Get rid of the Sacred Cow of Best Practice

How many times have you heard that a new process or a business change was being done to align to 'best practice'? Other phrases in the same mould are 'that this new process or methodology has worked in many organisation before it'll work here' or even better, 'we work to 'industry standard'? They are all the same thing when it boils down to it, a set of prescribed steps that if you follow them are sure to bring you success, of course if they do not then clearly you did something wrong because, of course, being best practice, it cannot be incorrect.  

Best Practice – the Origin Story

There is no such thing as Best Practice.

As a consultant specialising in lean productivity and ISO systems you would expect I would be a fan of best practice. I get asked by clients all the time, what is the best practice approach for this situation. Every time my answer is the same, it does not exist, it is a myth. Yes, there are things other places have used and they have been successful however they are different from you. They have different products, different customers, a different company culture, different equipment, different people, and the list goes on, let us just say they are different. Even plants within the same company are different and just because it works in Plant A does not mean it will work in Plant B the same way.

Best Practice is a phrase consultants and management people like to use to be lazy. If you just follow the same steps, then it will all be great, and I will not have to think about things too hard. Except, it will not be great, it will be at best sub optimal for your organisation and at worst disastrous and will really alienate your people.

From an ISO perspective, yes may of the standards say you have to have a policy or a process for X, Y or Z but in all cases, it leaves the detail, the how you implement and develop that to you, you know what your organisation needs, not a generic ISO standard and lean is the same!

The Best / Standard Method (right now) Approach

Both ISO Systems and the lean approach work on the standard or best method approach for business practices. I should really call it the best method right now approach as both expect you to continuously improve on that best method or work standard. That is the whole PDCA or Plan, Do Check Adjust (or act) cycle to give its full title. You plan on what you want to do, you go do it, you then check the results and if you like them then adjust the documentation to embed it, if you do not like them adjust the plan and try again.

Work standards are based on what you know just now as an organisation. They factor in your people, your processes, your products, your equipment, your supply chain, and your customers (or at least they should do!). Every one of those things will change, some quicker than others. As you get better at something how you do it changes. As new equipment or material or thinking becomes available you change and create a new best method of doing something, a new standard.

Up until the 1880's gas lights were best practice for lighting your homes and factories. Then along came Edison with his new-fangled lightbulb and that best practice of gas light disappeared.

By saying to your people, this is the best method we have right now, but if you can give us a better one, we will use that, you do several things, not least of all enable your employees to engage the grey matter and come up with a new idea knowing they are allowed and expected to challenge that status quo. You remove the shackles of the process and encourage development; you enable your teams to challenge and to try new things.

You can absolutely take a process or a standard that is working in another organisation but rather than inflicting it on your own company without any real thought stop and as a team look at it. Look at how you imprint your organisations DNA onto this process, what part so fit will work for you and what wont? Discard those things that wont and keep what will adding the imagination and creativity of your own people to create a starting process that will work for you. I emphasis starting process, because you will change it over time as you get better.

Those organisations who can continuously figure out better ways of doing things are the ones that will survive, grow, and importantly have engaged employees. You create a virtuous improvement cycle that becomes just what you do there. When that virtuous circle or flywheel kicks in, you can bet one thing, it is going to roll right over the competitor who is still clinging to the best practice that was given to them by back in the 80's or the 2000's.

By removing all the sacred cows, you open the door to a new era of possibilities within your organisation. You create the opportunity for people to challenge how you do things, and dramatically advance the ability of the company to evolve, develop and sustain in the long term. Doesn't that sound like a good thing?