Guide: Control Plan
Author: Daniel Croft
Daniel Croft is an experienced continuous improvement manager with a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and a Bachelor's degree in Business Management. With more than ten years of experience applying his skills across various industries, Daniel specializes in optimizing processes and improving efficiency. His approach combines practical experience with a deep understanding of business fundamentals to drive meaningful change.
In business it is not uncommon for processes and outputs from processes to be out of control and need action to be taken to address them. This is where Control Plans become extremely useful. Control plans have been developed to support lean Six Sigma process and quality management systems in measuring critical-to-quality (CTQ) measures of processes and their outputs to ensure they remain in control with regular data collection and clear actions to be taken to address issues if they arise.
Control plans are mostly popularized and used within the manufacturing sector. However, they can be useful for a range of processes that output variables that can be measured and controlled.
What is a Control Plan?
A Control Plan in its basic form is a document that outlines the process, steps and actions needed to manage, control, and ensure the quality of a process or product. Developed from the principles of Lean Six Sigma, the tool is used to many industries, such as manufacturing, logistics, automotive, and aerospace.
Control plans may vary slightly from business to business as teams and management tweak them to suit local business needs. However, the Control Plan typically consists of elements such as process input variables, output variables, control points (limits), what measurements are to be taken, and actions to be taken if a deviation occurs.
Below you can see a good example of how a control plan may look. You can also download this control plan from our template section.
A control plan is usually a tool you will use towards the end of an improvement project, such as in the Control phase of the DMAIC methodology, and continues to serve as a “living document,” which means it is continually reviewed and updated as the process evolves or new data becomes available.
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How to Create a Control Plan
Creating a Control Plan is an important process that involves several steps. The guide below will clearly explain each step to guide you through creating a robust and effective Control Plan.
Step 1: Identify the Process
The first step in creating a control plan is to identify a process that you are looking to control. This should be a process that is critical to the quality of your product or service and would have a significant impact on customer satisfaction or operational efficiency if it were to go wrong. Therefore, lend them to a key candidate of a process to control
It is important to have a clear understanding of the flow of the process, including the inputs and outputs and all the steps involved. It can be useful to use a tool such as a flowchart to map out the process to ensure you fully understand all the elements and variables of the process.
Step 2: List CTQs (Critical to Quality Characteristics)
Once the process has been identified, the next step in the process is to identify the CTQ characteristics. These are the key attributes or features of the product or service that need to be controlled to ensure quality. The best way to identify what the CTQs are is to understand the customer requirements, such as product specifications.
For example, let’s say a business manufactures brake pads, and the CTQ is the thickness tolerance of the brake pads; this might be ±0.5mm.
Step 3: Select Measurement Methods
Once you have listed all the CTQs that you want to control, decide how you will measure these characteristics. The method that you decide on should be accurate, reliable, and repeatable and follow the principles of Attribute Agreement Analysis (AAA). The measurement method should consider what tools, instruments, or techniques will be used. Additionally, it is important to define the frequency with which the measurement is taken and what the acceptable limits or tolerances are for each CTQ.
Step 4: Determine Control Methods
Now that you know what CTQs you want to control and the methods used to measure them you need to determine the methods of control. Control methods are the strategies, tools or techniques used to ensure that the process stays within the defined limits or customer spec limits. Popular tools and techniques used to control processes and variables include Statistical Process Control (SPC) charts, Mistake Proofing (Poka Yoke) or Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) / Standard Work Instructions (SWI), which control method you use will depend on the type of process and CTQ identified.
Step 5: Develop Action Plans
If in the event a process or variable goes out of control it is important to take action to address and correct the process and bring it back under control. To do this action plans should be developed as part of the control plan. These action plans define what steps need to be taken to bring the process back within its acceptable limits.
Like any good action plan it needs make it clear what action needs to be taken and who is responsible for taking that action.
Step 6: Train the Team
Now that you have developed a control plan its important to ensure that in the event it is needed, it is used. Therefore, you should clearly communicate what the CTQs are, what the operators need to do to measure the process and clarify what actions need to be taken by whom if a process goes out of control.
