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Benefits of Agile Transformation

Agile Transformation refers to the process of inculcating agile methodologies in people, process, and technology in an organization. Promoting a culture of conscious attempt to follow agile principles in all aspects. There are undeniable benefits of this business excellence model, and a few are discussed below:

Promptness: Breaking tasks into smaller parts makes it more manageable and faster to deliver, these are referred to as sprints. Doing this iteratively and encouraging regular feedback and adjustments leads to quick delivery.

Customer Satisfaction: An organization has internal as well as external customers. Involving stakeholders in gaining feedback and suggestions helps in adaptation to change requirements and meet their expectations better.

Internal collaboration & communication: Agile transformation promotes a team that is highly motivated and charged to work towards collective good in the organization. They make a conscious effort to attain the goals of the organization by cross-functional team interactions and improved communication.

Increased productivity & efficiency: Teams can identify bottlenecks and inefficiencies. Process improvement opportunities can be addressed by daily stand-up meetings and regular sprint reviews. This leads to increased productivity and efficiency,

Enhanced quality of deliverables: There is no point if your deliverables do not adhere to the standard quality, quick and shoddy work leads to cost of poor quality. Continuous testing, quality assurance leads to early detection of issues, which enhances the quality of deliverables.

It is important to note that many organizations fail to achieve their desired goals due to a poorly managed initiative. They miss deadlines and often deviate from the purpose. Therefore, it is best to be led by an expert partner. There are a few big players in the Indian market that can help you do so. I recently came across Grant Thornton Bharat’s Business Excellence services in a LinkedIn post. Agile Quality Assurance (AQuA) is a relevant key solution for businesses looking for handholding in their agile journey.

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Capability Benchmarking

An organization does not operate in vacuum therefore it’s inevitable to not compare its capabilities against the best practices in the industry. Capabilities of a business refers to the competencies, skills, resources, and strategic assets that enables it to deliver value to customers, perform core functions and achieve goals. Benchmarking capabilities allows businesses to compare against the best in the industry.

In this article we will discuss the steps involved in Capability Benchmarking.

1.Identify the area of focus:

Determine the capabilities or areas that are to be benchmarked. It can be anything like a process, product, service, department, technology etc. It is here that you need an expert that can help you navigate your benchmarking plan further. Grant Thornton Bharat has a top-notch business excellence team that will help in Capability Diagnosis. They have 12+ years of industry experience and work in multiple domains.

2.Select Benchmarking Partners:

These are recognized industry leaders or competitors in the chosen capabilities. These partners should be ideal representatives of your chosen capability.

3.Establish metrics:

Metrics and performance indicators are crucial for evaluation of capabilities. These should be relevant, measurable, attainable, and aligned with benchmarking standards.

4.Collect Data:

Data can be gathered from internal source and benchmarking partners. It can be done through primary and secondary data collection methods. A third party like Grant Thornton Bharat can assist and make this process hassle-free.

5.Analysis and Comparison:

Identify areas of improvement. Spot trends and practices that indicate improvement strategies.

6.Study the Best Practices:

Learn from the benchmarking partners and understand what drives their success. Look for ideas, processes and practices that can be adopted for improvement.

7.Create Improvement Plans:

The insights gained should be devised into plans that are SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound).

8.Implement and Monitor:

Execute the improvement plans and track the performance continuously against the benchmarking metrics. Change or refine strategies as required.

             Capability Benchmarking is a structured and data driven approach that helps organizations set performance targets, initiate innovation, and improve effectiveness and efficiency.

Reach out to Grant Thornton Bharat to know more about their capability benchmarking service.

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To be 'Sector Agnostic'

When a business claims to be “Sector Agnostic”, it means they are not limited to any specific industry or sector. They are flexible and adaptable across various sectors. The benefits of being sector-agnostic are as follows:

Diversification: A business does not limit itself to a single sector. This helps to mitigate the risks associated with specific sectors that may experience downturns or economic fluctuations. Diversification spreads risk across multiple sectors, potentially stabilizing returns.

Flexibility and Adaptability: Resources can be easily reallocated based on emerging trends, technological advancements, or evolving consumer demands. This adaptability helps seize new opportunities and navigate through challenges.

Access to Emerging Opportunities: Innovations and disruptions often transcend industry boundaries and being sector agnostic enables businesses to capture these opportunities before they become mainstream.

Cross-Sector Synergies: It provides for cross-pollination of ideas, knowledge, and expertise. Businesses can successfully foster collaborations to unlock synergies.

Broader Skill Set and Agility: Embracing sector agnostic practices essentially enhances problem-solving abilities, creativity, and versatility. They can build resilience, drive innovation, and create sustainable value.

