| We also recently introduced two other things that are | | | | We have got formal accreditation for Black Belts. Now |
| the bottom two: Business Process Improvements and | | | | this is a bit of a soap box of mine because I could |
| Customer Journey Mapping. Customer Journey | | | | easily say, yup, you are a Black Belt, well done! I am |
| Mapping I will come on to in a minute. Has anybody | | | | not qualified to do that. I am not accredited Master |
| come across this Customer Journey Mapping before? | | | | Black Belt. I do a Master Black Belt's job but I am not |
| Yeah, it is not new, but it is very, very effective. | | | | accredited to be a Master Black Belt. So I would never |
| Business Process Improvement was another layer in | | | | accredit anybody to be a Black Belt. I will do Green |
| our training and our skill set capability. Why it is we had | | | | Belts, Lean Green Belts, no problem. But we did find a |
| Black Belts who had 15-day training completing two | | | | way of guessing people to be Black Belt accredited. I |
| projects, they have to deliver at least a million a piece, | | | | either buy bringing in third-parties such as IBM, I want |
| very, very high level stuff. The Green Belts, 10 days | | | | the consultancies who had that qualification, or as |
| training probably one project typically delivering about | | | | turned out recently, we have a fully-fledged flying |
| 50,000 pounds. | | | | Master Black Belts or Master Black Belt depending on |
| We have got a lot of other people in the business who | | | | which part of the U.K. it come from in our healthcare |
| we need to have some rudimentary knowledge of | | | | division, so working very closely with healthcare. |
| what process improvement is all about. So the very | | | | It means we are getting a lot of best practice sharing |
| least they know the names of the tools and we got | | | | and Trevor who is the Master Black Belt down there. |
| an idea of what is going on. And they can help out on | | | | He is quite happy to go through and accredit our Black |
| projects and that is what the BPI, the Business | | | | Belts and he makes it really, really hard for them. They |
| Process Improvement, training does. It lasts one day; it | | | | have to jump through hoops of fire to get their Black |
| goes through a lot of the basic tools. You can take | | | | Belt accreditation. But that makes it really feel like they |
| probably 30-40 people on each cost and you focus on | | | | have done something worthwhile, and the feedback |
| a specific problem a business area has. | | | | we have had from that has been very, very positive. It |
| So everybody will come with a problem and they will | | | | is not like, congratulations, you have finished the project, |
| agree which one they want to address and you can | | | | here is the sticker and you are a Black Belt. They |
| probably do two of three in the cost, and you use all | | | | have got to do a presentation to the business, they |
| the BPI tools, all the process improvement tools, all the | | | | have got to prove the benefits, they have got to write |
| Lean and Sigma tools as appropriate to solve that | | | | the technical story board, they have to prove they can |
| problem. It is about making quick decisions. That again | | | | really handle the tools, so what they get is a good solid |
| gives us a lot of grassroots buying. | | | | qualification. That makes it worthwhile and keeps |
| So that was the stuff that went well. The stuff that did | | | | people infused, and despite having to jump through |
| not go quite so well were basically external influences, | | | | these hoops of fire, people are still wanting to do it. |
| things such as the current credit crunch, people are | | | | Training and Mentoring: We have been increasing the |
| getting pulled off all of a sudden, there are more | | | | business skills, as I said. So what we have done is get |
| important fires to fight than there is to do process | | | | people to actually deliver the training. So I am going to |
| improvement. A massive, massive problem for us, I | | | | be doing Lean Green Belt training. We use our existing |
| have already hinted is that when we get successful | | | | Black Belts to deliver that training, which maintains their |
| buying, the people who give us that buying, senior level | | | | skills and gives them a chance to revise and use skills |
| tend to be pretty good, and they get promoted out. | | | | that they probably would not get to use in our industry |
| We have got a horrendous turnover of senior | | | | otherwise. And the final point is the Black Belt Master |
| management. | | | | classes. What we are doing here is focusing on |
| In one absolute classic lunch time, I just completed | | | | specific areas where people think they might have |
