Whether you’re a seasoned telecommunications professional, an experienced sales manager, or a new software developer, chances are that you may find yourself employed by a business who utilizes the concept of process excellence. There are many different types of process excellence, and they all vary in the way they are executed. If you’re already familiar with the concept, you may be curious about the different types of processes, but this information may be brand new to you. We’ll start with a definition:
What is process excellence?
Although there are many different types, each one focuses on ways for businesses to create and deliver value to their clients. Think of it as a specific approach that helps a company improve upon their quality and productivity. There are many different schools of thought. Three of them are outlined below:
- Lean
This concept is based on the idea that businesses want to preserve the value of their operations by doing less wasteful work. By eliminating waste and excessive operations, the company will save time and costs. This process was actually created by Toyota in the 1980s, as a reaction to solve problems that befell the company as it grew into a well-known entity. This is a very concrete solution for people to understand: when you make less unnecessary waste, you increase your profits and productivity. It’s also fast and easy to implement. It’s used a lot in manufacturing industries, including engineering, pharmaceutical, and automotive corporations. If you’re looking at thermoplastics, injection molding, or food production jobs, you may soon become familiar with Lean process excellence. - Six Sigma
This process is a bit more complicated. It’s based on quality improvement and provides a framework across many facets of a company in order to train employees, form a strategy, and implement effective business practices. It strives to reduce product defects and keep consistent business practices throughout the company. Motorola first implemented this practice in 1985, and it’s named after the “sigma rating,” which indicates a percentage of defect-free products. Although a 4.5 sigma rating (which represents 3.4 defects for every 1 million products) was noted as being a realistic goal, Motorola felt that 6 sigma represented the ultimate ambition. This process was later popularized by General Electric in the mid-1990s. Those in the engineering design industry, along with software developers and product designers, may be employed at companies who utilize Six Sigma. - Business Process Management
BPM is used to automate and manage processes. It looks at an entire industry in order to design, model, execute, monitor, and optimize. BPM looks to manage and synchronize the numerous departments within one company to promote customer satisfaction and meet demands. It’s a bit abstract, but it’s a method that links company and design improvement with strategy and management. Its origins are disputed, but many people cite the dot-com explosion of the new millennium as the time when BPM really caught on. Numerous companies use this model, and it’s most needed when a company has many branches that aren’t necessarily working as one.
In such a diverse and flooded marketplace, businesses use such models in order to increase their productivity and customer satisfaction. Although there are many processing methods that aren’t included in this list, this represents three main methodologies you may find across various industries. Different employers in the same field may use different methods to get results for their company, but if you’re new to the entire concept, having a basic foundation for these process methods is a good starting point.