Steps of continuous improvement

Over the years, entrepreneurs have managed their businesses with only limited goals, which have prevented them from seeing beyond their immediate needs, that is, they plan only in the short term; which leads to not reaching optimum levels of quality and therefore to obtaining a low profitability in their businesses.

According to the management groups of Japanese companies, the secret of the most successful companies in the world lies in having high quality standards for both their products and their employees; therefore total quality control is a philosophy that must be applied at all hierarchical levels in an organization, and this implies a process of Continuous Improvement that has no end. This process allows to visualize a broader horizon, where excellence and innovation will always be sought, which will lead entrepreneurs to increase their competitiveness, reduce costs, directing efforts to satisfy the needs and expectations of customers.

Likewise, this process seeks for the entrepreneur to be a true leader of their organization, ensuring everyone's participation by getting involved in all the processes of the production chain. For this he must acquire deep commitments, since he is the main responsible for the execution of the process and the most important driving force of his company.

To carry out this Continuous Improvement process both in a specific department and throughout the company, it must be taken into account that said process must be: economic, that is, it must require less effort than the benefit it provides; and cumulative, that the improvement that is made allows to open up the possibilities of successive improvements while guaranteeing the full use of the new level of performance achieved.

CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT

Concepts:

James Harrington (1993), for him, improving a process means changing it to make it more effective, efficient and adaptable, what to change and how to change depends on the specific approach of the entrepreneur and the process.

Fadi Kabboul (1994) defines Continuous Improvement as a conversion into the viable and accessible mechanism by which companies in developing countries close the technological gap they maintain with respect to the developed world.

Abell, D. (1994), gives as a concept of Continuous Improvement a mere historical extension of one of the principles of scientific management, established by Frederick Taylor, who affirms that every work method is capable of being improved (taken from the Course of Continuous Improvement dictated by Fadi Kbbaul).

LP Sullivan (1CC 994), defines Continuous Improvement, as an effort to apply improvements in each area of ​​the organization to what is delivered to customers.

Eduardo Deming (1996), according to this author's perspective, total quality management requires a constant process, which will be called Continuous Improvement, where perfection is never achieved but is always sought.

Continuous Improvement is a process that describes very well what is the essence of quality and reflects what companies need to do if they want to be competitive over time.

IMPORTANCE OF CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT

The importance of this managerial technique is that its application can help improve weaknesses and strengthen the strengths of the organization.

Through continuous improvement, it is possible to be more productive and competitive in the market to which the organization belongs, on the other hand, organizations must analyze the processes used, so that if there is any problem, it can be improved or corrected; As a result of applying this technique, organizations may grow within the market and even become leaders.

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT

Advantage

1. The effort is concentrated in organizational areas and specific procedures. They achieve improvements in the short term and visible results. If there is a reduction in defective products, it results in a reduction in costs, as a result of a lower consumption of raw materials. It increases productivity and Directs the organization towards competitiveness, which is of vital importance for current organizations. It contributes to the adaptation of processes to technological advances. It allows eliminating repetitive processes.

Disadvantages

1. When improvement is concentrated in a specific area of ​​the organization, the perspective of the interdependence that exists between all members of the company is lost. It requires a change throughout the organization, since to obtain success the participation of all the members of the organization and at all levels. Since managers in small and medium-sized companies are very conservative, Continuous Improvement becomes a very long process. It is necessary to make important investments.

WHY IMPROVE?

Customer is King

According to Harrington (1987), "In today's buyer's market the customer is king", that is, customers are the most important people in the business and therefore employees must work in order to satisfy the needs and their wishes. They are a fundamental part of the business, that is, it is the reason why it exists, therefore they deserve the best treatment and all the necessary attention.

The reason why customers prefer foreign products is the attitude of business leaders to complaints about errors that are discussed: they accept their errors as something very normal and apologize to the customer, for them the customer always has the reason.

The Improvement Process

The search for excellence comprises a process that consists of accepting a new challenge every day. Said progress must be progressive and continued. It must incorporate all the activities carried out in the company at all levels.

The improvement process is an effective means of developing positive changes that will save money for both the company and customers, since quality failures cost money.

Likewise, this process involves investment in new machinery and more efficient high-tech equipment, improvement in the quality of service to customers, increased levels of human resource performance through continuous training, and investment in research. and development that allows the company to keep up with new technologies.

Basic Improvement Activities

According to a study in the improvement processes implemented in various companies in the United States, According to Harrington (1987), there are ten improvement activities that should be part of any company, large or small:

1. Obtain the commitment of senior management. Establish an improvement management board. Obtain the full participation of the administration. Ensure the participation in teams of employees. Obtain individual participation. Establish systems improvement teams (control teams of the processes).Develop activities with the participation of suppliers.Establish activities that ensure the quality of the systems.Develop and implement short-term improvement plans and a long-term improvement strategy.Establish a recognition system.

1. Senior Management Commitment:

The improvement process must start from the top managers and progresses to the degree of commitment that they acquire, that is, in the interest they put in overcoming and being better every day.

1. Improvement Board of Directors:

It is made up of a group of top-level executives, who will study the production improvement process and seek to adapt it to the company's needs.

1. Total Participation of the Administration:

The management team is a group of people responsible for the implementation of the improvement process. This implies the active participation of all the executives and supervisors of the organization. Each executive must participate in a training course that allows them to learn about new company standards and the respective improvement techniques.

1. Employee Participation:

Once the management team is trained in the process, the conditions will be in place to involve employees. This is carried out by the manager or front-line supervisor of each department, who is responsible for training his subordinates, using the techniques he learned.

1. Individual Participation:

It is important to develop systems that provide all individuals with the means to contribute, be measured, and have their personal contributions recognized for the benefit of improvement.

1. Systems Improvement Teams (process control teams):

Any activity that is repeated is a process that can be controlled. For this, process flow diagrams are drawn up, then measurements, controls and feedback loops are included. For the application of this process, there must be a single individual responsible for the complete operation of said process.

1. Activities with Participation of Suppliers:

Any successful improvement process must take into account the contributions of the suppliers.

1. Quality assurance:

Resources for quality assurance, which are dedicated to solving product-related problems, should be redirected to control systems that help improve operations and thus prevent problems from occurring.

