Enterprise Excellence is the goal for most, however so few organsitions achieve it, and even fewer sustain it. Having worked with many organsiations over the years on this journey I know it is rarely a simple journey, or one that can be copied from others. It’s not something a leader can impose, or build on their own as it’s not just about deploying systems and processes, it is about how people think, act and behave.
With the right approach and the right leadership, it’s a journey that is possible. However, the journey there can look very different from one organisation to the next, and navigating your way towards “world-class” can often feel overwhelming.
It doesn’t need to be…
Step one on the journey is to truly understand your ‘Ideal Future State’, to do this ask yourself a number of questions:
- What does good look like?
- What does “Excellence” mean for us as an organisation?
- What will you hear, see and feel when you get there?
- What do the Ideal Behaviours look and feel like?
To do this effectively it is worth considering using SHINGO as a framework as the model and philosophy focus on how to create the most effective systems that will in turn drive the right behaviours enabling you to achieve your ideal results. The Shingo Discover Excellence course, or Introduction to Shingo can be really valuable as a starting point.
Understanding the Gap
After you understand where you are going it’s necessary to get a clear picture of where you are now, so you can determine the gap. Ask the following questions:
- What is your current level of Enterprise Excellence maturity?
- What are your strengths?
- What are your weaknesses (your opportunities for improvement)
- Do your systems enable or disable the right behaviours?
- Do the Leadership and Engagement Systems support Continuous Improvement?
An Enterprise Excellence assessment can provide you with this insight. This assessment delves deeply into all aspects of your organisation – it’s systems, processes, and behaviours. We use an assessment aligned to both SHINGO and our own Enterprise Excellence Model.
Identifying your Roadmap
Once you’ve established where you are, and where you want to go then a clear roadmap can be created to get you there. It’s this roadmap that then acts as a map that helps you navigate the journey from A-B and an assessment is a waste of time unless you translate this into a plan of improvement. It’s only then that you can start to bring an Enterprise Excellence journey to life for your organisation.
At S A Partners, we have supported countless organisations on this journey.
To find out what this could look like for you, don’t hesitate to contact me:
You may also find the following resources useful: