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Big Picture Method
Big Picture Method:
Short Assessment based on Fundamental Concepts of Excellence
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EFQM Shares what works
We are committed to help organisations drive improvement through the EFQM Excellence Model, a comprehensive management framework used by over 30 000 organisations in Europe. To help you implement our Model, we provide training and assessment tools as well as recognition for high performing organisations. But our real talent comes from gathering good practices and integrating those within our portfolio. We at EFQM, a not‐for‐profit membership Foundation, aim to share what works, through case studies, online seminars, working groups, conferences and thematic events. Sharing our member’s enthusiasm, their motivation and the results they achieve; that is what we work for.
Our Members Include:
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Sponsor: pom+ pom+Consulting AG, a Swiss consulting firm, provides consultancy services for real estates, infrastructures, private companies as well as for public authorities in the sectors of construction, facility, property, portfolio and asset management. With the holistic advisory approach and the focus on lifecycles, pom+ generates added value by measuring performances, developing strategies, optimising resources and using modern technologies. Dedicated – in the relation with the customer. Solution‐driven – in the order processing. Innovative – with approaches and tools. Professional – through excellent and highly qualified employees as well as knowhow from 3000 projects with more than 300 clients. From its headquarters in Zurich and offices in Bern, Lausanne, Basel, St. Gallen, Berlin and Frankfurt, pom+ operates in Switzerland and abroad. Ever since its foundation in 1996, pom+ strives for Excellence. In the own company. With clients. In all projects. “Excellence by pom” means not only to offer the journey to Excellence as consultancy services, but also to pursue the approach in the organisation itself. As first consulting firm, pom+ received the ISO 9001 certificate in the year 2000, followed by a success story. In 2005 pom+ was awarded as a Finalist and the Prize Winner for Continuous Learning, Innovation and Improvement at the ESPRIX (Swiss Business Excellence Award). In 2008: pom+ was celebrated as the ESPRIX Award Winner. In 2009, pom+ faced the challenge to measure its quality on a European scale and was the only Swiss company to be acknowledged in the Finalist Round of EEA (European Excellence Award). Two years later, in 2012, the highlight: pom+ wins the EEA Prize for “Leading with Vision, Inspiration and Integrity”. pom+ is thus one of the best European companies in terms of Business Excellence according to EFQM. However, as Martin Cremosnik, Board Member of pom+ says, “continuous learning never stops, and the journey goes on.” pom+ is a company, which counts on innovation, develops new approaches and tools using modern technologies and the skills of its knowledge partners. pom+ agreed to take part in the pilot project – testing the newly developed Big Picture Method. “With pom+ as a partner, we enabled the comparison of the results of the shortened method with the results of the detailed assessment in order to optimize the method based on this evaluation” so Rahel Schmid, project manager at pom+, “pom+ has significantly contributed to the development and publication of the Big Picture Method.”
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Preface to the Big Picture Method Big Picture Method as a practical compass for companies
The BPM was the core of the Master Thesis written by Ms. Rahel Schmid at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, School of Business. She was awarded with the “Best Master Thesis Award”, sponsored by SCHURTER AG. The jury rated it as a valuable practice oriented addition to the existing assessment methods of EFQM. The Big Picture Method had the advantage of enabling ease of use so that the method can be used to assess and identify areas for improvement with low effort, at any time ‐ as a compass for business development.
For more than 10 years, SCHURTER AG has aligned itself to Business Excellence. This is acknowledged by the awards granted by ESPRIX (Swiss Award for Excellence), Swiss Leadership and the Swiss Employer Award. For the SCHURTER Group, Business Excellence obviously is a strategic success factor, which continuously helps to improve competitiveness. This Business Excellence method is particularly suitable for SME’s (small and medium‐sized enterprises), NPO’s (non‐profit organisations) and graspable organisational units in larger company groups of any kind.
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Short description of the authors
Rahel Schmid Rahel Schmid is a certified Business Excellence Assessor. After receiving a Bachelor degree in Community Development, she got a Master degree in Business Administration at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts. In her Master Thesis she developed, tested and optimised the Big Picture Method with support from Gabriela Scheuber and Urs Bucher. As a Business Excellence Assessor, she has gathered experience with companies active in various sectors. Furthermore, during her stay in the US, New Zealand and France, which lasted for 6 to 12 months, she gained experiences in international markets. After working for a Venture Capitalist in Silicon Valley, she is presently active for a consulting company and advises companies striving for Business Excellence.
Urs Bucher Urs Bucher is a Professor at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts and Director of Business Excellence in the President’s Office. He coordinates the development of the Excellence Culture in the Schools Engineering and Architecture, Business, Social Work, Art and Design and Music. In May 2010, Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts was the first university in Germany, Austria and Switzerland to achieve the second level of the EFQM Recognition Programme “Recognised for Excellence”. Urs Bucher teaches at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts – School of Business – and is active in consultancy and research. He is an accredited EFQM Assessor Trainer, EFQM Validator, acted several times as an Assessor Team for the National Excellence Award ESPRIX in Switzerland and he is part of the group of “EFQM Valued Professionals”.
Additionally, we would like to thank Gabriela Scheuber for her very valuable support in the phase of the development and first deployment of the method. Furthermore we thank Paul Geomets and Samuli Pruikkonen from EFQM for his support in publishing the method.
