March 12, 2013

Improving Performance
How to Manage the White Space on the
Organization Chart
Geary A. Rummler and Alan P. Brache

©2013 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Adapted by permission of Jossey-Bass, an imprint of John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 978-1-1181-4370-4

Key Concepts
• Organizations are adaptive systems, not the re- • The job/performer level concerns the work that
porting lines represented by organization charts. must be done for each step of a process, including
They must be managed as such to survive an ever- management processes, and the people who do
changing environment. that work. Workers are assumed to be motivated
• Relationship maps offer a better picture of what a and capable; faults in processes, training and skills,
company “does” than organization charts showing or consequences and feedback cause even good
what a company “is.” They show how work actu- workers to have problems.
ally gets done in an organization. • Goals for each level need specific, measurable stan-
• Improving an organization’s performance requires dards that meet customer expectations.
considering three variables: goals, design, and • Process improvement projects provide a good in-
management at three levels of a business: organi- troduction to the analytical methods and tools
zation, process, and job/performer. used within the three level framework to improve
• The organization level concerns the relationship the performance of business processes to better
of the business to its market and the skeleton on contribute to the goals of the organization and the
which the business hangs. Critical Business Issues it faces.
• The process level is at the heart of any business. A • The Human Performance System (HPS) analyzes
process is a series of steps by which work moves the job goals, design, and management when ex-
horizontally across the organization’s functional pected outputs are not being achieved. It directs
areas to produce outputs that serve the customers changes to the performance specification, task sup-
and the organization. port, feedback, skills and knowledge, or individual

Business Book Summaries® March 12, 2013 • Copyright © 2013 EBSCO Publishing Inc. • All Rights Reserved
Improving Performance Geary A. Rummler and Alan P. Brache

capacity of the worker to produce outputs that jobs, or workers who do the jobs. This framework
support organization goals. gives the organization a “road map” for diagnosing
and eliminating underperformance and an engine for
Introduction continuous improvement.
Managers are called upon to manage organizations, The organization level emphasizes the organization’s
not organizational charts. But too often they are relationship with its market environment. At this level
slaves to the vertical silos depicted on these charts. stand the strategies, goals, structure, and resource
Instead, Geary A. Rummler and Alan P. Brache argue deployments that affect performance.
in Improving Performance, that managers should
The process level is where the work flows across
understand and manage their organizations as a
functional units of the organization. To perform, an
set of processes that move horizontally through the
organization’s processes must be customer driven
white space separating the functional areas depicted
while meeting the organization’s requirements. They
on the organization chart. The authors show how to
must be efficient and effective.
consider the organization, process, and worker levels
in order to improve processes and thereby improve At the job/performer level are the workers who per-
overall performance. Their method provides a set of form jobs. They function within a system that gives
tools for finding and correcting performance issues, them the tools and training to do their jobs and to
an engine for continual improvement, and a road know what is expected of them. “Fixing” workers
map to guide an organization. The Rummler-Brache matters little if the system is not providing them what
methodology promises a customer-driven company they need to do their jobs.
with fewer interdepartmental conflicts, participative
At each level, there are three variables that affect per-
management, and better worker performance along
formance: goals, design, and management. The goals
with a higher quality work life.
provide specific standards reflecting customer expec-
A Systems Approach to Organizations tations. System designs must include the necessary
The traditional organization chart shows reporting parts, properly configured, to meet the goals. Man-
lines and divisions but not how a business actually agement ensures that the goals are current and being
produces the goods and services its customers buy. In met. Taken together, this creates a matrix of nine cells
contrast, a systems view of an organization includes
the customer, the product, and the flow of work
through the organization. Where the former is verti-
cal, the latter is horizontal. The traditional chart leads Further Information
to managing the chart rather than the business itself. Information about the authors and subject:
The global competition and pace of change in busi- www.rummler-brache.com
ness today requires the creation of an adaptive Information about this book and other business titles:
organization—an adaptive system. Optimization of www.wiley.com
any part of the system often causes suboptimization
Related summaries in the BBS Library:
of the whole. Good workers will always lose the battle
with a bad system. Knowing what a company does, Improving Business Performance with Lean
By James R. Bradley
how its inputs, processes, and outputs work together,
matters more than knowing the lines on the organiza- The Power of Business Process Improvement
tion chart. 10 Simple Steps to Increase Effectiveness, Efficiency,
and Adaptability
Three Levels of Performance By Susan Page
Managers can measure and improve the performance
of the organization by considering it at the organiza-
tion level, the process level, and the level of individual

