Review of Mass Spectrometry and Bioremediation Programs of the Edgewood Research, Development and Engineering Center (1998) / Chapter Skim
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Appendix A: Assessment Model
Appendix A: Assessment Model
Pages 57-84
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APPENDICES page 57
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APPENDIX A Assessment Mode! page 59
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The focus is on the external customer; the external customers' needs are determined by direct contact with scientists; the objective is to "give them what they want"; Quality Functional Deployment is used to identify customer needs. The focus extends to the soldier; R&D people spend time in the field to learn about the soldier' s business; the objective is to "give them what they need." Customer is dissatisfied with the strategy used to develop the product or service; appropriateness of the technological solutions; fulfillment of the operational capability requirements; technical capability, quality, and performance of the service or product; product cycle time and delivery time of the first equipped unit; technical support for fielded products developed at the RD&E organization; technical capabilities of the product or the service of the organization.
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Although diversification is an aspect of strategic and business plans, senior management has not effectively broadened the customer-base for prod ucts that are developed only for the Army; few joint service RD&E programs are in place. RD&E programs provide products for the Army and the other uniformed services; the organization provides products to other federal agencies; some of the budget is devoted to developing partnerships with industry and academia.
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The prevailing attitude is "all for one, me." Employees are willing to work hard for 40 hours/week; focus is on entitlements; some at tempts are made to assess employee satisfaction. Stage 3 Employees are anxious for the organization to suc ceed; employees are willing to make extra efforts to get work done; employees are willing to work on committees, represent the organization at profes sional societies, and travel on their own time; a formalized employee satisfaction process is in place but actions for improvement do not appear to be linked to the findings.
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Interfunctional and international career opportunities are available; learning by teaching others is encouraged; training time is fully budgeted to avoid service conflicts; the faculty and students atinternal training sessions are drawn from all levels of the organization; time off without pay is an option to get further training; off-site collaborations are used to expand knowledge. Budgets are last year's plus inflation, at best; budgets are severely constrained; mid-year cuts in budg ets are made common.
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Plans are developed and funding is provided for maintaining the present core capabilities; personnel are trained to operate and maintain equipment and use equipment as specified by the manufacturer; personnel skills are current and competent for their technical specialties. The organization possesses the skills and talents to fulfill customer requirements for the foreseeable future; new and innovative techniques, skills, and processes are incorporated into RD&E processes; newly acquired skills result in improved product engineering, manufacturing, or performance; new personnel are recruited to bring state-of-the-art techniques into the organization; personnel are encouraged to participate in formal continuing education programs; members of the research staff are encouraged to participate in professional societies, serve on external committees, etc.; program managers recognize new skills that will benefit their programs and plan for the acquisition of these skills and talents.
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Issues are addressed as part of the strategic planning process and are reviewed periodically; licensing is used to speed progress and learning.
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Working relationships with universities and other groups have been established; outside participation in professional associations is encouraged; there is no external technology sourcing process but there is a fit with the organization's plans; products and services are obtained from external sources to fulfill the statement of work. Ongoing relationships with universities, other government labs, and private companies are viewed strategically; the organization is recognized as a "smart buyer" of services and work of other parties; clear make-vs.-buy decisions and criteria are established; outside work is managed in detail; the contribution of external work is clearly demonstrated and adds value and reduces cycle time to the organization.
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Information technology is used as a tool by research and support personnel, and itincreases productivity and ultimately decreases the organization's overhead; acquisition of new hardware and software is adequately funded; training and technical support are available; employees are linked electronically internally and externally; universal systems are agreed upon; in-house training in computer skills is available. An information technology strategy guides program direction; systems are more standardized and are up-to-date; computers are widely used by management; routine activities, such as keeping time records and expense accounts, are dealt with on line; networking is encouraged; employees are expected to have good information technology skills; technical support is abundant; the staff is educated in the use and application of the technology.
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APPENDIX A TABLE A-2 Resources and Capabilities Category (continued) 69 Characteristics Performance Level Descriptions Facilities and Infrastructure Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Equipment and facilities are not well maintained and tend to be out-of-date; preventive maintenance is seldom performed; equipment is operated only in the daytime.
