Leading An Accounting Firm

Appendix D:Eight Continuous Process Improvement Phases

In chapter 15, “Building the Future Firm Continuously,” I discuss many methods of improvement in the systems of your firms. The following table lists the eight continuous process improvement (CPI) phases and discusses their benefits and effects on any change program.

Table 1: CPI phases and their benefits to a successful change program

CPI Phases	Benefits	Effect on the Change Program
Define Business Drivers	Identifies business drivers and reason(s) for change early in the program.	Identifies program champions and develops the foundation for organizational buy-in.
Design and Align Strategies	Aligns change program goals with the organization’s business strategy.	Ensures early alignment of the CPI initiative with the existing organizational strategy and capabilities.
Develop Vision	Identifies the key business drivers, organizational goals, and performance measures.	Reduces the risk of initiating change programs without clearly defined performance measures.
Current State Understanding	Provides a clear picture of the existing processes and identifies potential areas for improvement.	Identifies the root causes and reasons behind process bottlenecks early and the key features of future state processes.
Future State Design	Defines a clear future picture of the renewed processes and identifies the required organizational assets needed to enable continuous improvement.	Confirms the business case and develops the foundation ...