Training is key to the success of the control plan being followed.
Step 7: Implement and Monitor
Now that you have developed and trained out the plan, the next step is to officially implement it. This involves putting all the required measures and controls into place. If special tools like calipers or software’s are needed to take measurements, ensure they have what they need. The process then needs to be continuously monitored to ensure the process remains within the stated control limits. Data should then be analyzed at regular intervals to detect and trends or deviations in the process outputs.
Step 8: Review and Update
Finally Step 8, it is important to remember that the control plan is a living document that should be reviewed and updated regularly as the process or CTQs change. Regular reviews will ensure the Control Plan remains effective and relevant.
By following this process you should be able to develop a robust Control Plan that will help you control your process and ensure quality and drive continuous improvement of the process.
Implementing a Control Plan is beneficial for controlling the quality and performance of processes and preventing defects or quality issues. From identifying the process to training your team, each step is geared towards ensuring that your business operations are as seamless as possible. The goal is not just to maintain current performance levels but to set the stage for continuous improvement.
As we’ve outlined in this guide, creating and implementing a Control Plan is a detailed process involving multiple steps, each is important and builds on the previous step. You should also remember, a Control Plan is a living document must be regularly monitored and updated to its sustain success.
- Westgard, J.O., 2003. Internal quality control: planning and implementation strategies. Annals of clinical biochemistry , 40 (6), pp.593-611.
- Mehrasa, M., Pouresmaeil, E., Jørgensen, B.N. and Catalão, J.P., 2015. A control plan for the stable operation of microgrids during grid-connected and islanded modes. Electric Power Systems Research , 129 , pp.10-22.
Q: What is a control plan?
A: A control plan is a documented framework that outlines the methods, procedures, and actions necessary to maintain process control and ensure consistent and acceptable outcomes. It helps identify critical control points, measurement methods, control limits, and corrective actions to monitor and manage process performance effectively.
Q: Why is a control plan important?
A: A control plan is important because it helps organizations maintain process stability, minimize process variations, and ensure consistent product or service quality. It provides a systematic approach to monitor, control, and improve processes, leading to reduced defects, improved customer satisfaction, and increased operational efficiency.
Q: How does a control plan fit into the DMAIC methodology?
A: A control plan is a key component of the Control phase in the DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control) methodology. In this phase, the control plan is developed to sustain the improvements made during the earlier phases. It helps ensure that the process remains in control, deviations are promptly addressed, and continuous improvement efforts are sustained.
Q: What are critical control points?
A: Critical control points are specific stages or activities within a process where variations can significantly impact the quality or outcome. These points need to be closely monitored and controlled to prevent defects or deviations from the desired target. Examples include temperature control, pressure control, or specific steps in a manufacturing process.
Q: How are control limits determined?
A: Control limits are determined based on historical data, customer specifications, or statistical analysis. Historical data provides insights into the process performance, while customer specifications define the acceptable range for product quality. Statistical techniques, such as process capability analysis, can help determine control limits based on the process’s inherent variation and the desired level of performance.
Q: What is the role of corrective actions in a control plan?
A: Corrective actions are specified in a control plan to address deviations from control limits or target values. These actions provide a systematic approach to identify and resolve the root causes of variations, ensuring that the process is brought back into control. Corrective actions may involve adjusting process parameters, modifying procedures, retraining employees, or conducting equipment maintenance, among other steps.
Q: Who is responsible for implementing a control plan?
A: Responsibility for implementing a control plan typically falls on the process owner or a designated team responsible for process management and improvement. These individuals or teams are accountable for monitoring the process, collecting data, analyzing it for deviations, and implementing corrective actions when necessary.
Q: How often should a control plan be reviewed and updated?
A: A control plan should be reviewed and updated regularly to ensure its effectiveness and alignment with changing process requirements. It is recommended to review the control plan during regular process performance reviews or when significant changes occur in the process or customer requirements. This helps to adapt the control plan to evolving conditions and continuously improve its efficacy.
