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OM - Synthesis: Effectiveness of Process Improvements

Funding

$55,000

Research Period

12 months

Background Information

Several states have established offices to implement continuous improvement processes such as Lean, Design Thinking, or Change Management. Over 30 of these offices participate in the Transportation Lean Forum (TLF), an informal group that operates in association with the AASHTO Subcommittee on Organization Management. In addition to formal offices, some states make less formal “grass roots” efforts to improve their processes. A synthesis would conduct a side-by-side study of the states’ efforts, including efforts in states that are not participating in the TLF, find what is working and what is not, assist states to identify improvements that they might implement, and set a baseline of the current “state of the art” that could inform future research on the outcomes of these efforts.

Literature Search Summary

Objectives

Lean Improvement research questions:

  1. Are there other states and countries with Lean Improvement or similar offices?
  2. In what types of work are they achieving success?
  3. Are there difference in focus between the DOTs?
  4. Are there lessons to be learned by DOTs about how they might best improve their improvement efforts? (e.g., the Lean effort in England focuses mainly on the application of Lean principles in construction, but US States have not yet adopted Lean Construction to any great extent.)

Efficiency research questions:

  1. Are there other states and countries with efficiency reporting requirements?
  2. How do the reported efficiencies compare?
  3. Are there types of efficiency that are reported in some states but not others?
  4. Are there lessons to be learned by DOTs about how they might best improve their efficiency?

Keywords/Terms

Link to 2021-2026 AASHTO Strategic Plan

Urgency and Potential Benefits

Implementation Considerations

Author(s)

Nigel Blampied

Projectresearch.org

[email protected]

Others Supporting Problem Statement

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Potential Panel Members

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Person Submitting Statement

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Notes

Lean Improvement: Several DOTs have established offices to implement continuous improvement processes such as Lean, Design Thinking, or Change Management. These include a t least thirty US States, five Canadian Provinces, England, the Netherlands, and Sweden.

Efficiencies: Several state DOTs (e.g., CA, MN, OH) and England are required to submit annual efficiency reports.

(30 states + other agencies have initiatives). What can be learned from these efforts? For instance, in England, the focus is on construction-only. (Nigel)