The document discusses common pitfalls that organizations face when implementing process improvement efforts. It outlines the top 8 pitfalls, including not treating the process improvement effort as a project, leading process change with a tool instead of people, and failing to conduct an assessment of the current state before beginning improvements. The document provides recommendations for avoiding each pitfall, such as putting a project manager in charge, defining processes before procuring tools, and conducting an assessment to understand the starting point. In summary, avoiding pitfalls can dramatically increase the chances of a successful process improvement effort.

1. Avoiding Process Improvement Pitfalls (What NOT to Do!) Steve Huck, PMP Process Improvement - Competency Lead © 2008 Slalom Consulting, all rights reserved

2. Avoiding Process Improvement Pitfalls A Definition… pit·fall (pĭt'fôl') n. 1. An unapparent source of trouble or danger; a hidden hazard: "potential pitfalls stemming from their optimistic inflation assumptions" New York Times. 2. A concealed hole in the ground that serves as a trap. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

26. Pitfall #1 Avoiding Process Improvement Pitfalls What is Wrong with this Plan? Forget Training and Communications With all this money spent improving processes, how will anybody know how to use them? Is an email all you really need? * Costs are representative NewTech – IT Process Improvement Plan Activity Duration Avg. FTEs Approx. Cost* Assessment 2-3 Months 3 $150K-$300K Business Case 1 Month 2 $50K Build Improvements 3-4 Months 6-8 $400-$700K Pilot Improvements 1-2 Months 6-8 $130-$350K Deploy Improvements - Post Improvements on Intranet and Send Email 2 Days 1 $2K Project Closeout 2 Weeks 6 $70K Total 9-12 Months $750K-$1.5MM

30. Questions and Discussion Avoiding Process Improvement Pitfalls Steve Huck, PMP Process Improvement Competency Lead [email_address] • 312-593-0994