The use of performance measures is of paramount importance to all organisations wishing to improve business performance. Whilst Japanese organisations led the way in implementing effective performance measurement, many companies world wide are now catching up as performance measurement is seen as key to effectively managing organisations.

Having implemented performance measurement systems in an organisation, management naturally requires that processes are continually improved. Many organisations have adopted a continuous improvement approach to running their organisations in which they continually strive for better and better performance levels.

A key element to continuous improvement is Benchmarking. Without benchmarking it is we do not know how competitive we are or where we need to focus improvement efforts. Benchmarking helps organisations to balance their internal problem solving and improvement activities with the realities of external environment. This includes other industries that perform similar functions, similar businesses that are geographically separate, and non-profit or public institutions. Under the right conditions, benchmarking can be performed by direct competitors, resulting in improved performance benefiting all stakeholders. Benchmarking not only provides awareness of what and where "best" performance lie, but more importantly, it enables the paradigm shift that internally focused teams sometimes fail to achieve. It fosters creative adoption and adaptation of "best" practices to help organisations gain and maintain a competitive advantage.

One aspect that many organisations find difficult to manage is shared services. The first step in managing this and any other aspect of an organisation is to measure it. Once it has been measured it can be benchmarked and improved.

The Goals

Seminar objectives include:

• To identify the specific difficulties of controlling shared services.
• To explain the importance and benefits of performance measurement, continuous improvement and benchmarking.
• To explain the vital role that these activities play in helping organizations perform at superior levels.
• To explain how performance measurement, continuous improvement and benchmarking relate to one another.
• To explain methods of generating and implementing effective performance metrics.
• To explain a proven 12 step process improvement methodology.
• To provide an overview of the most common tools and techniques used for continuous process improvement.
• To explain the benefits of benchmarking.
• To explain the vital role that only Benchmarking plays as part of a continuous improvement program.
• To explain in detail the benchmarking process and assist participants to manage and run their own benchmarking studies.
• To give delegates the opportunity to explore the issues raised in the seminar by means of examples, discussion and workshops.

This includes, for example:

• Professionals & Leaders who will be responsible for authorizing and over-seeing shared services activities within the organization.
• Those involved in the management of specific performance measurement, improvement or benchmarking projects such as project selection, planning, monitoring and steering of projects.
• Key people in the areas likely to be involved in affected by these activities so that they understand the importance of benchmarking and their own role in the projects.
• Technical staff who will be involved in developing benchmarking metrics and those involved in data analysis and reporting.
• Quality management / improvement personnel who need to support these activities.

The Process

This seminar is highly participatory and your seminar leader will present, guide and facilitate learning, using a range of methods including discussions, case studies, workshops and experiments. Participants will have the opportunity to begin planning aspects their own performance measurement, improvement and benchmarking activities.

The Benefits

Delegates will learn:

• How to set about implementing an effective performance measurement system for shared services.
• How to interpret results from performance measurements and therefore whether or not the process is ready for improvement.
• In the case that a process is not ready for improvement, delegates will know what actions are required to prepare it for improvement.
• How to use an effective improvement methodology to improve process performance.
• What benchmarking is and why it is becoming increasingly important for organizations to become involved in benchmarking activities.
• How to select, define, plan and implement successful benchmarking projects.
• How to ensure that best practices are identified and implemented within the organization, being adapted if appropriate.

The Results

Once delegates have attended the seminar they will be able to support/lead the organization in effective performance monitoring, improvement and benchmarking activities.

In particular as the ideas and methods explained on the seminar are implemented, the organization will be able benefit from:

• Knowing how shared services suppliers are performing.
• Being able to benchmark and quantify the gap between their own and others shared services performances.
• Knowing how to improve shared service performance.
• Knowing how to take effective action to learn from benchmarking partners with superior performance levels.

The Core Competencies

This seminar builds on existing skills and experiences. It develops the competency to be able to advise on, facilitate and manage the implementation of performance measurement systems as well as continuous improvement and benchmarking activities in the delegate's own organisation. The delegate will be able to take an active and effective part in all aspects of implementing and running a successful performance measurement system, as well as continuous and benchmarking projects.