1. Short-Term Quality Plans and Long-Term Quality Strategies:

Each company must develop a long-term quality strategy. You then need to ensure that the entire management group understands the strategy so that its members can develop detailed short-term plans, ensuring that the group's activities coincide and support the long-term strategy.

1. Recognition System:

The improvement process aims to change the way people think about mistakes. For this, there are two ways to reinforce the application of the desired changes: punish all those who do not do their job well all the time, or reward all individuals and groups when they reach a goal with making an important contribution to the improvement process..

IMPROVEMENT NEEDS

The presidents of the companies are the main ones responsible for an advanced success in the organization or, on the contrary, for the failure of the organization, that is why the partners direct all responsibility and trust to the president, taking into account their capacity and good performance as administrator, capable of solving any type of problem that may arise and satisfactorily achieve the company's success. Nowadays, for many companies the word quality represents a very important factor for achieving the established objectives. It is necessary to carry out a comprehensive and detailed analysis of the organization, to make the decision to implement a needs study, if the company requires it.

It is important to mention that, for the success of the improvement process, it will depend directly on the high degree of support provided by the team that makes up the management of the company, for which reason the President is obliged to request the opinions of each of its members of the management team and of the department heads that make up the organization.

Executives must understand that the president plans to implement a process that benefits the entire company and can also provide employees with better elements for the proper performance of their jobs. It should be clear that whatever the case, quality is the responsibility of the board.

Before the final decision to implement an improvement process, it is necessary to calculate an estimate of the potential savings. They start with a detailed examination of the figures for poor quality costs, as well as cost savings; the improvement process implies an increase in productivity, reduction of absenteeism and improvement of morale. Importantly, better quality production will reflect the capture of a larger share of the market.

To achieve these savings, during the first years, the company will have to invest a minimum percentage of the cost of the product, to develop the improvement process; After this investment, the cost of maintaining the program will be negligible.

On the other hand, to perceive the effective operation of the improvement process, it is not only necessary to have the support of the presidency, but also its active participation. The president must personally measure the degree of progress and reward all those people who in one way or another contribute significantly and make observations to those who do not contribute to the success of the process.

A very effective way of determining whether the overall team of managers consider the need for improvement is to poll their opinions. The elaboration of the survey will help detect how the management group considers the company and how much they think it should improve. Questions can be asked:

How good is people's cooperation?

How good is the cooperation of the departments?

How much does the management care about the quality of work ?, among others.

However, topics such as: communication, organization and productivity can be included; taking into account that the value of the survey will depend exclusively on the honesty of the responses by the members.

QUALITY POLITICS

The basis for the success of the improvement process is the proper establishment of a good quality policy, which can define precisely what is expected of the employees; as well as the products or services that are provided to customers. Said policy requires the due authorization of the president.

The quality policy must be drawn up so that it can be applied to the activities of any employee, it can also be applied to the quality of the products or services offered by the company. It is also necessary to clearly establish quality standards, and thus be able to cover all aspects related to the quality system.

To give effect to the implementation of this policy, it is necessary that the employees have the knowledge required to know the demands of the clients, and in this way be able to offer them excellent products or services that can meet or exceed expectations.

GUIDELINES, POLICIES AND

POLLING OF THE COMPANY

It is of utmost importance that senior management assume a key role in drafting each of the company's guidelines, directly related to quality and continuous improvement. The job of the president is to make the proper guidelines known and communicated in writing clearly and precisely; and give the corresponding responsibility to each of the executives in order to comply with all the guidelines and policies established by the company. Sometimes the improvement of quality requires important modifications to the policies in force.

After the company makes a commitment to implement the improvement process, it is necessary to undertake a good general survey regarding the opinions of managers and employees. The main purpose of this survey is to establish the starting line of the process and to facilitate the identification of opportunities for improvement. In addition, it works as a communication link between employees and managers; and allows managers to have greater sensitivity and awareness of what is happening in the company.

The opinion poll must be carried out carefully, taking into account that it should be repeated as many times as necessary, in order to detect trends. The questions that make up a survey should cover the following aspects:

• General satisfaction with the company The job itself Promotion opportunities Salary Administration Advice and evaluation Productivity and quality Professional development Attention to personal problems Company benefits Work environment

In order for the results obtained from the survey to remain valid, it is essential that they be verified correctly, great care must be taken when filling out the forms, when analyzing the data and when giving the information to the board.

In order to help define problem areas, each manager needs to receive a complete report of subordinate responses. This report should include a clear comparison against the total of the company and against the total of the function of which it is part. Each manager should conduct a feedback session with subordinates in order to present the results of the survey to them. These sessions are of utmost importance since:

Employees have a real interest in knowing the general results and comparing the data of their department with those of the rest of the company.

They give managers the opportunity to examine the most important aspects for their subordinates.

They represent an excellent medium for receiving ideas and suggestions.

They allow to demonstrate the seriousness of the management with respect to the results obtained in the survey.

They allow the team to develop broadly and take corrective actions.

A key element of the improvement process is that the design is highly creative and well analyzed; and at the same time it can be supported by a good implementation strategy subject to reality. After choosing the right person, who will be responsible for all improvement activities; The formation of the Improvement Board of Directors must begin. For the fulfillment of this phase, a meeting with senior managers and union leaders is required, in order to be able to discuss in detail the quality profile within the company and make decisions about the actions to be taken. The executive team chosen for improvement will be responsible for the review and respective approval of the strategies established for the improvement process;In addition, it must monitor the implementation of the respective activities in each of the organizations and approve any necessary financial expenses and / or labor. The uninterrupted holding of the team sessions will show the importance that senior executives attach to the improvement process.

The mission of the Board of Directors will consist specifically in the design of the process; where the guidelines should be developed; establish educational modules, measure progress and help their implementation; guaranteeing the efficiency of the improvement process in the company.

The company's functions must be represented on the board, since each function has key points of contact within the organization, which will affect the productivity and quality of other areas. The members of the group:

They represent functions before the Improvement Board of Directors and must have sufficient authority to lead in the function they represent.

They serve as the axis of all activities related to the improvement process.

They are coordinators of activities, communicators of the situation that keeps the development of the process and measurers of its progress.

