In Full: In a recent presentation, Matt shared insights into his journey, from working as a postman in the Royal Mail to becoming a distribution manager and now a successful Lean Master. He emphasised the importance of continuous improvement, adaptability, resilience, and inspiring others to embrace this approach to success in any field. Matt’s experiences have taught him that being a leader and earning people’s trust is more important than being a senior-level employee.

One of the key takeaways from Matt’s presentation was the need to tailor continuous improvement to different cultures and generations. It cannot be a “one size fits all” approach and requires a culture that is self-sustaining. Matt’s special tips include inspiring people by loving what you do, making continuous improvement a part of daily work, and creating advocates for continuous improvement. He believes in creating different and exciting learning programs to engage people, exploring unexplored areas and taking risks, and creating a safe space for people to fail and learn from their mistakes.

Matt emphasised the importance of continuous improvement and how it can be applied to any field to achieve success. His experiences have taught him the importance of adaptability, resilience, and creating a culture of self-sustaining continuous improvement. He believes that good management skills are essential to the success of any organization, and that trust is earned and not given.

As a charismatic Lean Master Matt has a track record of success in inspiring, leading, coaching, executing, developing, and sustaining continuous improvement cultures that deliver significant benefits in safety, quality, and cost.  Matt’s passion for continuous improvement is evident in his podcast, “The Ever-So-Lean Podcast” which serves as an ultimate guide to creating a culture of Lean Excellence. Matt shares his expertise and interviews inspiring guests who have embarked on their own development journeys; it is a must-listen for anyone interested in learning about Lean methodology and creating a culture of self-sustaining continuous improvement.

Matt Sims is a content creator and Lean Master with over 15 years of experience in Continuous Improvement. He hosts a podcast called “The Ever-So-Lean Podcast” that aims to inspire business owners and program managers to embrace Continuous Improvement. The Ever So Lean Podcast is Sponsored by Catalyst Consulting.

Discover more from Matt: https://ever-so-lean.podbean.com/

Start your team on their journey to continuous improvement with our LCS accredited Lean training programmes:

https://lean-six-sigma.training/lean-training

https://lean-six-sigma.training/lean-awareness

https://lean-six-sigma.training/lean-practitioner.

The post From Postman to Podcast Master: How Matt Sims Inspires a Culture of Lean Excellence appeared first on Catalyst Consulting.

If you want similar insights, join our LinkedIn group:    https://www.linkedin.com/groups/12784667/

Solving Business Problems with ChatGPT

The full version: [Guess who helped us write this article? – answer at the end^*]

Are you looking for a new tool to help with problem-solving in your business? Look no further than ChatGPT! The Catalyst team recently had the opportunity to demonstrate the capabilities of Open AI’s technology for process improvement, at one of our client networking events, and let me tell you, it was a blast!

First off, let me say that this technology is bleeding edge and still being explored by us. We’re always excited to learn more about what it can do, and we’re constantly discovering new applications. That’s why we wanted to do a demo of the technology for you!

In this video presentation, you’ll see first-hand how ChatGPT can be used as a team member to help with process improvement in a fun and interactive way. The presenters will walk you through a pizza simulation case study, demonstrating how ChatGPT can be leveraged to identify and solve complex problems, generate insights, and enhance customer satisfaction. Whether you’re a business professional, a process improvement enthusiast, or just curious about the latest AI technology, this video is sure to provide you with valuable insights and inspiration. So, grab a slice of pizza and join us on this exciting journey of discovery and innovation!

Defining the Problem

The first step in process improvement is to define the problem, and we’ve got plenty of those! We gathered Post-it notes from a training session where we brainstormed issues related to the pizza simulation. We’re treating ChatGPT like a team member because that’s what it is – a language model capable of summarising text and refining its summaries based on feedback. ChatGPT can help speed up the process of analysing data, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do.

