During this time I noticed that nearly all of the material available on Continuous Improvement was addressed to large companies and almost always implied that an outside consultant was necessary. There was precious little written for small- or medium-size organizations, or parts of large organizations. Yet my experience had shown that Continuous Improvement is viable for organizations of any size, with or without the additional expense of an outside consultant.

I was, and remain, dismayed by the number of organizations that have attempted Continuous Improvement and have gained very modest results or, worse, have failed completely. There are probably hundreds of reasons why these efforts have not been successful, but I would venture a guess that in most cases the vital importance of quickly getting problems solved or processes improved was not stressed enough, and that managers were not adequately educated in what to do or when and how to do it. As a result, key people in the organization -- busy people -- ended up stumbling around like monkeys in a blizzard. It's no wonder that Continuous Improvement has gotten a bad rap.

I know Continuous Improvement works; it just takes the top person in the organization to lead the effort, and managers willing to accept the challenge to dig inside themselves and find the courage to change, the willpower to persist, and the inspiration to lead others along a new path. It also requires that each and every member of the organization helps solve problems and seize opportunities in the work they do. To make sure it keeps working, Continuous Improvement must be institutionalized -- embedded in the organization -- so that as key people come and go, improvement persists. If you and those around you accept this challenge, you will be responsible for turning your organization into one that is dynamic, high-powered, and highly spoken of by your customers and clients.

Once Continuous Improvement is embedded in the organization, the effort will be as unique as the organization itself. But for the first two years, as management introduces the method, every organization should do exactly the same things and learn to do them well.