Enterprises Improvement

A perennial issue for Enterprise managers in Government, Private or Not for Profit is to detect, analyse and  execute improvement opportunities. Problem manifestations do not always point to root causes; common manifestations such as sales decline, employee dissatisfaction, cost increases, profit reduction, quality challenges do not always point to problem origination.

The problem is “Where to start?”. That problem can often be made worse by “knee jerk” reactions; “Let’s reorganise”‘ “Let’s get a new system”. These type of responses can be correct but only after analyses and identification of root causes. Often they fall under the heading of “Action masquerading as Progress”. Managers want to be seen as doing something; being in charge.

Even when the root cause is identified the difficulty is where to begin. In an active and busy business it is not practical to stop operations whilst issues are resolved.

At RMHL we have developed proven solutions to Enterprises that are under performing; We have solutions that pinpoint the exact root causes, where to start, how to get commitment and enthusiasm for change and how to embed perpetual improvement as a cultural norm.

Enterprise Management System

A core responsibility of Managers is to ensure that the Enterprise works as efficiently as possible. People have an innate ability to sense when an Enterprise feels efficient; they can also sense when things are wrong. Critical signs can manifest as any mix of the following

  • Customer complaints are increasing
  • Processes do not work as planned; they often have different outcomes
  • Policies are not applied evenly
  • Morale is low
  • Some personnel are overworked; others, not so much
  • Staff feel they are not being listened to
  • The cost base keeps rising; despite sales flagging
  • Things just feel “wrong”

Where root cause identification is missing these reaction can make the problems worse.

So what does a poor pressurised Manager do and more particularly “Where on Earth to start?”

That is where as a very young accountant with little experience, the author started. He would ask the following question of his superiors: “How does this company work?” All his superiors gave reasonable answers but there was a pattern. The accountants would tell him how the accounts worked; the IT people would tell him how the IT worked; the engineers would express in engineering terms. The issue was no one could articulate the explanation in cross discipline terms. That presented a challenge when trying to seek root causes or imposing Enterprise wide change.

Over some years the Enterprise Management System was developed to address cross discipline analyses, root cause identification and a change management process which directly measures success. In this context “Enterprise” means the components necessary to organise and execute the Enterprise and includes Processes, Management Information and Organisation.

The Enterprise Model is a top down, process centric construct. This is important because it demonstrates that the Enterprise must be guided by Business Objectives (Separately we can demonstrate how Business Objectives relate to Vision and Mission statements). It is also important to recognise that Process defines how resources are used to fuel the Enterprise’s business objectives. “Process Centricity” © is essential. Common definitions of Process revolve around phraseology such as ” a connected set of actions” or “defined sequence of activities”. Whilst these definition types have value (and they are almost universal), they are inadequate; they miss the central point. That point is that Processes are the vectors which utilise Enterprise Components to deliver business objectives

It is Process, articulated to deliver Business Objectives (and influenced by Policy), that expends the Enterprise Cost Base. Process can use either a thick or thin slice of the Enterprise Cost base to deliver its objectives. Thick slices cost more

The four EM diagrams illustrate how the principles of this philosophy are connected.

Inefficient Process can use up to 80% more resources than efficient resources.

As a minimum we aim to:

  • Remove a minimum 40% of the Enterprise cost base
  • Increase Quality
  • Increase Customer Satisfaction and
  • Increase Employee Satisfaction

In order to achieve this level of improvement it is axiomatic that Process must be measurable. This is one of many unique aspects of the EMS. It moves Process from something “fluffy” to a hard and regularly measured and reported Enterprise Component.

WHAT IS THE CALL TO ACTION??

Tender / RFx

The world uses the RFP or Tender process to elicit price, scope and terms in anticipation of making progress to a contract. The process is familiar to anyone in procurement and its counterparts sales and contractual management. The process is highly inefficient and restricts the accumulation of useful data and information. This is because each RFP process isolates data and information with Word and Excel documents. These documents are transactional and are difficult to mine information.

At Rebus Marg we have developed an online RFP product called RFx which digitises the entire process for both Purchaser and Supplier:

  • Reduces process time
  • Cuts down costs
  • Automates much of the process including Tender Assessment
  • Provides immediate Management Information including event and timing alerts
  • Facilitates aggregation of demands across Groups delivering economies of scale
  • Provides solid audit trails and litigation information when needed

WHAT IS THE CALL TO ACTION??

Contract Management

Contract Management is the process of managing contract creation, execution, demise and analysis to maximize operational and financial performance within an Enterprise. This is to ensure that agreed deliverables are made whilst reducing operational, financial and legal risks.

Enterprises typically organise their external commercial relationships through contracts. As companies increasingly establish strategic relationships for instance “Just in Time” supply contracts.  

  • The expected business benefits and financial returns are being realized
  • The supplier is cooperative and responsive to the organization’s needs
  • The organization encounters no contract disputes or surprises
  • The delivery of services is satisfactory to both parties

WHAT IS THE CALL TO ACTION??