Introduction to the series
There is unprecedented pressure on organizational leaders today to improve business performance by building efficient processes and highly productive teams. With their list of priorities getting bigger and bigger each time, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed, but that’s where the concept of continuous improvement (CI) has much to offer in the way of perspective. Simply put, CI focuses on making small incremental changes over time to achieve a larger goal. Arguably, it has never been more crucial for businesses to have a CI custodian responsible for equipping an organization with the tools and resources it needs to ensure that the needle on continuous improvement is always moving.
But it doesn’t end there. As disruption comes knocking on the doors of businesses once again, these CI leaders need to come together to exchange ideas and share their learnings so that organizations can get better at turning change and uncertainty in any form into a great strategic advantage.
Our series begins with a three-part article authored by none other than Continuous Improvement Chief Lead here at Enlighten, Claudio Dalla Venezia. With a background in operational excellence, consulting, and program management, Claudio took charge of the Enlighten CI practice in 2020. As a Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt, Claudio specializes in driving strategic business transformations by improving processes, combining technology, people, and operating models to help businesses achieve operational excellence. Having managed large-scale CI projects from inception to delivery, Claudio is well-placed to unpack the concept of CI in the language of business leaders.
The three articles will look at the then versus now of CI to emphasize why the concept is a timeless one, before asking whether CI is more of an art or a science, and finally exploring how a Continuous Improvement leader can unite teams and entire organizations around a shared purpose.
Later on in the series, we will also endeavour to bring you insights from other leaders who live and breathe CI and the results they are seeing on the ground through their relentless pursuit of continuous improvement.
Success for organizations today hinges on a sound, robust CI strategy with a capable CI leader at the helm, making our new thought leadership series Moving the needle on CI a must-read for business leaders today.
Stay tuned for our first article next week where we look at the ‘then’ versus ‘now’ of CI to understand why the concept is a timeless one.