Hcs 591 Process And Product Improvement Research Paper
Process and Product Improvement Paper
JoAnn Manigault
University of Phoenix
HCS 591
January 19, 2015
Process and Product Improvement Paper
Process is at the heart of most organizations sustainability impact and it is the process that consumes the most resources ("Manufacturing Skills Australia," n.d.). A product can be physical or service based as seen in health care where the process is the product. All processes have the potential for waste therefore understanding processes can help an organization eliminate waste. Process and product improvement is more than merely tweaking a process or two or upgrading a product. Process improvement is a systematic data-guided activity designed to improve operations and will often reduce energy and …show more content…
improve productivity while using the same level of resources.
Sustainability benefits of improving an organization 's processes and products
Consumers are increasingly interested in reducing their impact to the environment and are looking to businesses within in their communities, especially public agencies, to encourage this sustainable behavior. Improving the efficiency of people and systems contributes greatly to an organizations ability to be sustainable. Improving an organization’s processes and products is a part of Total Quality Management. In continuously improving processes and products, an organization is able to identify and eliminate problems in work processes and systems thereby enhancing the efficiency of people and machines, leading to improved quality (Nayab, 2011).
Sustainability is quickly being thought of as modern day TQM with the added benefit of making the world a better place (Fraser, 2011). Businesses are realizing sustainability can be a way to innovations that can help reinvent their company and their business model. Sustainability allows an organizations to look at every process in the organizations as well as every system and evaluate the efficiency- is there a better, safer, more efficient way of performing that task or using that software. It drives organizations to look at their supply chain and evaluate how the products they use every day are impacting the environment. Fraser (2011) says sustainable companies endure over time because they are able to deliver consistent operating performance and are able to identify and execute continuous improvements; the sustainable organization looks at what is new and improved and focuses on reducing their environmental impact using new and improved products and measuring and reducing their carbon, water, and waste footprints.
Identify needs for process and product improvements in an organization
To continuously improve, all organizations must have the ability to identify the need for change and improvement of processes as well as the ability to implement those changes. There are a multitude of potential process changes or product improvements that may be needed in any organization. Waste reduction, work flow improvements, improved customer interface, or upgrading of technology are some of the more common processes an organization may evaluate.
The opportunity for waste reduction in health care is tremendous. In general, waste reduction can be a process improvement activity for any organization. Waste reduction can include reducing the amount of paper and materials used, reducing the number of steps taken by reorganizing a process or reducing the amount of time a customer spends waiting for care or treatment. Waste reduction has the benefit of not only improve the productivity of an organization and reducing cost, it also offers sustainable benefit to the environment in helping an organization to reduce their environmental footprint.
Improving workflow helps to eliminate unnecessary steps and processes and any organizations can benefit from improving their workflow processes. Improved workflow process allows organizations to match appropriate task to appropriately skilled employees to improve the quality of a product or task. Developing workflow processes also allow leadership to see critical processes at every angle, monitoring end to end performances throughout (Gilligan, 2012).
No matter the business, the customer and interactions with the customer is vital for business. Very often many of the best ideas for improvement can come from the customer. Implementing recommended process improvements offered by the customer can improve an organization’s image as well as their business. The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (n.d.) says in order for an organization to benefit from improvements in quality, the customer has to recognize and appreciate the movement therefore when making decisions regarding process and product improvement, it is important to understand what is important to customer.
Organizations wishing to remain competitive, meet their mission of providing high quality service, or remain sustainable, must always evaluate the technology being used by their organization. This is a product improvement need for any organization. Improved technology holds benefits not just for the organization but for the customer as well. In health care, clinically-proven technologies offer better patient outcomes through better diagnostic tools as well as process efficiency (American Hospital Association [AHA], 2006). In other business environments, technology updates lead to more efficient business processes and improved productivity.
Strategies for creating process and product improvements in health care organizations
“While all changes do not lead to improvement, all improvement requires change” ("Institute for Healthcare Improvement," n.d., para. 1). The health care industry is constantly changing: changes brought on by federal regulations, changes related to the competitive market, or changes related to an organization’s bottom line. Regardless of the reason, organizations must have a process for systematically implementing quality improvements throughout their organization as a part of providing daily care.
To improve any process or product, it is necessary to see how a process or product actually works rather than how it is believed to work. After an analysis of the process or product, an organization would use change management principals to ensure successful implementation of the change. There are several change management principals organizations can use to identify processes and products for improvement but a couple of the more common principals are Total Quality Management (TQM) and the Lean process.