One such sector agnostic giant is Grant Thornton Bharat. It offers Business Excellence services which are sector agnostic. Their transformation solutions cater to people, processes, and technology. Their strength is combining core industry processes, analytics, models, and frameworks for operations improvement across functions.

Grant Thornton Bharat has been supporting organizations globally with a multidimensional custom designed approach to best fit their needs. Their services include Model based Transformation, Global Benchmarking, Operational Excellence and Capability Development.

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Lean Six Sigma Green Belt and Work Experience

Ask yourself — am I proactive or reactive?

Being former, I believe it’s better to be well prepared for what is to come instead of not being curious and letting things happen to you.

I am a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt certified by Grant Thornton, and can certainly vouch for it from my experience.

Fresh: A student with no prior work experience, I was a clean slate which enabled me to grasp the sessions without any confining thoughts. I was curious and asked more questions. The trainer was equally enthusiastic and responsive.

Diversity: If your batch comprises of people from multiple specializations, it increases the quality of case studies being discussed. It is good to have knowledge about the domain you are interested in but even better to know what’s happening in other domains too. Our trainer explained that we would be interacting with people from various backgrounds, future is highly uncertain and you may end up at a place you never imagined.

Impressive resume: The value of this certification on your resume cannot be overlooked! The chances of your resume getting shortlisted soars as it shows the recruiters that you know what the industry demands and you possess those skills, you are already trained. Just think about sitting for an interview and explaining how you can renovate business processes. They cannot miss on a candidate who has so much more to offer. This certification is your chance at experiencing how organisations want to function, and you are equipped with that knowledge.

Recognition: I received a Globally Recognised Certificate from Grant Thornton, valid across 140+ countries. So, if you are getting a certificate from a highly accredited organisation, you will reap the benefits for sure.

Just remember, a certification alone isn’t enough. Choosing a quality certificate is. Read more at Grant Thornton’s Lean Six Sigma Green Belt.

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CMMI

The Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) is a dynamic tool for businesses worldwide. It aids in consistent development of better products and services. The model has gone through multiple iterations over the years so that its applicability can be inclusive of various businesses.

The CMMI Model focuses on improving organizational maturity. The levels of the model are:

Level 0: Incomplete

Any work or task undertaken barely gets completed, it may or may not. The unknowns are present everywhere.

Level 1: Initial

The work gets completed but there is a complete chaos. Problems like going overbudget or reworks are common.

Level 2: Managed

Anything that is planned, organized, and then performed is said to be managed, there are processes for projects, but the organization is still reactive.

Level 3: Defined

The processes are defined for the organization as a whole and not silos. The approach is proactive in identifying shortcomings and willing to work on them. Organizational standards guide processes.

Level 4: Quantitatively Managed

Quantitative data is used to manage the organization. The processes are measured and controlled. The risks are monitored, and stakeholders are taken into considerations.

Level 5: Optimizing

Rigorously improving and developing agility. Innovation is sought. The organizational processes are efficient, effective, flexible, and stable.

Organizations can identify their levels and then work towards advancing to the next level. Many times, it is difficult for businesses to assess their maturity levels and seek experts.

Grant Thornton Bharat has been the industry leader for model-based transformation. They provide training, facilitation, and appraisal up to level 5! Their team of experts will work with you to ensure you reach your desired maturity level. Their offerings include:

Providing an overview of CMMI framework

Conducting gap assessment to identify the requirements to achieve the targeted maturity levels

Timely review defined processes in the organization

Conduct process implementation reviews

Facilitate for benchmark appraisal conducted by the CMMI-certified lead appraiser

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EFQM Model

The EFQM Model is a universal framework which answers the three most important questions for an organisation:

WHY do we exist? Why do we choose this strategy? What is the reason or purpose?

HOW do we deliver the strategy?

WHAT have we achieved till date using it and what do we aim to achieve in future?

The answers to these questions lay the pillars of EFQM Model —

DIRECTION: It defines a purpose and vision that is inspirational. Develop strategies that create sustainable value.

EXECUTION: Strategies which cannot be executed or do not motivate are irrelevant. The purpose defined should be executed in the best possible manner.

RESULTS: It is crucial to gauge the results of the parameters defined in the Direction & Execution stage. Have forecasting methods in place to know what more can be achieved in future.

This pathbreaking model is used by more than 50,000 organizations across the globe for more than 30 years. I recently came across the new offerings by Grant Thornton Bharat, the certified strategic partner for EFQM in India-

Diagnostic Study with baseline EFQM scores and insights for improvement

EFQM Advisory and Certification

EFQM trainings delivered by certified experts from Grant Thornton

Grant Thornton Bharat is amongst the top two providers for framework design and adoption services in India. Their trainers are highly competent and bring in years of industry experience with them. With Grant Thornton you can expect:

Benchmarking against world-class practices

International recognition for excellence

Access to the largest pool of certified assessors and advisors and many more