Business Book Summaries® March 12, 2013 • Copyright © 2013 EBSCO Publishing Inc. • All Rights Reserved Page 2
Improving Performance Geary A. Rummler and Alan P. Brache

arranged in three rows, the levels (organization, per- With established goals, management can design the
formance, job/performer), with three columns, the organization to meet them. A “relationship map”
variables (goals, design, management). shows the customer-supplier relationships through
the functions that define the business. It maps the
The Organization
“white space” in the traditional organization chart
The organization functions as a system that pro-
to show where the flaws in the “wiring” confuse,
cesses inputs into outputs. Any work done without
disrupt, or misdirect various inputs and outputs.
definite goals, designs, and management at the orga-
Management can then create a new map to eliminate
nization level is wasted. In this framework the term
these flaws.
“organization” applies to each business unit and sub-
department as well as the whole
company.
The silo culture forces managers to resolve lower-level issues,
taking their time away from higher-priority customer and com-
At the organization level “goals”
are strategic. The strategy identi- petitor concerns. Individual contributors, who could be resolv-
fies the organization’s products, ing these issues, take less responsibility for results and perceive
markets, competitive advantages, themselves as mere implementers and information providers.
and priorities. Organization-level
goals are quantifiable, customer driven, oriented to
Managing the organization means aligning the goals
competitive advantage, and plainly stated.
of the units and sub-units with the organization-wide
goals. Managing performance achieves the goals by
ensuring communication across teams, customers,

About the Authors and suppliers. Resource management means allocat-

ing resources across the horizontal organization to
Geary A. Rummler, a pioneer in the application achieve goals.
of instructional and performance technologies to The Process
organizations, cofounded the Rummler-Brache
If the organization level of performance considers the
Group, a global leader in process management
links between inputs and outputs, the process level
consulting and training. Rummler served as
focuses on the processes that these links represent. A
national president of the National Society for
process is a series of steps that produces a product.
Performance and Instruction, as a member of
Processes are at the heart of the business and are the
the research and strategic planning committees
richest level for performance gains.
of the American Society of Training and Devel-
opment, and as a member of the editorial board Each process contributes to one of the organization
of Training magazine. He died in October 2008. goals and can be measured against this contribution.
For example, an organizational goal to introduce a
Alan P. Brache, cofounder of the Rummler-
particular number of new products in a set time frame
Brache Group, focuses his consulting and
requires that the product development process and
writing on a methodology for resolving critical
product introduction process each have supporting
issues through the identification, documen-
goals. Process goals always reach across functional
tation, analysis, design, measurement, and
departments and can be benchmarked.
continuous improvement of business processes.
The “process map,” analogous to the relationship map
The Rummler-Brache Group, exclusive owner
at the organization level, traces the process through
of the trademarked Rummler-Brache methodol-
the departments. This flow chart shows critical inter-
ogy, is a consulting and training firm specializing
faces and the time it takes to complete sub-processes.
in process improvement and management.
Once revealed, the problems can be designed out.