The Total Quality Management model is an organizational approach involving organizational management, teamwork, defined processes, system thinking, and change to create an environment for improvement (Hughes, 2008, para. 8). TQM ascribes to the concept that the entire organization must be committed to quality and improvement to achieve the best results.
The Institute of Health believes that lean processes can be just as effective in improving health care processes as it is in manufacturing processes because lean is a management strategy for improving processes (Womack, Byrne, Fiume, Kaplan, & Toussaint, 2005). The lean process begins with identifying waste so that work adds value and serves the customer’s needs (Womack et al., 2005). Through lean thinking health care organizations can identify ways to reduce cost and improve the quality of care provided and services delivered.
Conclusion
There are many models organizations can use to improve processes and products within their own organization; it just depends on what fits that organization. Perhaps the most important thing an organization can do is realize change is inevitable and because it is, it is important to be prepared for change and have a systematic way of implementing and managing change. An organization will not grow and cannot sustain without constant evaluation of their processes and products.
References
American Hospital Association. (2006). Adopting technological innovation in hospitals: Who pays and who benefits? Retrieved from http://www.aha.org/content/00-10/061031-adoptinghit.pdf
Fraser, M.
(2011). Sustainability as a business practice: The new TQM. Retrieved from http://www.sustainablebrands.com/news_and_views/articles/sustainability-business-practice-new-tqm
Gilligan, N. (2012). 10 benefits of workflow. Retrieved from https://workflow.wordpress.com/2012/11/02/10-benefits-of-workflow/
Hughes, R. G. (2008). Tools and strategies for quality improvement and patient safety. In R. G. Hughes (Ed.), Patient safety and quality: An evidence-based handbook for nurses. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK2682/
Nayab, N. (2011). Looking at the benefits of TQM. Retrieved from http://www.brighthubpm.com/monitoring-projects/70318-looking-at-the-benefits-of-tqm/
Process improvement. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://sustainabilityskills.net.au/what-is-sustainability/sustainability-practice/operations/process-improvement/
Using change concepts for improvement. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.ihi.org/resources/Pages/Changes/UsingChangeConceptsforImprovement.aspx
Womack, J. P., Byrne, A. P., Fiume, O. J., Kaplan, G. S., & Toussaint, J. (2005). Going lean in health care. Retrieved from Institute for Healthcare Improvement:
https://www.entnet.org/sites/default/files/GoingLeaninHealthCareWhitePaper-3.pdf
JoAnn Manigault
University of Phoenix
HCS 591
January 19, 2015
Process and Product Improvement Paper
Process is at the heart of most organizations sustainability impact and it is the process that consumes the most resources ("Manufacturing Skills Australia," n.d.). A product can be physical or service based as seen in health care where the process is the product. All processes have the potential for waste therefore understanding processes can help an organization eliminate waste. Process and product improvement is more than merely tweaking a process or two or upgrading a product. Process improvement is a systematic data-guided activity designed to improve operations and will often reduce energy and …show more content…
improve productivity while using the same level of resources.
Sustainability benefits of improving an organization 's processes and products
Consumers are increasingly interested in reducing their impact to the environment and are looking to businesses within in their communities, especially public agencies, to encourage this sustainable behavior. Improving the efficiency of people and systems contributes greatly to an organizations ability to be sustainable. Improving an organization’s processes and products is a part of Total Quality Management. In continuously improving processes and products, an organization is able to identify and eliminate problems in work processes and systems thereby enhancing the efficiency of people and machines, leading to improved quality (Nayab, 2011).
Sustainability is quickly being thought of as modern day TQM with the added benefit of making the world a better place (Fraser, 2011). Businesses are realizing sustainability can be a way to innovations that can help reinvent their company and their business model. Sustainability allows an organizations to look at every process in the organizations as well as every system and evaluate the efficiency- is there a better, safer, more efficient way of performing that task or using that software. It drives organizations to look at their supply chain and evaluate how the products they use every day are impacting the environment. Fraser (2011) says sustainable companies endure over time because they are able to deliver consistent operating performance and are able to identify and execute continuous improvements; the sustainable organization looks at what is new and improved and focuses on reducing their environmental impact using new and improved products and measuring and reducing their carbon, water, and waste footprints.
Identify needs for process and product improvements in an organization
To continuously improve, all organizations must have the ability to identify the need for change and improvement of processes as well as the ability to implement those changes. There are a multitude of potential process changes or product improvements that may be needed in any organization. Waste reduction, work flow improvements, improved customer interface, or upgrading of technology are some of the more common processes an organization may evaluate.
