How do you face\u00a0unknown situations in business and operations\u2014especially those you can\u2019t anticipate?\u00a0Outages, technical incidents, compliance issues and environmental disasters cause significant disruptions resulting in lost productivity and lost revenue.\u00a0The key to responding to these\u00a0unsettling\u00a0situations is by adopting a continuous-improvement mindset\u00a0that prepares your staff and business processes in structured ways. A continuous improvement mindset\u00a0focuses\u00a0energy and attention on developing understanding and\u00a0taking\u00a0deliberate action.<\/p>\n
In risk-management disciplines, issues are categorized\u00a0as knowns, known-unknowns and unknown-unknowns.\u00a0You can plan for the known and you can learn what you don\u2019t know.\u00a0It is the\u00a0third\u00a0category that is most problematic because you aren\u2019t even aware of\u00a0the unknown-unknowns\u00a0and they\u00a0will take you by surprise.\u00a0But you\u00a0can\u00a0prepare. Companies are like living organisms, they evolve. Part of\u00a0this\u00a0evolution is responding and adapting effectively to situations.<\/p>\n
Most people think of continuous improvement as a process related to\u00a0manufacturing or\u00a0IT\u00a0service\u00a0operations. This\u00a0is\u00a0correct;\u00a0continuous improvement is a process.\u00a0But it is also a mindset \u2013 a way of thinking about situations, systems\u00a0and\u00a0processes\u00a0as\u00a0an evolutionary journey, not just the current state. Continuous-improvement processes provide a mechanism to respond when change\u00a0is\u00a0needed.\u00a0A continuous-improvement mindset helps\u00a0you identify\u00a0needed\u00a0changes before\u00a0a\u00a0crisis\u00a0develops.<\/p>\n
A continuous-improvement mindset\u00a0involves\u00a0constantly surveying\u00a0your\u00a0environment to understand when changes occur, assess\u00a0their effects\u00a0and determine how\u00a0best\u00a0to\u00a0respond and adapt to those changes. Environmental forces may include, for example,\u00a0technology advances, geopolitical situations, regulatory changes, shifting customer preferences or changes in market conditions (there are many others). These forces are always present\u00a0and changing, regardless of the industry.<\/p>\n
By applying a continuous-improvement mindset,\u00a0you will\u00a0ask \u201cwhat forces represent threats that must be defended?\u201d You\u00a0also\u00a0will consider \u201cwhat forces represent opportunities for competitive advantage, productivity and profitability?\u201d By understanding the\u00a0active\u00a0forces in your environment, you can anticipate situations that\u00a0will benefit if you take preventive or opportunistic action.<\/p>\n
Instead of\u00a0reacting to change, a continuous-improvement mindset helps you seek\u00a0change\u00a0and proactively\u00a0prioritize,\u00a0plan and act deliberately. Continuous-improvement processes\u00a0provide\u00a0the tools and structure to respond to opportunities and threats in the environment and to take actions that lead to desirable outcomes.\u00a0While external forces will always be pushing and pulling at your organization, not\u00a0all of them justify a response. Continuous-improvement processes\u00a0help you focus on the activities with the greatest potential for impact by\u00a0providing\u00a0a means\u00a0to\u00a0capture, classify and prioritize\u00a0problems and opportunities. By\u00a0first\u00a0addressing the most important items, more resources\u00a0are\u00a0available to address\u00a0high-priority\u00a0future\u00a0issues.<\/p>\n
It is impractical to\u00a0anticipate\u00a0complete understanding\u00a0and control\u00a0of\u00a0all the unknown\u00a0forces\u00a0affecting your organization.\u00a0There will always be unknown-unknowns (surprises). The benefit of a continuous-improvement mindset is that change is expected and embraced as an opportunity to learn. If you assume your\u00a0organization\u00a0and your environment are evolving,\u00a0you are better prepared to embrace the\u00a0unknown-unknowns\u00a0and to not only prevail but to convert them\u00a0into opportunities for competitive advantage.<\/p>\n
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Kepner-Tregoe has empowered thousands of companies to solve millions of problems. KT provides a data-driven, consistent, scalable approach to clients in Operations, Manufacturing, IT Service Management, Technical Support, and Learning & Development. We empower you to solve problems. KT provides a unique combination of skill development and consulting services, designed specifically to reveal the root cause of problems and permanently address organizational challenges. Our approach to problem solving will deliver measurable results to any company looking to improve quality and effectiveness while reducing overall costs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
How do you face\u00a0unknown situations in business and operations\u2014especially those you can\u2019t anticipate?\u00a0Outages, technical incidents, compliance issues and environmental disasters cause significant disruptions resulting in lost productivity and lost revenue.\u00a0The key to responding to these\u00a0unsettling\u00a0situations is by adopting a continuous-improvement mindset\u00a0that prepares your staff and business processes in structured ways. A continuous improvement mindset\u00a0focuses\u00a0energy and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":71,"featured_media":1073,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[201],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[80],"class_list":["post-25772","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-quality"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n