Daniel Croft
Hi im Daniel continuous improvement manager with a Black Belt in Lean Six Sigma and over 10 years of real-world experience across a range sectors, I have a passion for optimizing processes and creating a culture of efficiency. I wanted to create Learn Lean Sigma to be a platform dedicated to Lean Six Sigma and process improvement insights and provide all the guides, tools, techniques and templates I looked for in one place as someone new to the world of Lean Six Sigma and Continuous improvement.
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Control Plan
For a business, production is one of the most important operation. Without the production, there’s no sense in having the business at all. Having production but no control over it is also not a good sign. Like marketing plan , it is also essential for business to have a control plan.
Control plan is a part of a simple business plan . Control plan helps businesses to continue running and face challenges. Planning, in general, is crucial for a business to keep standing. Without plans, businesses would fall. So what is a control plan? Hoe can it help the business? Why is it important?
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What Is a Control Plan?
As we all know, control is essential to any organization specially in a business’s product or service operation.
A control plan is a type of document containing control procedures that are needed to be implemented so that quality plan products or services are met.
In this document, records of functional characteristics of quality control are stated in making sure that products and services does not only meet standard but can also reach beyond that. It is the objective of this free business plan to apply control over all the business’ operation specially in the production of goods.
Importance of a Control Plan
Why do we need a control plan? Do we need a separate document for this plan? Why is it needed for a business operation?
There are many questions that may pop out of our minds about why it is important for businesses to have a control plan.
One reason for that is to make sure that production is making quality products and services. Without it, production would not mind if products have reach standards. Remember, that these products are for the public. Without control plans, quality is a stake and production team may put businesses at risks .
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The 3 Phases of a Control Plan
There are 3 phases in a control plan, namely
- the prototype control plan,
- the prelaunch control plan, and
- the production control plan.
In a prototype control plan, the earliest stage, processes are being determined. In this phase, a list of all the necessary control, materials and performance evaluations are made.
In the next phase, the prelaunch plan, control measures, materials and performance management will be more frequent and process will take much longer.
The last phase which is known as the production plan, all control items in a control plan will be carried out.
What to Remember in Making a Control Plan
In making a control plan there are things that you need to remember. Control plans must have all the phases present in the business plan in PDF . It must indicate the three phases. When making the control plan, keep in mind that all the process, tests and other important materials should be determined.
Control plan must be clear and simple. It is important that procedures and methods are clear for all viewers to have a mutual understanding on what this document is aiming for. Control plan examples aim to improve quality of products and services, so having an organize plan is important.
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Levers of Control: What They Are & How They Impact Your Strategy
- 09 Jan 2024
Control is pivotal to ensuring alignment between business objectives and outcomes and fostering a culture of strategy execution .
Because of this, many companies implement rigorous oversight measures, such as performance metrics and regular progress reviews. They also have robust systems of checks and balances, known as levers of control.
If you struggle to implement strategic initiatives, you’re not alone. Here’s a breakdown of levers of control and how they can impact strategy execution.
Access your free e-book today.
What Are Levers of Control?
Levers of control enable you to manage tension, guide strategy execution, and achieve business goals and objectives . The four levers are:
- Belief systems
- Boundary systems
- Diagnostic systems
- Interactive control systems
According to Harvard Business School Professor Robert Simons, who teaches the online course Strategy Execution , the four Ps of strategy drive the levers:
- Strategy as perspective: Provides overarching direction that helps guide and inspire pride in employees
- Strategy as position: Creates a value proposition that attracts customers and differentiates products and services from competitors’
- Strategy as plans: Focuses on key initiatives through formal systems that set strategic goals, determine action plans, and measure progress
- Strategy as patterns of action: Detects changes in the competitive environment and adapts quickly through continuous learning
Here’s an overview of each lever so you can consider all four during strategy implementation.
Belief Systems
Belief systems are sets of organizational definitions you communicate and reinforce to provide direction to employees. They commonly take the form of credos, mission statements, and core values that define your organization’s purpose and impart what employees should do and how to act.
Belief systems are central to strategy as perspective , which considers your organization’s larger mission and purpose to inspire employee pride.