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Contents:
1. Introduction……………………………………………………………….......................................................7
2. Structure of the Method.................................................................................................................9
3. Design of the Big Picture Method..................................................................................................11
4. Process flow of the Big Picture Method in detail... .......................................................................18
5. Use of the Big Picture Method.......................................................................................................23
6. Learning for Deployment... ...........................................................................................................25
7. Glossary..........................................................................................................................................26
8. Annexes..........................................................................................................................................27
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1. Introduction
Why another method?Companies, organisations and institutions act in complex and volatile environments. In order to achieve sustainable success in these environments, holistic management and continual improvement are increasingly becoming important. Periodic Assessment makes it possible to identify strengths and areas for improvement and derive well‐aimed actions for organisational development. Due to highly limited time resources, shortened approaches are chosen frequently. The existing quick methods focus on rapidly generating the scoring and do without qualitative results or only treat them marginally. There are hardly any shortened approaches where elaboration of strengths and areas for improvement are in the focus of interest.
Positioning of the Big Picture Method The present Big Picture Method aims at closing this gap in the portfolio of EFQM’s methods by adding a shortened method, which focuses on giving an overview of the most important strengths and areas for improvement of an organisation. Furthermore, the method enables an overview of systematics in the approaches of the company. For this purpose, consistency in use of the RADAR concept (Results, Approaches, Deploy, Assess, Refine) will be assessed. In addition, the Big Picture Method enables easy exchange of ‘Good Practices’ between different organisational units.
Differentiation of the Big Picture Method The Big Picture Method particularly differs from other approaches of the EFQM in the shortened data acquisition phase while the quality of the results is comparable. The focus on strengths and areas for improvement as well as resigning a score are the main differences of the Big Picture Method. Besides, use of the Fundamental Concepts of Excellence and the RADAR Logic as a basis of the method is characteristic.
Focus on
the result
Strengths, areas for improvement and scoring
EFQM Workshop Method Quick Assessment Quick Scan Workshop of AFQM Global Assessment by Top Mgt. Global Assessment of Key Sites Standard Form Method Common Assessment Framework Simulation of an application GOA Self‐Assessment Tool of ISO 9004
Strengths and areas for improvement
BPM
Scoring
Questionnaire of EFQM SwissBEx Questionnaire Business Excellence QuestionnaireRapid Plant Assessment
≤ ½ day > ½ day
Expenditure of time
Figure 1: Differentiation of the Big Picture Method from existing methods
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Target Group Due to the fact, that the Big Picture Approach needs little time and focuses on strengths, areas for improvement and systematics in the approaches of the company, the method is very valuable for companies that have little experiences with Business Excellence so far. It is a perfect start for companies beginning with the Excellence focus. The report serves as a basis for the Committed to Excellence process. Additionally, the method is also appropriate for companies being already on their journey to Excellence which are interested in a short assessment as a fundament for the organisational development planning. It is furthermore very valuable for companies consisting of different organisational units in order to be able to exchange Good Practices easily.
Deployment The Big Picture Method provides for three group interviews aided by interviewing guides: 11/2 hours with the top managerial level, 21/2 hours with the second managerial level and 11/2 hours with four to five employees. In addition, there will be preceding document studies helping the assessors to understand the organisation and give first insights into the maturity of the organisation as far as Excellence is concerned. The Big Picture Method will be deployed by at least two internal or external EFQM Assessors. The Big Picture Method can be used for self‐assessments as well as for external assessments.
Results The Big Picture Method has been used, tested and optimised as a pilot project with two companies with different Excellence maturities. Additionally it was used in ten more medium to large size organizations. The results have been characterized as reflecting reality faithfully, relevant and differentiated. Furthermore, the report is regarded as being a valuable basis for organisational development. In more mature companies, the report has been estimated comparable to the results of the conventional assessment.
Use of this brochure This brochure is aimed at providing the required information and tools to Business Excellence Assessors so that the Big Picture Method can be applied. Experienced assessors are requested to bear in mind that the explanations will be rather detailed in order to enhance general comprehensibility.
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2. Structure of the Method
Fundamental Concepts and RADAR as a basis The Big Picture Method is based on the Fundamental Concepts of Excellence. “The Fundamental Concepts define what basically is necessary to achieve sustainable Excellence.”1 These concepts are connected with the Excellence Model. The relevant links between the (sub‐)criteria of the model and the Fundamental Concepts are shown in the following Table.
Figure 2: Interlinking the Fundamental Concepts of Excellence and the EFQM Model2 This shows that the Fundamental Concepts represent a concentrated and generic form of features of Excellence. The Fundamental Concepts help to review whether the organisation is aligned holistically. They primarily cover enabling elements. However, the Fundamental Concept “Achieving balanced results” also addresses the results. In addition to the Fundamental Concepts, the RADAR Logic is used as a basic module helping to review systematics in the approaches. Development of the interviewing guides In order to structure the individual characteristics within a Fundamental Concept, they are arranged along the elements of the RADAR Logic (Results, Approaches, Deploy, Assess & Refine). An example of this approach is shown in Figure 3. Empty columns can be supplemented by adding specific questions. Furthermore, the interviewing guides can be supplemented by putting questions about the results. For in the Fundamental Concepts, it is primarily enabler aspects that are included.
