“Errors using inadequate data are much less than those using no data at all”
Charles Babbage – Mathematician & Philosopher
There are times when I hear people say process improvement goals are being driven with automated dashboards and reports and I think, that’s great! Then I hear the conversations about how the process improvement failed because of poor data or bad processes. Then I think to myself, what’s missing from the model they followed? Did they have a model for improvement like the many organizations successful at deploying lean change management or change in general.
There is a practical way to do everything, however not everything we do in life or in our career is practical. So take the practicable approach. One of many approaches is Business Process Modeling. BPM is something you will like anything practice over and over with application and lessons learned each opportunity you have to use its capacity to course correct. Keep in mind BPM is one of many ways to approach your improvement.
Business process models (BPMs) play a crucial role in businesses by delivering a visual illustration of their business processes. Thus far, to make the most of BPMs, data alignment is vital. This requires confirming that the data generated by business processes accurately aligns with the BPM. Failure to align data with BPMs can start an inaccurate analysis, suboptimal process improvements, and unsustainable outcomes. To avoid these undesirable outcomes, a systematic approach to data alignment can be taken.
One case of a hospital that experienced due to a lack of data alignment is an inpatient hospital that tried to identify and fix inefficiencies in their fall protocols. The clinical (business) process model used by the group did not accurately reflect the sequence of events, inputs and outputs, and decision points in their processes. This resulted in ineffectual process improvements that only addressed the symptoms of the problems rather than the root causes. This caused the inpatient falls group to waste time and resources without achieving any significant improvements.
To correct this issue, the hospital fall group took a more specific approach to aligning their data with the BPM. They first identified the data generated by their processes, mapped it to the BPM, and validated it through a process walkthrough. They also observed their process and BPM continuously to ensure that they stayed aligned. With accurate data alignment, the hospital was able to identify the root causes of inefficiencies in their fall charting & standards, leading to significant process improvements that improved efficiency and reduced fall rates.
It is in my experience important to align data with BPMs is essential for organizations to make informed decisions and achieve sustainable process improvements. By following a systematic approach to data alignment, companies can avoid negative outcomes and achieve significant improvements in their business processes, as well as preventing leadership from seeing waste in a visual chart or table. Whatever approach you take, think about scientifically thinking without thinking. Meaning, Plan, do, check, act, A3 thinking, coaching kata, or create an AIM statement and keep testing your assumptions until you get your processes and systems aligned well enough for you to measure what matters. Whatever your situation or issue or industry, fail fast, fail often, however continue to learn.
You got this, lets go. – Coach Kenny
Remember continuous improvement is all about continuous learning and sustainable outcomes.
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Your Continuous improvement Coach “Kenny”
Always remember, have a good day, if it’s a bad day, make it a good bad day.