We asked ChatGPT to provide an elevator pitch for the project, and it did not disappoint. But of course, we asked it to make the pitch even more exciting, because why settle for anything less? It’s important to note that ChatGPT can make mistakes, and that’s okay. We treat it as a fallible member of the team, just like we would with any other team member. We even compared ChatGPT to a mathematician and a calculator – it’s a powerful tool that can augment human capabilities.

Problem Solving From Data

Our demo then moves on to a bigger part of the problem; we want ChatGPT to analyse the data it has heard so far. As ChatGPT started to analyse the data, it quickly identified the root cause of the problem: issues with sequencing and cooking that led to delayed and unfulfilled orders. Our team was amazed at how quickly ChatGPT was able to identify the issue, but we knew that we needed to validate the results before moving forward. We talked about the importance of testing solutions before implementing them, and how ChatGPT could help in this process.

One of the most exciting aspects of ChatGPT is its ability to analyse feedback and identify areas for continuous improvement. Our team discussed how we could use ChatGPT to monitor progress, identify trends and patterns, and even forecast future problems. We also demonstrated how ChatGPT can be used to help businesses identify potential risks and opportunities in their business models and provide advice on how to address them. ChatGPT can even generate hypotheses and suggest experiments to test them, helping businesses identify potential revenue streams and cost structures.

Problem Solved!

Overall, the team was impressed by the capabilities of ChatGPT and its potential to revolutionise the way we approach problem solving and process improvement. We talked about how ChatGPT can help define a problem, suggest data to collect, analyse data and provide observations and deductions, identify the dominant root cause of a problem, provide advice on implementing changes, and even be used for cutting-edge business experiments. If you are a Lean Six Sigma practitioner you will really appreciate this kind of approach.

In conclusion, ChatGPT is a powerful tool that has the potential to augment human capabilities in a variety of ways. In Catalyst we are continuing to explore its potential and discovering new ways to use it to improve processes and solve problems. We encourage all professionals and those interested in agile, lean six sigma, and business process improvement to watch our presentation video and join us in this exciting journey. We feel it is so important that we are already upgrading our training courses to build the application of AI into our programmes.

Learn More about Business Problem Solving with ChatGPT

If you enjoyed this video and want to learn more about how ChatGPT can help you with problem-solving and process improvement, then join our LinkedIn group. We regularly post updates, case studies, and discussions related to agile, business process improvement, lean six sigma, kaizen, and more. Click the link below to join:

https://www.linkedin.com/groups/12784667/

We also are planning to run a series of one day courses on how technology can enable  process improvement – please email us if you would like more details. info@catalystconsulting.co.uk

Thank you for watching, and we look forward to connecting with you on LinkedIn.

If you are interesting in learning more about any of the topics discussed here then please contact us at www.catalystconsulting.co.uk  or email us on info@catalystconsulting.co.uk .

^*This article was written by Martin Brenig-Jones with a lot of help from ChatGPT. Actually it would be more accurate to say this article was written by ChatGPT and then edited by Martin!

The post Revolutionising Business Process Improvement: Using ChatGPT as Your Secret Weapon appeared first on Catalyst Consulting.

Whatever the time of year, and wherever we are, Continuous Improvement is very much like a box of chocolates, and here’s why:

• There are lots of opportunities to choose from
• They are bite-sized
• They leave you wanting more
• People around you will want to get involved too
• There are plenty more in the box for next time

At the recent #ICIPS conference I showed a series of pictures of chocolate bars, ranging in size from a chocolate Freddo (18g of chocolate, costing around £0.35) to the hugest bar of Dairy Milk I’ve ever seen (a whopping 10kg of chocolate, on sale for £169.99). I asked the delegates about their appetite for each one. As the bars of chocolate grew in size, a few people admitted defeat (“that one’s too much”), a few expressed doubt (“I could give it a try, but…?”) and a small number remained bullish until the final giant chocolate bar was revealed (“yes, I could definitely handle that!”). Ah, the triumph of hope over experience! As lover of chocolate, I know how tempting it can be to overdo it, and this is exactly why Continuous Improvement is like a box of chocolates.

