Overview of Continuous Process Improvement

The Customer Resource Center has broadly defined “Process Improvement” to include any ineffective product or inefficient process needing improvement.  This definition enables us to include various types of “improvement areas” and utilize the same methodology in resolution.  The concepts of “Continuous” and “Improvement” are essential in the efforts we undertake, and purposefully connote an on-going effort.  That is, once a change for an “improvement area” is identified, it still must be measured to determine whether it was truly an improvement, and whether the improvement is sustained well into the future.

The majority of the improvement initiatives CRC addresses are within the Finance and Administration Cabinet.  However, many of the undertakings that have been approached thus far involve statewide initiatives.

The following is the five-step methodical process used in CPI initiatives. Also provided is a brief description of what each step may involve:

1. Select an Improvement Opportunity—review the mission-related goals and performance indicators to identify an opportunity.  Culminates with the establishment of a team, process owner, and team leader to make the improvement.

2. Assess Current Situation—determine and document current performance as compared to expectations of customers/stakeholders, and identify the cause of the differences between what is expected and what is happening.

3. Set Performance Goals and Develop Improvement Recommendations—identify the desired goals for the “improvement area”; and, investigate how best to reach that goal through the identification of best practices, benchmarking efforts, and/or surveys.  Identification of performance targets and the development of a business case complete this step.

4. Implement Approved Recommendations—develop an implementation plan, including the communication components, and implement the plan.

5. Evaluate Results and Plan for Continuous Improvement—implement a monitoring system and track performance against previously established goals and targets.  May result in other improvement opportunities.

For more information please contact:

Barbara Aldridge-Montfort
502-564-9641 ext. 462