1 Translation based on: EFQM, 2012. EFQM Excellence Model 2013. Brussels: EFQM. p. 21 2 EFQM, 2012. EFQM Excellence Model 2013. Brussels: EFQM. p. 21
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Fundamental Concept Results Approaches Deploy Assess & Refine
Leading with Vision, Inspiration and Integrity
fixing a clear direction and a strategic focus;
communicating a clear direction and a strategic focus;
reviewing and assessing the organisation’s alignment;
adapting the organisation’s alignment, if necessary.
Figure 3: Structuring of the Fundamental Concepts acc. to RADAR
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3. Design of the Big Picture Method Analysing documents for an understanding of the organisation and for an initial basis Framework for an understanding of the organisation First of all, an understanding of the organisation and its interrelations and interactions is elaborated as a basis for Assessment. For this purpose, the following template can be used (Fig. 4). This template is based on an existing Figure provided by EFQM and has been adapted slightly3.
The organisation’s
alignment
The organisation‘s performance
Key inputs
Key suppliers and partners
Key stakeholders External environment
Key outputs
Key customers
Figure 4: Template for elaborating an understanding of the organisation4
Elaborating an understanding of the organisation In order to obtain this understanding of the organisation, the company’s documents will be studied. For example, brochures about the company, the business model, business reports and the organisational structure will be analyzed. These documents and other possible sources of information are compiled in one document, which can be handed over to the company before an external assessments in order to get the relevant information (cf. Annex A). Based on the understanding of the organisation, which has been elaborated individually, there will be a consolidation process among the assessors, aiming at a common understanding of the organisation. In this respect, the focus will be on discussing what aspects and approaches are relevant and critical for the organisation. In case of external assessments, an interview with senior management is recommended so that the assessors’ understanding of the organisation can be validated. In order to reduce the assessors’ workload, asking the company to autonomously establish a company profile as is shown in Fig. 4 can be considered.
3 EFQM, 2003. Excellence bewerten (German version of “assessing for excellence” brochure). Brussels: EFQM. p. 21 4 in analogy to EFQM, 2003. Excellence bewerten. (German version of “assessing for excellence” brochure) Brussels: EFQM. p. 21
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Reviewing documents in order to get insights into ExcellenceAnalysis of documents before the interviews will give a first impression about the way the Fundamental Concepts are deployed within the company, especially for external assessors. Analysis of these documents (such as management principles, innovation measures or results from people surveys) will make it easier to adjust the interviews to the company. The concrete design of the interviews will be discussed in more detail in the following chapter.
Group interviews serving to acquire data Interviewees Based on the document studies described above, three interviews will take place. In order to integrate different hierarchical levels and functions in the Assessment, three different groups of interviewees are defined: the top managerial level, the second managerial level and employees. For each target group, several persons will be involved. Information that can be obtained among the individual target groups and the time approximately needed for obtaining this information will be shown in the following Table (Table 1).
Target Group Fundamental Concepts Time Needed
Top managerial level Sustaining Outstanding Results; Developing Organisational Capability Creating a Sustainable Future
1.5 h
Second managerial level
Adding Value for Customers; Leading with Vision, Inspiration and Integrity;
Managing with Agility; Succeeding through the Talent of People;
Harnessing Creativity and Innovation
2.5 h
Employees
Succeeding through the Talent of People;
Elements from different Fundamental Concepts
1.5 h
Table 1: Inquired Fundamental Concepts and time needed for the 3 groups of interviewees Overview of the interviewees and Fundamental Concepts This allocation of topics discussed in the different groups of interviewees will be shown as an overview in the matrix below (Fig. 5). Furthermore, documents are added as possible another source of data. The fields marked in dark grey show at which group of interviewees the Fundamental Concept is inquired as a focal point. The fields marked in light grey show what additional sources of information are used for supporting statements.
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Fundamental Concepts
Res
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Inno
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Futu
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Top managerial level
Second managerial level
Employees
Documents
Primary source of data
Secondary source of data
Figure 5: Overview Matrix showing the data sources in the different Fundamental Concepts
Overview of the interviewees and Fundamental Concepts The target groups of top and second managerial levels are largely defined by the structure. On the second managerial level, it is recommended to ensure that the fields of Human Resources, Processes, IT and Marketing are represented in the interviews. For interviewing a group of employees, a selection needs to be made. In most cases, all the employees can give information on the chosen elements. If possible, it is desirable to involve one person that is in customer contact as well as one person active in process management. As for the rest, a composition that is as heterogeneous as possible regarding the functions, age, gender, etc., is striven for. A group of 4 to 5 people seems to be optimal. For this makes it possible to consider different points of view while the size of the group still enables involvement of all the members of the group in the discussion. For interviewing the employees, it is possible for the team of assessors to split and interview two groups with 4‐5 people each. Thus even more perspectives can be taken into account. Furthermore, it is recommended to anticipate difficulties that may be connected with group dynamics and correspondingly assemble the group. Interviewing guides for the organisation Interviewing guides serve as an orientation framework in an interview and can be developed in accordance to Figure 5 above. The objective of the interviews should be to cover at least one question per RADAR perspective in every Fundamental Concept. For the result focused questions it is recommended to check whether the questions can rather be answered by the top managerial level or the second managerial level. Thanks to the RADAR structure, it is ensured that systematics is inquired on a generic level (for example in connection with general treatment of customers). In order to identify single approaches within the Fundamental Concepts in a differentiated manner (for example in the course of customer satisfaction surveys), the RADAR Logic will additionally be used. It will help
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the assessors to specifically ask for more details of systematics of specific approaches and results during the interviews. The RADAR Orientation Board below (Figure 6) includes the attributes of the RADAR Assessment Matrix, which support to formulate questions helping to check systematics in the single approaches.
