This method focuses on improving customer satisfaction – a primary outcome from achieving the most appropriate organizational results – through continuous and incremental improvements to internal processes, and/or by removing unnecessary activities and variations. It is highly likely that many organizations already pursue some course of continuous improvement without recognizing the method as such. Proponents of continuous improvement point out that the benefit of the method is that it forms a comprehensive, detailed approach to process improvement – not a reactive, hit-or-miss approach. Continuous improvement is often perceived as a quality management initiative.
Before reading more about continuous improvement, it might be helpful to quickly review the major forms of quality management in an organization. These are briefly described at the top of the Quality Management topic.
Various Perspectives on Continuous Improvement
Big Dog's Continuous Process Improvement Page
List of several articles about activity-based management
The Continuous Improvement Companion
The Right CEO Personality for Process Improvement
Overcoming the Disruption of Process Change
Uniting the Religions of Process Improvement
Related Library Topics
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