Articles & PapersAs part of an ongoing service to our clients, Venturehaus subject matter experts have authored press articles and papers including research on their areas of expertise. Currently the following are available:When Operational Excellence meets Customer Intimacy Our
customers like our superior service but say our offer is no longer
competitive on price”. Sound familiar? Many service organisations
that have won business by providing a customized service are now
finding that their existing and prospective clients are no longer
willing to pay a premium for this customer intimacy (although they
still want the same service). Venturehaus Executive Associate Phil Anderson, Client Director at Ashridge Business School, examines the relationship between Operational Excellence and Customer Intimacy. To download a copy of this Article, please » click here (PDF, 434 KB) Jumping off the Service Excellence Bandwagon It
is increasingly hard for companies to differentiate themselves
through service excellence.However Phil Anderson, Client Director
at Ashridge Business School and Venturehaus Executive Associate,
examines how operational excellence is a strategic option for sustainable
success – for those brave enough to jump off the bandwagon. Take the survey and forward results to  phil.anderson@ashridge.org.uk Survey click
hereTo download a copy of this Article, please » click here (PDF, 86 KB) Applying Lean and Six Sigma for operational excellence in financial services Over
the last five years, there has been a rapidincrease in the take-up
of Six Sigma and Lean within the services sector, particularly in
financial services. Naturally the US has led the way, as one would
expect, and Financial Services has become one of the highest growth
sectors of the global Six Sigma market. High profile initiatives
at institutions such as Citigroup, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch
and JP Morgan Chase have provided the interest and inspiration for
others to follow.To download a copy of this Article from Capco, Journal of Financial Transformation, Q4 2006, please » click here (PDF, 72 KB) A Simple Guide to Six Sigma& Lean – our niche specialisation Six
Sigma and Lean are methods of improving the efficiency and effectiveness
of business activities. The methods and tools that form the basis
of these methodologies are not new, having been developed in the
post-war period of economic growth in Japan by leading figures
in the field of industrial quality management, such as Deming,
Shewart, Juran and Ishikawa. However in the mid 1980s, the packaging
and branding of these methods as “Six Sigma” proved
to be a turning point and has led to a corporate ‘feeding
frenzy’ on these methods in the last decade.To download a copy of this Article, please » click here (PDF, 41 KB) Six Sigma in Financial Services Since
the late 90s there has been a steady increase in the take-up of Six
Sigma within the Services Industry, particularly in Financial Services.
Most importantly, the companies in this recent trend are not GE!
Naturally the US has led the way, as one would expect, and Financial
Services has become one of the highest growth sectors of the global
Six Sigma market. Robin Davies, Managing Partner of Venturehaus, introduces "The 10 Commandments for Six Sigma in Financial Services". To download a copy of this Article, please » click here (PDF, 345 KB) Industry-Relevant and Fit-for-Purpose-Six Sigma Training for Services One
size does not fit all when it comes to training. Six Sigma training
should be relevant to each particular industry sector, memorable
for its students and fit-for-purpose in the specific business into
which it is being introduced. Most of the training generally available
on the market today does not meet these acid tests. In a further
article first published in Six Sigma Today, Alan Noble, Managing
Partner of Venturehaus, reports on what to look for when seeking
Six Sigma training in services, particularly in the financial services
industry.To download a copy of this Article, please » click here (PDF, 83 KB) The Service Route – Deploying Six Sigma in Services Robin
Davies, Managing Partner of Venturehaus, talks extensively to Paul
Handley, Editor of Six Sigma Today, in an article published
in the launch issue, about deploying Six Sigma in Financial Services
and other Service sectors, and why the approach differs from Manufacturing
based Six Sigma.To download a copy of this Article, please » click here (PDF, 192 KB) Selecting the Right Projects First Time - Six Sigma Project Selection in Services The
success and sustainability of any Six Sigma Programme depends entirely
on selecting the right projects first time. The right, high-impact
projects get buy-in throughout an organisation and breed ongoing
success. The wrong ones simply get dumped and breed corporate cynicism.
Here, in an article first published in Six Sigma Today,
Alan Noble, Managing Partner of Venturehaus, recommends that you
ensure your Six Sigma projects are commercially astute and that you
should always beware of the allure of the Six Sigma Dollar, Euro
or Pound.To download a copy of this Article, please » click here (PDF, 59 KB) The Customer feels Variation, not the Average-Six Sigma Measurement in Services Average
performance just isn’t good enough, and neither is average
measurement. Too often, service businesses manage their performance
against averages, whereas customers feel the variation within the
service’s performance and not the average. Here, in an article
first published in Six Sigma Today, Dirk Roettges of Venturehaus
explains how services businesses should take a different approach
to measurement in order to improve their customer service, and how
a Six Sigma approach can work just as well in services despite the
absence of the normal data prevalent in its more conventional application
in manufacturing sectors.To download a copy of this Article, please » click here (PDF, 185 KB) An Introduction to Six Sigma This
White Paper provides a brief overview of Six Sigma aimed primarily
at the newcomer: what is it, what are the benefits of using it, what
to avoid in its application, and why it is worth considering as a
business improvement methodology?The paper is structured as follows:
The paper concludes by recommending that companies take a selective approach
to the use of Six Sigma methods and tools, rather than attempt to apply all
of these as a universal panacea. Six Sigma or Lean? - How to get the best of both worlds Recent
evidence suggests that trends in the use of Six Sigma have evolved
into an enhanced state, now known as “Lean Six Sigma”.
More and more companies are combining the two approaches. GE now call
their Six Sigma approach “Lean”, and Honeywell call theirs “Six
Sigma plus”. This White Paper sets out to show how effectively
to merge the techniques of Six Sigma with those of Lean in order to
create an appropriate business improvement approach for different business
situations. The paper is structured as follows:
To download a copy of this White Paper, please » click here (PDF, 708 KB) Operational Strategies for Success in Acquisition Planning and Integration Companies
striving for rapid growth and expansion should not be influenced
into thinking that mergers today are the wrong thing to do. It
is simply necessary to understand that conducting mergers and acquisitions
entails risk and requires exceptional business planning and implementation
to succeed in delivering the desired results and value. We would
argue that the key consideration for CEOs today is how to become
one of the minority who conduct mergers successfully, rather than
join the majority who fail to realise true value from the strategy.
It is well documented that over two thirds of mergers fail to create
significant shareholder value. In fact, numerous studies have shown that M&A can destroy value for the acquiring company in at least 50% of instances. That said, there is also evidence pointing to the fact that companies conducting acquisitions strategically and often are those which can create value. The key factor is developing a competency for conducting successful M&A. The high volume of transactions in recent years has driven up prices for acquisitions, making shareholders unforgiving of deals that do not add to earnings immediately. Therefore the ability to integrate a new company quickly, reduce operating costs and generate incremental revenue has become a major factor in the performance a merged company's stock. This Research Paper explores the art of conducting mergers and acquisitions from an operational perspective and seeks to provide indications of how companies may benefit from the approach to the transactional process described herein. The content of this paper provides valuable and helpful strategic business thinking in the operational aspects of acquisition transactions and subsequently realising value from them. The focus of attention is on the following:
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