Figure 6: RADAR Orientation Board5 Recording data Note the content discussed The statements will already be written down during the interview. The data will be in three separate documents for each group of interviewees (Senior Management (SM), Management Team (MT), People (P). The consolidation will take place in a later step. A template for the notes is shown in a simplified form in Figure 7.
FC OU Interviewee SM / MT / P
Description RA D A R
S AI GP AR
Remarks (open issues, vagueness)
Figure 7: Template for writing down interview data The template serves to note the Fundamental Concept (FC) concerned, the organisational unit (OU)
5 in analogy to EFQM, 2012. EFQM Excellence Model 2013. Brussels: EFQM. pp. 22
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under study and the group of interviewees (Senior Management (SM), Management Team (MT), People (P)). The fourth column offers space for describing the approaches explained by the interviewees. In the column RADAR, systematics of the approach will be assessed after the interviews by writing down the covered RADAR elements. Segmentation into strengths (S) and areas for improvement (AI), ‘Good Practices’ (GP) as well as ‘Approaches to be Reviewed’ (AR) are possible in the sixth column. The last column offers space for remarks Completing the interview notes Ideally time for making the notes understandable or adding additional contents, which are remembered, will be scheduled right after the interviews. Consolidation of the contents of the three groups of interviewees For compiling data from the three interviews, all tables can be copied to one document and structured along the Fundamental Concepts by using the sorting function of Microsoft Word. Based on this consolidation of the three reporting templates, statements about the same contents will be compiled while formulating the respective elements more precisely. When choosing wording, it will be striven for to use the organisation’s terminology and language as far as possible. Reporting template as a result The result of this phase “Recording data” is a reporting template, which describes the organisation’s approaches in all Fundamental Concepts. The report is structured along the Fundamental Concept and on a second level along the elements of RADAR. The assessments, which qualify approaches as a strengths or areas for improvement, will follow in the data evaluation phase and is described in the next chapter.
Data evaluation process
In this phase, a close exchange among the assessors is important in order to find a consensus to increase the objectiveness of the results. Assessing the single approach Based on the fully formulated descriptions of the approaches, an assessment will be made: The single approaches will be graded as being strengths or areas for improvement. On the whole, Assessment is aimed at focusing on the organisation’s strengths. Approaches will be qualified as strengths if the elements of the RADAR Logic are deployed adequately. To support this assessment, the allocation of the RADAR elements to the single approaches can be helpful. For this purpose, a separate column is intended in the reporting template. Evaluating the approach whether it is planned and well‐aimed, whether it is deployed effectively and whether it is reviewed and optimised will help to identify the non‐existing elements as areas for improvement. If there is not enough information on an approach to classify it as a strength or area for improvement, the category ‘Approach to be Reviewed’ can be introduced.
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Results Formulating strengths and areas of improvement Based on the assessed approaches, the final wording can be made. It is important not to write down suggestions for solution but to describe the actual state. Where possible and adequate, the RADAR assessment underlying the description of the approach can be maintained (eg. in brackets) in order to enable traceability for the assessed organisation. Identifying ‘Good Practices’ If the Big Picture Method is used in several organisational units, the identification of ‘Good Practices’ is part of evaluation of data. The list of ‘Good Practices’ may be exchanged among the organisational units. ‘Good Practices’ denote successful, targeted, systematic and holistic approaches, principles, processes and methods. They do not claim to be the best solutions because approaches always also depend on the context. Based on the strengths of the different organisational units, which have been identified in the assessment, approaches that are particularly well‐aimed, systematic and holistic will be identified as ‘Good Practices’. It can be helpful to look for approaches that have at least the following elements of RADAR: Approach, Deploy and Assess. After the ‘Good Practices’ have been determined and marked in the relevant column, the templates with the assessed approaches of all the organisational units will be compiled and sorted according to the column GP (Good Practices). All the other lines that do not include any ‘Good Practices’ will be deleted. This will result in a list with descriptions of ‘Good Practices’ in the different Fundamental Concepts, which can be taken over to the report. Assessing the systematics in the approaches The results also include a generic assessment of the systematics in the organisation’s approaches. For purposes of this assessment, the assessors get an overview of the RADAR allocations for all the approaches within a Fundamental Concept. Based upon this, the general systematics in each Fundamental Concept will be judged. For example, the wording can be as follows: “Most approaches in the Fundamental Concept ‘Adding Value for Customers’ are systematic. On a corporate level, customers are segmented while the objectives and targets relating to the Balanced Scorecard are formulated and the customer results are reviewed.” After all the Fundamental Concepts have been assessed, there will be a summarising evaluation on a corporate level, where a distinction can be made between different levels of systematics. For example, it can be stated in which Fundamental Concepts the approaches are very systematic, systematic, partly systematic or little systematic. Example: “Very systematic approaches are identifiable in the Fundamental Concepts ‘Sustaining Outstanding Results’ and ‘Managing with Agility. Systematic approaches already exist in the Fundamental Concepts ‘Adding Value for Customers’, ‘Leading with Vision, Inspiration & Integrity’, ‘Succeeding through the Talent of People’ and ‘Harnessing Creativity & Innovation’. In the Fundamental Concept ‘Developing Organisational Capability’, approaches are partly systematic. The approaches in the Fundamental Concept ‘Creating a Sustainable Future’ are little systematic.” Furthermore, it can be assessed in which RADAR phases the organisation is particularly strong. This could for example be described as follows: “The organisation is very strong in planning and deploying activities. However, there are only a few signs of a systematic review and improvement.”
