Have you ever been in a situation where there are open positions in your department that haven’t been filled out for one or two years?

On one hand there is mounting workload while on the other hand the response from HR office is that, they are and have been doing their best- they have personally looked out for good candidates, contacted several recruitment companies to get biodata of suitable candidates, yet they haven’t been able to find a correct fit for the open roles. Many a times supervisors and department heads term such HR responses as ‘excuse’.

But believe me this is absolutely possible. Despite genuine efforts, recruitment goals are unmet in big and small companies. Recruitment gets more complicated when knowledge workers and people with special skill sets or registration needs are being sought.

Although one can’t completely discount out that there might be a chance where up-to-date efforts may not have been put in by those involved in the recruiting process, but usually HR guys are genuine with their responses. Positions remain unfilled for long times, HR tries hard on their bit, while the department which owns those open positions burn mid night oil by asking existing employees to work overtime to meet quarterly work targets. 
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Lean Innovation, Hoshin Kanrii and Six Sigma (DFSS- design for six sigma) for product design, development and manufacture via 3D Printing (i.e. Additive Manufacturing) Case Study by Dr. Shruti Bhat, gives benefits of applying Hoshin Kanrii, DFSS and Lean Innovation techniques to a drug product design, development and manufacture via 3D Printing.

The study findings however can be extended to product development across other industry verticals.

Some of the benefits of applying continuous improvement methodologies such as Lean, Hoshin Kanrii and Six Sigma to research and product development include-
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1. Application of Hoshin Kanrii and DFSS along with Quality-by-Design (QbD) to product development usually brings novelty in product features, process characteristics and/or product utility, thus favors patenting and generation of additional revenues.
2. While, Lean Innovation creates products with effective and efficient production and packaging processes, with no scope for ‘rework’ thus, better Operations Management.

​The study uses Isosorbide dinitrate (ISDN) as model drug, although other drugs can also be used in this therapeutic platform.

2x3 Factorial Design of Experimentation (DOE) was used to design drug beads. The results were evaluated for regression analysis, Main and interaction effects of parameters, Contrast Column Dispersion effects, Normal Probability Plots, Pareto and Process Capability Analysis.

The drug beads were further used as ‘starter’ seeds to develop MUPS (multi-unit particulate system) anti-angina ‘rate-programmed’ drug product.

The pharmacokinetic- pharmacodynamic (PK-PD) modeling was done using Doebrinska- Welling equation. MUPS were developed using 3D Printing technology via a 12- Run Plackett Burman DOE.

All hardware, software applications involved in the study were pre-validated. All qualifications i.e. Design Qualification (DQ), Installation Qualification (IQ),  Operational Qualification (OQ), Performance Qualification (PQ) for each experimental run was done as per USFDA guidelines. Data was analysed statistically using Paired ‘t’ test. Reliability Testing was conducted as per ICH current Good Clinical Practices (cGCP) guidelines.

Product prototype and Reference listed drug (RLD) were compared for bioequivalence compliance. The prototype is ready for commercialization.

This study also gives benefits of using 3D Printing technique for pharmaceuticals and how the technique can be applied to product development across other industry verticals!
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For details on how to apply Lean Innovation, Hoshin Kanrii and DFSS to product design, development and manufacture, watch the video …

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To learn more about how Shruti can help your organization achieve new heights or to book a Workshop, Contact Dr. Shruti Bhat via Form or WhatsApp

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1. Workshops & Online Courses for Pharmaceutical Research and Drug Product Development by Dr. Shruti Bhat
2. Kaizen for Cost-Savings and Organizational Excellence
3. Mistake-Proofing Pharmaceutical Products: What can we learn from Valsartan, Losartan and Irbesartan recalls?
4. How to develop a culture of ‘Continuous Improvement’ in an organization?
5. ​Innovation is not an initiative. It’s a business process !​

A business process improvement project within an organization usually starts out with statements like “We have this problem and we think this is the issue that must be sorted out”. In my experience, 9 times out of 10, the cause of the problem is radically different from what one ‘thinks’ is the issue. Hence, the precursor to choosing a process improvement project is to acknowledge that there is a problem whose root cause(s) must be first be identified before going any further with the process improvement idea.

Once you have an idea of the ‘real’ issue(s) or the ‘root cause(s)’ which must be addressed, you must establish what sort of improvement you are seeking. Because a goal provides the  context for determining as well as designing  an action plan. For example, the improvement steps to save $1000 via a process improvement campaign are obviously far different from the steps to save $100,000 or $1M - but that’s also the only way you can draw a project's finishing line and establish whether that project was a success.
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Also, the journey for reaching goals may vary and the execution plan documents the roadmap for achieving the goal.
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All popular continuous improvement methodologies such as Lean, Six Sigma, Hoshin Kanri, Lean Six Sigma, Kaizen , Kanban etc. incorporate the same focus on setting goals that are easily understood, across an organization.
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To learn more about how Shruti can help your organization achieve new heights or to book a Workshop, Contact Dr. Shruti Bhat via Form or WhatsApp