Business Book Summaries® March 12, 2013 • Copyright © 2013 EBSCO Publishing Inc. • All Rights Reserved Page 3
Improving Performance Geary A. Rummler and Alan P. Brache

The resulting new process efficiently and effectively explains the values that guide the business and the
accomplishes the process goals. assumptions about the market and broader business
environment that undergird the strategy. Strategy
Managers tend to the process with quantifiable mea-
development includes five elements:
surements—goals—for the process as a whole and for
its sub-processes. They next measure the contribution 1. Products and services the organization will offer.
of each department that will be part of the process and
2. Customers and markets served.
allocate resources accordingly. Managing the ongo-
ing performance of a process rather than just fixing it 3. Competitive advantages.
when it breaks requires establishing another process 4. Product and market priorities.
for continual measurement.
5. Systems and structures to implement the strategy.
Most strategy failures are caused
If executives do not manage performance at the Organization
by problems with the fifth ele-
Level, the best they can expect is modest performance improve- ment, how the strategy will be
ment. At worst, efforts at other levels will be counterproductive. implemented.
Strategy implementation should
The Job Performer be broken down by the three levels of performance.
Improving performance at the job/performer level Using the three levels framework to formulate strat-
begins with the assumption that people can and want egy ensures that all strategic variables have been
to do their jobs well. The Human Performance System considered in developing it. The strategy will take
(HPS) tracks inputs to the worker, the worker’s out- root only if goals, design, and management variables
puts, the consequences of doing their job well or are addressed at each level.
poorly, and the feedbacks that tell the performer how Continual Performance Improvement
they are doing. The quality of outputs is a function
Managers often try to use performance improve-
of the performer, the inputs, the consequences, and
ment programs to boost quality, customer service, or
the feedback. Before trying to improve the performer
product development. But these discreet programs
through training, discipline, or other means, the man-
have short-lived impacts on only one area. Instead,
ager must be able to see every flaw in the existing
improvement efforts should include the three levels
HPS.
of performance.
Goals for the performer must contribute to a process.
Senior managers should create improvement goals
The goals tell the worker what they are supposed to
for each of the three levels. At the organization level,
do and how well they need to do it. Jobs should be
customer-driven, company-wide goals are linked to
designed with the proper allocation of responsibility,
competitive advantages and strategy. Once the critical
sequence of steps, policies, and ergonomics. Manage-
processes are singled out, goals for the performance
ment of the job means putting people with the right
required of those processes can be set. Similarly, man-
skills and knowledge into the job, checking that the
agement sets goals for those jobs critical to improving
consequences are aligned with the job goals, seeing
the organization. They can then set about designing
that the performer has adequate feedback and the
the organization so that the relationships between
resources to do the job. Remediation might include
inputs and outputs serve the company strategy.
training or reassigning the performer. But it might
Disconnections in the wiring are addressed by cross-
also include clarifying feedback, aligning conse-
functional teams, and jobs are designed to achieve the
quences with the job goals, or redesigning the job.
improvement goals.
Strategic Performance Managing improvement at the organization level is
A strategic vision must be in place before any orga- about allocating resources and then establishing a
nization can be expected to perform. A strategy

Business Book Summaries® March 12, 2013 • Copyright © 2013 EBSCO Publishing Inc. • All Rights Reserved Page 4
Improving Performance Geary A. Rummler and Alan P. Brache

system for tracking progress. To manage the processes, greatest impact. For example, the analyst might find
goals for each of the key junctures in the process are that boosting the efficiency of the claims handling
set and continually monitored. Finally, management process will have an enormous impact, thus creating
creates a job environment in which people have the a new process map depicting the process by which
training, resources, and clarity of consequences and claims should be handled and recommending that
feedback to achieve their goals. these changes be adopted.