The opportunity for waste reduction in health care is tremendous. In general, waste reduction can be a process improvement activity for any organization. Waste reduction can include reducing the amount of paper and materials used, reducing the number of steps taken by reorganizing a process or reducing the amount of time a customer spends waiting for care or treatment. Waste reduction has the benefit of not only improve the productivity of an organization and reducing cost, it also offers sustainable benefit to the environment in helping an organization to reduce their environmental footprint.
Improving workflow helps to eliminate unnecessary steps and processes and any organizations can benefit from improving their workflow processes. Improved workflow process allows organizations to match appropriate task to appropriately skilled employees to improve the quality of a product or task. Developing workflow processes also allow leadership to see critical processes at every angle, monitoring end to end performances throughout (Gilligan, 2012).
No matter the business, the customer and interactions with the customer is vital for business. Very often many of the best ideas for improvement can come from the customer. Implementing recommended process improvements offered by the customer can improve an organization’s image as well as their business. The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (n.d.) says in order for an organization to benefit from improvements in quality, the customer has to recognize and appreciate the movement therefore when making decisions regarding process and product improvement, it is important to understand what is important to customer.
Organizations wishing to remain competitive, meet their mission of providing high quality service, or remain sustainable, must always evaluate the technology being used by their organization. This is a product improvement need for any organization. Improved technology holds benefits not just for the organization but for the customer as well. In health care, clinically-proven technologies offer better patient outcomes through better diagnostic tools as well as process efficiency (American Hospital Association [AHA], 2006). In other business environments, technology updates lead to more efficient business processes and improved productivity.
Strategies for creating process and product improvements in health care organizations
“While all changes do not lead to improvement, all improvement requires change” ("Institute for Healthcare Improvement," n.d., para. 1). The health care industry is constantly changing: changes brought on by federal regulations, changes related to the competitive market, or changes related to an organization’s bottom line. Regardless of the reason, organizations must have a process for systematically implementing quality improvements throughout their organization as a part of providing daily care.
To improve any process or product, it is necessary to see how a process or product actually works rather than how it is believed to work. After an analysis of the process or product, an organization would use change management principals to ensure successful implementation of the change. There are several change management principals organizations can use to identify processes and products for improvement but a couple of the more common principals are Total Quality Management (TQM) and the Lean process.
The Total Quality Management model is an organizational approach involving organizational management, teamwork, defined processes, system thinking, and change to create an environment for improvement (Hughes, 2008, para. 8). TQM ascribes to the concept that the entire organization must be committed to quality and improvement to achieve the best results.
The Institute of Health believes that lean processes can be just as effective in improving health care processes as it is in manufacturing processes because lean is a management strategy for improving processes (Womack, Byrne, Fiume, Kaplan, & Toussaint, 2005). The lean process begins with identifying waste so that work adds value and serves the customer’s needs (Womack et al., 2005). Through lean thinking health care organizations can identify ways to reduce cost and improve the quality of care provided and services delivered.
Conclusion
There are many models organizations can use to improve processes and products within their own organization; it just depends on what fits that organization. Perhaps the most important thing an organization can do is realize change is inevitable and because it is, it is important to be prepared for change and have a systematic way of implementing and managing change. An organization will not grow and cannot sustain without constant evaluation of their processes and products.
References
American Hospital Association. (2006). Adopting technological innovation in hospitals: Who pays and who benefits? Retrieved from http://www.aha.org/content/00-10/061031-adoptinghit.pdf
Fraser, M.
(2011). Sustainability as a business practice: The new TQM. Retrieved from http://www.sustainablebrands.com/news_and_views/articles/sustainability-business-practice-new-tqm
Gilligan, N. (2012). 10 benefits of workflow. Retrieved from https://workflow.wordpress.com/2012/11/02/10-benefits-of-workflow/
Hughes, R. G. (2008). Tools and strategies for quality improvement and patient safety. In R. G. Hughes (Ed.), Patient safety and quality: An evidence-based handbook for nurses. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK2682/
Nayab, N. (2011). Looking at the benefits of TQM. Retrieved from http://www.brighthubpm.com/monitoring-projects/70318-looking-at-the-benefits-of-tqm/
Process improvement. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://sustainabilityskills.net.au/what-is-sustainability/sustainability-practice/operations/process-improvement/
Using change concepts for improvement. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.ihi.org/resources/Pages/Changes/UsingChangeConceptsforImprovement.aspx
Womack, J. P., Byrne, A. P., Fiume, O. J., Kaplan, G. S., & Toussaint, J. (2005). Going lean in health care. Retrieved from Institute for Healthcare Improvement:
https://www.entnet.org/sites/default/files/GoingLeaninHealthCareWhitePaper-3.pdf