these ingredients that will drive sustainable and lastly productivity and a culture of continuous process improvement.
Results – We have many many staggering results. I have attempted to give you just some of the metrics that give you a variety and a clear understanding that our impact is county wide and addresses every area.
As you review all entries. I ask that you consider the fact that Palm Beach County’s commitment to Operational Excellence is more than a program. It is a Cultural Transformation. We have addressed Vision, Mission, Strategic Priorities, and Leadership. SWOT Analysis, Metrics and Reporting System, Cross-Functional High Performance Teams and Employee Engagement.
Declaring October as “Performance October”, celebrating the end of FY2019.
Presenting the County Administrator with “Build High Performance Government Through Lean Sigma” as we celebrate our results.
This submission for Best Achievement of Operational Excellence in Government demonstrates that Palm Beach County has definitely addressed EVERY area of Organizational Excellence and Productivity. As the lead in this organization I recently wrote an article detailing the “Recipe for Sustainable Organizational Productivity. The premise is that the best organizations address EVERY area of Operational Excellence: Leadership Commitment, Vision, Mission, SWOT analysis (to understand Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats, Strategic Priorities, Performance Metrics and the use of Cross-Functional Teams that address employee engagement. I am so honored to showcase Palm Beach County because the commitment is holistic, vertical and horizontal.
I hope you enjoy our journey included here. At the end I share many metrics and benchmarks. I could have shared so many more but I wanted to be cognitive of your time. I will elaborate in my workshop at BTOES.
About the Awards
The Business Transformation & Operational Excellence Awards have been established to showcase globally the most outstanding organizational achievements through the application of Operational Excellence programs. Click here to view the Press Release.
The winners will be announced at the Awards Ceremony at The Business Transformation & Operational Excellence World Awards (BTOES) on Wednesday, March 25th, 2020, from 6.30pm in the Venetian Ballroom at the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Orlando Resort.
The Business Transformation & Operational Excellence Awards are open to all organizations, both private and public sector, across the globe, which have implemented Operational Excellence programs to deliver outstanding business results.
The Awards will be held in conjunction with the Business Transformation & Operational Excellence World Summit, BTOES 2020 in the beautiful Venetian Ballroom on March 25, 2020 at the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Orlando™️. Click to access the agenda, view the current speakers, and watch the highlights video from last year.
BTOES.com
BTOES is the industry’s biggest and best, senior-level, cross-industry gathering of Business Transformation & Operational Excellence industry leaders and senior executives.
It also hosts the Business Transformation & Operational Excellence Awards, which showcase globally the most outstanding organizational achievements through the application of Operational Excellence programs.
The summits hosts a number of private forums for C-Level & Global corporate-level leaders as well as business unit heads.
With over 150 speakers, over 100 sessions, 12 Keynotes, 9 Track Themes, 5 parallel tracks, 60+ track sessions, 50 roundtable discussions, 20 Interactive Workshops, 6 Thought Leader Panels, 5 Leaders Boardrooms, 5 co-located events, the Industry Awards Program, Site Visits, 20+ hours of social networking including 2 gala cocktail parties, dinners, numerous group activities, this is the ultimate event to benchmark, network and drive Operational Excellence to the next level.
Quick Links
Speakers
Agenda
BTOES Awards
There is a strong focus on Cultural Transformation, Customer Delight, Sustaining an Operational Excellence program, Need for end-to-end Business Transformation, Keeping up with new technologies/impact of digitalization and Leadership Buy-in & Understanding. We dedicated two tracks to advanced technologies, such as AI, Machine Learning, RPA, Predictive Analytics, Blockchain, Cloud infrastructure etc.
The agenda is designed to encourage active meaningful conversations though all day enhanced networking and interaction opportunities, including
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All-day Refreshment & Themed Breaks
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1¼ Hour Hot Breakfast Networking Sessions
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1½ Hour Hot Plated Networking Lunches with Topic & Industry Sector focussed tables
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1½ Hour Roundtable Sessions by Topic & Industry Sector.
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Keynote & Themes Panel Sessions
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Hosted Welcome Receptions from 5.30pm
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Expanded more lavish Awards Program
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Newly launched Night Summit for attendees to meet after dinner
For more information or to discuss the summit in more detail please schedule a call below,
Click here to schedule a call.