| Productivity measures the ratio of output quantity over | | | | something new: Lean Six Sigma. After analysing the |
| input quantity. Increase of productivity means growing | | | | process using simple tools like Value-Stream-Mapping, |
| the output quantity faster than the input quantity. | | | | the team discovers some very interesting insights: |
| Output quantity can mean anything from number of | | | | 1. Customers are waiting up to three weeks for their |
| products made over number of customers served to | | | | renewal despite the fact that the actual renewal takes |
| number of donors treated or number of work passes | | | | usually only 15 minutes. |
| produced. Input is usually summarising all resources | | | | 2. The renewal team spends a significant amount of |
| needed to do this from raw material over equipment | | | | time on non-core activities such as answering calls of |
| to man hours. | | | | customers who do not understand the confusing |
| How is productivity increase possible? One way | | | | renewal notice. |
| seems to be obvious: we have to work faster so that | | | | 3. "Old habits" keep the process from running smoothly. |
| we get more done in the same time. Although, this | | | | Some team members, for instance, batch their work, |
| request might have been just right 30 years ago, it is | | | | i.e. they wait until Friday to work through a certain pile |
| highly inappropriate today and would lead to even | | | | of customer requests. Some team members are really |
| more frustration amongst the already overworked | | | | busy, some are not. They work on different customer |
| people. It is not about HOW FAST we work. It is about | | | | segments and hence "cannot" help each other. |
| HOW we get our work done. It is about the process, | | | | It does not take long for the team of process |
| rather than the people. | | | | stakeholders to come up with simple yet powerful |
| Running a process very fast does not necessarily | | | | improvement suggestions: |
| mean the process runs very productively. Although, | | | | 1. Reinventing the renewal notice with customers in |
| we have introduced IT support into all kind of | | | | mind. |
| processes over the last 40 years with the effect of | | | | 2. Redesigning the process by minimising non-core |
| speeding up some processes, the overall productivity | | | | activities and focussing on value-added steps. |
| has not shown the same amount of boost. Productivity | | | | 3. Increasing of flexibility of workforce by cross-training |
| of a process can be increased by reducing the input, | | | | and job-redesign as well as incentive for staff who is |
| i.e. the amount of raw material or manpower deployed | | | | willing to "upgrade" skills. |
| to generate output. | | | | One year later, the very same personnel are able to |
| Hence, the efficiency of a process is a good indicator | | | | handle an increase of 35% volume by increased |
| for opportunities to increase productivity. There are | | | | renewal rate. As a side-effect, by leading this |
| many ways to achieve this: small changes and small | | | | improvement effort the team leader has gained |
| gains can be expected through Kaizen, WITS or | | | | enough self confidence to be promoted into the |
| Quality Circles. The downside of these small changes | | | | management team. |
| is very often that they are not sustainable due to the | | | | Conclusion |
| reversible character of the improvements. Larger | | | | Increase in productivity can be achieved in multiple |
| impact can only be achieved by Process Improvement | | | | ways. The myth of implementing IT support as cure-all |
| or Process Re-design. | | | | for productivity problems has generally proven wrong. |
| An insurance company in Singapore facing multiple | | | | Sometimes IT is being used to speed up broken |
| complaints every day about long waiting time is looking | | | | processes... to generate the same old problems, but |
| for ways to increase customer satisfaction and | | | | faster. Focussing on the process, rethinking the way |
| hopefully number of renewals on a certain insurance | | | | the work gets done, redesigning and improving the |
| scheme without increasing the headcount. This seems | | | | flow of activities in all kind of functions will more likely |
| to be impossible since the team is already | | | | produce results. As a side-effect, it will contribute to |
| over-worked, the turnover is high and the morale | | | | staff development and enforcing leadership. |
| bottom-low. However, the CEO is keen to try | | | | |