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Group dynamics Peculiarities in terms of group dynamics, which have been noticed during the interviews and may have influenced the statements and thus the results, will be written down in the final report. This can be added in the introductory chapter, where the groups of interviewees are introduced. The following chapter serves to describe how the final report is compiled from this evaluated data.
Final report about Assessment
Structure of the final report The assessed descriptions of the organisation’s approaches will be copied to the final report. This report is made up of an introductory part, which can largely be taken over from the template, and a main part, in which strengths, areas for improvement and approaches to be reviewed are listed as well as statements about the systematics and ‘Good Practices’ are made. The report concludes with acknowledgements and a note about confidentiality. The following Figure (Figure 8) shows an overview of the structure of the final report. A detailed reporting template is available to EFQM Members in the online platform “Knowledge Base”.
Structure of the final report
Management Summary
1. Introduction
2. Strengths and areas for improvement
3. Systematics in the approaches
4. Good Practices
Figure 8: Structure of the final report The final report, which is written by the assessors, will be made available to the organisation. A meeting where the assessors and senior management discuss the report is recommended.
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4. Process flow of the Big Picture Method in detail Basis, structure and goal of the process flow The process flow of the Big Picture Method follows the procedure of the existing Business Excellence External Assessments. Within the process flow, a distinction is made between four levels: the main process, the support processes provided by the organisation and by the assessors as well as recommendations for a simultaneous change management, which serves to increase acceptability of the results. Following, please find a flow chart of the Big Picture Method (Figure 9) and a description of each phase of the main process.
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Communicating the framework
for planning the interviews
Evaluation of
stocktaking
Choosing people participating in stocktaking and
agreeing on dates
Compiling documents about
the company
Clarifying open issues
Clarifying the basic conditions
Developing anunderstanding of the
organisation
PreparationsData acquisition: 3 interviews
Data evaluation
Writing a report
Feedback and evaluation
meeting
Deriving improvements
Securing management and people commitment
Communicating the results
Develop interviewguides
Creating a communi-cation strategyR
ecom
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for
acco
mpa
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g ch
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m
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Determining use of the
results
Communicating the strategy
Supp
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proc
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s pr
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Mai
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sses
Sup
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proc
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s pr
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y th
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sess
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Communicating use of the results
Compiling information on
the open issues
Elaborating and implementing
action plans
Figure 9: Flow Chart of Assessment using the Big Picture Method
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Phase 1: Clarifying the general framework In the first phase, it is recommended to clarify the organisation’s expectations in order to verify whether these expectations can be met by using the Big Picture Method. Furthermore, management commitment needs to be ensured. Senior management will be informed on:
the value added and the results that can be achieved by using the Big Picture Method; the process flow and the time approximately needed; the limits of the method
The time that approximately needs to be invested by the company for can be taken from the following Table (Table 2).
Time (per person)
N° of people
Total time
Task
5.5 h 3 16.5h Interviewing time
approx. 1h 1 1h Compiling documents
approx. 1.5h 1 1.5h Validation of the understanding of the organisation
approx. 1h 1 1h Clarifying open issues at reporting
approx. 1h 1 1h Feedback & evaluation meeting
approx. 8.5 h 21h Total
Table 2: Time the organisation needs for Assessment
In this phase, it also seems recommendable to coordinate and agree upon the dates for the interviews and, if necessary, for the validation of the understanding of the organisation. At external assessments, it will then be possible to hand the template over to the organisation. This template shows the documents to be provided by the organisation for enabling understanding of the organisation and giving first insights into the organisation’s Excellence (cf. Annex A). Furthermore, the framework of the data acquisition process will be communicated to the organisation. This includes the intended groups of interviewees as well as the scheduling of the interviews with breaks between the interviews, which serve to record the data. Recommendations for selecting the interviewees involved are formulated in Chapter 3.2. For helping the organisation to acquire the interviewees and inform the employees, a brochure will be made available to the organisation. It explains what is understood by Business Excellence, what are the intentions pursued by Assessment, what value will be created and who are the contact persons (Annex E). This is aimed at enhancing people commitment. For this purpose, it also is recommended to the organisation to elaborate a communication strategy for the project. EFQM suggests answering the questions “Who?”, “What?”, “Why?”, “Where?”, “When?” and “How?” 6.