Imagine for a moment, eating that enormous bar of Dairy Milk. To begin with it might feel very exciting and enjoyable. You might feel like a bit of a hero! But after a while, it would stop being pleasurable. Tackling all of that would take considerable time. Would you really enjoy it all? Really? And after eating the whole lot would you be left wanting more? And would people around you see you doing it and still find you aspirational?! The same can be said for improvement projects. Bigger does not mean better. In fact, the side effects of eating too much chocolate, as listed on the Livestrong website, bear a remarkable resemblance to the effects of taking on too big an improvement project. They include insomnia, restlessness, shakiness, rapid or abnormal heart rhythms, anxiety and…caffeine dependency.

There are undoubtedly lots of big things for organisations to tackle if they’re to respond to changes, challenges and opportunities. But unless broken down into bite sized chunks these initiatives are intimidating and can seem insurmountable. While a mammoth sized opportunity will bring lots of benefits, it will take so much time that we won’t experience those benefits for a long, long while. It can leave people feeling and disillusioned and burnt out.

On the other side of the (chocolate) coin, lots of little bite-sized improvements can add up to something brilliant. They are satisfying, yet moreish. The enthusiasm they generate can be contagious. There are plenty of opportunities to choose from, and something in the box to suit everyone.

So let’s enjoy a Continuous Improvement chocolate, and another and then another! Remember to pick one you know you’ll enjoy, and never bite off more than you can chew. Let’s see something happen now – a bite sized improvement that will do some good. And then let’s keep going! This delicious habit is one you’ll want to keep up in the New Year.

We wish you a happy and peaceful holiday, with plenty of enjoyable treats.

Need some business advice? Contact us to see how we can help

The post Continuous Improvement – It’s a Box of Chocolates appeared first on Catalyst Consulting.

An example of a Moment of Truth when going on holiday might be a query you have about the seats assigned on the plane, which you ask about at the check-in desk. Can the query be addressed first time? If so, a good impression is created. But if the agent at check-in advises you to ask at the gate, and the gate attendant then recommends you discuss it with a member of the cabin crew…the Moment of Truth has been ruined.

The Moment of Truth concept has its roots in the airline industry – it was originated by Jan Carlzon, a business leader famous for transforming the fortunes of Scandinavian Airline Services (SAS). My own dogeared copy of his book “Moments of Truth”, printed in 1987, has the following words emblazoned on the cover: ‘Managing the dickens out of those unique, never-to-be-repeated opportunities to distinguish ourselves in a memorable fashion from each and every one of our competitors’. (That’s what book covers were like in the 1980s!)

A couple of recent conversations have prompted me to return to the book after several years. In addition to the concept of Moments of Truth, it is full of relevant insights on the actions and attitudes required by leaders if Moments of Truth are to be managed effectively.

Here are my takeaways on how to manage the dickens out of Moments of Truth the Jan Carlzon way…

• Orient towards your customers

Carlzon emphasized the importance of understanding, from the customer’s point of view, what business an organisation is really in. If you are oriented towards your customers, he argued, you are in the business of providing them with a service, not just the traditional “hardware”. So Scandinavian Airline Services began to focus on the experience of customers, not just on the operation of the aircraft. He went on to ask…

…Are Ford and General Motors in the automobile business? Or are they really in the business of providing people with the means to transport themselves from one place to another overland? If they decide they are in the automobile business, then naturally they should concentrate their efforts on state-of-the-art design and aerodynamics and fuel economy – on the car itself.

But let us say they decide they are in the ground transport services business. Should they sell only cars? Wouldn’t it also make sense – from the customer’s point of view – to sell a plastic card guaranteeing that a car would be made available to you immediately, wherever and whenever you want to drive somewhere?

A prescient point, made 20 years before the birth of Airbnb!