Performance Diagnoses and By analyzing the job/performer level, perhaps the ana-
Improvement lyst identifies the claims supervisor position as being
When consultants are called in to improve the perfor- the one most in need of attention. Using the Human
mance of a company, they typically have a cure ready Performance System Model, and working with claims
before they diagnose the problem. Human resource supervisors and claims representatives, the analyst
consultants deliver training programs, data-process- might determine that the supervisors do not have the
ing experts provide hardware and software, and knowledge needed to identify the recovery poten-
engineers offer better ergonomics and streamlined tial on a claim 75 percent of the time—a benchmark
work flows. But the three level framework begins by from the industry. Because they are not evaluated or
diagnosing the problem across functional areas and trained in recovery potential, the supervisors have
therefore does not isolate improvement within one had no feedback that their low identification rate is
function. a problem. The analyst can now recommend ways to
solve these problems.
Consider, for example, an analyst trying to improve
the claims manual for an insurance company. The Finally, the analyst is ready to consolidate recommen-
claims representatives need a clearer and more com- dations from each of the three levels. They consider
prehensive manual. The analyst begins by defining all of the performance variables to be sure that all
the project. This involves understanding the specific three levels are served by the recommended improve-
financial effect the outdated manual has and then set- ments. They then develop a plan to implement these
ting goals for the “payback” on a new manual. The recommendations with senior management.
analyst then identifies the key
stakeholders and draws some The Process Level is important because process effectiveness
tentative conclusions about and efficiency should drive a multitude of business decisions.
constraints and the odds of suc- For example, a reorganization serves no purpose if it does not
ceeding. The project plan is then
improve process performance.
developed to define the mile-
stones, time line, and data needed
The Project Definition Process
for the project.
Rummler and Brache’s method for creating per-
To see precisely how the new manual will fit into the formance improvements begins with the project
big picture, and whether it can even have the desired definition, a ten-step process using tools they have
impact, the analyst then creates a relationship map of developed:
the organization. This shows how the new manual
1. Review the outputs from phase 0.
will bridge the gaps in the organization that are cur-
rently having the greatest negative impact. At this 2. Train a facilitator in Rummler-Brache Methodol-
stage, specific actions for improvements, whether ogy and determine level of facilitation required.
involving a new manual or not, can be recommended
3. Profile the critical process.
to top management. These may be in the goals, design,
or management variables of the organization. 4. Identify critical process issues.

Analysis at the process level might identify specific 5. Establish project goals.
processes, the improvement of which will have the
6. Identify process dependencies.
Business Book Summaries® March 12, 2013 • Copyright © 2013 EBSCO Publishing Inc. • All Rights Reserved Page 5
Improving Performance Geary A. Rummler and Alan P. Brache

7. Identify function dependencies. history. For example, a company that has recently sur-
vived a restructuring may not be free to reorganize
8. Identify constraints and assumptions.
departments again, even to improve a process.
9. Define project roles.
Finally, the last two steps lay out the project team’s
10. Develop project plan. specific roles and the overall project plan. The plan
should be relatively high level
Our experience has led us to a bias: most people want to do a and simple, but should include
estimates of efforts required,
good job. However, if you pit a good performer against a bad assignment of responsibility, and
system, the system will win almost every time. major milestones.

