3 pillars of a successful culture of improvement (Part 1)

The foundation of continuous improvement is a cycle of: seizing opportunities for improvement, implementing them, measuring impact and sharing knowledge. Over time, that cycle becomes self-sustaining as inspiration inspires greater, and an improved culture continually spreads throughout the organization, touching every process. The “seize opportunity, deploy, measure and share” cycle is built on three key elements: leadership support, consistent innovation methods and technology application.

The support of leadership

Continuous improvement experts agree that leadership support is a key element in the success of an ongoing improvement program within an organization. If an executive or manager does not feel the employee’s improvement efforts are important, eventually the employee will gradually lose enthusiasm for improvement. Indifference will also spread if leaders do not prove they are behind the initiative by providing guidance and support within the organization for change.

Without support for the implementation of a continuous improvement program, those who implement the improvement will be isolated in their activities. We know that leadership behavior will create or break a culture of innovation. So how do we empower leaders to engage and support employees without requiring their already overwhelming time? The answer is simple, a reliable method and a suitable technology.

Methods of implementation

Establish a method for leaders to engage and support employees in the improvement process. This helps to accelerate innovation, attract more participants, and maximize the impact on improvement efforts. Your improvement method needs 3 things:

• Simplicity: Simplicity in implementing the strategy you choose is the key to attracting employees. By establishing a method that is simple enough for everyone to participate, you eliminate barriers to participation.
• Consistency: Consistency of expectations, goals and processes ensures that people are speaking the same language, thereby enhancing collaboration and the potential for improvement to be realized.
• Discipline: Ensuring that improvement is an important part of everyone’s daily work is crucial to developing an improved culture. It also ensures that opportunities for improvement at every job will be seized.

We will continue to explore the remaining pillars later in the next part.

Productivity and Quality Office