It is recommended that the Board of Directors be large enough so that it can satisfactorily represent each of the functional areas.

The activities of the Improvement Directive Council are as follows:

1. Define the seven basic rules of improvement that lead to excellence:

• Define quality Define excellence Define the ultimate goal of improvement Describe the strategy to achieve excellence Methods to be employed Identify responsible parties Establish measurement of improvement

1. Assist and develop the implementation of the improvement strategy Evaluate the needs and degree of progress of the process Update and develop the awareness program Update and establish the educational process for improvement Help employees and administrators to implement the improvement process Review the annual strategic plan for the improvement of each function Implement and develop recognition and award plans Act as a center of concentration and dissemination of all outstanding cases Solve all problems that the systems present and that have a Negative effect on the improvement process Maintain and establish relationships with other improvement activities of the company Implement and develop the just-in-time inventory management system.

It is important to note that, although it is not mandatory, it is always preferable that the improvement executive team also participate in the meeting to start the process, since it provides the people who comprise it with the necessary knowledge to start.

UNDERSTAND THE

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PROCESS

The Employee and the Process

People bring the process to life. Our staff makes the process work; without it we get nothing. We need to understand how the people who bring it to life feel about the process. What hinders your path? What parts of the process do you like? What bothers you? The final process has to be a homogeneous marriage between people and methodologies, in which the team is the slave of the people, not the other way around.

If the human aspect of the process is not taken into account, the EMP cannot be successful. There is only one way to achieve the understanding that is required about the human sensitivity of the process and the talents and limitations that our collaborators have, and that is to get involved in the work environment. Talk to them. Ask for their opinions and ideas. Then put your suggestions into practice. If people get involved, the end results will be much better and easier to achieve.

Process Review

1. Employees misunderstand the procedures.

1. They don't know the procedures

1. They discover a better way of doing things. It is difficult to put into practice the documented method. They lack training. They were trained to do the activity differently. They do not have the necessary tools. They do not have enough time. Someone told them that They did it differently, they don't understand why they should follow the procedures.

The only way to really understand what happens in the company's processes is through personal monitoring of the workflow, analyzing and observing its development. This is known as a process review.

In order to prepare for the process review, the EMP should assign team members to the different parts of the process. Typically, a review team (ER) member belongs to the department in which the activity is conducted. The people assigned to the ER must have some knowledge of the activity that they will be responsible for evaluating. Each ER must:

• Be very familiar with all the documentation existing and pertinent to the process Agree with the head of the department the interviews with his staff Interview a sample of the people who carry out the task, to fully understand what happens within the process Compare the way different people do the same work to determine what should be the best standard operation

The EMP should prepare a process review questionnaire to gather the necessary information about the process. Typical questions could be the following.

• What are the required inputs? What training did you receive? What do you do? How do you know that your output is good? What feedback do you receive? Who are your clients? What prevents you from doing free work? of errors? What can be done to facilitate your work? How do you make your suppliers know how well they are working? How do you use your output? What if you did not execute the job? Have you reviewed your job description? What would happen if each of your suppliers stopped supplying you with input? What things would you change if you were the boss?

In some cases, the EMP will launch a pilot example and fully monitor the process.

After each interview the team should schedule a short meeting to review it and agree on the following:

• Task Flow Required Inputs Measurements Feedback Systems Compliance to Procedure and Other Employees Major Issues Cycle Time Estimates Value Added Content Training Requirements

It is often helpful to develop a task flow diagram so that the team has a better understanding of the activity being evaluated and is in a better position to communicate their findings to the EMP.

We think it is good practice to review the findings with the interviewees to be sure that the team did not misinterpret their comments. Discuss why all people do not do the same job the same way. Standardization is the key to improvement and the first task that must be undertaken. Select a way to carry out an activity that generates the best results and use it constantly, until you make a fundamental change in the process. It is important that everyone does the same job identically.

When the review is complete, each ER must present its findings to the EMP. This gives the entire EMP a better understanding of the process.

It is important to easily identify all activities and tasks that are not being performed according to prescribed procedures. Action plans must be developed to change the procedure or for the activity to be carried out in accordance with it.

It is important to try to divide quality problems into occasional and chronic. Occasional problems only occur sporadically, tend to stand out, and are easily corrected. On the other hand, it is difficult to identify chronic problems, since the process adapts to them; therefore they are often difficult to correct.

	Occasional	Chronic
Idea	Not frequent	Frequent
Analysis	Limited data Simple causes Special causes	Rich data Complex causes Common causes
Correction	Localized correction Individual action	Wide range of measurements Managerial action

Now that the EMP is familiar with all the elements of the process, it is up to you to look at the entire process to determine the following:

1. Are the limits appropriate? If not, have the process manager present the recommended changes to the executive improvement team (EEM). Does the process lend itself to being sub-processed to increase the efficiency of the EMP? If so, the process manager should appoint EMS-P to focus on these minor processes. However, the EMP should continue to meet to review total activity to ensure that there is no under-optimization.

Process Effectiveness

The effectiveness of the process refers to the correct way in which it meets the requirements of its end customers. This evaluates the quality of the process. Specifically, effectiveness refers to:

• The output of the process meets the requirements of the end customers The outputs of each sub-process meet the input requirements of the internal customers The inputs of the suppliers meet the requirements of the process

Improving effectiveness generates happier customers, higher sales, and better market share.

How can we identify these opportunities for improvement?

The first step is to select the most important effectiveness characteristics. The effectiveness characteristics are indicators of how efficiently the process is working. The goal is to be sure that the output meets customer requirements.

• Typical indicators of ineffectiveness are: Unacceptable product and / or service Customer complaints High warranty costs Decreased market share Job backlogs Repetition of finished work Output rejection Delayed output Incomplete output

Subsequently, we must gather information on these effectiveness characteristics. The purpose of these data is to methodically review the quality of those fundamental activities involved in the process and to try to discover them as well as the possible causes (input, methods, training). Be sure to include questions about effectiveness as part of your process review questionnaire.