Phase 2: Developing an understanding of the organisation Based on the documents provided by the organisation and additional sources (such as the internet), each of the assessors will obtain an understanding of the organisation. In this respect, it is particularly a matter of understanding the organisation’s business activities and business model. Based on the individual company profiles, the assessors meet to gain a common, consolidated understanding of the organisation. At consolidation, open issues will be collected and structured to topics, which can be clarified in the meeting with the company representative. 6 EFQM, 2003. Excellence bewerten (German version of “assessing for excellence” brochure).. Brussels: EFQM. p.19
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For senior management, it also is recommendable to define use of the results as soon as possible. This should particularly be done because the analysis and the report about the organisation will lead to a high transparency and partly the opportunity of comparing Divisions or Departments.7 Accordingly it is recommended to focus communication on pointing out that the results of the Big Picture Method will support the organisation in becoming even better ant that the exchange good practices among the organisational units is helping to learn from each other. Phase 3: Preparations If the assessment is done by external assessors, the external image, which the assessors have elaborated, will be adjusted to the self‐perception of senior management in a specific meeting. In addition, this meeting offers another opportunity to discuss the planning of data acquisition process. It is at internal as well as external Assessment that the organisation will choose the interviewees in this phase and that a suitable room for conducting the interview will be organised. The team of assessors will clarify the responsibilities for data acquisition. Furthermore, the interviewing guides are formulated on the basis of the understanding of the organisation, the Fundamental Concepts as well as RADAR. If possible, external assessors are recommended to schedule a site visit, which allows further insights into the organisation. Phase 4: Data acquisition: 3 interviews Data will be acquired in three interviews: one interview with the top managerial level (1.5 h), one interview with the second managerial level (2.5 h) and one interview with the employees (1.5 h). These interviews will be conducted on the basis of the interviewing guides. It is already during the interviews that the data will be recorded in a written form. For this purpose, an electronic template can be used (this template is available on the on‐line portal “Knowledge Base” for EFQM Members). After the interviews, the notes will be completed. Based on this, the data from the three interviews will be consolidated while fully formulating the individual approaches and results of the organisation. Phase 5: Data evaluation The approaches and results of the organisation are arranged along the eight Fundamental Concepts. Each of the approaches and results will be evaluated as a strength or area for improvement by the assessors. The assessments will then be consolidated in a common meeting while looking for a consensus. The same procedure applies to systematics in the organisation’s approaches: First each of the assessors will assess systematics individually, and then a common assessment will be formulated in a consensus meeting. Any questions to be put to the organisation will be collected and clarified in the following phase. Details about data evaluation can be taken from Chapter 3.4. Phase 6: Clarifying open issues Acquiring the relevant aspects of Excellence of a complex system (organisation) is a big challenge. Therefore, the possibility to clarify unclear points arising during evaluation of data with the internally person responsible is taken into account.
7 Zink, 2004. TQM als integratives Managementkonzept. Das EFQM Excellence Modell und seine Umsetzung
(TQM as an integrative management concept. The EFQM Excellence Model and its deployment). (2nd Edition) Munich: Hanser. p. 323
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Phase 7: Writing the report The final report can be elaborated by using a template, (which is available on the on‐line platform “Knowledge Base” for EFQM Members). The objectives, methodology and recommendations for using the report can be taken from this template. In the main part, the strengths, areas for improvement and the approaches to be reviewed, which result from the data evaluation phase along the eight Fundamental Principles, will be stated while assessing the systematics in the approaches. Furthermore, the ‘Good Practices’ will be shown. By way of conclusion, confidentiality will be hinted at while extending thanks to the persons involved. The report will be written by the assessors and handed over to senior management after finalisation. Phase 8: Feedback and evaluation meeting In order to ensure acceptability and utilisation of the results and prevent misunderstandings, a feedback meeting is recommended. This meeting enables company representatives to clarify questions and unclear points arising from the report with the assessors. Furthermore, this meeting makes it possible to evaluate the Assessment process and to use these results to improve the process. This will be discussed in more detail in the following phase. Phase 9: Evaluation of Assessment It is not only a matter of contributing to the organisation’s continual improvement but also of permanently optimising the method. Therefore, an evaluation will be made and the required measures will be derived. For evaluating Assessment, it is recommended to evaluate the process as well as the results. For this, a SWOT (Strengths / Weaknesses / Opportunities / Threats) Analysis can be used. Based on the results, improvement measures for further Assessment will be defined. Furthermore, allowing the assessors to evaluate one another is striven for in order also to give them the opportunity for continual development. Phase 10: Deriving improvements In this phase, the organisation will prioritise among the areas for improvement from the report in order to identify those that are most relevant for the organisation at the moment. Based upon this, measures will be derived while planning their deployment. These tasks are left to the organisation. If necessary, the assessors or external parties can be consulted. As soon as use of the results has been determined, it is recommended to inform the employees.
