What Is Process Improvement?

Process improvement is the practice in which organizations work to improve the way they work, such as increasing customer satisfaction, decreasing cycle time, or increasing productivity. 

Although you can pursue process improvement without the benefit of process management—as many organizations do—this typically results in fragmented, random acts of improvement. The improvements may look exciting individually; but without an overarching management strategy, they often breed unintended consequences that harm other parts of the organization. 

This article provides a brief overview of process improvement and recommends further resources.