Got a Great Idea for Making Your Department Run More Efficiently? Here’s a VNSNY Course Just for You!
Do you have an idea for how a certain process in your department could be improved to work more smoothly or efficiently? There’s now a VNSNY training program that will help you do just that: VNSNY’s recently launched Process Improvement course, where participating staff members design practical ways to enhance their department’s workflow.
“Since the program began last year, we’ve offered the course five times, with up to 15 people in each cohort,” says program leader Adam Lefebvre, VNSNY’s Director of Process Improvement. “The participants are really enjoying it, and the projects they’re developing have been very well-received. The course is also a great way for them to learn more about Lean Six Sigma, which is the problem-solving tool VNSNY is now using to improve processes across the organization.”
The first thing each course participant does is to select a specific process in their department that they think could be improved. Class members pick their projects in consultation with Adam and their own department managers, then follow the Lean Six Sigma methodology to identify specific issues related to the process and come up with a plan for testing potential fixes.
Each cohort comes together in four two-hour sessions to brainstorm and share updates on their individual projects, and to learn practical steps around process improvement, change management and other related topics. Between sessions, course participants work with Adam and their own departmental colleagues to move their projects forward. “No one solves problems in a vacuum,” notes Adam. “Everyone in the course needs to team up with frontline staff in their own areas to develop and implement their ideas.”
Students report that Adam’s presentations, which include an active give-and-take plus lots of video, make even flow charts and process maps lively. “Adam helps make things efficient but also sees the human angle in process improvement,” says course participant Maya Seidel, Enterprise Compliance Operations Manager. “The class gives you a new way to break down processes and find gaps and redundancies,” adds Joe Perry, Director of Private Pay Services at Partners in Care. “It forces you to sit down and think about the process differently.”
The Process Improvement course is targeted for Supervisors, Managers and Directors, but anyone at VNSNY is welcome to take the course provided they get approval from their manager, with new cohorts offered on a rolling basis. For more information, contact Adam at [email protected] or 212-609-6317.
Three Process Improvement Projects that Are Making a Difference
To read about three recent projects that staff members carried out through the Process Improvement course, click on the headers below.
Increasing Participation in VNSNY’s Care Management Program—Joe Perry, VNSNY’s Director of Private Care Services for Partners in Care