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5. Use of the Big Picture Method
Critical success factors for valuable interviews
Attitude in interviews As in other assessment methods using interviews the most important element is to create a positive environment, in which the common goal to find ways to get better, becomes obvious. Let participants know, that the the quality of the outcome strongly depends on their involvement. Be prepared for topics you need to cover, but never try to ask as many questions as possible. More valuable is to involve people into a conversation. At the same time don’t be shy to interrupt, if you feel that you got the answer you were looking for. Ask for examples, if you want to know more how an approach is deployed. The only way to keep a conversation rolling is to use open questions continuously. This helps to learn more specific about approaches and to avoid receiving a short “yes” or “no” for an answer. Never let the interviewees feel bad, if they become aware of lacking certain things in their approach. Do not feel tempted to do consulting. Sometimes interviewees start asking questions back on how they could solve certain problems. Let them kindly know that this is not the place for. Always be aware that the time you have is very short. Therefore use very consciously. You never will be able to cover every topic within this limited time. There will remain open questions. However you must be able to do a reliable judgement on the topics you talked about. Finally try to find strengths and areas for improvement rather than searching for something very specific you have in mind.
Use of the results
This chapter describes how the use of the results is intended and how the exchange of ‘Good Practices’ between the organisations and organisational units can be supported by means of the benchlearning process. Final report as a basis for the further journey to Business Excellence Basically the use of the final report is left to the responsible people within the organisation. The report is aimed at providing the organisation with a basis for prioritising improvement projects. In order to enable such a development, it is important to ensure that misunderstandings can be avoided and open issues can be clarified. Therefore, the organisations will be offered an optional feedback meeting based on the report, especially in case of external assessments. Benchlearning for the exchange of ‘Good Practices’ For the exchange of good practices between different organisational units, the benchlearning approach is recommended.8 The “Bundesverwaltungsamt” (Federal Administrative Agency) defines the term of benchlearning within a quality assessment system and makes relevant recommendations. At benchlearning, the focus is on the process of learning from others. It is not necessary to make exact comparisons. “The objective of benchlearning consists in learning from the
8 Bundesverwaltungsamt (2006). Common Assessment Framework – Verbesserung der Organisation durch
interne Qualitätsbewertung (Common Assessment Framework – improvement of the organisation through internal quality assessment). Online (March 15, 2010). pp. 45‐47
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strengths of other organisations, of hearing something about the processes that work well from them and of learning from the others’ mistakes and avoiding them.” 0 It is recommended to regard benchlearning as being a continual active process. A possible benchlearning cycle is shown in the following Figure (Figure 10).
Figure 5: Benchlearning process Success factors at benchlearning The partners to be chosen should be organisations that use good methods that can contribute to an improved performance of one’s own company. Optimally it won’t only be similar organisations that will be integrated, because innovations often arise from suggestions coming from other sectors. When taking over good approaches, it is decisive to adapt them to one’s own company and the context.8
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6. Learning from Deployment The Big Picture Method was deployed in several organisations of different sizes and industries. From these experiences the following key success factors, challenges and recommendations can be summarized. Success factors
Commitment of Management Understanding of purpose and benefit of the assessment on first and second management level
Culture of learning and improvement Open and honest interview culture
Challenges
Assessment as order from higher management lacking commitment of management Culture of learning from each other (to exchange Good Practices between different organisational units)
Recommendations
Ensure commitment of management Opening and closing meeting with management Clear communication of purpose and benefit Use the R4E procedure for establishing a common understanding of the organisation between the assessors team and the organization
Opening and evaluation meeting with all assessors (if several assessor teams) Reserve enough time for communication of the feedback report
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7. Glossary
Strengths Approaches are classified as a strength, if they are particularly well leading to the relating fundamental concept. In addition, If they are systematically deployed they are definitely to classify as a strength. However, even if not all elements of the RADAR logic are deployed systematically, it may still be assessed as a strength and the lacking elements can be mentioned as areas for improvement. Area for improvement Approaches that do not adequately fulfil the aspects of the RADAR Logic or where none of the elements deployed are classified as areas for improvement. Approaches to be reviewed If there is not sufficient information on an approach to enable assessment, this approach can be called ‘Approach to be reviewed’. This is still another category in addition to strengths and areas for improvement. Good Practices Good Practices denote “excellent approaches, principles, processes or methods leading to outstanding performance”.9 They are well‐targeted, promise to be successful in the long run and focus on a holistic solution. Good Practices do not claim to be the best solutions. For on the one hand, it is difficult to identify the absolutely best solution. On the other hand, approaches always need to be rated in their context so that different approaches can be the best ones for different organisations.10
9 Translation based on: EFQM, 2012. EFQM Excellence Model 2013. Brussels: EFQM. p. 28 10 Krems, 2009. Good Practice. Online (January 19th, 2010): http://www.olev.de/g/good_practice.htm
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8. Annexes Annex A – Document for the organisation with the desired base documents Documents for preparing Assessment 1. Background for understanding the organisation Prior to Assessment, the assessors will develop an understanding of the organisation or organisational unit and the sector where they are operating in so that they can hold the interviews in a well‐targeted and focused manner. This understanding will subsequently be reviewed and validated in a meeting with senior management / management of the organisational unit. Developing an understanding of the organisation according to the following elements is striven for:
The organisation’s
alignment
The organisation‘s performance
Key inputs
Key suppliers and partners
Key stakeholders External environment
Key outputs
Key customers
Figure 1: The organisation and its environment
(in analogy to “Assessing Excellence“, EFQM Brochure, 2003, p. 21)
In order to obtain such an understanding, different documents of the organisation will be analysed. The following page states what documents are desirable for this purpose. Document analyses will also be made in order to gain first insights in the deployment of the Fundamental Concepts. The documents desirable for this are also indicated on the next page.
