Diploma of Management
Facilitate continuous improvement
Required Skills and Knowledge
This section describes the skills and knowledge required for this unit.
Required skills
• communication skills to communicate opportunities for improvement
• learning skills to coach and mentor staff, using a range of methods to cater for
• different learning styles
• innovation and lateral thinking skills to design better ways for achieving work
• outcomes
• planning skills to establish and monitor systems and process for continuous
• improvement
• teamwork and leadership skills to gain the confidence and trust of others
Required knowledge
• continuous improvement models
• knowledge management systems
• quality systems
• sustainability principles
Assessment Part A Continuous Improvement Systems
Performance objective
The candidate must demonstrate knowledge of continuous improvement systems.
Specifications You must:
? provide an appropriate and detailed response to each of the items listed under in the procedure.
Your assessor will be looking for:
? literacy skills to access and use workplace information and to write a succinct and practical plan.
? technology skills to use software to produce plans ? planning and organisational skills.
? numeracy skills to allocate and manage financial resources.
? knowledge of models and methods for operational plans.
? knowledge of budgeting processes.
? knowledge of alternative approaches to improving resource usage and eliminating resource inefficiencies and waste.
Adjustment for distance-based learners
? A follow-up interview may be required (at the discretion of the assessor).
? Documentation can be submitted electronically or posted in the mail. Assessment description
You are required to answer a series of questions dealing with continuous improvement models.
Procedure
1. Read the questions as shown.
2. Use your texts, classroom learning and research to determine complete and relevant responses.
3. Submit the responses in the required format.
Item 1: Define and explain the purpose of TQM.
Item 2: What elements within a manufacturing environment need to be reduced or eliminated as part of a Lean Manufacturing focus?
Item 3: What is ‘Five S' and what are the five disciplines? Provide an example of using each ‘S' to reduce waste in the workplace.
Item 4: List the benefits and features of the Six Sigma approach and DMAIC.
Item 5: Roughly sketch a Normal Distribution Curve and mark areas representing 1s (68.27%), 2s (95.45%), 3s (99.74%).
Item 6: Select a problem you have encountered in the workplace or elsewhere and draw a cause and effect diagram to show how causes can be determined.
Item 7: On a statistical process control chart, explain why it is necessary for control limits to be a higher magnitude than customer expectations.
Item 8: Name and draw two (2) typical shapes that are formed using a histogram and describe what they could depict in your business or life experiences.
Item 9: Name two (2) circumstances for which a scatter diagram should be used.
Assessment Part B Improvement plan
Performance objective
The candidate must demonstrate skills in leading and facilitating a continuous improvement project that develops strategies to improve work outcomes or organisational functioning.
Specifications
You must submit
? an improvement plan, and
? supporting documentation
The improvement plan must provide
? the rationale, qualitatively and quantitatively, for your recommendations
? a plan for communicating to those people affected by the strategy and engaging them in the execution of the strategy.
The improvement strategies must support each other in the improvement of performance or customer service.
The project deliverables must include:
? problem definition statement (template provided Appendix 1)
? operational plan for work area (template provided Appendix 3)
? project outline (template provided Appendix 4)
? written confirmation of approval by supervisor/assessor
? decision matrix (template provided Appendix 2) ? strategy documentation including:
? action plan (template provided Appendix 5)
? communication plan
? project diary including notes on:
? coaching/mentoring of team members (at least three [3] individuals)
? issues raised and corrective action taken (as required) ? Meeting 1 minutes (template provided Appendix 6) including:
? attendance, apologies, meeting date and time
? recognised productivity/customer service problems
? problem definition statements
? actions to be taken by all team members
? Meeting 2 minutes ((template provided Appendix 6) including:
? attendance, apologies, meeting date and time
? possible solutions
? action plan (template provided Appendix 5)
? decision matrix (template provided Appendix 2)
Adjustment for distance-based learners
This Assessment Task can be adjusted for distance learners. Recommended adjustments are provided below.