Process efficiency

Achieving the effectiveness of the process mainly represents a benefit for the client, but the efficiency of the process represents a benefit for the person in charge of the process: efficiency is the output per unit of input. Typical efficiency characteristics are:

• Cycle time per unit or transaction Resources (dollars, people, space) per unit of output Percentage of the cost of real value added of the total cost of the process Poor quality cost per unit of output Waiting time per unit or transaction

As you review, find and record procedures for measuring the efficiency of activities and activity groups. These data will be used later, when the total measurement process is established.

Process Cycle Time

Cycle time is the total amount of time required to complete the process. This includes not only the amount of time it takes to get the job done, but also the time spent moving documents, waiting, storing, reviewing, and repeating the job. Cycle time is a fundamental aspect in all critical business processes. Reducing total cycle time frees up resources, reduces costs, improves output quality, and can increase sales. For example, by reducing the cycle time for process development, you can gain sales and market share. By reducing your product cycle time, you will reduce your inventory cost and improve shipments. By reducing your billing cycle, you will have more cash at your fingertips.Cycle time can make the difference between success and failure.

You must calculate the actual cycle time of your process. This time will probably be totally different from the theoretical time of the cycle, defined in the written procedures or assumed by the organization. There are four ways to gather this information: final measurements, controlled experiments, historical investigation, and scientific analysis.

cost

Cost is another important aspect of the process, it is often impossible to determine the cost of the entire process.

The cost of a process, such as cycle time, provides impressive insights into the problems and inefficiencies of the process. The use of approximate costs, which are estimated using current financial information, is acceptable. Obtaining exact costs could require an enormous amount of work, without major added benefits.

Variable indirect expenses are those indirect expenses that could be excluded if an activity were eliminated. Ask the finance department to provide you with the variable overhead figures for each organization.

Another way to estimate the cost of the process is to obtain from the financial records the total monthly costs of a department and then have the head of the department allocate the costs to the process, using time calculations.

The goal of reviewing the cost-cycle diagrams is to analyze the cost and time components and find a way to reduce them. This guarantees the improvement of the effectiveness and efficiency of the process.

Process qualification

Becoming the best is a high and difficult goal. Having the best company processes should be everyone's goal; But we need important events to tell us how we are moving forward. This is what the company's process rating refers to. From this arise the transcendent events and points of recognition for the process improvement teams (EMP).

Manufacturing Process Qualification

In the 1960s, dynamic companies introduced formal process qualification procedures in order to apply them to their manufacturing processes. This established a four-tier qualification process that was used to evaluate manufacturing processes before shipping the product to external customers. At each progressive stage, new expectations are set for.

During the process qualification procedure, the process windows, equipment capacity, process control points, training specifications, limitations on the amount of information generated in a process and the time of the manufacturing cycle are defined and verified.

Typically, qualification of the manufacturing process is carried out before the first product is shipped to a customer. Systematically, it contributes to the process concept evolving, maximizing both its efficiency and effectiveness and guaranteeing the performance of the product.

Let's define the fundamental terms:

• Certification Applies to a single activity or piece of equipment. Qualification. This involves evaluating a complete process, comprised of many individually certified activities, to determine if the process can function at the appropriate level when the activities are linked.

Is the Qualification of the Company's Processes Necessary?

Manufacturing process qualification ensures that the process design provides customers with acceptable products. Poor process can destroy years of hard work. Clients bitterly remember mediocre performance long after the sweetness of outstanding service has faded.

The qualification of the process is useful, since it motivates us to take the first steps towards continuous improvement. Whether they are professionals, office workers or mid-level bosses, people like to be recognized for their efforts and are stimulated by public recognition. Process qualification provides a measurement system that instills a sense of pride in each team.

Typically, the qualification of a process covers the following steps:

• The EMP assesses the process using the appropriate list of requirements The EMP leader requests a change in the qualification level The MPE champion (zar) reviews the process status EMP prepares a report on the status of the process and sends it to the review committee. Frequently, the EEM acts as a review committee The EMP presents the data pertaining to the process change to the review committee The chair of the review committee issues the letter for the change in the process rating The review committee rewards the EMP for its achievements

MPE Levels (Business Process Improvement)

A six-level rating process can provide an effective structure and guide for MPE activities. These levels take the EMP from a status of ignorance of the process to the highest ranked or world class.

All company processes are considered to be at level 6. As the process gets better, it progresses logically to level 1.

It is possible that not all processes in all organizations have to go through these six levels. Often, in becoming the best, you incur considerable costs. In most cases, organizations have many business processes that need improvement.

Differences between the Levels of the Company Process

To determine if the process has evolved to the next level, eight main areas of change need to be addressed:

• Measurements related to the final customer Measurements and / or process performance Alliances with suppliers Documentation Training Benchmarking Adaptability of the process Continuous improvement

The following definitions will help you understand the changing expectations that must be met to change your rating levels:

Requirements. What the customer wants to be supplied

Expectations. That which the client would like to have to perform an optimal job; what the customer believes could reasonably be supplied or obtained from a competitor.

Wishes. The customer's wish list; what you would like to have but is not essential

REQUIREMENTS TO QUALIFY AT LEVEL 5

All processes are classified at level 6, until enough data is collected to determine their true status. Typically, processes are shifted from rating level 6 to level 5. To score at any level, all criteria must be met or exceeded in each of the eight major areas of change.

REQUIREMENTS TO QUALIFY AT LEVEL 4

When a process evolves to qualify for Level 4, it is called an effective process. The processes that qualify towards level 4 have incorporated a systematic measurement system that guarantees the satisfaction of the final customer's expectations. The process has started to modernize.

To qualify towards level 4, the process must be able to meet all the qualification requirements of level 5.

REQUIREMENTS TO QUALIFY AT LEVEL 3

When a process evolves to qualify for level 3, it is called an efficient process. The processes that qualify towards level 3 have completed the modernization activities and there has been a significant improvement in the efficiency of the process.

To qualify for level 3, the process must satisfy all qualification requirements for levels 5 and 4.

REQUIREMENTS TO QUALIFY AT LEVEL 2

When a process has evolved to qualify for level 2, it is called a process: error free. The processes that qualify towards level 2 are highly effective and efficient. The expectations of both external and internal customers are measured and met. Rarely does a problem arise within the process. Programs are always being followed and stress rates are low.

To qualify for level 2, the process must be able to satisfy all the requirements corresponding to the previous qualification levels.

