Business process improvement
Build practical processes for greater productivity, efficiency and profit.
The primary reason for implementing business systems is to build consistency and, therefore, predictability into the quality of outcomes. Better systems and processes also establish the means for day-to-day operational activities to manage themselves, leaving managers with the time they need to deal with exceptions and to work on business development.
Gibsons consultants apply simple yet effective techniques to ensure your business is on a constant watch for improvements and that all improvements form part of the quality, safety and environmental management systems already in place.
Technology
Technology plays an integral part of strategy and planning and in the efficiency and effectiveness of business processes – across marketing, operations, human resources and finance.
Gibsons consultants not only understand how technology can be utilised in business systems strategically but also how to help manage its deployment.
To find out more about embedding robust processes in your business, contact Gibsons today.
How we can help you
Business Process Modelling
Business process modelling in process management and systems engineering is the activity of representing processes of an enterprise, so that the current process may be analysed, improved, and automated.
This is the starting point for analysing the efficiency of your overall process and identifying opportunities for improving efficiency and removing any waste.
We have experts with business process modelling experience who will help you to consistently improve your business processes.
Optimising Supply Chains
Supply chain management is defined in many different ways, but we prefer to take it back to its most basic meaning and that is “cash velocity”. Optimising your supply chain is all about maximising the speed required to turn your cash inputs into cash outputs, which implies doing it with maximum efficiency.
In order to achieve the optimum cash return on a dollar’s worth of inputs, there are a range of issues to consider including the way that your internal processes are functioning. This includes an assessment of how relationships are managed at the organisation boundaries with suppliers and customers.
By considering your supply chain as a continuous end-to-end process and analysing how each element of it functions and interconnects you can:
- Identify and eliminate internal and external bottlenecks
- Reduce your lead times
- Reduce your inventory levels
- Improve relationships with suppliers
- Improve delivery performance
- Increase overall efficiency and profitability
- Improve return on investment
We have experts with international supply chain management experience who will help you to optimise the flow of raw materials and finished goods into, through and out of your business.
Risk Management
Sensible risk management is good business practice and allows you to be ready for when unfavourable circumstances arise that could threaten the viability or profitability of your business. How many businesses were ready for the recent COVID19 outbreak?
Risks can be internal or external and fall into a range of categories including Hazard Risks, Operational Risks, Financial Risks, and Strategic Risks.
Our risk management process involves:
- Identifying and characterising threats
- Assessing the impact to the business if the threat occurs
- Assessing the likelihood of the threat occurring
- Categorising the level of risk
- Preparing risk mitigation strategies
- Assistance with implementing strategies and solutions, as needed.
The outcome of the process is a risk management plan that meets the requirements of ISO31000:2009.
Lean Processing
Lean Processing is a management philosophy that is based on the manufacturing processes developed and implemented at Toyota by Taiichi Ohno and Shigeo Shingo over a 20 year period.
It significantly improves the efficiency of operational processes across a range of businesses. The principles can also be applied to administration systems.
There is a long list of initiatives that can be implemented under the Lean Processing banner. The ones most commonly in place are:
- Value Stream Mapping
- Cellular layout
- 5S
- Kanban
- Kaizen
- Visual Management Systems
- Elimination of waste (where waste has 7 discrete elements)
Gibsons business consultants can assess your processes and advise which elements of Lean are most appropriate for your organisation. Our business consultants will then develop a Lean program specific to your needs, engage and train your staff in how to use it and actively assist with its implementation.
Technology Strategy
Businesses large and small need comprehensive plans that outline how technology should be used to meet business goals. This is your Information Technology Strategy; a document detailing the many factors affecting the investment in and use of technology.
A strong IT strategy provides a blueprint of how technology supports and shapes the overall business strategy and how IT is aligned with the business. It takes into account the needs of key stakeholders including employees, customers and suppliers as well as owners.
Gibsons believe that even though the IT strategy addresses complex technology details, it must be an actionable business document. Its importance has been amplified over the past few years as businesses focus on transformation into the digital age. It is essential for creating new business models and improving productivity. Gibsons assist our clients by expertly guiding the IT strategy development, and by advising on alignment and implementation.
Systems Implementation
Implementing IT in your business is always more difficult to do than it seems. Usually this is because most businesses do not have the necessary skills or experience to take on the complexities. Why is it so hard and why do businesses underestimate the time, cost and complexity?
It starts with strategy. Your IT project needs to be clearly aligned with your strategy and goals, with agreement around how the project will help the business and how success will be measured. Getting this buy-in is crucial.
From the technology point-of-view, the project must align with your IT strategy and have a solid implementation plan built on known capability and resources, both internal and external to the business. Gibsons have the experience and expertise to guide this process from start to finish and can make your IT project the success you need it to be.
For a guiding hand with your business, speak to our experienced consultants.