Process Analysis and Design

The first step is to consider how the project fits into Once the process improvement project has been prop-
an overall performance improvement plan linked to erly scoped, the Rummler-Brache method calls for
critical business issues (CBIs) and the key processes process analysis and design. This second stage begins
of the organization. All process improvement projects with documenting the current state of the process in
should follow from a process improvement manage- question. The map has a list down the left side begin-
ment plan. The method calls for training or the use ning with “Customer” at the top and ending with
of a Rummler-Brache–certified facilitator. This indi- “Supplier.” The rows in between are for the relevant
vidual can be in-house and trained, or hired from the functional units, or departments. The sub-processes
outside. are listed across the top taking the process from first
With a facilitator in place, the next step is to profile the input to final output. The first step is placed in the
critical process that the project will improve. This pro- appropriate cell indicating the department responsi-
file identifies the process, its inputs, outputs, and key ble for it and the sub-process of which it is a part. Each
sub-processes. The facilitator must define the begin- step is described with a noun and past-tense verb:
ning and the end of the process, as well as the clients, for example, “Order Logged,” or “Credit Checked.”
or recipients, of the process outputs. Arrows indicating where each input comes from and
where each output goes connect these steps.
The next step is to link the process to the CBIs its
improvement will address. Now the project goals Once the map is completed, each real or perceived
can be created based upon how the process should disconnect should be recorded on a separate table and
perform for the organization. Creating useful and then validated by the team. Next specifications for
achievable goals requires collecting baseline data on the revised, goal-driven process should be drawn up.
how the process currently performs. So, this step also These include input, output, and process specifica-
includes finding or creating the relevant data. tions. With these specifications in place the team can
now brainstorm and select a revised process.
Next comes the “process inventory,” a list of all of
the company’s processes organized by type, input The chosen solution should be mapped, but without
process, and key output. This list forms the basis of including the functional units in order to emphasize
a process relationship map. Similarly a function rela- the process itself. Once the complete map has been
tionship map should be created. Whether generalized checked against the specifications, the functions can
or process specific, this map shows how each depart- be added.
ment provides an output to or receives an input from A measure chain worksheet can be used to develop
the subject process. the final end-of-process measurements and measure-
There inevitably will be constraints to the process ments for each sub-process along the way. A matrix
improvement project. Constraints may be driven by defining the cross-functional roles and responsibili-
corporate culture, resource availability, or company ties related to the new process should also be created.

Business Book Summaries® March 12, 2013 • Copyright © 2013 EBSCO Publishing Inc. • All Rights Reserved Page 6
Improving Performance Geary A. Rummler and Alan P. Brache

The team should consider the uncovered disconnects The measurement system should never be used for
that are related to jobs using the HPS then make rec- discipline. Instead, managers should use measure-
ommendations, and finally the team should develop ments to identify organization, process, or job level
an implementation strategy. breakdowns. A performance management system
will do just that.
Seven Rules of Process Improvement
1. Process improvement must flow from strategic A performance management system begins with
concerns, or CBIs, and be tied to measurable goals. goal setting and requires a process for tracking per-
Failure to do this can cost managers the support of formance over time, troubleshooting, and taking
senior management. corrective action. It provides real-time, continuous
feedback to workers and a structure for periodic man-
2. Top management must play an active role by tak-
agement reviews.
ing ownership of each process
improvement project.
In our experience, line managers rarely know what action they
3. The process improvement need to take to address a performance improvement opportunity.
team must have a clear mis-
This reality puts the burden on staff people to diagnose situa-
sion and be held accountable
for completing it. Unless the tions before implementing solutions.
team knows the goals, resourc-
es available, and constraints facing the project, they
Institutionalizing Process Management
will not move forward. Once an organization has engaged in process
improvement projects on its core processes, manag-
4. Process improvement does not need to cause orga- ers can begin to make process improvement part of
nizational upheaval for management to consider it the culture. Doing so requires that each core process
successful. be mapped, have an owner assigned to it, and a mea-
5. Careful attention must be paid to the jobs required surement system in place. The organization should
to complete the process and to supporting the peo- have a permanent process team to define and conduct
ple who will actually have to adjust to the new pro- projects and procedures to identify root causes as well
cess and work flows. as solve process problems.

6. Implementation is just as important as process re- When process management has been applied through-
design. out the organization, the organization as a whole can
be managed as a system. Within a systems manage-
7. Lasting change requires the infrastructure for con-
ment culture the silos that characterize traditional
tinual process measurement and improvement.
organizations are replaced by cross-functional teams
Measuring and Managing Performance that support rather than compete with one another.
Without measurement at all three levels, data-driven Reorganizing for Systems Management
management is impossible. Sound measurements take
If the organization has institutionalized management
account of the critical dimensions of each significant
by process and created a systems culture, the boxes on
output, whether of the job, process, or organization.
the organization chart may well need rearrangement.
The measurement system should be designed first at Rather than focusing on reporting relationships, the
the organization level based on the needs of the exter- proper way for organizations to reorganize is by first
nal customer and the strategic business requirements deciding what work needs to be done. Once good
of the organization. Linking the process level outputs processes have been designed to carry out that work,
to the organization outputs will reveal what parts of a new organizational chart can follow.
the process to measure. Similarly, at the job/performer
No one organizational structure will be perfect, but
level, the required outputs cascade down from the
by letting key processes and process goals shape the
process level for measurement.