REQUIREMENTS TO QUALIFY AT LEVEL 1

The highest level of qualification is 1; indicates that the process is one of the top ten in the world in its class or that it is in the top 10% of the best processes in its class, whichever has the smallest population.

Processes that reach qualification level 1 are called a world-class process. Level 1 qualifying processes have shown them to be among the best in the world. These are often the target benchmark processes for other organizations. As a rule, few processes ever reach this high level in an organization. The processes that reach level 1 are truly world-class and continue to improve to maintain their status as such.

To qualify towards level 1, the process must be able to meet all the requirements corresponding to the previous levels of qualification.

Assignment of Rating Levels

When you receive a request to change the qualification level of a process, you must meet with the person in charge of the process to review the data related to the process and verify that they are complete. Before the meeting, the EMP must present an explicit report on the status of the process, containing the following:

Process support data (i.e. process name, EMP mission, EMP members, scope of process)

• Status of all assessments Process flow diagram Current status documented and compared to requirements for next level Improvements made since last level change Problems or risks solved Problems or risks not solved Plan to improve process to next level of qualification

Recognition and Reward Process

It is strongly suggested that the EEM establish a recognition and reward process to reward the EMP each time its business process is scored at a higher level. The nature of the reward should increase as the qualification level becomes more difficult to obtain. The following is a typical reward structure:

level
Of	TO	Reward
6	5	Article in the organization's internal newsletter
5	4	Lunch for the EMP with the assistance of the EEM. Give a special gift in recognition
4	3	Food for each of the EMP members and a guest. Likewise, a check equivalent to 10% of the individual's participation in the documented savings from the integration of the EMP
3	two	Formal meal with the EEM. Give a special gift to each EMP member
two	one	Annual recognition event at a vacation spot for the EMP and its guests. The first year during which the business process is recognized as world-class, provide all EMP members with a special contribution of US $ 10,000 in cash or 50% of the documented savings in a year or any amount of money that be minor

Participation of Suppliers in the Continuous Improvement Process

The participation of suppliers in the development of the company's activities is of great importance and in cases where a company wants its production lines to run smoothly and with reduced inventories, it must first find ways to guarantee that the Purchases and shipments of parts and materials that come to you are functionally acceptable one after another, which can be accomplished with a number of techniques that help you accomplish that difficult task.

Number of Suppliers

Conventional wisdom has long held that the greater the number of suppliers, just on the edge of manageable, the better the company will do. The advantages of this philosophy are obvious. A large number of suppliers can exert strong pressure during price negotiations, delivery or other terms of the contract. The multiplicity of suppliers of the same part or raw material provides good recovery options if one of them has quality, distribution, financing or any other type of problems. A large number of highly flexible suppliers in the face of a sudden increase in production schedules.

However, these advantages are achieved at a very high price. The administrative workload, the size of the workforce required to place and follow up orders, the opportunities for error are aspects directly proportional to the number of active suppliers.

But there is a much more important reason for companies to reduce the number of their suppliers. When a company starts to work with its suppliers, it seeks to make it part of the production process, as long as it has demonstrated its ability to produce the parts that the company requires with acceptable quality, a situation that does not occur in all the companies, since the suppliers cannot always adapt to the requirements of the companies, it is for this reason that there are only the suppliers that work directly with the specific requirements that the company supplies, which has it as one of its suppliers.

Long Term Contracts

In an environment where constant high quality is required and for long periods, both the supplier and the buyer have every reason to sign long-term contracts.

Long-term contracts prevent clients from having to make a series of disbursements in renegotiation work, in new training, etc. Long-term contracts are also open to the possibility for customers to contact selected suppliers and initiate the development of new contracts during the initial design phases of a new product. These arrangements allow the client to take advantage of the experience of their key suppliers to modify the design, while it is still affordable to the supplier, they allow the supplier to observe well in advance what the final requirements of the process will be, and allow him to start working on the items that most preparation time will take before you can start series production,This will shorten the time between the final design and the first delivery of the finished product.

In short, long-term contracts consolidate the partnership that is essential to achieving extremely high levels of quality.

Design Review

When an agreement is established between an entrepreneur and a supplier for the manufacture of a particular input, the supplier is integrated into the production process of the product. In these cases it is worth signing a product development contract between both parties. Many suppliers participate in the work of developing and reviewing the product design without charging the customer, in order to take the final contract for mass production.

Provider Seminars

Since you cannot expect someone to "satisfy your feelings" if you don't know them thoroughly, this is perhaps the main reason for a trend in customer-supplier communications; provider seminars.

The supplier seminars complement the information provided to the supplier through two main printed sources: all the technical information contained in the engineering drawings and specifications, and all the commercial requirements contained in contracts and purchase orders, Which greatly facilitates the interrelation between employers and suppliers.

Process controls

The term process control encompasses the disciplines, controls, mechanization aspects, integration, and all the other elements necessary to ensure that a process produces results that are virtually error-free, without having to rely too heavily on inspection. The control of the process implies the integration of a production program with suitably skilled, capable and trained personnel; it also includes training plans and periodic refresher courses for production operators and inspectors. The control of the process covers all the elementary of production and inspection that the process needs, including plans to regularly check and guarantee the capacity of the production machinery, as well as the precision and persistence of the inspection instruments.

The selection of the parameters to be controlled must be done jointly by the customer and the operator.

Incentive Programs

There are two types of incentive programs: positive (rewards) and negative (punishments).

Awards: Some clients try to establish a positive environment by paying the full price when the quality is lower, but very close to 100% and paying premiums as the quality approaches 100%.

Penalties: Penalty programs generally establish a sliding scale of discounts on the unit price, when the quality received by the customer falls below a predetermined limit. Most modern punishment contracts are clearly focused on a "zero defect" philosophy and therefore determine that the full price is only paid if shipments arrive defect free.

Source Auditors

Source auditors are customer representatives who perform part inspections and process monitoring activities at supplier facilities and who typically decrease or eliminate arrival inspections. These source auditors are also playing an increasing role in commercial work.

The supplier's control system must detect virtually all defects, whether they are in process or part controls.

Supplier Survey

The survey to a supplier is the systematic review of its commercial and technical capacity carried out by the client. A typical survey team should consist of a buyer, a production engineer, and a customer quality engineer.

