Improving Organizational Performance - Essay Example

Improving Organizational Performance Introduction: Considering the production department of the organization, quality and safety are two most essential issues that management needs to focus on for effectiveness of the overall performance of the company. Based on the employee survey, the senior management has obtained that quality and safety in the production department is one of the major issues currently faced by the organization, hence requiring improvement in processes. Process Improvement Process (PIP): In order to effectively implement process improvement process in the department, it is essential to first realize the exact meaning of the term. Process improvement process or PIP has been defined as – “a method to introduce process changes to improve quality, reduce costs, or accelerate schedules” (Mohapatra, 2012, p.43). Hence it represents a number of steps that needs to be considered for the organization, which will “identify, analyse and improve” the existing processes and problems within the company (Mohapatra, 2012, p.43). It is essential that a specific method is followed for this purpose by the entire management. Also, it would be suggested to take advantage of the most advanced and current technologies and processes for improving the quality and safety in production department of the organization. Current and Effective Methods for Improving Quality and Safety in the Production Department of the Organization: Safety Training - Safety training is considered as one of the most effective means to achieve safe production in an organization. It has been obtained that safety training allows an organization to achieve improvement in safety management level, and helps the management to achieve improvement in safety quality, safety skills, and safety consciousness. For this purpose advanced training methods can be used combining them with the needs of the organization, with continuous improvement being the central issue focused by the innovation and development of the processes (Zhu, 2011, p.100). However there are some problems that are associated with safety training. These mainly include: the unsound legal system associated with safety training; the low level of attention of enterprises towards safety training; poor level of suitability of content in safety training; poor level of effect evaluation and quality control; irregularity of structure level in stuffs; and poor level of contemporary means of education. These problems can however be overcome with suitable training programs, archives management, and teaching methods, which the management of the organization will have to take concern of (Zhu, 2011, pp.101-103). Six Sigma – Six Sigma represents a strategy for process improvement that helps to improve the quality of a finished product through identification and removal of errors existing in the processes. It helps in minimizing the variability in the processes of production, hence improving upon the quality and safety of the department. The five steps that needs to be followed under this PIP include: defining the goals of the team; measurement of the major factors that can impact the outcome of the processes; analysis of all information to determine cause-and-effect relationships; improvement of the high-impact factors through development of strategies; and control of the future state of processes to ensure the stability of quality and safety being targeted (Abujudeh and Bruno, 2012, p.162). Lean Manufacturing – Lean manufacturing is one of the process improvement processes that effectively improves quality in production and hence in the overall department. The authority of decision making is driven by the process of lean manufacturing in the department or area where work is being performed, by allowing every involved individual to make decisions. If this process is incorporated, then the focus will be on reduction of wastes which would improve all measures of production and performance such as quality, utilization of assets, management of materials, costs and delivery. This process enables a flexible combination of organization and systems targeting fulfilment of the demands in the market with effectively implementing production and supply chain together (Gifford, 2011, p.3). Benchmarking: While there are several process improvement processes available that can be applied for the organization for improvement of quality and safety of its production department, benchmarking of the state-of-the-art organizational process improvements can be considered as the most effective way to obtain the best and advanced PIP for the organization. Benchmarking is essential since advanced methods of improvement are constantly developing in the industry and hence comparison of methods and situations would prove to be the best way to determine the best PIP. For this purpose the following two steps would be essential and recommended to be performed by the management of the organization (Toney, 2001, p.249): Firstly, the management needs to make observations on other organizations in the same industry and make identifications of the best practices of PIP that are used by them and are proving to be effective. Secondly, these best practices need to be followed and implemented within the organization. In other words, the process involved comparing the quality and safety of the production department of the present organization in concern, with others in the industry to determine the differences and measures that are proving the other companies to be more effective than this organization. This is also the least expensive method of all other PIPs in the industry (Toney, 2001, p.249). With this process, the management will be able to determine the best standards and practices and decide accordingly for improving upon the current practices being followed in the production department, which otherwise requires improvement. Conclusion - Recommendations for the Organization: In order to improve the quality and safety of the production department of the organization, the following recommendations are suggested: To use benchmarking of the state-of-the-art organizational process improvements, and hence compare the organization’s processes with that of other organizations in the industry, to determine the best PIP suitable for the organization. To implement the best process identified through benchmarking. To give particular focus and comparison of the processes – lean manufacturing, Six Sigma, and safety training, and determine if any of these is suitable for the organization, and implement accordingly by the management. To carry out the entire process systematically – first through comparison of processes, then analysis of data to determine the suitability of the process with the organizational needs, and then implementing it for improvement. References Abujudeh, H.H. and M.A. Bruno (2012). Quality and Safety in Radiology (Google eBook). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Gifford, C. (2011). When Worlds Collide in Manufacturing Operations: ISA-95 Best Practices Book 2.0. North Carolina: ISA. Mohapatra, S. (2012). Business Process Reengineering: Automation Decision Points in Process Reengineering (Google eBook). Berlin: Springer Science & Business Media. Toney, F. (2001). The Superior Project Organization: Global Competency Standards and Best Practices. Florida: CRC Press. Zhu, M. (2011). Information and Management Engineering: International Conference, ICCIC 2011, Held in Wuhan, China, September 17-18, 2011. Proceedings. Berlin: Springer Science & Business Media. Read More