ProcessModel Consulting
Shape Tomorrow Today: Visualize Improvement with ProcessModel Consulting
Company processes are the foundation of your business, shaping its quality and value proposition. We recognize this and advocate for proactive process improvement to boost operational efficiency, drive growth, and increase profits. Our Business Process Improvement (BPI) methodology is designed to deliver these benefits to your business...
As a business owner or manager, we understand that you face multifaceted challenges navigating the intricate landscape of market dynamics, technological advancements, and shifting consumer preferences. We recognize the complexity of these issues and the temptation to opt for quick fixes over systematic solutions. We acknowledge these hurdles and offer a solution.
Experience Your Changes Before Investing
We're here to upgrade your approach from reacting to problems to actively enhancing your processes using our proven Business Process Improvement (BPI) method. What makes us stand out? We offer you a way to test any process change before implementation. Witness the transformation firsthand! See the efficiency gains, changes to staffing, cost reduction, or how well you will meet any KPI. This means you can thoroughly assess and validate all changes before diving in, giving stakeholders the confidence to “pull the trigger.”
Whether you aim to refine specific processes or streamline operations enterprise-wide, our guidance empowers you to simplify workflows and expedite progress. We deliver comprehensive support by leveraging an arsenal of tools and techniques spanning Lean, Six Sigma, Total Quality Management (TQM), Theory of Constraints (TOC), Business Process Management (BPM), Business Process Reengineering (BPR), and more.
Backed by our team of Operational Excellence experts, armed with extensive expertise and a proven track record, we drive immediate improvements in key performance indicators aligned with your objectives. We can assist if you seek quality enhancements, service upgrades, cost reductions, or productivity boosts. Together, we can lay a resilient foundation for your business's expansion and profitability, fortified by proactive process improvement.
Our Approach
Overview
Bedrock principles are critical to the success of any project. First, define the project in detail and secure the proper authority authority. Second, make certain the line of communication is effective. Third, develop an understanding of the system's existing intricacies. Fourth, accurately predict the results of changing a complex system. We use powerful tools to show you how to find problems and verify process changes before spending any implementation money. To see the details of how we approach a project, read on.
Define
Create a formal document that outlines the project's purpose, scope, objectives, stakeholders, and expected outcomes. It provides a high-level overview of the project and guides the team throughout the project lifecycle.
The project must have the following:
Problem Statement: Clearly articulate the problem or opportunity the project aims to address.
Span of control: The project decision-maker needs to have direct authority over the areas impacted by the project. Implementing change can be challenging, so it's essential to have someone willing and able to make tough decisions and ensure they are enforced for the project to succeed.
Project Goals and Objectives: Define the project's goals and objectives. These should align with the organization's strategic priorities and be directly linked to improving key performance metrics related to quality, cost, delivery, or customer satisfaction.
Project Scope: Clearly define the project's boundaries regarding what will be included and excluded. This helps prevent scope creep and ensures that the team remains focused on addressing the most critical issues within a manageable scope.
Project Plan: Develop a high-level project plan outlining the key tasks, milestones, timelines, and resources required to complete the project. This plan provides a roadmap for executing the project effectively and efficiently.
Risk Assessment: Identify potential risks and obstacles impacting the project's success. Assess each risk's likelihood and impact and develop strategies to mitigate it.
Team Formation: Identify individuals with the necessary skills and expertise to execute the project. You will generally need subject matter experts from each area included in the scope.
Announce
Accelerated timelines and innovative improvements require higher-level cooperation. Our team helps craft announcements that lead to successful projects.
Establish the Burning Platform: The project leader should articulate the pressing issues or challenges that necessitate immediate action. This creates a sense of urgency and underscores the project's significance.
Explain Project Goals and Scope: Clearly define the project's goals and objectives, outlining what needs to be achieved and by when. Describe the project's scope, specifying which areas will be addressed and which will not.
Highlight Project Impact: Emphasize how the project will address the identified challenges and contribute to overcoming the burning platform. Illustrate the potential benefits and positive outcomes that the project aims to deliver.
Expect Full Cooperation: Communicate to all departments that their complete cooperation and collaboration are vital for the project's success and that the leader will address any stalling or lack of cooperation.
Provide Opportunities for Input: Encourage stakeholders to provide input and feedback on the project goals, scope, and approach. This fosters a sense of ownership and engagement among team members and increases their commitment to the project's success.
Set Clear Expectations: Clearly outline the roles and responsibilities of each department and individual involved in the project. Ensure that everyone understands what is expected of them and how their contributions will contribute to the project's success.
Execute
Collect Data and Build a Working Model of the System
Building a working model of the existing system uncovers detailed interactions not previously understood. You will see things formerly invisible. Now, you have a model that works like the real system and behaves like the future system when changed.
Identify Problems and Improve Using the Model
Use model statistics to rank the problems holding you back from reaching your goals. Precisely identify the changes needed to meet the project's objectives. Remove waste, strip out non-value-adding activities, apply lean principles, and incorporate ideas from your process experts. See how the system performs with your changes.
