Increasing demand for operational excellence methodologies even in non-mandated companies

Byron Tatsumi has written an article on his interpretation of the Global State of Operational Excellence Survey Report - Critical Challenges & Future Trends - 2018/2019.  Click here to download the full Survey Report 2018/19.  

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Increasing demand for operational excellence methodologies even in non-mandated companies

One of the key findings from the Business Transformation & Operational Excellence World Summit’s 2018/2019 research report, “The Global State of Operational Excellence,” was that nearly 60 percent of respondents cited operational excellence methodologies as growing in popularity. The report mentions that “this supports the demand for process re-engineering and business transformation to adapt to new advanced technologies and customer demands.” Click here to read the full Survey Report 2018/19. 

 

 

Need and demand for methodologies

Based on my recent experience in leading the creation and launch of our company-wide Process Innovation program, I have seen first-hand the need and demand by leadership and employees for methodologies. While the company I work for, Salesforce (the global CRM leader), does not have a top-down mandate for employees to complete process re-engineering training and certification, I have worked in large companies in various industries outside of technology that had mandates directly from the CEO. In those instances demand for operational excellence methodologies were a forcing function due to the mandate. Click here to read more Articles on The Global State of Operational Excellence: Critical Challenges & Future Trends - Research Report 2018/19.

 

 

Working in a cloud company means needing to continually innovate and provide the latest advanced technologies to support our external customers. This in turn impacts many of our processes as we continue to scale to support more customers and products globally. As a result, the operational excellence methodologies we apply need to be flexible and leveraged quickly.        

   

 

Introducing and educating on process methodologies

The way we have addressed this has been by introducing process methodologies that support process management, improvement and design. As part of educating on methodologies, we have leveraged our company’s gamified online learning platform, Trailhead. This online platform provides guided modules that anyone, at any time, can take to learn more about why process is important, the definitions of methodologies, and discover additional process resources. In fact hundreds of employees globally took advantage of Trailhead within the first month of its launch. We have also implemented a cloud-based knowledge management system so that all employees can access and share methodology tools, templates and examples.

 

A key part of our program has been implementing a three-day process bootcamp where individuals who drive operational improvements across the company learn about methodologies and tools for process management, improvement and design. Participants then complete a process project post bootcamp, and are supported by an expert coach so they learn by applying the appropriate methodology based on their problem and goal.

 

 

Here are some example quotes from previous individuals (representing the demand) who have gone through bootcamp and then led and completed their process project:

 

“Combining structured methodologies, process tools and expert coaching, the program provided the foundation for me to succeed and deliver improvements.”

 

“Standardized process training through the program has already begun benefiting our team. It is paying off in staff productivity, program focus, and sustainable process assets.”

 

“It is another connection among our company to be able to use the same language and approach in understanding the current processes and designing future ones. I believe it will help us get to the essence of the work quicker and increase our velocity in innovation.”

 

 

So, if you are in a non-mandated company like mine, talk with various stakeholders (e.g. leadership, employees, etc.) as there may be demand and opportunity to implement operational excellence methodologies.