• Empowerment is essential

Carlzon describes his early leadership style as dictatorial – he assumed that he had been recruited to make all decisions, so insisted on making them. However, he realised that the decisions required “where the action is” – those that make a difference to the customer experience – are best made by the people on the front line of customer service. When problems arise, each employee should have the authority to analyse the situation, determine the appropriate action, and see to it that the action is carried out. Carlzon uses the analogy of a football game to make this point about the value of timely decision making:

…Imagine a situation in which a soccer player breaks away toward an open goal and suddenly abandons the ball to run back to the bench and ask the coach for an order to kick the ball into the goal. Before he can run back to the ball, he has lost not only the ball but also the game.

• Leadership and management structures and roles should change

Carlzon was adamant that traditional hierarchical tiers of responsibility are no good for an organisation seeking to establish customer orientation and the creation of positive Moments of Truth. For the example given above, where agents at check-in, departure and cabin crew were unable to address the query about seating, no-one had access to the information required to solve the query or the authority needed to take it on – and no one was prepared to step out of their normal role to address it. So normal roles needed to change. At SAS the role of manager was redefined from decision maker to coach. Instead of making decisions (or escalating decisions further into the organisational hierarchy) managers would enable and support their people to make decisions, thus unleashing creativity and transforming customer service.

• “They must know that they are allowed to make mistakes”

Big decisions were required to transform Scandinavian Airline Services, and significant risk was involved. Carlzon recognised that decision making (and risk taking) aptitude was required throughout the organisation to enable true customer orientation. He said:

If frontline employees are actually to make decisions that entail some risk, they must have a sense of security. Having knowledge and information is not enough if they believe that a wrong decision may cause them problems or even the loss of their job. They must know that they are allowed to make mistakes. Only then will they dare to use fully their new authority.

Leaders and Managers played an important role in creating the right environment for decision making and risk taking. Psychological safety – years before the term was introduced.

The Moment of Truth of returning to this book has been a positive one. Jan Carlzon blazed a trail in demonstrating the benefits of customer-oriented and employee-empowered ways of working. These approaches were considered bold in the 1980s, and today they’re still first class.

Need some business advice? Contact us to see how we can help

The post “Moments of Truth”: Re-Reading Jan Carlzon’s Book makes a positive impression appeared first on Catalyst Consulting.

The coronation on June 2^nd 1953 symbolised the transference of regal power from King George VI to Princess Elizabeth II. As the first coronation to be televised, it was watched by 27 million people in the UK and millions more around the world.

As changeovers go, this isn’t exemplary – the Queen had acceded to the throne four months earlier, following George’s death, and the coronation service itself took almost 3 hours. In keeping with centuries of tradition, it included the oath, anointing, investiture, crowing and enthronement. The millions who watched it on television really did put a shift in!

Changeovers are a key focus when we’re looking to improve the efficiency of a process. Changeovers, for example changing the settings of machines or switching between systems or IT applications, can be time consuming can disrupt the flow of work through the process, therefore disrupting the delivery of value to the customer. SMED (Single Minute Exchange of Dies) is the Lean term that describes the goal of changeover processes. As its name suggests it applies to manufacturing processes, though clearly the concept applies widely, beyond manufacturing, into transactional processes and even into royal processes! Key to improving changeovers is completing as many steps as possible while the machine or system is in operation, and minimising the work that has to be done while it is shut down.

According to some (rough) calculations, the average time between coronations is twenty-three and a bit years, and of course we are currently celebrating the fact that the last one happened 70 years ago. But the royals are responsible for a more regular and timely process involving changeovers  – the Changing of the Guard, which takes place every other day at Buckingham Palace and other royal residences.

This process could be regarded as a textbook changeover process. It is highly standardised, and the standard procedure is executed unfailingly by the Queen’s Guards. In the instance that something goes wrong, a response plan has been developed. The Changing of the Guard process also features elements of visual management and poka yoke. The distinctive unforms worn by the Queen’s Guards help to distinguish between friend from foe, for example.

