How do you control the sources of variability and failure within your processes?
The quality of an output from a process can be directly attributed to the sources of variability within the process.
A Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) is one of the most cost-effective methods of controlling variation within a process.
Standard Operating Procedures document:
– How a process is performed;
– What the process measurements are;
– What the sources of variability within the process are; and
– How process owners control the sources of variability within the process.
SOPs help to organize the human attributes of ingenuity, creativity and empowerment within the process to control variation and gain actionable knowledge for continuous improvement.
Processes without SOPs can result in poor product quality, conflict, and perpetual firefighting within an organization.