There are several acronyms on offer for the steps any special improvement project should follow
However, each offers much the same steps – for example:
DMAIC from Six Sigma = Define, Measure, Analyse, Improve, Control
PDCA from Dr Edwards Deming = Plan, Do, Check, Amend
SREDIM from R. M. Currie and Work Study = Select, Record, Examine, Develop, Implement, Maintain
Organisation level projects:
At organisation level, productivity improvement involves much more than squeezing the most out of existing resources
It looks for opportunities to launch new products or services, to open up new markets or segments, or to restructure the business in some other major way
Process level projects:
In most organisations, especially in the services sector where less attention has been paid to it than in manufacturing, the productivity of most processes could be improved by at least 20%, and many by over 50%
In a majority of cases, it is the system or process that offers the potential for productivity improvement, not the workers employed – so the scope and means to exploit this potential should always be studied first, before consideration is given to ‘letting go’ workers
There’s many approach options available for improving processes and tasks – some are more likely than others to produce the results required – cost benefit analyses (CBAs) of those short listed should always ensure they have proven track records
Task level projects:
There are usually many different tasks involved within one whole process
Often, the biggest sources of improvement lie between, not within, individual tasks, especially with waste of (paid) effort spent on work which is not RFT – Right First Time
And it can make more sense to keep a task team idle rather than have it produce more for stock when there’s no more demand for it, say
Equally, there’s little point reducing, never mind optimising, the time taken per task if it makes virtually no difference to an overall ‘order cycle time’
But that doesn’t mean that productivity of a specific task doesn’t matter
Why so?
Because:
Some tasks cost a lot to complete, so any improvement could be useful
Some are on a process’s critical path and, if not ready to receive or supply work, will delay all others and have a major impact on the overall order cycle time
Some work slower than expected, and so reduce overall capacity
Some produce a high % of rework or rejects, further reducing overall process capacity and increasing costs
Hence, there’s many approach options available to improve task level productivity – but some are more likely than others to produce the results required
‘Productivity Knowhow’ Revisited – the updated, shortened, post Covid version of the original ‘Productivity Knowhow’ covering the basics all managers need to know if they want to make big productivity improvements
‘Adventuring out to Sea’ – an aide memoire for busy businessmen, mostly land-bound, who yearn ‘to go down to the sea again’ and have forgotten much since their last time afloat – profits will be used to reward valiant, unpaid RNLI boat crews
‘Productivity Quotes’ – over 1,000 quotes from the ‘great and good’ – some amusing, some controversial