Learn how companies like Amazon leverage operational excellence to beat the competition

“Operational Excellence is the point at which each and every employee can see the flow of value to the customer, and fix that flow before it breaks down.” – Kevin Duggan

There is always room for development, regardless of how lucrative or successful your business is. A company that stops developing stops making progress. Finding specific areas that require improvement, though, can be challenging. The procedure is frequently tricky and involves significant adjustments. However, sometimes change happens more subtly over time, slowly and gradually. One such modification is operational excellence (OpEx).

Simply put, operational excellence ensures that every aspect of a company, large or small, operates in an “excellent” way.

Any sector may leverage OpEx ideas to achieve market leadership, including continual innovation, flawless service, establishing an enjoyable workplace for employees, and cultivating a culture where everyone is always aware of the company’s mission. Everyone in a company that runs seamlessly is mindful of their role in the value flow to the client. They are able to recognize whether this flow is normal or abnormal and know how to correct any anomaly without management’s help.

Although it appears straightforward in theory, putting it into practice may be tricky since it requires having everyone, from managers to lower-level staff, on the same page. Approaching operational excellence can also be quite challenging as it is not an easy term to comprehend and can often be too ambitious.

McDonalds and Walmart are just two out of many companies where operational excellence is a strategic priority. All systems in such companies are built around the core aim of bringing highly efficient ordering and fulfilment systems. The many ways that businesses like Toyota, Motorola, Amazon, Apple, Disney, Tesla, Fastcap, and GE have used operational excellence to remain ahead of the competition have been commended by business leaders all over the world.

Toyota – After the Second World War, Toyota Motor Company was battling to stay afloat in 1950. In contrast to Ford Motor Company, their main rival, who produced 7,000 vehicles each day, they were only manufacturing 2,685 automobiles annually. They went to engineers Shigeo Shingo and Taiichi Ohno, who developed a lean manufacturing strategy to produce more automobiles with fewer resources like equipment, laborers, materials, and resources like time and energy. Any Toyota facility across the world will be running as efficiently as possible thanks to Lean Manufacturing. Toyota is one of the biggest, most successful vehicle manufacturing firms thanks to its leadership in the adoption and sustainability of OpEx.

Amazon – Their adaptable business model serves as a model for many other businesses. They handle sourcing and distribution on such a large scale, deal with millions of clients, have perfected customer service, and are able to capitalize on and succeed in any business.

Jabil – Jabil, which was established in Michigan in 1966, is the third-largest supplier of services for electronic manufacturing worldwide. In order to endure for more than 50 years of business—profitably and with a vision for another 50—Jeff Porada, global director of Lean Six Sigma at Jabil, revealed how they engaged operational excellence with leadership through strategic alignment and visual management.

Even if your company is making record profits and everything is going swimmingly, you should still try to have an agile and efficient staff that is proactively pursuing growth, which might all be funded by OpEx.

There are five elements to put in place before anything else for your business to adopt an operational excellence plan successfully.