1st Edition

Critical Success Factors Simplified Implementing the Powerful Drivers of Dramatic Business Improvement

By Marvin T. Howell Copyright 2010
    156 Pages 59 B/W Illustrations
    by Productivity Press

    Critical-to-success factors (CSFs) have become essential elements to strategic planning and no business can achieve consistent success without effectively adopting them. To take full advantage of CSFs, however, an organization must first understand what they are and how they can be used to drive organizational initiatives and processes. Critical Success Factors Simplified: Implementing the Powerful Drivers of Dramatic Business Improvement provides a concise manual on CSFs that will teach you how to identify and select the right CSFs, measure their impact, and adjust them as needed to reach your goals.

    In the first section of the book, Howell, a mechanical and industrial engineer responsible for award-winning initiatives in the military, public utilities industry, and private business gives you an education in CSFs, outlining the highly acclaimed Rockart CSF method. He also demonstrates two powerful techniques for identifying external CSFs, a simple process for generating internal CSFs, and a road map for creating an organization-wide CSF program. The second section of the book covers specific applications of CSFs, from strategic planning to individual pursuits.

    CSFs can be employed at all levels of an organization to initiate new ideas, increase productivity, or improve customer service. They can direct a huge corporation or facilitate a departmental improvement. Fleeting success can be achieved through mere luck, but most often sustainable success is accomplished with a plan that focuses in on those factors that you must address to accomplish your objective. This book will help you create such a plan.

     

    Introduction
    Rockart’s Four Types of CSFs
    Categorizing CSFs
    Why Should You Implement CSFs in Your Organization?
    Getting Started

    Identifying CSFs: External CSFs
    Environmental Scan
    Evaluating the Findings
    SWOT Analysis

    Identifying CSFs: Internal CSFs
    The Original CSF Method
    Example: A Construction Company
    The Five-Phase CSF Method
    Phase 1: Scope
    Phase 2: Collecting Data
    Phase 3: Evaluate and Organize the Data
    Phase 4: Identify and Select the CSFs
    Phase 5: Analyzing and Validating CSFs
    A Simple but Effective Method

    The CSF Achievement Model
    Step 1: Define the Goals or Objective of the Initiative You
    Wish to Achieve
    Steps 2 and 3: Identify and Select Your CSFs
    Step 4: Determine Subfactors for Each Selected CSF
    A Call Center Example
    Interviewing
    Traditional List
    Writing the CSFs
    Step 5: Measure CSF Implementation Progress
    Method 1: Stages: Start to Finish Implementation Method
    Method 2: Critical Success Levels
    Method 3: SMART Objectives and Targets
    Method 4: Traditional Industry Measures
    Method 5: "Traffic Light" Measures
    Method 6: Surveys
    Method 7: Striving for Coverage: The "Scatter Approach"
    Selecting the Right Indicator
    All CSFs Are Not Created Equal
    Graph the CSF’s Performance
    Step 6: Monitor and Take Action
    Six-Step Process Example: Implementing a Productivity Program
    Step 1: Define the Goals and Objectives of the Initiative
    Step 2: Identify the CSFs
    Step 3: Select the Appropriate CSFs
    Step 4: Determine Subfactors for Each Selected CSF
    Step 5: Measure CSFs’ Implementation Progress
    Step 6: Monitor and Take Action
    Implementing CSFs Organization-wide

    Strategic Planning and CSFs
    CSFs to Ensure Strategic Planning Success
    Relationship between KRAs and CSFs in Strategic Planning
    Example: A Barbershop

    A Systems Example Using CSFs: ISO 14001
    The Selected CSFs
    Measuring the CSFs

    Benchmarking and CSFs
    Benchmarking Overview
    CSFs for Benchmarking
    Measuring the CSFs

    Critical Success Measures for Process Success
    Process Example
    Critical-to-Success Measures
    Recap of the Type of Measures Used

    Improving Job Performance through CSFs
    Gathering the Information
    Determining the CSFs
    Example: A Blackjack Dealer
    Identify CSFs, Measure, Track, and Take Action
    Example: Military Recruiter

    CSFs for Individuals
    Opportunities to Use CSFs
    Example: Buying a House

    Conclusion

    Appendix A: Key Result Areas
    Appendix B: Brainstorming
    Appendix C: Modified Nominal Group Technique
    Appendix D: The Traditional CSF List for Management Initiatives
    Appendix E: The CSF Method
    Glossary
    References

    Biography

    Marvin T. Howell

    If you want to be a senior executive or project leader, or if you are a senior executive or project leader and want to keep your job, read this book and put its principles to work. Employing these principles will enable you to identify what is critical and track these performance elements to achievement.
    —Joseph A. "Bud" Ahearn, Major General, US Air Force (retired), Vice Chairman, emeritus, CH2MHill, Ltd