Process Mgmt. Group

ADDITIONAL INFO:

Performance Architecture: Stage Setting

Initial Situation Assessment prior to launching major, organization-wide improvement initiatives or in an effort to clarify priorities, expectations and resource allocation across a jumble of competing “macro-“ initiatives.

Objectives:

Prepare a Performance Architecture Situation Report and Recommendation
Establish a framework for creating or describing the strategic Performance Architecture with measures and management dimensions roughed out
Align, prioritize and integrate potential performance initiatives, resources and timing with respect to business strategy and pertinent stakeholder values
Clarify the superstructure, roles and responsibilities for key process ownership and accountability
Deliver a process inventory complete with draft measures, which are aligned with strategy

Outputs:

A Strategy Review (from a Performance Architecture point of view)
The clarification of Strategic Environmental, Industry and Corporate Critical Success Factors and Critical Business Issues as well as the establishment of a framework for linking Success Factors and Issues to Key Strategic Processes and to improvement initiatives
The identification of Strategic Performance Architecture and Drivers using Strategic Goals and Strategic Inter-relationship Analysis
Identification of Stakeholders and internal assessment of perceived stakeholder needs (subject to validation through later stakeholder interviews)
A Catalogue of Current Strategic Measures
Draft measures for processes (end to end high level)
A Catalogue of Processes, described, bounded and assessed, highlighting those that are “High Impact” and key to the execution of strategy
A Key Strategic Process Inter-relationship Analysis demonstrating, among other things, the “Leverage Areas” for Core Competencies and Competitive Advantage and the “High Impact Areas” for Risk and Disconnects
A review of other current or impending major, competing corporate initiatives and an Initiative Inter-relationship Analysis surfacing goal congruence, strategic resource and timing issues
A Performance Management and Improvement Plan, in typical project management “scope and cope” format, considering environmental monitors and strategic measures, opportunities, priorities, resources and timing, with a particular, but not exclusive, focus on process opportunities and implementation implications. (Note: Under certain circumstances, and subject to initial conditions, the Plan could involve an entire integrated organizational transformation initiative rather than a managed programme of individual process initiatives.)

(Note: If corporate strategy has not been clearly articulated and communicated throughout the organization, additional time will have to be devoted to crystallizing it with the senior executive team in this “Stage Setting” Phase.)
(Note: In the absence of appropriate performance data, additional time may have to be spent gathering and analysing organization and process performance to detail or validate opportunities and priorities. Whether this is done in the “Stage Setting” Phase or later is situationally specific and will be considered by the consultant. The requirement can be particularly critical when new stakeholder values and/or new enterprise measures and management schemes, such as Balanced Scorecard, are being introduced or refined.)

How to Get There:
(The “Stage Setting” Phase work plan consists of seven steps:
Data gathering, analysis, extension and working session draft materials preparation. (Involving up-front, on-site time interviewing senior management and accessing pertinent materials. A “Kick-off Executive Overview” session is desirable, if logistics permit.)

An initial, senior management “Validation Workshop” to test, refine and draw conclusions/implications from the emerging picture of their “Performance Architecture.” (Normally an intensive, value-added “shirtsleeves” working session to put the data to work, draw out the challenging strategic issues and probe the utility of the principle of “Performance Architecture.” This session will produce drafts of a number of the key outputs of the “Stage Setting” Phase.)

An interim period of off-line work by both client and consultant to refine and document the executive team’s work to-date and to gather more data or conduct further analyses pursuant to assignments and commitments coming out of the “Validation Workshop.” (Normally two weeks in duration and again requiring on and off-site work in sub-teams or in a one-on-one or one-on-several mode.)

A second, senior management “Strategic Improvement Action Planning Workshop” to confirm final versions of work completed to date and to springboard off it to the development of a Strategic Performance Management and Improvement Action Plan. (Normally another intensive, action-oriented workshop. It will produce a full set of near-final-draft outputs for the “Stage Setting” Phase.)

Final documentation including senior management review of emerging final materials. (Normally taking one to two weeks, including some on-site time to fine tune documentation directions.) (Documentation and presentation approach and formats will have been established in the Proposal and Letter of Agreement formalizing the engagement.)

A third, senior management “Final Presentation and Consultant Debrief Workshop” to review the consolidated output and recommendations and to consider an associated consultant interpretation and commentary. (Normally a one-half day “review and confirm next steps” working session. It can be combined with a regular management team meeting for economy of time.)

Follow-up if and as required, including proposals, if appropriate, in consulting support of specific elements of the Strategic Performance Management and Improvement Action Plan. (No fixed time expectations and, in any case, not part of the “Stage Setting" Phase of work.