Find Hidden Benefits with Optimization
Optimizing within discrete event simulation unlocks hidden benefits, revealing elusive system resonance and illuminating pathways to efficiency and resource maximization. By leveraging optimization algorithms, intricate interdependencies within complex systems are scrutinized, allowing for fine-tuning and strategic adjustments. This approach empowers decision-makers to navigate uncertainties with precision, enhancing operational performance and uncovering untapped potential within dynamic environments.
Present for Approval
Now, you have the most accurate method for planning system changes. You are not presenting charts and spreadsheets. Leadership sees how and why changes work. The model is a perfect tool to show the benefits of proposed changes.
Develop implementation and Control Plan
Create a structured framework to sustain the improvements achieved during the project implementation phase. It outlines the specific measures, monitoring mechanisms, and responsibilities needed to ensure the process remains stable and meets the desired performance targets.
Implement Changes
Communicate the findings and recommendations to all stakeholders, ensuring clarity and understanding. Next, establish an implementation plan outlining specific actions, timelines, and responsible parties for executing the improvements. Provide training and support to team members to ensure they can effectively implement the changes.
Review for Control of the Process Changes
The best control system incorporates the model with approved changes. Because the model is dynamic, we show you how to plan for multiple scenarios (10%, 20%, 50% growth, etc.) Measure system behavior against the model and correct the system. The model contains critical information to evaluate cost, staffing, response or throughput times, yield, or any company-specific key performance indicators.
Tools We Use
Process Modeling and Simulation Software
ProcessModel simulation software is a tool for modeling and simulating business processes. It allows users to create virtual representations of real-world processes, including their components, interactions, and workflows. With ProcessModel, users can design, analyze, and optimize processes to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and minimize risks before implementing changes in the actual environment.
The software features include graphical modeling interfaces, drag-and-drop functionality for creating process models, the ability to define input variables and parameters, and sophisticated simulation engines that simulate the behavior of the process over time. Users can run simulations to test different scenarios, identify bottlenecks, predict performance outcomes, and evaluate the impact of process changes.
ProcessModel simulation software is commonly used in manufacturing, healthcare, logistics, and service industries to optimize processes, streamline operations, and make data-driven decisions for improvement initiatives.
Process Optimization
ProcessModel utilizes SimRunner for model optimization. SimRunner optimization adds optimization algorithms to the simulation software. These algorithms enable the software to explore different scenarios and systematically search for the best solutions based on specified objectives and constraints.
Scenario Analysis: By combining simulation with optimization, users can conduct scenario analysis to determine the optimal configuration or settings for their system or process. They can evaluate alternatives, such as resource allocations, scheduling policies, or process designs, to identify the most effective and efficient solution.
Performance Improvement: The integration of optimization with simulation helps improve the performance of systems or processes by identifying opportunities for enhancement and finding solutions that maximize desired outcomes, such as throughput, efficiency, or cost-effectiveness.
Decision Support: SimRunner optimization provides decision support by assisting users in making informed decisions based on quantitative analysis and optimization results. It helps them evaluate trade-offs, mitigate risks, and identify the most favorable courses of action.
Overall, combining simulation with optimization using SimRunner allows users to understand the behavior of complex systems and find the best solutions to improve performance and achieve their objectives effectively.
Data Analysis
Stat::Fit is a statistical software package that turns empirical data into valuable information in a simulation model. This functionality is critical to creating accurate simulation models.
Key features and functionalities of Stat::Fit:
Distribution Fitting: Stat::Fit provides tools for fitting a wide range of probability distributions to empirical data sets. Users can choose from various distribution families, including normal, lognormal, exponential, Weibull, gamma, etc.
Goodness-of-Fit Analysis: The software offers tools for assessing the goodness-of-fit of the fitted distributions to the data. This includes statistical tests, graphical methods, and diagnostic measures to evaluate the adequacy of the model and identify potential outliers or deviations.
Parameter Estimation: Stat::Fit calculates the parameters of the selected distributions that best fit the data using various estimation methods, such as maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) or method of moments.
Probability Plotting: Users can generate probability plots, such as probability density functions (PDFs) and cumulative distribution functions (CDFs), to visualize and compare the fitted distributions with the empirical data.
Stat::Fit provides a comprehensive set of tools for statistical analysis and distribution fitting, enabling users to characterize and model the variability in their data and make informed decisions based on probability distributions.
Do you need more time to be ready for consulting? You can use these tools independently of consulting.
Click on the respective logo for more information.
Onsite Logistics
Executing a process improvement project utilizing process modeling and simulation involves a structured approach that typically spans over five weeks. Upon arrival on-site, the project kicks off with the leadership announcement. The team establishes ground rules and begins training. Collaboratively, the team gathers essential information crucial for model development. With the data, we construct comprehensive models tailored to the specific process under scrutiny. These models serve as decision-making tools throughout the project. Subsequently, an in-depth analysis of the models is conducted to identify inefficiencies and areas ripe for improvement. Alternative solutions are then meticulously developed and evaluated against key performance indicators. Finally, the project culminates in preparing a management presentation, wherein findings, insights, and recommended strategies are eloquently communicated to stakeholders, paving the way for informed decision-making and implementing impactful process enhancements.