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70 MASS SPECTROMETRY AND BIOREMEDIATION PROGRAMS OF ERDEC TABLE A-3 Strategic Vision Category Performance Characteristics Level Descriptions Mission and Stage 1 Vision Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Mission and vision statements are not well articulated or linked; senior management has trouble communicating the mission and vision. There is a discontinuity between function in (the mission and vision are clear to some but not to others)
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A strategic planning process identifying the organization's role within the Army's strategic plan and within the organization is in place; senior management enlists the support of research and support staff to draft and implement the strategic plan through the business and annual plans; information on long-term customer needs is inadequate; a technology plan has been added after the fact. The fit of projects with the Army and organiza tion's strategic plans is clear and operational; guides are used for prioritizing project within the function; the strategic plan is driven by organization's strategy; the plan details how the organization will achieve its objectives; technology management is invited to provide input to the strategic plan.
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A strategic vision is spelled out and understood by most stakeholders; the vision makes all major initiatives readily understandable. The strategic vision "speaks" to all stakeholders, even if they have not been involved in creating it; customers and disinterested parties understand the research plan and advocate providing adequate resources to implement the plan.
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The strategic vision and research plan are understood by the staff; resources (i.e., time, personnel, and dollars) are aligned to meet these plans; the staff trusts senior leadership and is receptive to new ideas and re-engineering opportunities.
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Portfolio analyses of programs are an integral part of the strategic planning process; there is broad and active customer involvement in the portfolio analysis; risk analysis is incorporated at key phases; projects are schedule driven; criteria are in place for go/no go decisions; there are regular milestone reviews of projects; probability of success is built into the portfolio process, identifying clear values and trade-offs, as is a prioritization process. Project analysis involves framing the project, identifying alternatives, and making a commitment to action; decision and risk methodologies are used frequently; linkage between criteria and business strategy and line strategy is clear; portfolio analyses result in RD&E processes that yield products and services with excellent value, performance, and customer acceptance.
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The elapsed time from project initiation to project completion is measured and can be reliably forecasted; research programs are on time and on budget. RD&E programs are initiated and completed significantly faster than similar government or commercial programs; research staff is responsive to "quick fixes," and numerous examples of quick fixes to major products are readily available; senior management ensures that adequate resources are reprogrammed to fulfill requests for quick fixes.
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and their primary and secondary impacts; the database is used for comparison with current RD&E programs; leadership creates a scale to compare the potential value of current programs to previous programs and show improvements; customers rate RD&E programs as very good (i.e., products are expected to fully meet or exceed customer requirements; products are perceived as likely to be better than the ones they replace)
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RD&E programs; moderate- and high-risk research that offers high return receives stable funding; numerous examples of breakthrough research are cited from the previous five to ten years.
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Learning from others is encouraged; quality audits are performed periodically by internal and external review groups; report cards are issued annually by senior leadership; external surveys are conducted; ISO 9000 certification is widely sought; internal quality assessments are used. Greater productivity, enhanced research and prod uct quality, improved customer involvement and satisfaction, and continuing education of the workforce are areas of primary interest to senior management; there is a systematic analysis of research and support processes to eliminate non-value-added activities; benchmarking is used proactively; best practices are shared; focus is on the external customer; the Baldrige National Quality Award criteria are used to drive improvements in performance.
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Several stage-gate models are used on most projects; the process itself is not reviewed. A uniform approach to project management is used; a strong focus is on up-front planning; reducing cycle time is an important factor; some projects are reviewed, but there is no ongoing use of reviews to improve the process.
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The commitment to total quality is inherent and pervasive throughout the organization; the focus of all measurements is on optimizing the RD&E processes to deliver value; frameworks, such as ISO 9000/2 (international quality standards) , the Baldrige National Quality Award criteria, or locally developed systems, are used for assessment; recommendations to improve quality are immediately funded and implemented.
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A balanced list of measures is used to ensure that all key aspects of the organization are considered including financial, external and internal customers, innovation and learning and societal perspectives; the emphasis is on measuring customer value.
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Safety issues are addressed as part of strategic planning; employees receive behavioral modification training; safety is addressed at every management meeting; employees take pride in their safety records.
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Senior leadership recognizes and communicates the importance of organizational learning; personnel are well networked both inside and outside the organization; best practices are shared within functions but not beyond; knowledge tends to be associated with level in the company; new skills and techniques are acquired through new hires and continuing professional education. Organizational learning is characterized as adaptive; the need for sharing best practices is recognized; personnel are rewarded and encouraged for taking risks and entrepreneurial initiatives despite occasional mistakes; systems are in place to promote information-sharing; there are rewards for proactive information-sharing; employees are encouraged to take risks and are not chastised for failures.
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