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Continuous improvement model

Strengthen your organisation by adopting one of these continuous improvement models

Continuous improvement model

A continuous improvement model is the long-term approach to improve products, services, or processes within an organisation. Its aim is to drive efficiency, profits and create a more agile working environment. However, before you look at adopting continuous improvement within your organisation, it’s important to recognise the different continuous improvement models.

 

The PDCA cycle

The PDCA cycle contains the steps you need to keep your processes functioning.

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Kaizen

The term Kaizen means continuing improvement involving everyone. From top management, managers, and workers, it’s the spirit of cooperation and commitment in the workplace. The term came from the challenges of rebuilding Japanese businesses from scratch after World War II. The Kaizen model has six phases:

  1. Identify a problem or opportunity
  2. Analyse the process
  3. Develop an optimal solution
  4. Implement the solution
  5. Study the results and adjust
  6. Standardise the solution

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Six sigma

Six Sigma is a developmental approach, aiming to limit defects and variability. The Six Sigma method is defined below:

  • Define the problem
  • Measure and quantify the problem
  • Analyse and identify the cause of the problem
  • Improve and solve the root cause and verify
  • Control and maintain and pursue perfection
 

Lean

Lean focuses on the removal of waste, which is anything that doesn’t add value to the customer. The three main steps of lean are:

  • Identify the waste activities
  • Identify how these waste activities are driving down efficiency
  • Eliminate and reduce the waste activities
 

Advantages of continuous improvement models

By adopting the continuous improvement or Kaizen methodology, you’ll expect to see some of the benefits listed below:

  • Encourages smaller, self-managing groups
  • Helps you recognise employee efforts
  • Improves employee involvement in work
  • Helps you to identify human activities that add no value
 

Disadvantages of continuous improvement models

It’s important to understand that by adopting continuous improvement within your organisation has its disadvantages. Here are just a few to be aware of:

  • Kaizen signals a permanent change of management system. Therefore, it’s hard to return to previous systems
  • Increases the burden on lower-level management
  • As Kaizen focuses on the small details, it can lead to diminishing returns
 

What is operations management?

Operations management is a key area within any organisation. It plays a key role in keeping supply chains operational in today’s challenging environment. Discover the key to success when thinking about operations management. Find out more about Operations Management.

Quality and measurement key themes

Continuous improvement model Total quality management Benchmarking
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Total quality management guide

There are many benefits to quality management and when successfully implemented it can improve cost savings, reduce defects, and provide a better customer experience. This document will provide you with an understanding of quality management and will briefly explore application, hints & tips, and advantages/disadvantages.

Kaizen guide

This paper will give you an insight into Kaizen principles, how these can be applied to deliver efficiencies to your organisation and the varying terms of continuous improvement. The paper includes advantages and disadvantages to this approach along with case studies and application advice.

Lean & agile guide

The CIPS' practice documents are written as a statement in time. They are a collection of views on good practice within a particular subject area and are intended to provide direction on good practice with some guidance for context and interest. The reader is encouraged to use the CIPS practice documents for their own purposes, such as writing policy statements, guidance, or procedures. This practice statement has been written primarily for the benefit of full-time procurement and supply management professionals, but can be used by anyone associated with, or interested in, procurement and supply management (P&SM). This document is about lean and agile organisations, including P&SM.

Agile supply

This CIPS paper aims to provide an awareness and level of understanding of agile supply, offering a definition of agile, detailing the value and efficiencies that agile can bring to your organisation, along with advantages and disadvantages and elements of application to support your organisations activities.

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