? The candidate should conduct the project as specified in the Assessment Task, but may require adjustment for interviewing, or other situations where the assessor and candidate meet face-to-face.
? The project team or group does not need to be fellow students but can be comprised of friends, family, local club members, workmates, and so on.
? Interviews can be varied to take place by phone.
? The presentation can be varied to take place by Skype conference. If that is possible, the process followed does not need to be varied greatly.
? The candidate should email presentation material (PowerPoint file) to the assessor prior to the presentation.
? Additional evidence (documents, photos, videos) may be required and can be electronic but must conform to the format guidelines provided to the candidate.
? A follow-up interview may be required at the discretion of the assessor.
? Evidence can be submitted electronically or posted in the mail.
Assessment description
Scenario: You are a manager of a workplace with the strategic goal of either increasing productivity or customer service measures by 10% within 12 months.
You are required to coordinate a team to:
? identify organisational functioning issues that are resulting in lower productivity than desired or customer satisfaction results lower than desired ? analyse the problems:
? use continuous improvement techniques to analyse the continuous improvement system in the workplace
? develop continuous improvement strategies to address the performance issues and these strategies may include, but are not limited to, improving:
? performance measurement and management
? job roles and clarity of expectations
? rewards and recognition
? communication systems ensuring team members are informed of continuous improvement efforts
? training and development
? effective mentoring and buddy systems
? develop an action/implementation plan to implement the strategy
? develop an action/implementation plan to implement a monitoring process
? implement the monitoring process
? write a report with recommendations and an action plan to improve performance and further monitoring to identify further opportunities for improvement.
Procedure
1. Define the scope
Identify a work area and a performance issue (productivity or customer service) for the project.
Note: you may be assigned a work area depending on your job role.
2. Identify qualitative issues
Complete discussions with managers, supervisors and frontline staff in the work area to identify qualitatively what the major issues that limit performance or impact on customer service are and gather quantitative data about the business plan/strategic goals of the workplace.
3. Develop the operation/improvement plan
Create an operational plan for the work area (using the template provided). Use the operational plan as the basis of defining the outcomes required from implementing the strategy.
Note: be sure to incorporate processes that adhere to relevant sustainability requirements.
4. Develop Project Outline
Create a project outline (template provided) and submit to your supervisor/assessor for approval.
5. Organise your team
Specifically you will need to organise:
a. Team members (who in the organisation will assist in the quantitative analysis and provide knowledge of the work area and help in formulating/prioritising possible solutions?)
b. Stakeholders (who will be affected?)
c. Sponsor (who can approve/support your project?).
6. Organise the monitoring process
Specifically you will need to organise:
a. who is going to measure what
b. when measurements will be taken, and for how long
c. how measurements will be taken and reported
d. where measurements are to be stored and for how long
e. how team members will be informed of outcomes of continuous improvement efforts
f. training/coaching for people who will undertake the measurements (ensure you use a range of methods to cater for different learning styles).
7. Meeting 1
Organise a meeting with team members and explain the project parameters. Inform members of the results of your qualitative analysis. Seek feedback and generate ideas for possible actions and further monitoring. Record the minutes in the template provided.
a. Identify performance management/training/role clarity/planning/ communication/reward/recognition problems by brainstorming with the team members.
b. Document the problems using the problem definition statement template. Identify methods of measuring and quantifying those issues with the team. Methods may include but are not limited to:
i. check-sheets
ii. process maps
iii. customer service surveys iv. employee surveys.
8. Collect the data to quantify the problem
How big is the problem? Record initial state using data, diagrams, photos, KPIs. In some cases, incident reports, audit reports, customer and employee surveys may provide details of the initial state.
a. Provide appropriate tools to your team and organise them to collect data as required.
9. Analyse the data
Analyse the data collected to quantify your qualitative evaluation - quantifying will assist prioritisation of possible solutions.
