Print this pageTen Essentials of Business Part 2
Proven Practices for Improving Business Management & Leadership
Davis M. Woodruff, PE, CMC
Course Outline
Essential 6: Implement a Quality System that Works
The system for quality is more important than the quality of a single product or service. With a comprehensive system for quality, prevention of issues will take priority. While this is not a quality management handbook, it will present the basics of an ISO 9001:2015 quality management system that works for any organization.
Essential 7: Practice Continual Improvement
Continual improvement is a must in today’s world. Instead of philosophical debates, organizations must simply have a process to identify improvement opportunities and get to work on the things they can improve. Grandiose plans are not what count, results count. This Essential answers the question, “How can we do the work better?” A PDCA worksheet is included for your use.
Essential 8: Focus on Results That Count
Measuring results implies that one has identified what needs to be measured in a given process. The language of management is $$$$. Too often systems are implemented and no established criteria for success are defined. This Essential will suggest various measurements and key indicators of productivity that make sense in today’s world.
Essential 9: Develop Internal Resources
Too often resource development is seen as simply another training program or another HR program. In reality, developing resources begins with defining the competencies required in the various positions in the organization and implementing a process to insure they are fulfilled. Resource development also involves processes, equipment, facilities, infrastructure and suppliers.
Essential 10: Use Technology Effectively
Using technology as a tool instead of an end is critical to leadership success. Many times technology creates barriers in relationships, gives so much data one has trouble identifying what’s really important, and sometimes even hinders productivity instead of improving productivity. This final Essential deals with proper use of technology in today’s business world. Never let your business systems (i.e. technology) dictate how you do business, use technology to help you do business more effectively.
This course includes
a multiple choice quiz at the end,
Learning Objective
Upon completing this course participants should:
- Know the ten essentials for business success;
- Know the characteristics of an effective quality system;
- Understand principles and practices of continual improvement;
- Be able to identify key metrics for their business processes;
- Understand how to develop a training plan that makes sense;
- Realize the importance of using technology more effectively; and
- Be able to assess their organization relative to the ten essentials.
Intended Audience
Ten Essentials-Part 2 is for anyone who is in or who aspires to be in position of leadership or management in a business or other organization. Many times technical personnel (and others) are not hired or promoted knowing how to lead people and manage processes. The necessary competencies can be learned. This course shows what it takes to be an effective leader in today’s fast-paced, lean-staffed, time pressured and information driven organization. The Ten Essentials will help leaders become more valuable to their organization and more marketable to others.
Benefit to Attendees
Understanding applying these essentials for business success will help you become a more effective leader, be more valuable to your organization and provide tools to help you improve your business.
Course Introduction
Leading an organization to become the low cost, high quality producer is not easy. In this course we will take a journey through the business essentials that will guide you along the path to becoming a more effective leader of your organization. These are timeless principles that will not be “here today and gone tomorrow” nor do they apply in only your current position. These are transferable principles that are applicable wherever people and processes interact to produce a product or service.
Course Content
In this lesson, you are required to download and study the following course content in PDF format:
Ten Essentials of Business Part 2
Please click on the above underlined hypertext to view, download or print the document for your study. Because of the large file size, we recommend that you first save the file to your computer by right clicking the mouse and choosing "Save Target As ...", and then open the file in Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you still experience any difficulty in downloading or opening this file, you may need to close some applications or reboot your computer to free up some memory.
You may need
to download Acrobat Reader to view and print the document.
Course Summary
Now that we’ve covered all ten of the essential factors for business success, why not take a few minutes and evaluate your business using the checklist that accompanies this course. Knowing is NOT doing. We must KNOW and DO, so no time like now to get busy!
Related Links and References
Read over 60 management, leadership and productivity articles by Davis:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Davis_Woodruff
For Davis’ book “Numbers to People” visit this web page on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Numbers-People-Making-Technical-Successful/dp/145637379X/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=
Quiz
Once you finish studying the above course content, you need to take a quiz to obtain the PDH credits.
DISCLAIMER: The materials contained in the online course are not intended as a representation or warranty on the part of PDH Center or any other person/organization named herein. The materials are for general information only. They are not a substitute for competent professional advice. Application of this information to a specific project should be reviewed by a registered architect and/or professional engineer/surveyor. Anyone making use of the information set forth herein does so at their own risk and assumes any and all resulting liability arising therefrom.