Business Book Summaries® March 12, 2013 • Copyright © 2013 EBSCO Publishing Inc. • All Rights Reserved Page 7
Improving Performance Geary A. Rummler and Alan P. Brache

structure, necessary tradeoffs can be clearly under-

g g g g
stood and communicated.

Transforming HR into the Performance Features of the Book

Department
Estimated Reading Time: 4–6 hours, 270 pages
The three levels framework shows that using training
to improve worker skills addresses only a fraction of Intended either for classroom or individual use,
the performance problem. By setting training within Improving Performance includes many tables and
the three level framework and by taking a proac- figures to illustrate the concepts and methods pre-
tive approach to training, management can turn the sented, along with fictional examples. It should be
human resources department into a full-fledged per- read in order to fully grasp the theory and practice
formance department. of the authors’ Rummler-Brache method for process
improvement. A password-protected companion
When management asks for a training program, the
website provides PowerPoint presentations and addi-
HR department must first determine precisely what
tional content.
output management wants from job/performers that
they are not now seeing. Then it must ask how perfor- Contents
mance improvement contributes to a CBI identified List of Figures and Tables
by the organization strategy. Only then can HR deter-
Foreword
mine what prevents the job from being performed to
specification. Preface

Using the HPS, HR can determine whether there is a The Authors

lack of consequences, feedback, skills and knowledge, Part One: A Framework for Improving Performance
or individual capacity that is preventing the perfor-
mance specification from being met. Since training 1. Viewing Organizations as Systems
only addresses the “skills and knowledge” part of 2. Three Levels of Performance: Organization, Pro-
the problem, only a complete, three-level analysis cess, and Job/Performer
will reveal whether training is, in fact, the solution.
Part Two: Exploring the Three Levels of
When using training to address a problem, it must
Performance
be evaluated against the organization’s performance
need rather than in isolation. Ideally, the HR depart- 3. The Organization Level of Performance
ment will develop a proactive training regime using
4. The Process Level of Performance
organization, process, and job analysis and the HPS.
5. The Job/Performer Level of Performance
Performance Improvement
Once an organization has decided to improve perfor- Part Three: Applying the Three Levels of
Performance
mance by managing the white space on its organization
chart, it should institute a process improvement proj- 6. Linking Performance to Strategy
ect.
7. Moving from Annual Programs to Sustained Per-
At the organization level, a strategy may be in place formance Improvement
already; it will only need to be updated and refor-
8. Diagnosing and Improving Performance: A Case
matted to help identify the CBIs and key processes.
Study
Although it might be tempting to choose a process
improvement project merely as a “proof of concept,” 9. Project Definition: The Ten Essential Steps
organizations should instead look for the opportuni-
10. Process Analysis and Design: The Ten Essential
ties for the greatest performance improvement.
Steps

Business Book Summaries® March 12, 2013 • Copyright © 2013 EBSCO Publishing Inc. • All Rights Reserved Page 8
Improving Performance Geary A. Rummler and Alan P. Brache

11. Overcoming the Seven Deadly Sins of Process

Improvement
12. Measuring Performance and Designing a Perfor-
mance Management System
13. Managing Processes and Organizations as Sys-
tems
14. Designing an Organization Structure That Works
15. Creating a Performance-Based Human Resource
Development Function
16. Developing an Action Plan for Performance
Improvement
Index
Instructor’s Guide

Business Book Summaries® March 12, 2013 • Copyright © 2013 EBSCO Publishing Inc. • All Rights Reserved Page 9
Improving Performance Geary A. Rummler and Alan P. Brache

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