Key Roles in Operational Excellence

So, your company wants to pursue operational excellence? Great! But where do you start? What are the key roles of executives, managers, and process owners in this journey?

Before we dive into those questions, let’s take a moment to clarify what operational excellence is and, just as importantly, what it is not.

Operational excellence is not a one-time project or a quick fix. It’s not something you can simply delegate and forget about. Instead, it’s an ongoing pursuit, a continuous journey of improvement that requires the commitment and active participation of everyone in the organization.

Operational excellence starts at the top, with how the organization is led, managed, and empowered. Executives, managers, and process owners all play crucial roles in driving operational excellence and achieving a competitive advantage.

Their focus should be on running a successful enterprise that executes better, faster, and cheaper in delivering value to customers. Operational excellence is not something extra, an add-on, or a special initiative. It’s a way of operating, a mindset that should be embedded in everything the organization does.

Now, let’s explore the key roles in operational excellence:

Executives:

• They set the vision and strategic direction for operational excellence.
• They allocate resources and champion OPEX initiatives.
• They establish project selection criteria and ensure alignment with strategic goals.
• They review, evaluate, and select projects that drive operational excellence.
• They assign project champions and provide them with the necessary support and resources.
• They ensure that all decisions and policies are consistent with and supportive of the organization’s operational excellence strategies.

Managers:

• They translate strategic goals into operational plans and actions.
• They empower and enable employees to excel by providing clear expectations, resources, and authority.
• They identify and address poorly designed or inconsistently performed processes.
• They select and launch appropriate projects to improve or redesign processes.
• They ensure that employees have the right skills and training to perform their jobs effectively.
• They recognize and reward individual contributions to operational excellence.

Process Owners:

• They are directly responsible for specific processes and their performance.
• They lead improvement efforts within their areas of responsibility.
• They ensure that their processes are aligned with the organization’s overall operational excellence goals.
• They work closely with implementation teams and employees to identify and implement improvements.
• They monitor process performance and take corrective action as needed.

Remember, operational excellence is a collective effort. It requires the active involvement and collaboration of everyone in the organization, from executives to front-line employees. By understanding and fulfilling their respective roles, each individual can contribute to the success of the operational excellence journey.