10. Meeting 2
Reconvene with your team. Present the analysis of data and seek feedback.
a. Refine the problem definition statements on the template provided. Develop possible strategies that could provide solutions using appropriate tools such as force field analysis, cause and effect diagrams and brainstorming. Determine prioritisation criteria and prioritise solutions using a decision matrix (template provided).
b. Develop a course of action including a communication strategy and obtain affirmation from the group of the proposed course of action.
11. Strategy document
Prepare a strategy document. The strategy document should include appropriate reference to current state, goals, future state, stakeholders, KPIs, costs and benefits. Submit this to your sponsor and stakeholders for approval.
12. Obtain approval
Obtain approval from your sponsor and stakeholders. (If you didn't identify your stakeholders properly, you are going to have problems later.)
13. Action plan
Submit your final strategy document including an action plan that identifies team roles and responsibilities and communications strategy to your sponsor and stakeholders. It needs to show mechanism for ongoing monitoring and data analysis of planned solution.
14. Final presentation
Put all information/documentation into an improvement plan that includes all of the templates provided and other supporting evidence. Recommendations should include consideration of implications for the organisation's policies and procedures.
APPENDIX 1. PROBLEM DEFINITION STATEMENT TEMPLATE
WHAT IS THE IMPACT OF THE PROBLEM?
Direct
Indirect
WHO IS B EING IMPACTED AND TO WHAT EXTENT?
Directly
Indirectly
WHAT BEHAVIOUR NEEDS TO CHANGE?
Who has that behaviour?
SUMMARY STATEMENT:
Queensford College
APPENDIX 2. DECISION MATRIX
To determine the priority that should be attributed to possible solution as part of your strategy, use a decision matrix.
POTENTIAL PROJECTS CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS DECISION MATRIX SUMMARY
Ease of implementation Potential impact Cost Urgency Most requested by int. or ext. customers Obstacles
4 3 3 5 1 3
BSBMGT516C Facilitate continuous improvement
Queensford College
Rank potential projects from 1 (least) to 5 (most) against each of the elements:
? ease of implementation
? potential impact
? cost (reverse scoring: 1 for high cost, 5 for low cost)
? urgency
? most requested by customers
? obstacles (reverse scoring: 1 for many obstacles 5 for few obstacles).
Multiply the score for each project by the weighting score for each criterion. If the criteria do not suit the workplace or the work area involved, determine your own. Alter the weighting score (1-5) for each criterion as appropriate, ensuring you us the full range of lowest (1) to highest (5). Total the scores. Rank your projects by the highest score.
BSBMGT516C Facilitate continuous improvement
Queensford College
APPENDIX 3. OPERATIONAL PLAN
STRATEGIC GOALS OPERATIONAL GOALS
GOAL FOCUS KPI REASON/
BARRIERS DEPART
MENT DELIVER
ABLE GOAL KPI DUE
BSBMGT516C Facilitate continuous improvement
PROJECT OUTLINE
DESCRIPTION OF
PROBLEM
KEY PEOPLE
Project leader:
Project members:
Project sponsor:
Other stakeholders:
RECOMMENDATION/
METHOD
KEY RESULTS AREA
GOAL We will reduce/increase
____________________________ (KPI)
by ____________________________ (amount)
by ____________________________ (date)
COSTS
BENEFITS
SUSTAINABILITY
APPROVED BY
OUTCOME
ACTION PLAN
PROJECT:
GOAL/OBJECTIVE:
WHAT? HOW? WHO? WHEN? STATUS
MEETING MINUTES
Meeting purpose: Date: Time:
Attendance: Apologies:
ITEM/ISSUE ACTION TO BE TAKEN WHEN WHO
MONITORING PLAN
WORKPLACE MONITORED:
GOAL/OBJECTIVE:
PROCESS/
OUTCOME
TO BE
MONITORED MEASURE
USED PROCESS COMMUNICATION
PROCESS RESOURCES.