Lured by the prospect of major costs savings and productivity improvements, executives eagerly proceed with Lean or Six Sigma projects. The reality, however, is that most Lean implementations fail to produce the desired results, especially in white collar environments.
Executives overseeing transactional processing operations routinely question the leadership attributes held by front-line management within their organizations. Their concern is justified, as the typical front-line manager employs a highly reactive approach to management and focuses on “putting out fires” rather than proactively managing their teams.
Most white collar organizations rely on average processing times to underpin their benchmarks and performance standards. In fact, the use of “averages” in calculating benchmarks is so prevalent and widespread in the white collar environment that executives frequently fail to grasp the serious consequences of using this approach.
In many industries,there is an incredible amount of latent capacity that is wasted in the back- and middle-office on a daily basis. This fact is routinely overlooked by the majority of C-suite executives, who are unable to see the extent of unused capacity so deeply hidden within their organizations.
Creating operational excellence and instilling a culture of continuous improvement is a utopia that most organizations never reach. Nonetheless, certain industries have witnessed much greater success than others in the quest for continuous improvement.
Early on in our engagements, the most common fear clients express is fear of publishing individual efficiency results. “We haven’t had positive experiences with displaying employees’ scores before,” is the concern typically voiced.
Employee engagement is a powerful driver of business success. Data from companies across sectors and around the world show just how large an impact engagement makes, and what a competitive advantage it can provide.
An agile back office that can quickly respond to opportunities and threats – what an enticing vision! But how can large companies put this vision into practice and become truly agile?
Vendors in the market are encouraging their clients to implement “blended work teams”, whereby relatively straightforward transactions from the back-office are moved and processed by Contact Center staff during quieter periods.