MCTS-GET-DO-GIVE Cycles&Internal Supplier-Customer Chains…

Internal Supplier-Customer Chains & GET-DO-GIVE Cycles…

Meeting and exceeding every customer’s need in ways that increase company profitability is a task that everyone within an organization could/would strive to accomplish if the systems developed within the organization properly motivate, encourage and verify the results produced by each person’s action.

Within every company, each person is a supplier for his or her “down-stream customers.” The final product or service delivered to the “outside customer” can be a result of many supplier-customer chains—internal and external to the company.

Profitable management systems empower everyone to be responsible for the quality of his/her output to his/her internal customers. For many, working to exceed the needs and expectations of internal customers is not regarded as an important value. This can be due to personal experience initially carried into a job from a prior company by a new hire, but if the problem exists in your company it is not the fault of your employees. Your management system is the cause—adverse employee behavior is the effect.

Every business system is composed as a set of interrelated processes and sub-processes that must be completed within some particular time frame if products and/or services are to be profitably delivered to an outside customer base.

Understanding systems requires an understanding of processes. Here are some simple definitions that every employee should intuitively grasp if Continual Profit-Ability Improvement is your goal.

What is a Process...
A process is a cycle of work or action (often called a "job") conducted by one or more people (usually in the same work-group, team or department) that must be repeated at some regular interval (each hour, day, week, month, quarter, year) due to some external or internal company demand (work order, purchase order, customer order, new hire, customer return, payables, receivables, etc.).

Characteristics of a Typical Process:

Every process has a beginning, middle, and an end.
Every process includes a GET-DO-GIVE cycle that receives and extends to others.
Every process includes an Acquisition/Production/Delivery cycle.
Every process includes a Supplier, Product or Service, and a Customer.

Deming’s approach to Process Improvement has been described as “Management by Positive Co-Operation” where the new climate within an organization’s culture consists of at least 3 elements:

Joy in Work
Innovation
Co-Operation

When everyone can agree on the fundamental definitions and cycles of a process, the next step is standardized descriptions of those processes. Next comes agreement as to how processes can be improved within existing standards and constraints. Knowing who is your supplier for specific products or services, and understanding the needs of your customers is vital information if the proposed process improvements are to directly bolster company profitability.