Operational Excellence Capability
Uncertainty /
Basic
Score
Operational
Vision and
Performance
What is our vision for
operations and how are
we performing?
Performance
Measurement
How we are measuring
and managing
performance?
0
1
 Ad-hoc approach to
managing operations.
 No clear operational KPIs.
 No operational vision, thus
no sharing and awareness.
 Operational performance
is well below industry
average.
 Locally set, predominantly
financial measures, with
different teams working to
conflicting objectives.
 Performance information
largely hidden in
management reports.
Awakening /
Repeatable
2
3
 Operational vision focusing
on short term results and
KPIs.
 Mostly shared and
articulated within the
management team but not
much awareness beyond.
 Operational performance
below industry average.
 Coherent set of financial,
operational and customer
facing measures enabling
more integrated
management of business
performance.
 Performance information
largely hidden in
management reports.
Enlightenment /
Defined
4
5
 Operational vision focusing
on medium term results.
 Based on key business
processes, defined KPIs and
objectives.
 Reasonably articulated but
not well shared and
understood at all levels.
 Operational performance is
industry average.
 Coherent set of financial,
operational and customer
facing measures enabling
management of workflow
through the business.
 Emerging use of visual
approaches with some
performance information
being shared openly.
Wisdom /
Managed
6
7
Certainty /
Optimised
8
9
10
Score
 Operational vision focusing
on medium to long term
results.
 Based on value streams and
key business processes with
defined KPIs and objectives.
 Clearly articulated and
shared through visual
management systems.
 Operational performance
above industry average.
 Operational vision focusing
on long term results.
 Based on value streams and
key business processes
taking into account best in
class benchmarking and
appropriate excellence
frameworks.
 Clearly articulated and
shared through simple visual
management systems.
 Operational performance is
industry leading.
/10
 Coherent set of financial,
operational and customer
facing measures with basic
capability indicators
enabling management of
workflow through business
process and value streams.
 Increasing more consistent
use of visual approaches and
open sharing of
performance information.
 Coherent set of financial,
operational and customer
facing measures with
comprehensive capability
indicators enabling
integrated management of
organisational capabilities
and workflow through
business process and value
streams.
 Performance information
shared openly at all levels
through simple and
consistent visual
approaches.
/10
People and
teams
How are our people
and teams working?
Business
Process
Improvement
How good are we in
continuously improving
our business processes?
 Teams mostly functionally
oriented and unaware of
process and performance
standards.
 People and team
development ad-hoc at
best.
 Random firefighting
appears to be the norm.
 Not recognised or
managed.
 No formal improvement
programmes.
 No quality systems or tools
being used.
 Cross-functional teams
starting to emerge with
increasing awareness of
process and performance
standards.
 Teams have defined roles
with structure, discipline
and accountability.
 Development needs of key
people recognised and
invested in.
 Flexible workforce organised
in autonomous crossfunctional teams working to
defined standards.
 Key processes owned with
awareness of performance
standards.
 Continuous improvement
being managed through
projects.
 Increasing importance of
people and team
development.
 All processes managed and
 Some KPIs exist around key
key processes systematically
processes.
improved.
 Short interval control
 Standardised tool box and
practices starting to emerge.
common language for
 Some basic quality and lean
process improvement
management tools being
starting to emerge.
used; e.g., process mapping,
 Use of advanced quality and
root cause analysis, Pareto
lean management tools
analysis and histograms.
emerging; e.g., statistical
 Some visual management
process control; process
approaches starting to
FMEA, 5S, and design of
emerge.
experiments.
 Industry standard quality
 Quality assurance systems
assurance systems and
and certifications at least on
certification in place.
par with industry average.
 Flexible workforce organised
in autonomous teams
working to defined policies.
 Key processes owned with
high levels of awareness of
competitive performance
standards at most levels.
 Continuous improvement
becoming habitual.
 Skills gaps regularly
reviewed and necessary
investments made.
 Flexible workforce organised
in autonomous teams
working to defined policies.
 All processes owned with
high levels of awareness of
world class performance
standards at all levels.
 Habitual continuous
improvement is the norm.
 Skills continuously reviewed
and developed.
 Apprenticeship programmes
and training academies in
collaboration with education
providers are in place.
/10
 All processes managed and
key processes systematically
improved.
 Standardised tool box and a
common language for
process improvement.
 Advanced quality and lean
management tools
commonly used.
 Quality assurance systems
and certifications well ahead
of industry average.
 Standardised tool box and
common language for
process improvement.
 All business processes
habitually and continuously
improved through
systematic and habitual use
of advanced quality and lean
management tools.
 Typically four large kaizen
and 12 mini kaizen projects
per annum. Additionally,
several small continuous
improvements to all
processes on a monthly
basis.
 Industry leading quality
assurance systems and
certifications in place.
/10
Sales and
Operations
Planning
How do we plan our
business?
Supply Chain
Management
How do we manage our
supply chain?
 Demand forecasts and
supply plans updated
annually with budgets.
 Little operational planning,
mostly reactive.
 Low confidence in
business plans.
 Sales, operations and
business plans fully
integrated.
 Forecasts developed with
 Sales, operations and
 Planning is a critical lever
sales and operations input
business plans fully
that engages strategic
and reconciled with business
integrated with inputs from
partners in a planning
objectives.
key customers.
dialogue on a regular basis.
