Service Operations Management: The total experience Chapter Three Service Process Improvement

Fig 3.1 Customer contact intensity

Fig 3.2 Service process review sequence

Organization readiness for change Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) used to identify activities and to measure performance against targets. A step often missed by organizations when establishing KPIs is the asking of Key Performance Questions (KPQ’s). Developing exceptional service operations requires a major paradigm shift.

Fig. 3.3 Paradigm shift to accept continuous improvements

Improvement tools and techniques Kaizen Muda Poka-yoke Process mapping Five Why’s Brainstorming Pareto Analysis Affinity diagram Cause and effect diagram Matrix diagram Kano analysis SIPOC Quality function deployment Failure modes and effects analysis Six sigma Activity sampling

Fig. 3.4 Service process map of banking activities

Fig. 3.5 Brainstorming and cognitive mapping

Fig. 3.6 Pareto analysis

Fig. 3.7 Affinity diagram

Fig. 3.8 Cause and effect diagram

Fig. 3.9 Matrix diagram

Fig. 3.10 Kano analysis

Fig. 3.11 SIPOC

Fig. 3.12 Quality function deployment

Fig. 3.13 Failure modes and effects analysis

A culture embracing change Service process improvement is a continuous process. The culture of the organization, staff attitudes and their skills, and the support systems, all need to be agile and accepting of change and the seeking of improvements. For people, change is threatening; it takes them out of their comfort zone and into a period of learning and adoptation of new ways of working.

Fig. 3.14 Barriers to change

The sources and reasons for mistakes and errors are as varied as they are different. When empowered and self-regulated teams are successfully working and undertaking continuous improvement, it is only right to ask what management’s role in this culture change is? Of critical importance is the need for managers to stop regarding themselves as managers that must control and monitor, and to change and behave as leaders.

Fig. 3.15 Cumulative cost and impact of mistakes in the value chain

Fig. 3.16 Cumulative risk and sources of errors