When we think of the ultimate changeover process the Formula 1 tyre change process comes to mind. The tyre is changed and other mechanical repairs and adjustments are carried out in the blink of an eye. However, creating a Formula 1 Changing of the Guard or coronation experience would undermine a fundamental principle of Lean which is to understand what adds value to the customer and shape processes to deliver it. Millions of spectators would feel short-changed by a royal changeover taking less than 2 seconds, though it is definitely fun to imagine!

Contact us if you would like to improve a changeover, or learn how to innovate processes with our Business Black Belt training.

However you plan to spend your Bank Holiday weekend, have a glorious one.

The post The Royal Changeover appeared first on Catalyst Consulting.

This is really worth a listen if you want an understanding on how Lean Six Sigma tools and techniques can improve and drive your business.

The post Lean Six Sigma – A Beginner’s Guide Podcast appeared first on Catalyst Consulting.

In Catalyst, we had already started work to develop a ‘new’ course to sit alongside our traditional Lean Six Sigma Black Belt programme which has been popular for many years. Working with a small group of our clients, we developed a modular training programme which we christened the ‘Business Black Belt’. We wanted it to be as rigorous as the ‘traditional’ Black Belt but reflecting the essence of James’s article. It is now a recognised qualification for Business Change Leaders and Practitioners who want to know how to Run the Business AND Transform the Business by applying an extensive range of tools and techniques that have come from very different backgrounds, but which blend together brilliantly.

So, what are the keys to successfully running and transforming organisations in these turbulent times?

Many years ago, I did a post graduate qualification in management covering a wide range of subjects which at the time were new to me.  That management training proved to be the most useful and practical for my career, arguably outweighing my earlier engineering and scientific oriented education which preceded it, although that discipline and mathematical rigour has always been a brilliant foundation.

I remember studying the effect of a rapidly changing external environment on different kinds of organisations and reading ‘The Management of Innovation’ by Burns and Stalker who argued that organic rather than mechanistic organisational structures would enhance the ability of organisations to adapt quickly to changes in the environment.

This concept is even more evident now as we see the need to change happening at a much faster rate for a multitude of reasons caused by rapid changes in the external environment – technology, society, environmental as well as economic.

When we designed the Business Black Belt training programme, we wanted to equip managers in today’s world with a broad range of skills which they will find invaluable to know how to TRANSFORM businesses at speed BUT also … RUN current operations effectively and efficiently.

Feedback from delegates has been universally positive …

I had the pleasure to do my Business Black Belt with Catalyst. It’s an amazing program highly recommended. If you whether wondering what to do Lean Six Sigma or Agile? The Business Black Belt by Catalyst gives the opportunity to do both. You will have the chance to learn about RPA, Data analysis insights and decisions, Agile thinking and design, VSM, Change management. What makes this program a success story is that the trainers are experts with tremendous experience in the field. Thank you Catalyst for the BBB program!

Yosra Kurk, Ericsson

Really interesting to see Catalyst pioneering a new wave of blackbelt. Are organisations ready for these rock stars? I’m not sure but I am sure the new cohort is going to keep pushing. Great energy and personal touches throughout make them such a credible provider.

Gareth Scott, G4S

This is an operations-focussed toolset. You don’t need a degree in Applied Maths, Engineering or Science to understand the content. It’s Lean Six Sigma essentials mixed with Agile thinking. It’s not dry, it’s exciting. It’s fast to learn and fast to apply. It makes sense. You can relate to it.

Sophie Breslin, Athensis

Just completed my Business Black Belt programme with the team which was a superb wide ranging course. There are several subjects covered to a detailed level including Business agility, Change Management , Value stream mapping as well as the essential Data Driven insights ( bulk of the Black Belt Process Management ). The breadth of this course makes it so useful , understanding the process properly then tools to lead change effectively amongst many items covered. The pacing has been great and dealt with really well by Moore and the wider team via team video sessions. I will also add the support materials sent to us were invaluable. Overall an excellent learning experience which I will take into my operational process workplace.