 Forecasts aggregated across  Forecasts aggregated across
 Forecasts captured directly
the organisation using
the organisation using
from customers, and
historical information to
historical information to
expressed in standard
improve the process.
improve the process.
terms.
 Progress monitored through  Progress monitored through
 Benchmarks and service
regular reviews.
regular reviews.
levels used to set and
 Confidence in business plans  Moderate levels of
regularly review target
starting to emerge.
confidence in business plans.
performance levels.
 High levels of confidence in
business plans.
 Planning systems and
processes integrated to
support the company
business model.
 Demand forecast
information: captured in
terms of volume and value;
flows freely between
customers and suppliers
enabled by common data
definitions.
 Planning calendars ensure
routine and timely
communication between all
levels, including customers
and suppliers.
 High levels of confidence in
business plans.
/10
 Supply chain management
limited to purchasing and
logistics.
 Decentralised with poor
visibility across the
business.
 Add hoc and sporadic use
of suppliers with most
supply chain decisions
being driven by local KPIs.
 Supply chain strategy
separate but complementary
to business strategy.
 Supply chain processes
 Supply chain processes (e.g.,
defined and on par with
plan, source, make, deliver)
industry average.
defined at basic level.
 Management attention
 Foundations of commodity
gradually moving from
and supplier management in
functions to supply chain
place.
processes.
 Foundations of customer
 Some strategic relationships
management emerging.
in place with key suppliers.
 Basic supply chain planning
 Outsourcing strategies being
and management practices
used to overcome key
starting to emerge.
weaknesses.
 Supply chain decisions being
made based on Total Cost of
Ownership.
 Integrated supply chain and
business strategy from
customers’ customers to
suppliers’ suppliers.
 Supply chain purposefully
designed with long term
partnership agreements
with all strategic suppliers
and customers.
 Collaborative crossenterprise teams managing
and continuously improving
supply chain processes.
 Industry leading supply
chain processes and
performance.
 Outsourcing and supply
chain decisions made to
maximise business
performance.
/10
 Integrated supply chain and
business strategy.
 Supply chain processes
defined and ahead of
industry average.
 Management attention
focused on supply chain
processes (not functions).
 Supply chain purposefully
designed with long term
partnership agreements
with most strategic suppliers
and customers.
 Strategic use of outsourcing.
 Supply chain decisions being
made to maximise business
performance.
Operational
Equipment and
Systems
How good are our
equipment and
systems?
Information
Systems
How good are our
information systems?
 Old unreliable and
inefficient equipment with
unknown capability levels.
 Reactive approaches to
maintenance.
 Products/services not
modularised, adversely
affecting operational
performance.
 Front line management
team (i.e., supervisors/
team leaders) deal with
equipment and systems
problems as they arise.
 Fragmented information
systems with multiple
sources of data.
 Poor record and data
accuracy.
 Little confidence in
information systems.
 Capability levels of key
equipment known and
managed.
 Basic maintenance
programme in place.
 The need for modularised
products/services
recognised and plans in
place for improvement.
 Technical team supports
front line operational teams
to keep processes under
control.
 Technical team assists in
problem solving activities.
 Capability levels of key
equipment improved
through a systematic
programme of maintenance
and investment.
 Progress being made
towards modularising
products/services to
maximise operational
efficiencies.
 Operational teams mostly
self-sufficient in keeping
processes under control.
 Dedicated technical team
focuses on maximising
equipment performance
whilst supporting
operational teams.
 Fragmented information
systems but with
appropriate checks to
ensure data accuracy and
minimise duplication.
 Accuracy of critical data
acceptable and improving.
 Nurturing confidence in
basic data.
 Integrated information
systems covering order
fulfilment and financial
transactions.
 Systems in other areas are
standalone but integrated
through manual checks.
 Some use of workflows
emerging.
 Key records and data
getting close to 95%
accuracy levels.
 Growing confidence in data
and information systems.
 Capability levels of key
equipment ahead of
industry average.
 Use of predictive
maintenance programmes
emerging.
 Modular products/services
with standardised
components aid operational
efficiencies.
 Operational teams selfsufficient in keeping
processes under control.
 Dedicated technical team
focuses on maximising
equipment availability and
performance.
 Operational equipment and
systems provide industry
leading capability
(availability, speed, quality,
reliability and flexibility).
 Predictive maintenance
programmes in place.
 Modular products/services
maximise operational
efficiencies.
 Operational teams experts
in keeping processes under
control.
 Dedicated technical team
maximises equipment
performance as well as
developing new equipment/
methods that differentiate
the business.
/10
 Integrated information
systems covering most key
business areas.
 Few stand-alone systems
remain with plans for their
integration.
 Increasing use of workflows
to support business
processes.
 Key records and data within
95% accuracy levels.
 High levels of confidence in
information systems.
 End-to-end integrated
information systems
covering all aspects of the
business (planning, financial,
supply chain, operations,
maintenance, product HRM
and business intelligence).
 Workflows support all key
business processes.
 All records and data
accuracy consistently above
99% and 95% respectively.
 Information systems
considered fundamental to
daily functioning of the
business.
/10
Total Score
/80
Total Score %
Please divide your total score above by 80 and multiply by 100