Leading Through Continuous Improvement

Top 5 Board – What is it? Visual management tool that centers the team through

the usage of a departmental measurement board listing the top five key areas of performance, specific to the department or area.

Formal process to focus everyone's efforts on the most important issues impacting the area, and activities to resolve them.

Tool that allows the team to highlight efforts and gain support from leadership and internal customers.

Why do it?Creates “line of sight” between daily work and goals.

Inputs

Activities

Outputs

Outcomes

Goals

•Certain resources are needed to operate your program.

•If you have access to them, then you can use them to accomplish your planned activities.

•If you accomplish your planned activities, then you will be more apt to deliver the amount of product and/or service that you intended.

•If you accomplish your planned activities to the extent you intended, then your customers will benefit in certain ways.

•If these benefits to customers are achieved, then certain changes in people, organizations, communities or systems will occur.

Which Measures to Use? Is the measure important?

Will employees relate to the indicator? Is data available? (If not get it!) If you stopped tracking the data, would anyone notice or

care? If the measurement is improved, will it have a noticeable

/significant impact on the working area/on the overall business?

Is the measure easy to track?

Measurement Considerations Is the measure in positive terms?

Measure the things that will lead you to take action. Is the measure readily visible to all those who can

influence it? What data is already being collected? Will employees understand the measure? Record measure on visible charts, showing past

performance, and target.

Area Supervisor Top 5 Questions Is the issue important to our customers? What is the problem statement? When was the problem

first seen, where was it seen, and what is the magnitude? Is the problem measured in terms of Quality, Safety, Cost

Efficiency, Patient Experience, or Employee Experience? Does a goal statement exist that defines the results

expected to be achieved? Is the goal a SMART goal? Have constraints been identified? Who are the customers of the issue? How will they be involved in the project? How will

progress be communicated to them?

Senior Leader Top 5 Questions Has the team developed clear definitions for each

measurement and tested them with others to ensure clarity and consistent interpretation?

Has a clear, reasonable choice been made between gathering new data and taking advantage of existing data?

Has baseline performance and process capability been established?

Have any new risks to project success been identified?

Senior Leader Top 5 Questions Has the team examined the process and identified

potential bottlenecks, disconnects, and redundancies that could contribute to the issue?

Has the team analyzed data about the process and its performance to help stratify the problem, understand reasons for variation in the process and generate hypothesis as to the root causes of the current process?

Has an evaluation been done to determine whether the problem can be solved without a fundamental recreation of the process?

Executive Top 5 Questions What lean techniques were used to generate ideas? What criteria were used to select a recommended solution

or solutions? Do the proposed solutions address all of the identified root

causes, or at least the most critical? Were the solutions verified with the staff members? Has the proposed solution been documented, including

process participants, job descriptions and if applicable, their estimated time commitment to support the process?

What kinds of barriers/obstacles will need assistance to be removed?

Has the team been able to identify any additional “Quick Wins”?

Executive Top 5 Questions Has the team prepared all essential documentation

including the Standard Work Instructions, training plan, training matrix, and a control plan?

Has the necessary training for process owners / staff members been performed? If not, when will it?

Has the solution been effectively implemented? How do we know?

Has the financial benefit been approved by the finance team?

Has the process been transitioned to the process owner? Is there a best case (best practice) from the project to be

used by other areas or departments?

Process Flow

Review Used to keep everyone informed Hold short daily meetings by the board

Act upon problems Make measures visible

10 seconds status determination Keep it current! Set the Target Goals to strive for what is the industry best

Set targets that can be achieved and the date(s), by which it should be achieved

Audit Scores Continually increase targets as they are achieved