Rob Harley, Barclays

So, whatever background you have, whether you are coming from the world of Agile or Lean or Managing Change or IT – take a look at the Business Black Belt, there are a number of different entry points depending on your training to date. It could have the same effect on your career as that management training programme did on mine. It opened my eyes to new ways of thinking about things.

Take a look at the Business Black Belt here

and for more details

and James’s article from April 2019

The post Run the Business AND Transform the Business – the necessary double act for managers today appeared first on Catalyst Consulting.

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Storyboards are used in Lean Six Sigma to support communication and information sharing. They tell the story of an improvement project from the beginning to the end, outlining the steps involved and the lessons learned along the way. They are used as evidence by those seeking certification (e.g. Green Belt or Black Belt) and also support project tollgate reviews, communication with stakeholders and the sharing and transferring of good practice across organisations.

We all know what makes a good story – it grabs attention, takes the audience on a journey and has a good non-fizzly (technical term) ending. However some forget this when they put their Storyboards together and submit something that doesn’t do justice to the project or they work they’ve put into it. Here are some top tips for Storyboard excellence:

A Story Not a Saga

Where Lean Six Sigma practitioners are using their Storyboards for certification we recommend that it consists of around 15 – 25 PowerPoint slides (having the Storyboard in Powerpoint form makes it easy to share and easy to format). Too much information can overload the audience, so avoid anything that takes too long to read or talk through. Keep the rest of your project collateral in a folder for future reference or maintain an epic version of the Storyboard as you work through the project (your ‘story so far’ with everything in it) and develop an edited down version for presentation purposes.

Use it as a Tool throughout the Project

Keeping the Storyboard up to date as you work through the project promotes reflection and helps to consolidate learning. What has gone well? It’s important to recognise those things and celebrate them. What could be better? Capture lessons learned as you go, at the end of each project phase or at other points in the project (e.g. what did the team learn about process stapling? Or about data collection?). Taking time to reflect on progress and consolidate the Storyboard stimulates ideas.

An up to date Storyboard supports effective and efficient tollgate review meetings with the project champion, as well as discussion in between tollgates. It also facilitates communication with other stakeholders, including your team, your manager and your coach.

Finally, keeping the Storyboard up to date saves you from the fate of having to document everything at the end of the project, when the details might be difficult to recall and the task seems massive. Your future self will thank you for keeping the Storyboard up to date.

A Picture Paints a Thousand Words

Some of the most effective Storyboards I’ve seen have incorporated photographs to deliver key messages. For example the Problem Statement featuring a photo of a process operator on their hands and knees scraping up the damaged lino on the floor of a toilet!  Looking at that picture I felt all the pain associated with the process that wasn’t working properly. I also loved the team selfie of a Green Belt who had created a great spirit of continuous improvement and trust within her improvement team. Photos of flip charts, photos of process stapling activities, photos of project ‘before and afters’ – they work brilliantly in Storyboards.

Go With the Flow

Just as a good story includes a ‘narrative flow’, so should a good Storyboard. Storytellers achieve flow by connecting one sentence with another, helping us moving seamlessly from one idea to the next.  Often when reviewing Storyboards we see some great looking and well executed ‘tools and techniques’, but without any narrative to join them together the Storyboard feels like a collection of tools, not a story. When you mapped the process, what were your key observations? And what did you go on to do about that? When you measured process performance what did you learn? Adding this sort of information to your Storyboard helps connect the elements together and gives a much greater insight into the improvement journey.

Weave the Story Together with a Golden Thread

A Golden Thread is used by storytellers to link various parts of a story together – a central theme or key focus that the reader is reminded of at key points, that gets nicely tied off at the end. This technique is used by writers from Charles Dickens to Stephen King and all the best TED Talkers you’ve seen. CTQs provide the Golden Thread for Lean Six Sigma practitioners.

