Recently, a lot of people have been asking me about the best way to transfer best practices. APQC has tons of content on this topic, but I realized we didn’t have an updated overview article that lays out the basics, so I wrote one: How to Transfer Internal Best Practices. The article is based on our collaborative research as well as what we’ve learned working with clients, and it contains a great example from Alcoa World Alumina.
At the most basic level, transferring a best practice involves finding a process or activity that one part of your organization does well and translating the same tactics to other parts of the organization. A firm can transfer practices among locations, business units, functions, or teams. In addition to promoting enterprise-wide standardization, the transfer of best practices helps organizations move the needle on key metrics like cost margins, cycle times, and safety statistics.
If you’re interested in establishing a transfer program, I recommend our new overview article. People who want to dive deeper into this topic can check out the following resources:
- Facilitated Transfer of Best Practices (an APQC best practices report)
- Tying it All Together: Making Best Practices Your Practices (a keynote address by APQC’s CEO Carla O’Dell)
- Implementing Best Practices (a Webinar by APQC’s Cindy Hubert and Rachele Williams)
- One Is Not Enough: Alcoa's Best Practice Transfer Program (a presentation by Alcoa)
If you have specific questions about the transfer of best practices or any of the resources listed above, let me know in the comments section.