Organizations are made up of hundreds and often thousands of processes. Strategic leaders often need help with process issues such asย waste, quality, inconsistency, and continually falling through the cracks, all symptoms of processes at low maturity levels.
If we can identify, understand, and diagnose essential processes with low maturity levels, we can start to fix them and improve our overall efficiency and effectiveness.
๐ช๐๐๐ง ๐๐ฅ๐ ๐ฃ๐ฅ๐ข๐๐๐ฆ๐ฆ ๐ ๐๐ง๐จ๐ฅ๐๐ง๐ฌ ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ฆ?
Process maturity levels are different maturity states of a process, which serve as a helpful aid to reference the maturity of a particular method and the next level of maturity for a procedure.
The five levels of process maturity are:
๐๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐น ๐ญ โ ๐๐ป๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ฎ๐น (๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ผ๐๐ถ๐ฐ)
Level 1 processes are ad hoc, often chaotic, uncontrolled, and poorly documented.
In a new organization, we often find many Level 1 processes. They are typically critical processes that aren’t a focus of everyday work, so they slip through the cracks. Quickly make someone responsible for essential Level 1 processes and have them map the process and create a standard operating procedure (SOP).
๐๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐น ๐ฎ โ ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ฎ๐ฏ๐น๐ฒ
Level 2 processes are typically repeatable, sometimes with consistent results. The process knowledge usually resides in a person’s head. It probably is not well-defined and lacks discipline.
We’ll often come across Level 2 processes that are the domain of a gatekeeper, who thinks they’ll create job security if they need to learn how they do a specific process. Quickly remedy the situation by having them document and start improving the process.
๐๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐น ๐ฏ โ ๐๐ฒ๐ณ๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ๐ฑ
Level 3 processes are formally defined and documented as a standard operating procedure so that someone skilled without prior knowledge can successfully execute the process.
If we have many Level 3 processes that are well defined, often in standard operating procedures, we can consider ourselves lucky. The next step is to manage and optimize them.
๐๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐น ๐ฐ โ ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฎ๐ด๐ฒ๐ฑ
Level 4 processes are managed through processย metrics, controls, andย analysisย to identify and address areas of opportunity. The next step is theย continuous improvementย of the processes.
๐๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐น ๐ฑ โ ๐ข๐ฝ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด
Level 5 processes are optimized using the necessary diagnostic tools and feedback loops to continuously improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the processes through incremental and step-function improvements and innovations.
In our next blog, we will dive deep into how to use the Process Maturity Level.