Most questions only result in correct answers, and most providers have already learned to tell the interviewer precisely what they want to hear. The most common problem with these vendor surveys is that they can be extremely time-consuming and of little use.

How to Improve Supplier Surveys

This process can be improved in several ways, one of them is formulating lists of supplier candidates through investigations of the normal industrial registers, of the lists of the chambers and other industrial associations, through the financial or credit investigation services. and other similar ones.

These improvements can also be made by engaging in an in-depth examination of the physical evidence of the critical elements of the survey, through personal interviews with the technical support group of the supplier, examination of the process control charts in the plant itself, and verification that production operators correctly update and interpret the charts. It is also very important to achieve a clear understanding of the supplier's commitment to quality and their willingness to form a commercial and technical partnership with the customer.

Current Providers Survey

A key element of the current supplier surveys is the history of each one, the survey team must know in depth the supplier's performance during, at least, the last year, including all the corrective actions caused by defective materials.

Companies often fail to update their suppliers' records through these surveys. When you have very frequent relationships with a supplier, it is easy to forget that you have not had a formal survey in a long time. A good rule of thumb is to conduct at least one annual survey per provider.

Initial Supplier Qualification

Once a vendor has been selected, but before bulky shipments are authorized on a regular basis, they must meet a number of product qualification criteria. These can vary greatly, and the complexity of the qualification process depends on the complexity of the product, the novelty of the technology used, the importance that the use of the product has for the customer, and several other similar factors.

Reports on the Quality of Suppliers

These reports engage clients to do their best to ensure that their suppliers receive a continuous stream of timely, clear, and consistent information about their performance.

Reports should be as clear as possible, especially when they report a defect. In order to assist the supplier in taking action, it is essential to inform him of the shipment numbers, the exact quantities involved, the dates, and the precise description of the defects. It is also important that the customer establish a very clear link between reports and internal records that contain data such as the name of the instructor who discovered the problem or made the first measurements, the instrumentation or inspection methods used, and the final disposal of the parts. This detailed information can be very useful for solving recurring problems, monitoring a supplier's long-term performance, and investigating performance issues for problems in the field.

Supplier Qualification

Quality is only one of the three criteria of supplier performance. The other two are deliveries and costs. A system for rating suppliers should by logic, including all three.

There are many methods to calculate a general supplier performance index, different weights are assigned to the three performance elements by means of algorithms that differ in their complexity.

In the past, quality indices were often based on simple batch acceptance rates. It is very important that the supplier's quality index reflects any problems that arise with the parts after they are accepted - problems that were detected on the production line or in the field.

A simpler supplier rating system may go no further, and simply qualify deliveries on time or untimely.

Among the most frequent problems encountered when developing a rating system is that the data it requires is generally spread across several departments and even in several organizations, a situation that must be corrected until the rating system is in place to suppliers more effective and provide the fair value of supplier performance.

STEPS FOR CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT

According to Eng. Luis Gómez Bravo, the seven steps of the improvement process are:

Step 1: Selection of problems (opportunities for improvement)

Step 2: Quantification and subdivision of the problem

Step 3: Analysis of the causes, specific roots.

Step 4: Establishment of the required levels of performance (improvement goals).

Step 5: Definition and programming of solutions

6th Step: Implementation of solutions

7th Step: Guarantee Actions

STEP ONE: SELECTING PROBLEMS (OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT)

The objective of this step is to identify and choose the quality and productivity problems of the department or unit under analysis.

Unlike other methodologies that start with a brainstorming session on problems in general, mixing levels of problems (symptoms with causes), in this one we seek from the beginning greater coherence and rigor in the definition and choice of quality and productivity.

Activities:

This first step consists of the following activities:

1. Clarify the concepts of quality and productivity in the group Prepare the characterization diagram of the Unit, in general terms: customers, products and services, their attributes, main processes and inputs used Define what a quality problem consists of and Productivity as a deviation from a norm: it must be, desired, required or demanded state List in the group the quality and productivity problems in the unit of analysis (apply brainstorming) Pre-select opportunities for improvement, prioritizing grossly, applying technique of nominal group or multivoting. Select from the previous list the improvement opportunities to be addressed through the application of a matrix of multiple criteria, according to the opinion of the group or its superior.

The first three activities (a, b and c) allow the following:

• Focus the group's attention on problems of quality and productivity, and: Obtain greater coherence from the group at the time of the brainstorming to list the problems. Avoid including in the definition of the problems their solution, disguising it with phrases such as: lack of…, lack of…, insufficiency, etc. which tends to be usual in less experienced groups. The pre-selection (activity "e") is done through a rapid group consensus technique, which facilitates the identification of problems in a short time, and then, especially the 3 or 4 fundamentals, make the final selection (activity " f ») with more analytical and quantitative criteria, this avoids making comparative efforts and calculations between problems that obviously have different impacts and importance.

General observations and recommendations

• This is a key step in the process, so you should spend the necessary time avoiding burning activities or spending themoverlooked, without the work team having sufficiently assimilated their objective. It is convenient to develop this step in three sessions and at least two (never in a single session) and each one lasting 1 1/2 hours. In the first, the first three activities can be covered, in the second, activities "d" and "e" and in the last, "f"; this activity should be supported with data according to the criteria of the matrix, therefore, this activity should be done in a separate session. The characterization of the unit should be done thickly avoiding unnecessary details. It should be considered that after having covered the seven steps, (the first cycle), in the subsequent improvement cycles it will be deepened with greater knowledge, through the lived experience. This recommendation is valid for all activities and steps,exaggerated rigor is not recommended in the first projects and must be dosed, keeping in mind that the improvement team is like a person who must first crawl then walk, then jog, to finally run the continuous improvement race at high speed.

Techniques to be used: System characterization diagram, brainstorming, nominal group techniques, problem selection matrix.

SECOND STEP: QUANTIFICATION AND

SUBDIVISION OF THE PROBLEM OR SELECTED OPPORTUNITY FOR IMPROVEMENT

The objective of this step is to better clarify the definition of the problem, its quantification and the possible subdivision into subproblems or symptom causes.

