"Even though I know process improvement is important, I just can't get results"—
Have you ever felt this way on the ground?

The purpose of process improvement is not simply to "make processes better."
At its core, it's about building the foundation to continuously produce high-quality products and services.

However, it takes time for process improvement to yield results.
In organizations without dedicated members, improvement activities tend to be done on the side between projects.
As a result, it's not uncommon for years to pass with no noticeable effect.

This article explains how to carry out process improvement based on the IDEAL model that PMs and project managers can use in the field.
We introduce five steps for embedding process improvement in project environments, including software development.

Following these five steps is effective for process improvement.

📌 IDEAL Model

graph LR
  A[1. Initiating] --> B[2. Diagnosing]
  B --> C[3. Establishing]
  C --> D[4. Acting]
  D --> E[5. Leveraging]
  E --> B

Before starting improvement, share with all stakeholders "why improvement is needed."

• Clarify the background and objectives for starting improvement.
• Secure commitment from the organization’s leadership (the sponsor responsible for process improvement).
• Holding motivational sessions for stakeholders can also be effective.

Next, conduct interviews at project sites and support organizations to grasp current issues.

• Conduct interviews with business sponsors and project staff.
• Formulate hypotheses about potential root causes of problems.

Based on information from on-site investigation, systematically diagnose the organization’s processes.

Create assessment items tailored to your organization, based on industry standards (e.g., CMMI or ISO15504).

Verify hypotheses by reviewing documents and conducting interviews with the target projects and support organizations.

From the assessment results, identify process strengths and weaknesses, and pinpoint specific issues.
Summarize these in a report to visualize the organization’s overall development capability.

Examples of Deliverables

Example: Quantitative Evaluation

Example: List of Strengths, Weaknesses, and Issues

Organize the issues identified in diagnosing and formulate an improvement plan.

Group issues by similarity and relevance, structure their hierarchy and relationships, and identify bottlenecks.

Based on the structured issues, create a mid-to-long-term roadmap.
Then develop a concrete execution plan specifying who will do what by when.

It is especially important in the execution plan to clearly define "Who (responsible), What (solution), and When (timeframe)."

Also, for prioritizing initiatives, mapping based on

• Effectiveness of the initiative (expected improvement impact)
• Difficulty (ease of implementation and risk)
  can be effective.

Introduce the improvement measures to the field according to the plan.

Conduct a preliminary evaluation and pilot of the proposed solutions, then refine them based on results.

Provide overviews and training to the entire organization or project to implement and roll out solutions.

Measure the effects of improvement measures and prepare for the next cycle.

In reflection, recall past activities and decide on next actions.

• Recall improvement activities from the improvement plan, weekly reports, deliverables, etc.
• Keep: List achievements and what went well based on KPIs and qualitative evaluations.
• Problem: List difficulties and issues encountered.
• Try: Propose measures to reinforce the Keep items and address Problems.
• ToDo: Decide which Try measures to implement next week and beyond.

If there are no ToDos, proceed to the diagnosing phase as the next improvement cycle; if there are, advance to the planning phase.

In organizational process improvement activities, a process-centric approach based on the IDEAL model is effective.
By capturing on-site realities from multiple perspectives through assessment, you build a foundation for continuous improvement rather than mere issue resolution.

This way, you can uncover not only manifest issues but also potential problems.
Especially in software and system development environments, this becomes the foundation for long-term quality improvement and continuous enhancement.

For comparison, here’s an outline of the differences with the “Problem-Centric Approach.”

Both approaches are effective, but a process-centric perspective is indispensable for changing organizational culture.

• Emphasize a process-centric approach
  Analyze the entire process, not just visible issues, to identify fundamental problems.
• Conduct assessments tailored to your organization
  Base them on industry-standard models but customize to fit your organization’s characteristics for maximum effectiveness.
• Clarify the priorities of initiatives
  Select measures based on effectiveness and difficulty, combining short-term and long-term improvements.
• Build a culture of continuous improvement
  The ultimate goal is for the organization to be able to autonomously improve its processes.

Process improvement does not yield results overnight.
It is important to drive continuous improvement from the PM and project management perspective and embed it in the organizational culture.
By taking steady steps and engaging the entire organization, you cultivate the soil that produces high-quality products and services.