The continuous Quality Improvement model

1. The continuous Quality Improvement model Presented by the Homeless Youth Capacity Building Project in partnership with the California Family Life Center

2. “You can only manage what you measure.”

3. Today’s outcomes • Understand the basic elements of CQI and how it can impact your organization • Understand the Plan/Do/Check/Act cycle • Able to identify elements to measure and have tools for measuring them • Know how to create teams to take on responsibility for ongoing assessment and improvement • Learn where to find out more about CQI

4. We measure performance for a variety of reasons Accountability • To those we assist • To those who fund our programs Increase Effectiveness • To have a lasting impact • To make changes to systems and cultures Increase Efficiency • To make the best use of limited resources including time and money

5. We can measure different areas and at different levels • How many youth get permanent housing? • How many find stable employment? • How many youth do we currently house? • How many attended our weekly career prep workshops? • Are our programs inviting? • Do outreach methods reach our target audience? • Does information resonate with youth?

6. These levels correspond to columns in a logic model

7. Outcome evaluations can present some challenges • They can be expensive • They take time to complete (sometimes years) • They tell what happened, not necessarily why or how • Unless evaluation was an RCT, difficult to prove impact occurred as a result of program activities • They often are completed by external evaluators, with minimal staff input or participation

8. “What it takes” organizations are unique and complex They… • Work hard to develop trusting relationships with clients • Take a holistic approach to address client needs • Meet clients “where they are at” • Are persistent and in it for the long term • Have flexibility in responding to changing needs and systems • Create partnerships with multiple systems

9. The people they serve are unique and complex! They… • Have a variety of challenges and needs • Have needs that change over time • Access multiple systems • Have different ways of learning and dealing with change • Are prone to relapse

10. There are several challenges to evaluating “what it takes” Orgs • They take on multiple challenges due to their holistic approach • Use a variety of strategies and interventions to assist clients • Change flexibly over time, responding to changing needs and environment • Form multiple partnerships with other systems and providers

11. CQI Is a framework for evaluating and improving many areas For example… • Program design • Curriculum development • Outreach • Volunteer management • Professional development • Financial management • Fundraising • Evaluation • Board management • Staff Supervision • Communications and PR • Partnerships

12. CQI process

13. What is continuous Quality Improvement? CQI is a powerful framework for improving key areas of an organization. It involves teams of staff and stakeholders who use data to develop and test new strategies for improving processes and activities. Organizations using the CQI framework strive to be the best they can, and often look to exemplars outside of their field for benchmarks and best practices.

14. There are several elements that make CQI Unique • Organizational culture • Identification of key processes • Teams as process owners • Use of a formal improvement process • Benchmarking • Links process improvement to improved performance • Investments in the organizations’ human capital

15. CQI can bring many benefits to an organization • creates ownership of program objectives • supports inclusiveness & consistency • improves communication & teamwork • improves stakeholder perception • is proactive vs. reactive It…

16. Continuous Quality Process Improvement • To use data in a continuous way means to begin to think in a cycle known as Plan/Do/Check/Act.

17. PDCA Cycle of action steps STEP 1 Plan: Select a target and develop your strategy STEP 2 Do: Implement the change plan STEP 3 Check: Learn from the results STEP 4 Act: Act on what you have learned

18. “how to factors” for successful implementation of cqi • Involve staff & clients • Focus on key problems first • Select a change leader • Get ideas from outside the organization and the field • Examine sustainability of changes

19. Data is Key Continuous improvement will not occur unless organizations commit to data collection and analysis as an ongoing part of doing business, rather than only in response to crises.

20. Benchmarking

21. Benchmarking • A benchmark is a standard of excellence or achievement against which other similar things must be measured or judged. • Benchmarking is also used to set goals for overall achievement and performance.

22. 7 Step Benchmarking Process • Identify benchmarking subject • Identify comparative companies • Determine data collection method & collect data • Determine current competitive gap • Communicate finding and gain acceptance • Develop action plans • Implement plans and monitor progress

23. The Quality StandardsQuality criteria set a standard against which current practice is evaluated • Leadership: Leadership refers to the organization’s senior executive and those reporting to that individual as well as other leaders in the organization. • Strategic Planning: How the organization sets strategic directions and determines key action plans. • Customer and Market Focus: Customer satisfaction calls for the use of relevant data and information to establish the organization’s performance as viewed by the customer. • Information and Analysis: The management and effectiveness of the use of data and information to support key processes and the organization's performance management system. • Human Resource Development and Management: How the workforce is enabled to develop and utilize its full potential, aligned with the organization's performance objectives. • Process Management: The key aspects of process management include customer-focused design, product and service delivery processes, support processes, and partnership processes.

24. Sample “Fishbone” Potential Influencing Factors Potential Influencing Factors Low Customer Service Skills Staff Time Allocation Dashboard Indicator or Interim Milestone Lack Training Focus Group Customer Satisfaction Surveys Understaffed Improving Customer Service Supporting Data to Evaluate Online Survey/Suggestion Box Training Plan Customer Focus Cultural Assessment Organizational Policies Work Space or Equipment Potential Influencing Factors Potential Influencing Factors

25. Potential influencing factors • Demographics • Other Customer Characteristics • Employer/Partner Characteristics • Service Procedures • Organization Policies • Staffing/Time Allocation • Skill Levels • Organization Environment • Work Space or Equipment • External or Cyclical Events

26. Outside Industry Benchmarking

27. teamwork

28. Teams as process owners Teams are essential to the success of CQI. Teams, once trained, engage in ongoing process improvement activity, which include: • customer identification • process definition • performance requirements definition • performance measurement • process improvement cycle activity

29. Benchmarking teams

30. Is the team effective or not? • There are various indicators of whether a team is working effectively together as a group.

31. Is the Team Effective or Not? (cont’d) • Teams that are not working effectively together will display certain characteristics. The team leader will need to be actively involved with such teams. The sooner the team leader addresses issues and helps the team move to a more effective way or working together, the more likely the project is to end successfully.

32. Examples of Tools For Team Effectiveness Balanced Scorecard

33. Examples of Tools for Team Effectiveness

34. Cultural Change

35. CQI will require Cultural Change in an organization • Capitalize on opportunities to implement change. • Combine caution with optimism. • Understand resistance to culture change both at the individual level and at the organizational or group level.

36. Cultural Change (cont’D) • Change many elements, but maintain some continuity. • Recognize the importance of implementation. • Select, Modify, and Create appropriate cultural forms. • Modify socialization tactics. • Cultivate innovative leadership.

37. Useful resources • The Memory Jogger 2: Tools for CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT and Effective Planning www.MemoryJogger.org • National Youth Employment Coalition PEPNetwww.nyec.org/pepnet/ • ASQ The Global Voice of Quality http://asq.org/learn-about-quality/malcolm-baldrige-award/overview/overview.html • Book • Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't Author: Jim Collins

38. Thank You! If you have questions, please contact us at: Mary Jo Ramirez: kv-cflc@linkline.com Oscar Wolters-Duran: oscar@johnburtonfoundation.org Please take a moment to fill out the evaluation!