Today we are sharing a few tips on how to get through the next phase in the Practice Accelerator Framework: improving the way you work. 

If you have been following along, you will know that the Practice Accelerator Framework is our step-by-step approach to process improvement. It’s adapted from DMAIC, which stands for Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control.

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We know that following the Practice Accelerator Framework gives you a structured approach that will help you design, execute, and implement successful improvement projects. 

We talked before about the five core questions you need to ask yourself as you move through the Practice Accelerator Framework. As a quick reminder, they are:

1. What does our client want or need?
2. How do we work now to get that result?
3. Why do we do work that way?
4. How can we work better?
5. Is our new process delivering what the client wants and are we following it?

How to Work Better

In the improve phase, you are going to answer the question: how can we work better?

And this is where the fun really begins! It’s your chance to get creative, to brainstorm, to share that truly brilliant idea you’ve been thinking about for years.

Typically, the outputs of your Improve phase will be

1. a future state outline or map of your process
2. a list of improvements you need to make to bridge the gap between where you are now (your current state) and where you want to be (your future state) and
3. an implementation plan.

Four Things Needed in this Phase

To make the improvement phase easier, here are four things you need to do:

Use a facilitator. Typically, the qualities that make for great lawyers also make for lousy innovators. Depending on your team, you may need a skilled facilitator who can move your people away from “No, we can’t do that because…” towards the innovator’s mentality: “Yes, we can do that if…” 

Go back to your charter regularly, so you stay focused on the problem you set out to solve (we talked about charters a few weeks ago – here is the link to that post)

Keep it visual. We recommend you do your redesign the same way you did your current state map: on paper, on a wall, with lots of stickies and markers. And keep your current state close by, so you can SEE the difference between the two.

Imagine a scenario with no constraints. Ask your team to think about what they could do, in an ideal world with no constraints. What would the process look like? What steps could they eliminate or automate?

If you are about to start making some improvements, here is our article on working through the improvement phase. Then join us next week for the final installment of our series on the Practice Accelerator Framework where we will share some tips on making your changes stick. Sign up here so you don’t miss it!