Course aim: This course will enable you to deploy advanced process improvement initiatives using highly developed methods, tools and techniques. You’ll learn a range of approaches that will help you with problem solving, improvement and change management to meet your organizational objectives.
Course Description: For organizations from all sectors and sizes, the concept of ‘process improvement’ is a familiar one. From the “plan-do-check-act” cycle of a management system standard, to frameworks such as lean and six sigma, the idea that an organization should always be looking for opportunities to improve is a fundamental principle for success.
This course is for practitioners who are looking at problem solving, improvement and change management to meet their organizational objectives.
It’s an interactive and practical five-day course that will provide you with first-hand experience of:
- Advanced approaches, tools and techniques for process improvement, enabling you to deploy a framework that works effectively for your organization
- Leadership skills that can help you develop and lead teams to make improvements within your organization
The course features a case study that has a ‘quality’ perspective, but the universal principles can be understood from any discipline.
The tools and techniques covered during the course are applicable to any process or management system standard, and include:
Problem-solving tools: understanding how to analyze data from a process will enable you to make faster, more informed business decisions, backed up by facts. Writing a ‘problem statement’ will help you focus your research and create a more cohesive and guided project.
Root cause analysis: by repeatedly asking the question “why” (five is a good rule of thumb), you can peel away the layers of symptoms which can lead to the root cause of a problem. You’ll explore effective approaches to finding a root cause, developing proper actions for their elimination, and implementing the permanent corrective action.
Analytical tools: with the right data analysis process and tools, what may be an overwhelming volume of disparate information can be simplified to reach a clear decision point. As a linear model of analysis, the time series method can be used to identify trends.
Other tools and techniques include the ‘5S’ method of process standardization; process balancing, Takt time and TOC; Value Stream Mapping (VSM); Xbar-R Charts; process capability indices (Cp, Cpl, Cpu, Cpk), fault tree analysis (FTA) and attribute agreement analysis (AAA).
Qualification: This course forms part of our Auditor Qualification programme. To find out more, please visit our training auditor qualifications page here.
How will I benefit?
This course will help you:
- Demonstrate an understanding of the relevant process diagnostic and process improvement methodologies
- Correctly quantify process performance and quickly implement improvements where needed
- Confidently apply process improvement projects and methodologies
- Understand the key tools and become equipped to identify and positively influence organizational resistance to change
- Relate effective problem-solving techniques to management systems and corrective action planning
- Develop professionally and network with likeminded peers
- To be able to drive change in the workplace, through the application of rapid improvement events
