Pre-RCE
- Choose process.
- Select team members.
- Send email to team members.
RCE
- Step 1: Discuss priority process. Although the process is normally defined before the RCE, the team discusses the start and end points of the process, the customers, the products, the expectations for the products, and the measures.
- Step 2: Identify and choose priority problem. In this step, the team lists all problems with the process and prioritizes the problems accordingly.
- Step 3: Write a problem statement. This statement outlines the overall issues with the process and states the objectives for the process redesign.
- Step 4: Assign roles and responsibilities to team members. Although team members are selected before the event, roles and responsibilities are defined during this step.
- Step 5: Physically walk the current process. Using stopwatches and clipboards, the team goes to the target unit and walks the process. One person writes down the time each step of the process takes and the number of physical steps in the process.
- Step 6: Create value-added timeline. Using value stream mapping, the team maps out the steps of the process and notes which are value-added and which are not. The team also notes where hand-offs and queuing occur and which steps are "checking" steps.
- Step 7: Identify ways to eliminate waste and process variation. The team comes up with solutions or ways to improve the current process, specifically looking at non-value-added steps and variation in processes. The team uses a fishbone diagram to examine sources for variation.
- Step 8: Flowchart new process steps. The team maps the new, or "future state," process and estimates the gains from each process.
- Step 9: Identify output and process measures. The team determines the process measures that will be used to describe improvements.
- Step 10: Develop action plan. The team develops an action plan to complete changes discussed in the RCE. Each task is given a due date and assigned to a person who is responsible.
Post-RCE
- Follow up on action plan activities
- Send email notes from RCE to all staff
