TABLE OF CONTENTS This section provides a brief overview of the important aspects of initiating, preparing for, and conducting an appraisal. Each of these issues is treated in more depth in Sections 3-6.
The purpose of an appraisal is typically one of the following:
Identify specific areas for improvement, based upon known, general areas of deficiency (i.e., establish a baseline and Focus Areas for improvements),
Obtain buy-in for change from the organization,
Confirm process improvement progress and determine a new baseline during second or subsequent appraisals.
An appraisal should be tailored to meet the objectives of the sponsor's organization. In different industries and situations, various Focus Areas provide greater value if done well than others, so the Appraisal Method should be tailored by selecting the Focus Areas of greatest significance. In addition, an appraisal may concentrate on almost any cohesive engineering unit of an enterprise, including specific projects or programs. The appraisal scope is based upon the sponsor's influence and goals. The appraisal may include all of the Focus Areas (typical for an initial appraisal), or it may concentrate on specific Focus Areas that may have been targeted for process improvement. Tailoring the set of Focus Areas and selecting the organizational units included in the appraisal (programs, functional units, etc.) are the two primary choices that have a significant impact on the duration of and resources required by an appraisal.
Specific aspects of the appraisal that may be tailored are...