It is usual that people eager for results or who are used to what I believe and I think do not dwell too much on the precision of the problem, going from the thick definition resulting from the ler. Step to the root causes, in such circumstances the causal diagrams lose specificity and do not facilitate the way to identify solutions, with sufficient power to face the problem. For example, defects in a product can be associated with the lack of adequate equipment in general, but the specific defect, scratches on the surface, will be associated with a deficiency of a particular equipment.

Because such deviations have occurred in various applications of the methodology, we have decided to create this step to deepen the analysis of the problem before entering the root causes.

Activities:

It is about refining the analysis of the problem by performing the following activities:

1. Establish the type or types of indicators that will account for or reflect the problem and, through them, verify whether or not the definition of the problem is consistent with them, if not, the problem or the indicators must be redefined. subdivide the problem into its causes-symptoms. For example:

• The delay in placing purchase requests may be different depending on the type of request. Product defects can be of various types, with different frequencies. Material inventory days may be different, depending on the type of material. The service delivery time may vary depending on the type of client. Failure delays can come from different sections of the process or equipment.

1. Quantify the impact of each subdivision and prioritize it using the cause selection matrix and the Pareto chart, to select the stratum (s) or subproblem (s) to analyze.

General observations and recommendations

• Emphasis should be made on quantification and only in extreme cases (or in the first projects), in the absence of data or agile means to collect them, can a qualitative ranking technique such as the nominal group technique be used to advance, with a knowledgeable group of the problem.

However, data collection should be planned and ordered during the process.

• This step should be developed in three or at least two sessions, depending on the ease of data collection and the type of problem.

In the first session, carry out activities «a» and «b», in the second, analyze the collected data (activity «c») and make the necessary adjustments and in the third session, activity «d» prioritization and selection of causes and symptoms.

• Techniques to use: indicators, sampling, data collection sheet, run graphs, Pareto graph, cause selection matrix, frequency histograms, process diagram.

STEP THREE: ANALYSIS OF SPECIFIC ROOT CAUSES

The objective of this step is to identify and verify the specific root causes of the problem in question, those whose elimination will guarantee its non-recurrence. Of course, the specification of the root causes will depend on how well the previous step has been performed.

Again in this step the need to make the impact or influence of the cause measurable through indicators that account for it, in order to extract the most significant cause and be able to analyze how much of the problem will be overcome by eradicating it..

Activities

1. For each subdivision of the selected problem, list the causes of its occurrence applying brainstorming. Group the listed causes according to their affinity (draw cause-effect diagram). If the problem has been sufficiently subdivided, subgrouping can be used based on 4M or 6M (material, machine, man, method, moral, management), since the latter will be sufficiently specific. Otherwise they can be subgrouped according to the stages or operations of the process to which they refer (in which case it is convenient to build the process diagram), thus defining a new subdivision of the subproblem under analysis. Quantify the causes (or new subdivision) to verify its impact and relationship with the problem and rank and select the most relevant root causes.Scatter diagrams, Pareto charts, cause selection matrix can be used in this activity. Repeat b and c until the problem is considered sufficiently analyzed.

General observations and recommendations

• During the analysis, so-called obvious solution problems will arise that do not require further verification and analysis for their solution, so they must be faced on the fly.

This will happen most often in the first few cycles, when usually most processes are out of control.

• This step, depending on the complexity of the problem, can be developed in 3 or 4 sessions of two hours each.

In the first session, activities a and b will be carried out, leaving activity c for the second session, after collecting and processing the required information. In situations where information is available, at least one new working session (third) will be required, after ranking the causes, to deepen the analysis. Otherwise, more time is needed for data collection and analysis (fourth and fifth sessions).

• Techniques to use: brainstorm, cause-effect diagram, scatter diagram, Pareto diagram, cause selection matrix.

STEP

FOUR: ESTABLISHING THE REQUIRED PERFORMANCE LEVEL (IMPROVEMENT GOALS)

The objective of this step is to establish the level of performance required of the system or unit and the goals to be achieved successively.

This is a little understood step and has had the following objections:

• Setting goals is in contradiction with the philosophy of total quality and with WE Deming's criticism of management by objectives. It is not possible to define a goal without knowing the solution. The idea is to improve, no matter how much. control to the process is therefore predetermined and implicit.

To such criticisms, we make the following observations:

• When we are setting a goal, we are establishing the level of demand for the process or system in question, with respect to the variable analyzed, depending on either the client's expectations, when it comes to quality problems or the level of waste that can be accepted.within the state of technological art, which translates into a competitive cost. In both aspects the goal indirectly fixes the error not in which we operate; That is to say, no matter how much, the idea is to improve, or that the goal is only to put the process under control, they are very good advertising phrases to sell courses, advice and even catch the unwary, but not to help a manager cope the underlying problems: those of the lack of competitiveness. The solution that we must give to our problem must be conditioned by the level of performance in quality and productivity that is required of the system. Lowering the defective to less than 1% usually has very different solutions in cost and execution time to reducing it to less than 1 part per thousand or per 1 million. The rate of improvement is set, on the one hand,the demands of the environment, and on the other, our capacity to respond, depriving the first. The confrontation of the causes, the design of solutions and their implementation must continue at the pace that the goal demands.

In this sense, the establishment of the level of performance required of the system (goal) will determine the solutions and the pace of their implementation.

Activities

The activities to follow in this step are:

1. Establish the levels of performance required of the system based on, as the case may be, customer expectations, higher order requirements (values, policies, company objectives) set by senior management and the situation of competitors. achievement of the level of performance required under the assumption of eliminating the identified root causes, this activity will have greater precision to the extent that the previous two steps have been more rigorous in the analysis.

Some authors call this activity "visualization of behavior, if things happened without setbacks and deficiencies", that is, the visualization of the desired situation.

General observations and recommendations

• In the first cycles of improvement, it is preferable not to set goals or levels of performance that are too ambitious to avoid team motivation or frustration; rather with achievable but challenging levels, credibility and learning are strengthened. This step can be done in one or two work sessions.

Due to the consultation process that mediates the two activities, normally two sessions are required.

• When there is a lack of good analysis in steps 2 and 3, due to lack of information, it is advisable not to set goals at random and only cover activity "a" and then set partial goals, according to the design of solutions (step 5) and the Seeking more information, which may be part of the solution in the first phase.