| some Green Belt training, gone out to the pub with the | | | | problems. Statistical Analysis is a classic one. They |
| people who would finish the exam. So they had a | | | | might want to do more on Hypothesis Testing |
| couple of beers and something to eat. I was in the pub | | | | because we do not use it. We have also done |
| for an hour, I got three phone calls and in the space of | | | | Customer Journey Mapping and we have done |
| that hour I had four different bosses. You answer the | | | | Mentoring. I think one of the next things that we are be |
| phone you are working for Martin, you answer the | | | | looking at-oh yeah, simulation. Using Process Modeling, |
| phone again, you are not working for Martin anymore, | | | | this kind of thing, we do not to get to do it very often. |
| you are working for Sue, pick up the phone, you are | | | | Now the fourth one, and another potentially new thing |
| not working for Sue anymore, you are now working | | | | is the Change Practice Framework. The idea is to build |
| for Alex. | | | | and sustain changes in working practices within the |
| Fantastic turnover of management, fantastic turnover | | | | company. Now we actually developed the Change |
| of sponsors. If we could keep hold of a sponsor for | | | | Practice Framework. It is a blatant plagiarization of |
| more than about six months, we would be doing really, | | | | Cotter's work. It has been very, very effective; it was |
| really well. So I guess that is the end of the message. | | | | pushing down into three areas. We have the people |
| You need this high-level buying that stays around. | | | | change journey, which is, imagine, you go through a |
| They have got to stop disappearing. The conflicting | | | | change but as a person, what is it like to go through |
| business priorities, again, comes back to this-a good | | | | that change, not what does the process do but what |
| example is the situation that we are in now. As soon | | | | does the individual do? Makes you think about what is |
| as things start going wrong, people will stop looking at | | | | happening to the teams that you are working with. |
| doing process improvement and they will get back out | | | | Within that, there is the Change Practice Framework |
| to doing the fire-fighting. That is still a big problem for | | | | that shows us the skills, the knowledge, and the |
| us. | | | | behaviors that people need in order to be successful in |
| That is a customer journey map, very powerful, very | | | | that particular stage of the change, and we have an |
| simple, obviously this is not a Norwich Union customer | | | | online Center of Excellence that enables us to identify |
| journey map. I would get shot if I showed you a | | | | potential training interventions or templates of tools or |
| genuine Norwich Union customer journey map. So it is | | | | samples that worked in the past examples of each of |
| a very genetic example, and it is in the packet | | | | those stages of that change journey. |
| hopefully as well. | | | | The way we have rolled it out is to actually run |
| What it does is it puts a process in customer language. | | | | one-day classes, the class is experiential, so we put |
| Now all of this stuff about implementing change and | | | | people into the situation that uses the URI, property |
| making change successful comes down to one thing. It | | | | developing company. So you are going to take an old |
| is the people, the people will make it work and the | | | | house and develop it into something really expensive, |
| people will screw it over. It is all down to people. | | | | and we get the people to actually run that through as |
| Now in a customer journey map what we have done | | | | a team who are going through that series of changes, |
| is gone into all of the business areas and with Black | | | | it is very, very different. Again people find it difficult |
| Belts to support and we have talked about what it is | | | | sometimes, I think in terms of people as opposed to |
| that that business area delivers to our customers? Not | | | | processes. The other thing that has been new for |
| in business voice, not in technical process mapping | | | | people is using data to influence decisions. Typically, |
| voice, but in customer voice. So we face things like, I | | | | what you got was the person who shouted loudest |
| want, I need. | | | | got their project done. So using Dieter (ph) has |
| So in this particular case, we are looking at going to a | | | | become something that is very new. |
| supermarket. Now what all customers at shops and | | | | Staff development is around the fact that on the back |
| customers at supermarkets, so they can do this fairly | | | | of the Change Practice Framework we were trying to |
| easily. If you think about the times when you actually | | | | build more rounded individuals. We had a situation |
