Identify one process your organization is involved in. This may be a service operation.
a) Develop a process map (flow chart) for this process. Measure the time it takes to complete the process over a period of two weeks.
b) Identify where bottlenecks are in this process. These may be in form of delays, errors, wastage etc. Classify these bottlenecks as either prevention costs, appraisal costs, internal or external failure costs. Convert these bottlenecks into actual costs (costs in monetary terms). Calculate these costs as a percentage of the department’s total fortnight expenditure.
c) Based on the most significant costs identified, identify the areas that need to be redesigned in this process. Redesign the aspects of the process that are under your direct level of influence, and then measure the time it takes to complete the process in its redesigned form over a period of two weeks. Present a flow chart of the redesigned process. Also determine the costs of the various stages in the redesigned process. Calculate the time and cost savings that accrue from the redesigned process.
d) Citing relevant literature, discuss the benefits of the redesigned process to the department in which the process is based and suggest additional processes that may need to be redesigned in your organization. In your write up, state the factors that contribute to system variability and give recommendations on how these can be controlled.
A 15-20 page write up will be required for the term paper.