IMPROVE CONTINUOUSLY
WHY IT MATTERS
Improvement doesn’t happen by itself. Improvement is the result of a mindset that is never satisfied with current results or how things are done. To leaders who excel at continuous improvement, “good enough” is never good enough. Leaders who practice continuous improvement deliver improved value to their stakeholders and customers as a natural result of improving how the organization operates. They are there to make things better. Leaders that become content with current performance and ways of doing work will eventually be passed up by their competition, glossed over by their customers, and find their time as the leader short lived because of their passivity and stagnation.
WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE
Leaders that practice continuous improvement are driven by the idea they can always be better, do better, achieve more, and become more. They are champions of growth. They believe if something is worth doing once, then it is worth doing the second time even better. They know that an improved future will only come by taking the time to invest in improvement efforts today.
Leaders that continuously improve are quick to exchange old ways of doing things for new. They look for and accept new ideas from anywhere and anyone if they will make things better. They seek out new processes, best practices, technologies, systems, thinking, energy, and creativity. They implement customer and stakeholder feedback. They put in place means through which they can engage people to gain insights for change. They don’t believe in doing something the way it has always been done. They don’t get attached to work to the point they can’t change, give up, or accept something different. They are challengers of the status quo.
Leaders that continuously improve create an environment and culture within their organization that empowers other people to find and make improvements themselves. They implement feedback loops and systems that give people at every level of the organization a voice to raise ideas and possibilities. If someone can make something better they are given the green light to do so, no matter where they work. For their organizations, leaders make continuous improvement the expectation. They reward people and recognize them for improvement efforts and new ideas.
Leaders that continuously improve rely on data, metrics, and measurement to enhance their improvement efforts. They create concrete and easy to sustain ways of measuring work output and performance. They use data and metrics to determine if potential improvement projects are worth the investment and prove the impact of their improvement efforts.
Leaders that continuously improve, apply standardized methodologies from the fields of process and performance improvement. They look to improvement experts to provide counsel and guidance to their efforts. They create formal projects to analyze how work is being done and how to do it better. They have high standards, reach them, raise them, and then challenge themselves to do it again.
BELIEFS
SELF-REFLECTION
WORDS OF CAUTION
Improvement doesn’t happen by itself. Improvement is the result of a mindset that is never satisfied with current results or how things are done. To leaders who excel at continuous improvement, “good enough” is never good enough. Leaders who practice continuous improvement deliver improved value to their stakeholders and customers as a natural result of improving how the organization operates. They are there to make things better. Leaders that become content with current performance and ways of doing work will eventually be passed up by their competition, glossed over by their customers, and find their time as the leader short lived because of their passivity and stagnation.
WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE
Leaders that practice continuous improvement are driven by the idea they can always be better, do better, achieve more, and become more. They are champions of growth. They believe if something is worth doing once, then it is worth doing the second time even better. They know that an improved future will only come by taking the time to invest in improvement efforts today.
Leaders that continuously improve are quick to exchange old ways of doing things for new. They look for and accept new ideas from anywhere and anyone if they will make things better. They seek out new processes, best practices, technologies, systems, thinking, energy, and creativity. They implement customer and stakeholder feedback. They put in place means through which they can engage people to gain insights for change. They don’t believe in doing something the way it has always been done. They don’t get attached to work to the point they can’t change, give up, or accept something different. They are challengers of the status quo.
Leaders that continuously improve create an environment and culture within their organization that empowers other people to find and make improvements themselves. They implement feedback loops and systems that give people at every level of the organization a voice to raise ideas and possibilities. If someone can make something better they are given the green light to do so, no matter where they work. For their organizations, leaders make continuous improvement the expectation. They reward people and recognize them for improvement efforts and new ideas.
Leaders that continuously improve rely on data, metrics, and measurement to enhance their improvement efforts. They create concrete and easy to sustain ways of measuring work output and performance. They use data and metrics to determine if potential improvement projects are worth the investment and prove the impact of their improvement efforts.
Leaders that continuously improve, apply standardized methodologies from the fields of process and performance improvement. They look to improvement experts to provide counsel and guidance to their efforts. They create formal projects to analyze how work is being done and how to do it better. They have high standards, reach them, raise them, and then challenge themselves to do it again.
BELIEFS
- If something is worth doing, it is worth improving. You will never get it perfect the first time, no matter how good you are.
- The more you have other people helping to think about how to improve the more you will improve.
- Improvement isn’t a one-time effort, it is a mindset for how you approach every day and every situation.
- In trying to improve the work you do today you will find the breakthrough thinking of tomorrow.
- Doing an old thing different can be as valuable as doing something totally new.
- In your search for improvement don’t forget the brightest insights will come from those who actually do the work.
- The greatest barrier to progress is history. If you want to move into the future you have to be able to give up the present.
- If you are afraid of change you will never improve. If you never improve, your organization will become a relic.
- Identify the sources of your mistakes.
- Don’t allow the same mistake to happen twice.
- Teach others to look for improvements.
- Reengineer work processes.
- Look for ways to gain efficiencies.
- Create a culture that chases improvement.
- Find new ways to use existing resources.
- Rely on data to identify where to improve.
- Use metrics to measure performance and results.
- Create accurate baselines from which to measure.
- Always questions why things are done.
- Talk to people about how things could be better.
- Challenge people to raise their sights.
- Use brain storming to find new ideas.
- Commission formal improvement projects.
- Challenge established ways of doing things.
- Don’t ever be satisfied with current results.
- Establish feedback loops in the organization.
- Create action plans to overcome errors.
- Allows new ideas to come from anywhere.
- Don’t be afraid of changing things.
- Believe things can always be better than they are.
SELF-REFLECTION
- Do I see myself as someone who is driven to improve, or do I see myself as someone who is content with how things are?
- Do I figure out how to do something better the second time I do it, or do I do it the same as the first time?
- Do I value improving how work gets done, or do I like do things the same way every time?
- Do I change out the old ways of doing things for new ways, or do I hold onto the past too long?
- Do I accept ideas for improvement from anyone, or do I only pay attention to ideas that originate from my inner circle?
- Do I give people the freedom to fix what they see needs fixing, or do I limit their ability to make improvements?
- Do I make continuous improvement the expectation of the organization, or do I make improvement an unfamiliar ideal?
- Do I employ standardized methodologies for continuous improvement, or do I overlook the value they provide?
WORDS OF CAUTION
- Don’t forget to express gratitude for current results because of your insatiable appetite to always want things to be better.
- Don’t get so focused on improving tomorrow that you inadvertently lose sight of today.
- Don’t jump into every improvement idea or project without stopping to determine if it is really worth the investment.
- I can spontaneously switch gears and change direction.
- I like being thought of as a maverick.
- My manager is able to quietly make things happen.
- My greatest strength is the ability to get things done.
- I need the right amount of stress in order to give my best effort.
- Facing hard decisions is the best way to improve our work environment.