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2. Compiling the documents The team of assessors thanks you for information in advance. If there is no information on certain elements available, no additional documents need to be created. Information enabling an understanding the organisation For the organisation or an organisational unit:
company brochure; business report; structure and operations; purpose of the business, vision, strategy; business model; products and services; customers (customer groups); key indicators and results; key processes; key resources key partners and the most important stakeholders; market analyses relating to future developments
Further documents enabling an understanding of how the organisation deploys the Fundamental Concepts
the prior journey to Excellence; corporate values or ethical principles; management principles; Human Resources strategy; innovation targets, strategies, models and processes and assessment of innovations; continual improvement: strategies, measures, systems;
customer surveys: results relating to their needs, experiences and perceptions (if available, the objectives and targets, the trends and comparisons with others);
people surveys: results relating to their needs, experiences and perceptions (if available, the objectives and targets, the trends and comparisons with others);
surveys among other stakeholders (suppliers, partners, etc.): results relating to their needs, experiences and perceptions (if available, the objectives and targets, the trends and comparisons with others)
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Annex B – Brochure for the Employees
Shortened Assessment relating to Business Excellence
In short:
• Assessment relating to Business Excellence acc. to EFQM;
• output: written report about strengths and areas for improvement as a basis for further development;
• approach: interviewing 3 groups of interviewees made up of company representatives for 1.5‐2.5h
What is Business Excellence?
Business Excellence is a philosophy.Independently from the sector, size, structure or maturity of organisations, the EFQM‐Model for Excellence enables organisations to make self‐assessments in order to identify where the organisation is on its way to Excellence. In this respect, strengths will be identified while areas for improvement will be shown. Furthermore, the model makes it possible to find a common language and way of thinking within the organisation. The EFQM Model for Excellence (2013) is a holistic management method based on eight Fundamental Concepts:
Sustaining Outstanding Results; Adding Value for Customers; Leading with Vision, Inspiration and
Integrity; Managing with Agility; Succeeding through the Talent of People; Harnessing Creativity & Innovation; Developing Organisational Capability; Creating a Sustainable Future
Goal Thanks to a shortened Assessment process, an
overview of strengths and areas for improvement of an organisational unit (OE) can be obtained within half a day.
Excellence is based upon continual learning!
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Value created for Company XY
Assessment of the strengths and areas for improvement of the organisational unit;
overview of systematics of the approaches; exchange of good practices between different
organisational units; holistic picture of the organisation, which is
enabled by involving different functions and hierarchical levels
Who?
Short description of the assessors
Output The organisational unit will be given a report about the strengths and areas for improvement as well as about systematics of the approaches. This report forms a basis for prioritising improvement measures. The report will also be presented in a manner that enables the identification and exchange of good practices within the organisation if Assessment also is carried out in other organisational units.
Time frame The expenditure of time is to be kept as low as
possible. Assessment includes a preliminary compilation of the most important EFQM relevant data by the organisation. Furthermore, 3 interviews with company representatives from different hierarchical levels are planned. Assessment is scheduled for Calendar Week xy (date)
Facultative preparation
In order to obtain your first information on the present Fundamental Concepts of Excellence, which form the basis of Assessment, please refer to: http://www.efqm.org
Further procedure
Conduct of Assessment Feedback form for the method Handing in the report Prioritising improvement measures
Date Date Date
Date
Contact person, internal Photo ____________
Name, contact, function
Photo
Assessor 1Name, contact, function
Photo Assessor 2Name, contact, function
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Getting Involved EFQM is a membership organisation. We rely on input, ideas and suggestions from you to create a vibrant community. Without the contributions of our members, the network would not work. These are some of the ways you can contribute:
Join us on LinkedIn We created The EFQM Network for Sustainable Excellence to facilitate a dialogue between our peers and the wider community. The group is open to anyone with an interest in this area. Over 4000 individuals have already joined our group and shared their experiences. If you’ve got a question, it’s a great place to start.
Becoming a member Organisations can join the EFQM member community and enjoy some exclusive benefits such as access to free assessment and improvement tools, participation to events, themed webinars and good practice visits.
To learn more about our member community, feel free to contact us or to join one of the free introduction meetings at our offices in Brussels.
As a member of EFQM, you will enjoy the following exclusive benefits:
Expert advice and support for your organisation’s journey towards excellence. Access to the EFQM Knowledge Base is a database containing a number of free to download assessment, management and improvement tools; as well as Good Practices identified from the last 3 years of the EFQM Excellence Awards.
Members receive a discount of 20% on EFQM Products & Services, including Training, Publications and Recognition.
There are themed events and webinars throughout the year, with Good Practices and new tools being shared and explained by EFQM and member organisations.
For more information, please e‐mail us at [email protected]
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EFQM Avenue des Olympiades 2 1140 Brussels, Belgium Tel: +32 2 775 35 11 Fax: +32 2 775 35 96 [email protected] www.efqm.org
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