Productivity Improvement

In our experience, our partners and clients often seek our collaboration in specific areas. On the basis of the Lichtenberg methodology, however, we propose to identify the main causes and places of corporate losses in the framework of an Analysis. Thereafter, on the basis of the results and findings of the Analysis, we define the processes and areas in need of improvement, and select the methods to apply in the course of the Project. This method significantly contributes to the success of the project.

Once we have defined the targets of the project, we apply our experience and methodological know-how to implement them in a way that is tailored to the specific company and staff. Our work also includes tailored training sessions, workshops, and individual coaching. We provide this support to all management levels in the course of the project, although we assign a priority to the training and development of lower level, operative managers, as they manage the bulk of company resources.

We stand by our professional opinion, but not rigidly and at any price. If necessary, we seek compromises that seem optimal under the given circumstances, which company staff can identify with and implement, and operate in the future, and most importantly, which offer a genuine solution.

Key principles and features of the Complex Productivity Improvement Program:

• We provide assistance in the breakdown of the corporate strategy, down to the conversion of daily duties. With the help of target scaling, lower level managers will not only precisely understand their responsibilities, but will also be competent under the given circumstances to make decisions that always serve company objectives. It is therefore essential that they understand their own roles, the consequences of their decisions, and circumstances effectively determined by their actions.
• Measurement and control procedures are prioritised in the project. We develop a system and KPIs in collaboration with managers, which provide information to all participants of the processes necessary for their work and decision making, and provide regular feedback on their own performance and that of their subordinates.
•  We focus on processes and human resources. We believe that efficient operation relies on a system of effectively created and continuously developed processes, and the competent, committed work of employees, who operate these. In addition to process optimisation, we also wish to see staff in control of these processes and identify with them. The modifications are therefore worked out in each case with the managers and employees concerned.
•  Our work is based on the main value creation processes of the company, as these reflect the positive and negative effects of the operation of all areas and processes. From this point, however, the development of all other support and administrative areas is drawn into the project, as these have an immense effect on efficient operation and cost effective management. The purchase and maintenance divisions are good examples.
•  In the course of the project, we aim at improving the adaptability and responsiveness of the company, that is, to secure long-term efficiency. We also exploit reserves in the operation of the company, which produce early results during the project, and can be quantified and disclosed in the balance sheet of the company. These secure the fast recovery of the project. We guarantee that the project will be recovered no later than one year after its completion! It is important that your colleagues quantify data and not us.
•  As a major advantage of our projects, we do not work from a distance with your statements and books, but our consultants are there with your colleagues and collaborate with them during the entire duration of the project. We are there when the shift begins and ends, and during the interim periods as well. Our experts are always there, where the events happen. We obviously also rely on the statements and reports of your company, but the observation of processes in practice and firsthand information are the primary sources of our work.

In our rapidly changing world, fast adjustment to change and the need to satisfy changing customer demand has never been so essential for companies aiming to survive on the market.

In intensifying competition on the market, these changes prompt continuous development and more (cost) effective operation by all market participants, regardless of size, sector or region, to retain and possibly strengthen their position on the market.

Although the people concerned tend to forget, the efficient operation of a company organisation unit also depends on company processes – interconnected through several channels – and the performance of other organisation units.

The importance of process management, as an approach and method, is not limited to this context. It is important to be aware that when a customer remains loyal to a company in the long term, he/she does not only favour its product or service, but also the processes leading to its production or provision.

Thus, effectively developed, controlled, managed and maintained (continuously developed) processes are the foundation of corporate efficiency. The findings established on the company and its management, and the objectives and intentions of the owners determine whether intervention is limited to only adjustments or requires the complete overhaul and transformation (BPR) of complex process systems

„The measurement, evaluation of business performance, and the related identification, understanding and conscious design and development of factors affecting performance is of key importance for all enterprises.”

“What we measure, we pay attention to” and “we pay attention to what we measure”..

Therefore a well defined, expediently developed performance measurement system, which takes into account individual, regional and corporate criteria, provides feedback to company executives that supports their decision making, such as the rate of implemented company targets (and their form “scaled” down to a given area), and the weight of factors impacting performance.

It is always important to emphasise that measurement is not end in itself, but a key instrument that supports decision making, the conscious improvement of performance and corporate communication.

It plays a crucial role not only in the evaluation of current performance, but also in day-to-day decision making, strategic planning, the definition of the direction of modernisation and development, and the motivation of employees. We therefore manage KPIs, assess the availability of and possibly transform or introduce an adequate indicator system in the context of these priorities.