Specific competencies gained include, but are not limited to the following areas:

• To be able to explain the importance and benefits of implementing effective performance measurement, continuous improvement and benchmarking systems to others in the delegate's own organization.
• To be able to advise/support/lead implementation of effective performance measurement, continuous improvement and benchmarking systems.
• To be able to explain the improvement and benchmarking processes and adapt them to meet the organization's specific needs.
• To be able to advise/support/lead the selection of appropriate improvement and benchmarking projects and to be able to scope and set objectives for them.
• To be able to plan and schedule improvement and benchmarking project.
• To be able to advise on, select and structure appropriate benchmarking metrics, ensuring that they are clear, concise and appropriately defined.
• To be able to manage and facilitate participant support, data submission, data validation, analysis and reporting.
• To be able to guide "best practice" adaption and adoption within the organization. How to ensure that best practices are identified and implemented within the organization, being adapted if appropriate.

The Programme Content

Performance Measurement: The Starting Point for Improvement

On day 1, we investigate the importance of measurement, how to select and implement appropriate performance measures and the key to understanding the results.

• seminar benefits
• The Trilogy
• The Need for Measurement
• Data Use and Abuse: Using Data Constructively
• Methods of Selecting Performance Measures
• Developing a Framework for Measurement
• Understanding Variation: The key to understanding performance
• What histograms, run charts and control charts tell us about performance
• The Rods Experiment

Continuous Improvement

On day 2, we discover that performance measurement and analysis leads naturally into improvement. Today we move from measurement through measurement analysis using the control chart into the methodology of continuous improvement.

• Understanding Variation: The Range and Standard Deviation
• The Rods Experiment Part 2: Understanding the Results
• Taking Appropriate Action on a Process: Improvement or Investigation?
• An Introduction to Control Charts: The Key to Taking Appropriate Action
• The Juran Trilogy©
• How to Improve a Process: An Introduction to the 12 step Methodology
• The Power of Teamwork
• Problem and Mission Statements

The Tools of Continuous Improvement

On day 3, we work through the improvement methodology by investigating the tools and techniques used to improve a process. Each tool is illustrated and delegates will see how they have been used in performance improvement activities.

• Understanding and Analyzing a Process: Flow Diagrams
• Identifying causes of problems, and potential solutions: Brainstorming
• Demonstrating the link between a cause and its effect: Cause-Effect diagrams
• Understanding the Process: Quantitative Display Tools (line charts, bar charts and pie charts)
• Selecting the key aspects to focus on: Pareto Analysis
• Investigating Relationships between Variables: Scatter Diagrams and Correlation
• More Advanced investigations: An Introduction to Regression

An Introduction to Benchmarking

Today we investigate the importance of benchmarking in helping organizations improve shared service performance to be amongst the best in the industry. We learn about different types of benchmarking and how to select the appropriate type to meet a specific need. We also learn how to identify and select benchmarking projects.

• What is benchmarking?
• Why we need to benchmark?
• The Benefits of benchmarking: Why organisations benchmark
• History of benchmarking
• Different Methods of benchmarking and how they relate to each other
• How to identify potential benchmarking projects
• An overview of the benchmarking process
• Advice on selecting your first project

Running a Successful Benchmarking Project

On Day 5, we learn how to run a successful benchmarking project from scoping the study through to managing the participants of the study to data collection, validation, analysis and reporting. Finally we see how to set up effective information exchanges and Best Practice Forums that facilitate implementation of practices that will lead to top level performances.

• Scoping a benchmarking study
• Planning and resource scheduling
• Normalising
• Identifying and selecting benchmarking Metrics
• Identifying and selecting benchmarking partners
• Securing benchmarking project support
• Inviting organisations to join the benchmarking study
• The Invitation Pack: What it is, why we need it, and how it's used
• Participant meetings: Planning and running effective meetings to attain the aims of the study
• Data capture:
  • Generating clear data collection schemes
  • The Help Desk
  • Coping with problems
  • Data validation
• Data analysis and reporting: the starting point for improvement
• The Improvement phase
• Running effective Best Practice Forums
• Benchmarking project management
• Management support activities
• Codes of conduct
• Legal issues
• Independent facilitation and benchmarking club