Continuous improvement is a long-term process of improving everything that already exists in your company. But it is above all a state of mind. It can lead to several forms of improvement or innovation, and can be based on very different levers. Let's take a look at the main principles, examples and forms of the simplest and most economical way to innovate in business.
The 4 principles of continuous improvement
Continuous improvement is an approach that consists, as its name indicates, in continuously improving existing processes, products or services. In this sense, it is associated withincremental innovation, and is complementary to disruptive innovation.
Several methodologies exist to make continuous improvement a success in your organisation. After studying several of them, we have decided to retain these 4 main principles:
- The realisation, quite simply, of the process, product or service. Because it is by doing that we make progress, and that things can be improved gradually... continuously!
- Identification of the point of improvement or anomaly in the realisation of the process, service or product.
- The immediateworkaround. This involves finding a short-term solution to achieve the improvement or avoid the anomaly.
- The search for a medium or long-term solution. This involves thinking about the possible root cause of the anomaly in order to resolve it.
Examples and benefits of continuous improvement
Examples of continuous improvement in companies
L’amélioration continue peut évidemment prendre diverses formes. Elle peut par exemple consister en une simplification des processus de l’entreprise, comme le fait l’Office Français de l’Intégration et de l’Immigration (OFII) à travers sa démarche d’innovation participative. En effet l’OFII sollicite ses agents pour réfléchir aux processus administratifs qui encadrent l’accueil des étrangers en France. Les agents sont ainsi invités à proposer des solutions pour simplifier ces processus. De nombreuses solutions faciles à mettre en place émergent, comme l’usage du SMS au lieu de la lettre papier pour transmettre certaines informations aux usagers.
It can also involveimproving the customer experience. For example, Carmila encourages its employees to think about "quick win" improvements to the customer experience and the performance of its shopping centres.
Finally, it can concern product improvements , as at Décathlon, which regularly reworks its existing products to improve them.
What are the benefits?
If it is still necessary to explain the benefits of such an approach, then here they are!
Firstly, continuous improvement is generally less time-consuming and costly than disruptive innovation. Indeed, you don't start with a blank sheet of paper!
Secondly, it can come from anywhere! So not only from your R&D department. Indeed, any of your employees, or even your customers, can have a good idea that will save you time and/or money. This is the very concept ofcollaborative innovation.
How to make a success of your continuous improvement process?
As mentioned earlier, continuous improvement can happen anywhere, especially with your employees or customers. Here are some levers that can help you to set up a successful and sustainable continuous improvement approach.
Polls and surveys
Remember to survey your staff and customers regularly to identify areas for improvement. Ask them about their experience, and detect their irritants. You can even ask them directly if they are already thinking of solutions.
Reflection and brainstorming workshops
Reflection workshops can have several objectives:
- To enable you toidentify anomalies or areas for improvement in your existing products, services or processes.
- Reflect collectively on ways of improving already identified anomalies.
Whatever the objective of your workshops, it is always very beneficial to mobilisethecollective intelligence to solve irritants.
A software ofcollaborative innovation
Finally, you can set up a system for feeding back ideas from the field. Also known as an idea box or collaborative innovationsoftware, this type of system makes it possible to create a real digital space dedicated to continuous improvement. Employees can post their ideas and add to those of others. This is another fine example of collective intelligence serving the performance of the organisation.