STEP FIVE: DESIGN AND

PROGRAMMING OF SOLUTIONS

The objective of this step is to identify and program the solutions that will significantly affect the elimination of root causes. In an organization where there has not been a systematic improvement process and where the maintenance and control actions leave much to be desired, the solutions tend to be obvious and refer to the development of actions of this type, however, in more advanced processes, the solutions They are not so obvious and require, depending on the level of complexity, a creative approach in their design. In any case, when the identification of causes has been well developed, solutions even for initially complex problems appear obvious.

Activities

1. For each selected root cause, possible excluding solutions (brainstorming) should be listed. In the event that many exclusive alternatives emerge before making more rigorous comparisons based on feasibility, impact, cost, etc., which implies a certain level of study and basic design, the list can be hierarchized (to rule out some alternatives) through of a consensus and voting technique such as the Nominal Group TGN Technique). Analyze, compare and select the alternative solutions resulting from the TGN, for this it is convenient to use multiple criteria such as those indicated above: feasibility, cost, impact, responsibility, ease, etc. Schedule the implementation of the solution defining in detail the 5W-H of the plan, that is, the what, why, when, where, who and how, drawing up the respective schedule.

General observations and recommendations

• No solution should be ruled out a priori, no matter how far-fetched or naive it may seem, sometimes behind these ideas hides a brilliant solution or part of the solution. In order for the implantation process to be smooth, it is advisable to avoid implanting everything at once (unless make the solution obvious and immediate) and emphasize programming, who and when Sometimes, during the design of solutions, new causes are found or the erratics of some analyzes are verified. This should not be a concern, as it is part of the process to learn in depth about the system on or in which you work.

In these cases you must return to the 3rd. step to make the corresponding settings:

• Techniques to use: brainstorm, nominal group technique, solution selection matrix, 5W-H, Gantt or Pert diagrams.

STEP SIX:

IMPLEMENTATION OF SOLUTIONS

This step has two objectives:

• Test the effectiveness of the solution (s) and make the necessary adjustments to reach a final one. Make sure that the solutions are assimilated and properly implemented by the organization in daily work.

Activities

1. The activities to be carried out at this stage will be determined by the action program, however, in addition to the implementation itself, the monitoring, by the team, of the execution and of the readjustments that are determined is key during this step. necessary on the fly Verify the values ​​that the selected performance indicators reach to evaluate the impact, using run charts, histograms and Pareto charts.

General observations and recommendations:

• Once the improvement action program has been established with the identification of responsibilities and execution times, it is advisable to present it to the higher hierarchical level of the improvement unit or group, in order to obtain their approval, collaboration and involvement. It is convenient to start the implementation with a pilot experience that serves as a field test of the proposed solution, this will allow us to make an initial evaluation of the solution both at the process level (methods, sequences, participants) and results. In this experience it will be possible to identify unexpected results, factors not taken into account, undesired side effects-At this level, the improvement process already implemented begins to receive the benefits of information feedback,which will generate adjustments and rethinking of the first stages of the improvement process.

STEP SEVEN:

ESTABLISHMENT OF GUARANTEE ACTIONS

The objective of this step is to ensure the maintenance of the new level of performance achieved. This is a fundamental step that is rarely given due attention. It will depend on the stability in the results and the accumulation of learning to deepen the process.

Activities

In this step, permanent monitoring responsibilities should be assigned and the frequency and distribution of performance reports determined. It is necessary to design guarantee actions against setback, in the results, which will be useful to carry out maintenance actions. In general terms these are:

1. Standardization of operating procedures, methods or practices. Training and development of personnel in the standards and practices implemented. Incorporation of new levels of performance into the unit management control process. Documentation and dissemination of the history of the improvement process.

This last activity is of great importance to reinforce and recognize the efforts and achievements made and start a new cycle of improvement.

General observations and recommendations

• It may happen that the effort made to improve the level of performance in a partial aspect of quality and productivity affects the root causes that also impact on other aspects and thus produce collateral effects of improvement in them, due to a synergy of causes and effects that then multiply the results of the improvement It is in this step where the importance in the use of the control charts, the notions of variation and deviation and of stable process is seen more clearly, since, to guarantee the performance, concepts and tools are very useful.

CONCLUSIONS

Over time, a series of techniques and tools have been found and put into practice that are currently of fundamental importance for the good management of any organization. Among these techniques or tools we have continuous improvement.

Continuous improvement is a tool that is currently essential for all companies because it allows them to renew the administrative processes they carry out, which makes companies constantly update; In addition, it allows organizations to be more efficient and competitive, strengths that will help them stay in the market.

For the application of improvement, it is necessary that in the organization there is good communication between all the organs that make it up, and also the employees must be well-connected with the organization, because they can offer a lot of valuable information to optimally carry out the continuous improvement process.

Continuous Improvement is applied regularly, it allows organizations to integrate new technologies to different processes, which is essential for any organization. Every company must apply the different administrative techniques that exist and it is very important that continuous improvement be included.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

• BEER, Michael. (1992). The renewal of companies. Through the critical path. Mc. Graw Hill. Harvard Business School Press, Spain. Reengineering Course in Service Companies. (1994). Copyright Fadi Kabboul. IESA The Book of Ideas. (1991). To produce better. Japan Association for Human Relations. Ediciones Gestión 2000, SA Barcelona.HARRINGTON, H. James. (1993). Improvement of company processes. Mc Publishing. Graw Hill Interamericana, SA Mexico HARRINGTON, H. James. (1997). Full management of continuous improvement. The new generation. Editorial Mc, Graw Hill Interamericana, SA, Colombia.Ginebra, Joan. (1991). Service Address. The other quality. Business series. Mc. Graw Hill, Mexico Planning Guide for the Continuous Improvement Process. (1992). Business development program and continuous improvement process. Nacional Financiera, SNC, Mexico (Package one and two).GOMEZ BRAVO, Luis. (1992). Productivity: continuous improvement of quality and productivity. FIM, Second Edition.SERNA GOMEZ, Humberto. (1992). Corporate Marketing. Internal customer service. Continuous improvement teams. Fondo Editorial Legis, SA

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