One of the biggest production management challenges is maintaining control over the projects and orders flowing through the business. Keeping all of the balls in the air (so to speak) is sometimes a difficult job. But, if you can get a grip of the few things that matter this can become far easier.

I write a lot about on time delivery in this blog. Delivering products and services on time can provide other indicators (that things are working in the business): An effective management approac h is in place. Meaningful Key Performance Indicators are in use. A disciplined way of working, with good habits, is evident. ...but only if delivering on time isn't a struggle.

Everyone expects products and services to be delivered on time . It’s a basic ‘satisfier’ in any business transaction or project. So, why would I be writing about this as a strategy to grow a business? The world changes quickly (I’m sure that you have noticed!) and with these changes comes new problems to overcome. Customers change their buying habits, new products and services add complexity to the organisation of the delivery and production side of your business. Expectations are increased through the ongoing proliferation of e-commerce and on demand services. So, although on time delivery is expected it is not always experienced.

You're right! There are many strategies to help accelerate continuous improvement projects becoming a reality. But, I want to share one fundamental strategy, without this the others are largely pointless.

After receiving a number of requests, I have made the Making It Happen course available as an instant download.

Management by walking around is a great concept. The amount of information you can gather by having just a quick tour of part of your business is astounding. Small details that would be missing from management reports can be picked up easily from even just having a few minutes of your day invested in a brief stroll... as long as it is done with the right focus. A safe and productive working environment An obvious application of the walk around is to ensure that Health and Safety issues are adhered to. Clear walkways, organised working areas and a feeling of things working the way that they should are just a few things you can check for. If you see something that isn't right you can do something about it, there and then. You don't have to wait for a committee meeting to take place, action can be swift and effective.

Pretty much everyone I meet doesn't like receiving a non-conformance from their own business. I don't either, I like to think that I am competent at what I do. However, once the sting of the 'NCR' abates the opportunity appears...

How many times have you put an idea forward to improve a part of your business just to have it shot down by lots of reasons as to why it won't work? Although these reasons might be useful considerations it is often the way that they are provided to a discussion that makes them unhelpful. Do you know what I mean?

The opinions that count of course! When we are looking at changes that are going to take place in a business there may be several viewpoints that need to be taken into consideration. There might also be information that needs to be shared and acted upon. If you skip this step you're taking a risk...

One of my clients was complaining about the slow progress they were making on their improvements. In the past I have felt the same frustration, the feeling that you want all of the improvements to take effect today (or tomorrow, latest!). But sometimes we need to put this into context...

"Making It Happen" - continuous improvement course overview from gilesjohnston Giles Johnston Author of Business Process Re-Engineering and creator of the ' Making It Happen ' continuous improvement strategies online course.

Recently I had been pushing one of my clients to improve the amount of information they had available to them. In many businesses there can be too much information, stuff that gets produced that no one uses. In other businesses there is the opposite problem, not enough information being produced to make meaningful decisions from. Eventually my client made the following statement:

Guess what? If you just ignore a problem in your business it is likely that it will continue. This might not always be the case (yes, some things seem to resolve themselves...), but for the majority of problems we face they need to be dealt with. Recognition is the first step