CTQs are the Critical to Quality requirements of the customer – the things that matter most to them about the process in question. These should feature in every phase of the DMAIC project. In the Define phase we identify the CTQs and these establish the focus of the improvement work to follow. We then measure CTQ performance in the Measure phase (along with some measurement of in-process and input variables to enable an understanding of cause and effect). In the Analyse phase we identify what’s causing the CTQ results and in the Improve phase we see how the causes can be addressed with appropriate and focussed solutions. Finally, in the Control phase we see the solutions being implemented in order improve CTQ performance and we see what CTQ performance looks like as a result of the intervention. The CTQs will therefore be an integral part of the project story. They have a key role as the primary agent that propels your story forward.

Not Too Technical

The Storyboard is clearly an important and valuable document – but it shouldn’t be a complicated one. Too many acronyms and too much jargon can make the story difficult to read or understand, so keep it simple, and add a short glossary if it’s really needed.

Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address took only two minutes and used 246 words, most of them one or two syllables. The speaker before Lincoln spoke for two hours and used 13,607 words, yet hardly ever gets a mention! Simplicity makes for memorable messages.

On the same note, remember that the improvement project you’re writing about is likely to have a ‘change’ focus (therefore a people focus) as well as a technical focus. Content on activities such as stakeholder management, communication and influencing is as important as the other tools and techniques – arguably more so.

Happily Ever After?

Remember a good story ties the golden thread up into a satisfying conclusion – and so should yours. Include details about the results achieved and the benefits attained. Remember to include information on all of the different types of benefit too – e.g. environmental benefits, compliance or reputational benefits, ‘feelgood’ benefits, as well as the ‘harder’ (but easier to measure) benefits of time savings and cost savings.

Go and Tell the Story!

Of course, the Storyboard is a means to an end, and that is tell your story! It has huge value beyond project management or ‘belt’ certification. Tell stakeholders! Tell colleagues! Tell people at the coffee queue! Tell people at the end of a zoom meeting! Distil some key messages from your Storyboard and use them whenever you can to raise awareness, build support and celebrate successes. We can shape the culture we want through the stories we tell.

The post We can shape the culture we want through the stories we tell appeared first on Catalyst Consulting.

Whilst the objectives might be near-term rather than long term, and our ways of working may still be evolving and not yet firmly fixed in place, by now, as we reach the end of the ‘back to school’ month of September, a feeling of ‘normal’ is starting to return. I truly hope it lasts.

This framework, based on ‘Bloom’s Taxonomy’, provides a helpful system for setting learning objectives that are clear and measurable, even in challenging circumstances. It represents a learning process, from recognising and recalling information right through to applying what has been learned to build something new (though learners may not need to get to all levels). Like all great processes, it includes measurable, observable verbs to support the identification of achievement.

Here are the different levels of the framework:

Remembering –  finding, recognising and being able to recall information, for example remembering what DMAIC stands for. Measurable verbs: define, list, label, describe, recognise

Understanding – explaining ideas or concepts, like being able to describe Lean Six Sigma in your own words. Measurable verbs: explain, describe, summarise, discuss, identify, tell

Applying – using the knowledge – to complete a SIPOC or a project plan for example. Measurable verbs: use, practice, demonstrate, solve, execute, apply, complete

Analysing – identifying and analysing patterns, being able to recognise trends and organise ideas. For example, using statistical tools to compare data sets. Measurable verbs: appraise, differentiate, critique, debate, quantify, theorise

Evaluating – judging the value of new ideas / being able to critically examine information and make judgements, e.g. determining how the use of agile can support the rapid delivery of benefits. Measurable verbs: justify, assess, defend, select, conclude, compare

Creating – using the concepts to create new ideas, like bringing the learning to life through the delivery of a project or the design of a more effective process. Measurable verbs: develop, design, establish, manage, revise, modify, compose

While setting our objectives at this time we should be mindful of the advice “be stubborn about your goals and flexible about your methods” as further changes, challenges and opportunities are presented. We should also remember that if change is constant, so too is learning.

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