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#ContinuousImprovement #Kaizen  #QualityImprovement   #Quality  #ServiceIndustry  #ManufacturingManagement  #LeanInnovation  #BPM  #LeanManagement  #KaizenLeaderMasterclass  

Learn how implementing Kaizen improved productivity of pellet manufacturing by 28%. For details checkout the video below-

To learn more about how Shruti can help your organization achieve new heights or to book a Workshop, Contact ​Dr. Shruti Bhat via Form or WhatsApp

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#ContinuousImprovement   #Innovation

Kaizen Masterclass
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Business Process Improvement for Manufacturing & Service Industry by Dr. Shruti Bhat book preview-

One of the first people to describe business processes was Adam Smith (1776) in his famous example of a pin factory. Since then business processes have evolved and better defined. A business process defines the various activities involved in achieving a particular goal. Business processes briefly describe the chain of events that are involved in an activity or a group of activities. It is common to use a business process if the activities have an effect on current products or data and bring about production. 

 Types of business processes include- 
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• Management processes such as Corporate governance, Strategic management, planning and implementation.
• Operational processes, which constitute the core business and create primary value stream. Typically, they include Procurement & sourcing, Manufacturing, Marketing, Sales and Customer service.
• Supporting processes, which support the operational processes and include Finance & Accounting, Recruitment & Human Resources Management, Research and Technical support.

Some examples include invoicing, product shipping details, updating information, tracking orders, allocating budgets etc. Business processes used throughout organization, at any level, are outlined in order to improve organization in an effective and efficient way. There can be several inputs in a business process but there is always only one output or specific goal- that is to help business thrive.

Business processes are used practically in any organization and throughout an organization at any level. They are used in a variety of industries such as private, public sector, government, departments, hospitals, charities etc. Business processes are, typically outlined in order to improve an organization in an effective and efficient way.

Various computer software make it possible to create business processes on a computer, however simple business processes are just as effective when written with pen and paper. Some even find it better to jot down the processes on a piece of paper, or on several small ones, in order to kick start their creativity and thinking process. It is up to the professional (and/or organization) to decide whether a software or traditional method will work best for them. Business processes work best when there is input, support and ideas from various people that are involved in the organization (or department).

Key business processes are logically grouped related tasks and activities, independent of the organization’s structure, which utilize the resources of the organization to produce specific results. They possess measurable inputs & outputs, value addition and repeatable activity.

Tip- The effective management of key business process requires- Ownership & planning, performance metrics & control, process qualification, management and improvement methodology.

A business process always begins with a customer’s need and ends with a customer’s need fulfilment.

Customer needs change, technologies change, government policies change, competition changes and what used to be a high level of performance becomes a poor one and it’s time to replace the formerly good process with a new one- only every process cycle should have this capacity of identification, in-built in its charter.

As a practicing Business Transformation expert of many years, I am happy to mention here few case studies, nay success stories. Let me share three examples-

1. A consumer goods manufacturing company redesigned its product deployment process, by means of which, it now manufactures goods and delivers them to its distribution center such that inventory uptake was reduced by 35%, while stock-out goods situation declined by 70%.
2. A pharmaceutical company created a new product development process, which reduced time to market by 75%, development costs by 45% and increased productivity by 30%.
3. An engineering goods manufacturing organization increased its product delivery targets by 350% and reduced its supply chain costs by up to 55%. Something to note in these is the simultaneous achievement of apparently incompatible goals for e.g. reducing inventory while also reducing out –of-stocks.

Traditional organizations view these as conflicting goals and trade off against another. While process managed organizations, recognize that such payoffs, are achieved by improving business processes and continually maintain their business process efficient. So how do we go about bringing on a process change?

Three main categories of business process improvement techniques, have been found to be extremely effective in managing, expanding and /or transforming businesses worldwide including USA, Canada, Latin America and the emerging economies. They are – Breakthrough improvement, Streamlined improvement and Continuous improvement. The 18 methodologies described in this book belong to one or many of these three main categories.

In this book, you will learn about: 
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• What is a business process? What are different types of business processes? Why improve a business process?
• 18 different business process improvement methodologies including Lean, ISO, Kaizen, Six Sigma, Capability maturity model integration (CMMI) etc.
• Advantages of each business improvement methodology. Precautions needed before implementing a methodology at your workplace.
• Strategic planning and risk assessments involved prior to implementing a business process improvement methodology.
• References of their use by startups, small companies who later on became big corporate houses and Fortune 500 companies.
• Tips to maximize positive results from executing business process improvement methodologies for your organization.

This book presents a practical way to build and improve business processes, and assists professionals whether they are learning the basics of business process improvement, planning their first improvement project, or evangelizing process-oriented thinking throughout their organization.

Dr. Shruti Bhat is an award-winning Business Excellence Leader, Global Continuous Improvement Mastermind, Best-selling Author and Speaker. She is Continuous Improvement Advisor to several start-ups, mid-size and growing firms in Canada, USA, India, Africa and Emerging markets. She has authored eight business books and is an invited speaker at several national and international conferences, symposia and workshops.

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