Five Steps for Improving Municipal Government Work Processes

From the ICMA (International City/County Management Association) website (www.icma.org) :
“Process improvement efforts systematically document, analyze, and reduce redundancies and inefficiencies in processes. The best systems focus employees on customer needs to drive improvements. They require time and management commitment across the organization.”

Well said.

My main “take aways” from this paragraph are the need for process improvement and the importance of meeting customer needs. But let’s make sure this is more than just lofty rhetoric.

Every organization needs a structured approach for improving processes. Any sound process improvement technique will have customer needs as an integral part of any activity.

Here is a simple and effective five step process for improving processes.

Step One: Define the Project
You should always start with a definition of the project. Often, there is a rush to action without truly knowing where action must be applied. Spend time (as painful as it may be) up front laying out the case for the project and constructing a context for the team to work through in the project.
The project definition should always start with the voice of the customer. Start this voice by identifying as many project stakeholders as possible. Stakeholders are all departments, people, entities, etc. that may be affected by the results of the project. (internal and external customers are examples of stakeholders) They deserve to know about the project before it starts. Their input will be valuable to help the team formulate a plan for action.
Other key components of a project definition include:
a. The project team
b. The team leader
c. The project’s scope
d. A business case for the project
e. A mentor for the project
f. A goal for the project
g. A metric for the project

Step Two: Measure the Process
As part of the project definition, the business process needing improvement must be defined. In step two, the team starts understanding the process. Measure its current performance by mapping the process steps and collecting as much performance data/information as you can.
Techniques for measuring a process include:
a. Simple process flow diagram
b. Deployment diagram
c. Value stream map
d. SIPOC diagram
e. Videotaping the process in action
f. Time studying the process in action
g. Brainstorming

Step Three: Analyze the Process
Now that you have thoroughly measured the process, take time to analyze the results of the measurement. Within the data and information is a story. You are looking for tangible opportunities for improvement. A key concept in the third step is the relationship between inputs and outputs.
Simply defined, a process converts inputs into outputs. Outputs are what customers require and are what we see and notice. When we say a process needs improvement, we are really saying an output must improve. To improve an output, we must improve inputs. The analyze step helps define the key inputs driving outputs.
Techniques used in the analyze step include:
a. Fishbone diagram
b. Nominal group technique
c. Matrix diagram
d. Scatter plot
e. Process Failure Mode Effects Analysis (PFMEA)

Step Four: Improve the Process
Once you hone in on the key inputs, you should have a good sense of what is needed for the process to improve. Now, take actions to improve the process. Use the PDCA cycle to implement your ideas. First, develop a plan (P) for implementation. Be clear on what you will try, experiment with, or implement. The plan is just a plan if you don’t put it into action so be sure and enact or do (D) the plan. You don’t know if it will work but you will not know until you try. Once you do the plan, take time to check (C) the results. What did you learn? What went right? What went wrong? Using the results of your check, decide on the next actions (A) to take. Do you go back to the drawing board and develop a new plan? Do you need more evidence? Did you like the results enough to permanently enact the changes? Whatever the case, go back to the plan step and start a new journey through the cycle.

Step Five: Control the Process
Once you have implemented and verified improvements, be sure and implement controls to sustain the positive results. If this step is skipped, the process could revert back to its previous state. Implement controls to keep an eye on the process and to alert the team if more opportunities for improvement arise.
Example of process controls include:
a. Process audits
b. System audits
c. Control plan
d. Statistical process control