| have contact with that supermarket, they are the | | | | where we have people from my IT delivering change, |
| touch-points, and within those touch points you have | | | | and we had people from our Lean Six Sigma team |
| moments of truth when the supermarket can either | | | | delivering change. It was a bit difficult to tell who was |
| make a really good experience for you or really bad | | | | doing what. What the Change Practice Framework |
| experience for you. And you also have decision points | | | | enabled us to do was to build training interventions to |
| where you can think, this is so bad, I am not going to | | | | try and get a more rounded changed team. It is |
| come here ever again or this is brilliant and I will | | | | worked with the moderate degree of success so far, |
| definitely come back next time. | | | | and it is also now being rolled down to other the |
| So the second one in there, the first one is it is easy to | | | | business areas. That is which I am sure you cannot |
| get to. Well, if it is not easy to get to you are not going | | | | rate is the Change Practice Framework. |
| to go. It has got decent car parking. Well you might | | | | What we have along the top is the stages of the |
| decide if the car park is full you are not going to go | | | | journey that quite blatantly nicked from Cotter, and |
| back there again. And this thing attracts too and what | | | | down the side we have the emotional endpoint. We |
| you do is with a great deal of honesty, put down | | | | had a lot of fund coming up with the emotional |
| where you are in terms of your customers' view on | | | | endpoints. |
| this map. So if you have got something where you | | | | I am excited about where we are, dying to get it done. |
| think you are really good at, so this supermarket | | | | It is all about that, it is like the kind of thought that you |
| obviously thinks it is easy to get to, and there is enough | | | | would be having at that point in that particular change |
| car parking because they are above the line. | | | | journey. |
| However, there are some questions about how | | | | The next section down is the kind of activities that |
| friendly the staffs are, which is probably not a good | | | | would be going on at that stage. Below that we have |
| thing, and there is some question about whether the | | | | the required outcomes of that stage of the change |
| people can actually find what they want. So you | | | | journey. The kind of behaviors that somebody would |
| complete this customer journey map, and guess what, | | | | be exhibiting at that point, and finally some of the |
| that highlights to yourself the areas where you need to | | | | supporting factors that would be going on. |
| improve. This would then drill down into what are our | | | | So if you have mentioned all of these, you have got a |
| processes, what are the things that we do that | | | | change journey going along, you are in a particular |
| support that particular customer experience? | | | | point of the change journey. So you are just kicking it |
| If you have got something that is below the line, that | | | | off and you think DMAIC, what would I have been |
| highlights the areas where you need to start thinking. It | | | | doing in the DMAIC phase? So what we have done |
| brings it around to the customer; it makes the people | | | | with the Center of Excellence is enable drill downs that |
| think in terms of customer voice. They are very, very | | | | would go down to the kind of tools you would find in |
| powerful. They are not easy to do because people | | | | the DMAIC phase of a project. |
| often cannot think or find it difficult to think in terms of | | | | It has worked out very powerful, but it has been quite |
| what a customer is thinking, and the trick there is to | | | | convoluted, and it is working extremely well. But it is |
| use the appropriate language. So the staff are friendly | | | | kind of the thing embedded, it is so complex, it is a |
| and helpful, I can find what I want, I need this, I want | | | | case of getting the thing embedded. It is working about |
| that; that into customer voice. | | | | four or five business areas now and people are really |
| Third challenge: Retaining the energy of the | | | | adopting it. |
| excitements of your core process improvement team. | | | | So quick summary: Lessons learned; we got the four |
| From very, very recent experience, a good way of | | | | challenges. So the challenges have been lack of |
| not doing this is making half of the redundancy. It does | | | | direction and focus. A strong support from the highest |
| not encourage people to stick around and carry on | | | | level, it is continuous improvement ability and the |
| doing their jobs. So what we have tried to do is to give | | | | mindset of continuous improvement within the business |
