Software Development is a fast-paced, highly dynamic environment. Coming from electronics manufacturing, I had a sense of how intense the work can be. “We want to double our business,” my client said. What does Sales have to do differently? How can we ever keep up with that kind of growth, knowing delivery is suffering from today’s work? How do we look after our people? These are questions we set out to answer.
We examined the process around the sales funnel, focusing on the desired areas of growth. We simulated the development process on a tabletop so everyone could see what was happening and what needed to happen. This we knew was going to make or break the growth plan. We dug into the biggest problem, “The customer isn’t ready, that’s why we can never deliver on time! How can we change that?”
We dug deeper. Simply put, the customer wasn’t ready for what we wanted to deliver which was different from what they were expecting. Ever order a new car expecting 2 doors to be given a 4-door? Sometimes even “the car” was missing 2 wheels. That’s what it felt like from the customer perspective. There was a disconnect between what they thought they might get and what the code was designed to do, resulting in much rework, scope creep, and delays.
Getting better at delivering exactly what the customer wanted was paramount for loyalty, delivery & growth. And they did get better. They kept their eye on it all the time. Through innovative thinking and rapid experimentation. They doubled business in half the time and added a handful of people to do it.
Figure One: A portion of a table-top SIPOC of the design process
Getting better at delivering exactly what the customer wanted was paramount for loyalty, delivery, and growth. And the situation did improve. Through better time tracking combined with innovative thinking and rapid experimentation, the client successfully doubled business in half the time and only added a handful of people to do it.
Figure Two: Physical display of status of work-in -progress
I've had the pleasure of working with Leslie on a project to double our company's revenue over a 5 year period. Leslie worked with the senior team, not only to develop the strategy to achieve our goals but to build the teams capabilities in order to execute using Lean methodology...With Leslie's expertise and guidance in problem solving and PDCA we achieved our goals...
Leslie and her team bring a high level professionalism and in-depth knowledge on developing high efficiency workplaces. I have worked with Lean Expansion on many occasions, across various industries, in all cases, Leslie’s ability to coach and mentor across all levels of an organization stands out. The results have been remarkable, most importantly, coming from the teams and individuals she has coached. We can all improve, Lean Expansion is able to help us define our goals and exceed them.
Leslie challenges organizations to consider the systems that will support thinking patterns and routines for success. The teaching and coaching I received from Leslie changed me forever, helping me see with new eyes.
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Reach out to get in touch. I'm open to learning about challenges, opportunities, and discussing how lean thinking can increase profits or prepare your company for growth.
Phone: 416.528.7990
Email: leslie@leanexpansion.ca
Address: 1805 - 3230 Yonge St
Toronto, ON. M4N 3P6