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Course 84 · Work course 35

Improve a Process and Check Quality

Map a process, measure a problem, and plan a small improvement test with a clear way to check the result.

Before you start

Create a paper notebook or a blank local document with six numbered sections; software and an online account are optional.

See everything you’ll need
What you’ll leave with

A small improvement plan with a clear problem, a practical change to try, and a way to measure the result.

Start course Start without an account. Sign in to save lesson progress across devices.

Your project

Start with the practice files. Build your project one lesson at a time.

Practice files are free without an account. Sign in to save your project record in My Proof: a description, checklist, and optional work link. Keep the original files in your own app or notebook; saving a project record does not upload them.

  1. Get your materialsDownload the practice worksheetUse the downloadable worksheet or toolkit alongside the lesson instructions.
  2. Make your projectView the project checklist Work in your own notebook, document, or software. Use the supplied practice examples when you prefer.
  3. Keep a private recordSave a project record Sign in to save a description and checklist, then return to update them.
Course handbook

Know the route before you begin.

Here’s what you’ll need and what you’ll make. You can return to this guide during any lesson.

Who this is for

Learners 14+ exploring operations, service improvement or quality-support work in organizations of any size.

Prepare before lesson one
  • Create a paper notebook or a blank local document with six numbered sections; software and an online account are optional.
  • Use the complete fictional organization, figures and task cards in each lesson; no real workplace access, personal records or outreach is needed.
  • Plan about 204 minutes of active reading and practice across six lessons; two lessons weekly provides three-week pacing. Copy each lesson output forward; an optional extra five minutes can test a second fictional case.
Your final project

Finish with proof you can use.

Collect and revise all six lesson outputs into a fictional process-improvement plan. Show how the process works now, starting measurements, a possible cause of the problem, a Plan-Do-Check-Act test, a review of the results, and checks to keep the improvement working. Label it as fictional practice.

Save a project record in My Proof
See project checklist and review criteria

Keep your working files in your own notebook or software. Save a private description, checklist, and work link in My Proof.

What to include

  • Map the bounded current process with decisions and rework.
  • Calculate baseline capacity, elapsed time and first-pass accuracy.
  • Document a cause hypothesis and one targeted improvement.
  • Plan, perform and evaluate the supplied ten-request paper PDCA test against predefined measures; preserve the row-level record and the separate unknown-location exception test.
  • Assemble a control plan with ownership, triggers and a response to a failing sample.

Review and revise

Use these criteria to check your work and choose what to improve.

  • Accuracy: amounts, classifications and decisions agree with the supplied evidence and stated assumptions.
  • Reasoning: each important choice names the rule, observation or comparison that supports it.
  • Responsible scope: the packet protects information, respects authority limits and routes unresolved concerns appropriately.
  • Usability: a new reader can follow the ordered lesson outputs, identify ownership and see what is complete or still uncertain.
Three ideas to help you along the way
Three useful ideas

The rules behind the steps.

01

Map current reality

Include waits, handoffs and rework before designing a change.

02

Test the mechanism

Connect a small change to a specific evidence-based hypothesis.

03

Keep checking after change

Use visible measures, owners and response rules.

What do these words mean?
Key words

Key terms worth knowing.

Bottleneck
The stage with the lowest effective capacity under the stated conditions.
First-pass accuracy
The proportion of outputs correct before any correction.
Rework
Additional work needed to correct an incomplete or incorrect output.
PDCA
Plan, Do, Check, Act: a repeating cycle for testing and learning from changes.
Balancing measure
A measure that reveals an unwanted cost or side effect of an improvement.
Control plan
A record of checks, responsibility, frequency and responses used to sustain a process.
Your route

6 lessons.
One useful project.

Work in order the first time. Each lesson makes something the next lesson can use.

  1. 1
    Up next

    Map the process as it currently happens

    Draw the process from a clear start to a clear finish. Show decisions, where work passes between people, and where it returns for correction.

  2. 2
    32 min

    Build a small baseline with clear definitions

    Calculate capacity, waiting time and first-pass accuracy from supplied observations.

  3. 3
    26 min

    Test a cause hypothesis using the work record

    Distinguish an observed defect from an explanation and choose a targeted change.

  4. 4
    52 min

    Design a controlled improvement test

    Write and perform a Plan-Do-Check-Act paper test using ten supplied request cards. Record decisions, measures and the rule for returning to the previous process.

  5. 5
    32 min

    Read pilot results without overstating certainty

    Compare accuracy, median time and review effort with the planned criteria.

  6. 6
    36 min

    Keep the improvement observable after the pilot

    Assemble the process packet and define checks, owners and response triggers.

Use the tools

Tools to help you practice.

See all tools
Text worksheet

Your course project worksheet

A downloadable text worksheet with each lesson’s working output, space for your answers, and the shared final-project checklist. Save your own copy.

Source transparency

Sources and further study.

Explore the references behind the lessons and take your learning further. Source notes explain access and reuse.

OpenStax, Rice University — Production and Operations Control
Source & access notes · checked 2026-09-10

Opened and read routing, workflow mapping, bottlenecks and scheduling in service and production settings. No textbook case studies or exercises are reproduced.

Access: Free page readable without an account; optional further study only.

Reuse: Reference for original Life Starter instruction. Free access does not grant unrestricted reuse; no source exercises, logos or syllabi are copied. Check the source license before redistributing its material.

NIST/SEMATECH e-Handbook — Process Control Techniques
Source & access notes · checked 2026-09-10

Opened and read check sheets, cause-and-effect tools and comparison with historical process performance. Course thresholds are fictional action triggers, not statistically calculated control limits.

Access: Free page readable without an account; optional further study only.

Reuse: Reference for original Life Starter instruction. Free access does not grant unrestricted reuse; no source exercises, logos or syllabi are copied. Check the source license before redistributing its material.

ASQ — Plan-Do-Check-Act Cycle
Source & access notes · checked 2026-09-10

Opened the public article and read its four-step procedure and small-scale testing description. Optional commercial training links appear on the page; none are required. No ASQ certification is implied.

Access: Public explanation is free; linked training, books or certification may require payment and are optional.

Reuse: Reference for original Life Starter instruction. Free access does not grant unrestricted reuse; no source exercises, logos or syllabi are copied. Check the source license before redistributing its material.

Ready when you are

Start with the first useful move.

You’ll always know what to do, what to make, and where to go next.

Start lesson one