Please share basic point when discussing Process Improvement for a IT development project, also share sample template which can be used for documenting the best practices. Saving Changes...
It is very dependent on what you intend to improve and how much you know about any issues. Improvement efforts are context specific.
Root cause corrective action can include activities like the 5-whys, fishbone diagrams, fault tree analysis, FMEA, etc. to identify root causes. Flow issues might be addressed by Lean, Theory of Constraints, Six Sigma, and combinations of those and others.
Consistent in any structured approach, you need to document your current process first. “Without standards, there can be no improvement.” Taiichi Ohno, father of the Toyota Production System Saving Changes...
I do agree with Keith on the point that improvement endeavors are context specific.
I usually work with the following tools and techniques:
Cause and Effect Diagram, Flowchart, Check Sheet, Pareto Diagram, Histogram, Control Chart, Value Stream Mapping, Scatter Diagram, DMAIC, SIPOC, FMEA, Gemba, Kaizen, Kaizen events, 5S, 5 Whys, Visual Management, Root Cause Analysis, Lean Coffee, Standard Work, A3, OEE Analysis, Capacity and Demand Analysis, Spaghetti Diagram, Activity Sampling, Hypothesis Testing, Time and Motion Study, Day in the Life of (DILO), Meeting Mapping, Skills and Training Assessment, Performance Board Assessment, Maintenance Diagnostic, and Leadership Interview.
According to Lean Six Sigma philosophy, everything that does not generate value is considered waste, i.e., Muda; Lean Six Sigma defines eight types of waste)
1. Defects: defects reduce the value available to customers in the manufacturing environment and the knowledge work.
2. Overproduction: waste occurs when, for instance, items are produced before they are needed (manufacturing environment) / building features that are not required (knowledge work).
3. Inventory: the stock of goods, work-in-process, raw materials (manufacturing environment) / unfinished work - for example, it can cause a tendency to forget dependencies in other work, or if the work changes, modifications are not included in the unfinished work (knowledge work).
4. Waiting: e.g., inventory sitting idle (manufacturing environment) / delays in workflow and feedback, which can lead to unplanned work (knowledge work)
5. Transportation: moving inventory, tools, information, and other items around (manufacturing environment) / moving work to other people, i.e., handoffs: losing information; hand-backs: losing time (knowledge work).
6. Motion - to illustrate, moving team members (manufacturing environment) / switching projects, i.e., switching tasks, can distract an individual's attention, which can produce additional costs (knowledge-work).
7. Excess Processing - imagine any redundant effort in production or communication, such as process bottlenecks, excessive information, unclear product specifications / a lot of analysis related to big batches; incremental delivery can reduce excess processing (knowledge work).
8. Non-utilized Talent: for instance, team members performing unnecessary work when their talent could be utilized in activities that can add greater value. Saving Changes...
You should analyse your project data to identify improvement opportunities. Also, you could do a project post-mortem (aka "Lessons Learned") with project stakeholders. Any ideas and recommendations should go into an improvement plan. Saving Changes...
Community Champion