| the people who have come on to our central team | | | | area. And I think somebody else mentioned earlier: |
| and the people in the business. The kind of support | | | | communicate, communicate, communicate. Keep |
| that they need in order to carrying on wanting to do | | | | communicating your successes. |
| this stuff because if do not want to do it, we have | | | | The expectations of instant Return On Investment, |
| gotten no chance of the people on the shop floor | | | | well, the key is basically, we found lots of areas in our |
| wanting to do it. They have a less chance of the | | | | business where we can do JDIs, Just Do Its. Run many |
| senior management supporting. | | | | workshops, find the things that can be done quickly |
| What we found is that the roles have kind of adapted | | | | and do them, that way people start building confidence. |
| as we have gone along. So the Black Belts have gone | | | | Central change teams move in motivation. It has not |
| from being project managers into doing consultancy. | | | | really happened in all, the redundancies have not |
| So now instead of actually going in and doing things, | | | | helped, but it is still there, but keep them involved, keep |
| we are actually being the catalysts and supporting the | | | | the skills up today, get them involved in training and |
| projects that go on. We recently had a project that I | | | | mentoring, and try to deliver things like master classes |
| consulted on, and it was along the lines of kind of like | | | | to make sure they are still wanted and loved. |
| gone aways. So in the transactional business we send | | | | External forces sometimes lead to a lack of business |
| out letters to people informing them that something is | | | | involvement, we start to lose interest. The consultancy |
| going on, and that letter comes back on open because | | | | approach worked really well. So why not deliver by |
| it has gone to the wrong address in theory. | | | | helping other people to deliver that changes so they |
| There are lots and lots of reasons why that can | | | | got lot more buying, and effectively it will lead this to a |
| happen, but they wanted to solve these gone-aways | | | | situation where we do not actually own any of this |
| problem because it was a massive, massive amount | | | | change anymore. All the change that goes on is |
| of mail coming in. Now that sounds like an absolutely | | | | owned by the business areas, because it is owned by |
| classic leaning process, process improvement project, | | | | the business areas, it goes through a lot smoother, |
| brilliant. I did not go in and do it; somebody else went | | | | almost smoothly, and the control phase becomes a lot |
| and did it. That was an inappropriate business area. I | | | | easier because people want to keep it going. |
| went and supported it, helped them to design simple | | | | So that is basically all I have got apart from one extra |
| systems, used some of the tools, facilitating | | | | slide. Have you all got pencil and paper? No. This is a |
| workshops. It was good because I not only got to go | | | | blatant personal dig. I am not going home at the end of |
| into a new business area, but I was only in that part of | | | | this-I am going to New York. I am going to New York-I |
| the time. So for me that worked really well. I do not | | | | would say race in the New York Marathon, but that is |
| particularly enjoy Project Management but I do enjoy | | | | nice, I am going to run in the New York Marathon and |
| consultancy. Other people enjoy Project Management. | | | | if I get around in one piece I would be really, really |
| They have carried on doing Project Management type | | | | happy. |
| stuff. | | | | I am not doing that for fun, I am doing it for two |
| Others wanted to actually to go back into the | | | | reasons. First of all, because I am 50, and I wanted to |
| business, they wanted to go back into finance, they | | | | do something really silly, and secondly, to raise money |
| wanted to go back into recoveries, and to some | | | | for a children's charity. So I thought as I had actually |
| business area, and apply their process improvement, | | | | got probably once in a lifetime opportunity to talk to an |
| try that. So that is what they have done. So people | | | | international conference. If anybody would like to |
| have actually gone down the career paths that they | | | | sponsor me, please feel free to make a note of that |
| have wanted whilst maintaining their Black Belt skills | | | | Web address, and anyone who is not coming, that |
| and, therefore, that started to spread the Black Belt | | | | goes direct to Barnardo's which is a children's charity |
| skills out. | | | | and supports vulnerable kids, not only in the U.K. |