Continuous improvement is not an option.

“Continuous improvement dictates that everything you do is measured over time (Behaviour over time BOT) so that you can ensure that changes improve the business and don’t hinder it.”

In previous articles, I’ve referred to some of the areas we need to focus on in our organizations if we want to ensure business prosperity.

Compliant productivity The need of each member of the business to work together in an open and collaborative manner in order to ensure delivery to Customer, shareholders and stakeholders.
Planning and scheduling Using information from customers all the way through to Suppliers, to provide the best possible plan and schedule to deliver your product to market.
Measurement Using specific measurements at each level of the business that are aligned to the overall business KPI’s to ensure that the business pulls in a single direction with every effort supporting product and service delivery.

If we step back and look at the organization that supports the business, we will see the systems, policies and procedures that control and dictate how we conduct our business. We need to review these constantly to understand exactly how they impact the business, whether positively or negatively.

Policies and procedures 4Policies are written at a point in time, and are applicable to that time. Changes in the market place however, often dictate a different approach to the way we conduct business, and we should then review these and amended them to suit market changes. The rate of change is also accelerating, so to remain competitive, we need to be able to respond by doing business smarter and faster. If we stagnate, we will fall behind and will forever be trying to play catch up.

The 3 areas listed above are some of the areas we must focus on to drive continuous improvement, and our approach to these will define how the business responds, grows and develops. Computer systems exist and are already employed in our businesses to house and process data in real time to generate the information we need to make business decisions. We must always ensure the system settings support information that is accurate and relevant to the business environment, and our measures must be revised to drive the business correctly.

To chat about changes you can make to improve the overall business by improving your supply chain and operations divisions, contact Dave at SA Coaching  

You can also follow Dave on LinkedIn

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