What Is CI?

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Processes are everywhere you look!  Our goal is for the University to have effective and efficient processes.  If people are not satisfied with a process, or if the process takes a long time or is frustrating, it may be worth examining the process to see how it could be improved.  And, that is where Continuous Improvement comes in.

Continuous Improvement is:

  • a way of examining, understanding, and improving processes
  • implemented using proven methods and tools to accelerate process improvements
  • performed on a consistent basis, with many different processes
  • different from "regular" improvement in its focus and use of methods and tools

Continuous means:

Examining processes on a regular basis, because:

  • demands (from students, faculty, staff, etc.) can change over time
  • improvements often do not last unless you keep reviewing them
  • there may be new information and/or new techniques that can help further improve processes

Improvement is:

Making sure the process is:

  • Effective: people receiving the output of the process are satisfied with it
  • Efficient: it is quick, easy, and makes appropriate use of the University's resources

A process is:

Something we do over and over:

  • that has more than one step, and
  • where someone receives the "output" of the work we have done

Process