“It's a lens by which everyone in the business looks for new opportunities and understands how to conduct themselves,” Simons says in Strategy Execution .
Employees who support your strategic initiatives will likely search for ways to support your strategy’s execution. Belief systems provide clarity for them and help unleash their desire to contribute.
Boundary Systems
While belief systems often produce positive results, employees can behave badly—for example, by manipulating financial records or cutting corners in quality assurance—to achieve company goals.
Highly standardized processes can help safeguard from unethical behavior. Simons encourages taking a different approach, though, if your organization is in a constant state of change.
That approach involves using boundary systems —negatively phrased statements that tell employees what behaviors are forbidden. Rather than relying on positive messaging, like belief systems, this lever of control describes what not to do.
According to Strategy Execution , boundary systems can comprise:
- Business conduct boundaries: Documents like codes of conduct that outline unethical behaviors.
- Strategic boundaries: Opportunities you shouldn’t pursue because they don’t align with your strategy.
Strategic boundaries, in particular, control strategy as position . By identifying risks you should avoid, your employees can better understand how to create customer value.
Whereas belief systems focus on overarching principles that guide employee behavior, boundaries refine what to prioritize—giving your business a clear strategic direction.
“Businesses without a clear strategic position may lapse into trying to please everyone, and thus, please no one,” Simons says in Strategy Execution .
Related: A Beginner’s Guide to Value-Based Strategy
Diagnostic Control Systems
Even when employees understand your organization’s mission and the limits of their support in strategic initiatives, you still need to monitor their efforts to ensure your strategy execution runs smoothly.
You can accomplish that using the third level of control: diagnostic control systems —formal information systems that help monitor organizational outcomes.
Examples of diagnostic control systems include:
- Performance scorecards
- Project monitoring systems
- Human resources systems
“It allows managers to put key activities on autopilot,” Simons says in Strategy Execution .
For example, consider a call center’s monitoring efforts. Instead of combing through data, it could use automation to track metrics like the number of calls and customer satisfaction scores to identify areas for improvement, provide targeted training, and allocate resources more effectively.
It's crucial to strike a balance between monitoring and suppressing when designing such systems because they control strategy as plans —meaning they directly influence what action plan best supports your strategic initiatives.
“You must not only spend time negotiating and setting goals,” Simons says in Strategy Execution , “you must also design measures for these goals and then align performance incentives.”
Interactive Control Systems
Strategy execution often requires going on the defensive to avoid risk. However, the fourth lever of control allows you to do the opposite and mitigate risk through interactive control systems .
“Interactive control systems are the formal systems managers use to personally involve themselves in the decision activities of subordinates,” Simons says in Strategy Execution . “Decision activities that relate to and impact strategic uncertainties.”
For example, financial services firm JP Morgan implements interactive control systems that leverage AI for fraud detection and risk mitigation . Through real-time monitoring tools, its employees can detect and investigate suspicious patterns or anomalies in transactions. Those employees can then use their expertise to better inform automated technologies of how to enhance risk detection—making their company more effective at safeguarding against potential threats.
Employees shouldn’t be involved in all decision-making activities. To pinpoint which control systems would benefit from your team’s involvement, you must identify strategic uncertainties.
“Strategic uncertainties dictate which control systems you and your organization focus attention on, the types of information from those systems that will prove most relevant, and the nature of the debate and dialogue in which you want your entire organization to engage,” Simons says in Strategy Execution .
With a refined list of uncertainties requiring internal support, you can shape strategy as patterns of action and empower employees to assist in monitoring industry changes.
How Levers of Control Impact Strategy Execution
All four levers of control are vital to strategy execution.
Successful businesses search for ways to strike a balance between innovation and control. Consider Apple and Netflix. While both are highly profitable because of their innovative products and services, they suffer from constant pressure to do the next big thing .
When companies feel that pressure, so do their employees, which can lead to poor decision-making, unethical behavior, and illegal practices.
Implementing too many internal controls isn’t the answer. While many companies fear bad behavior’s legal ramifications, they still want to remain competitive in their industries.
“I think a lot of firms are trying to achieve this balance,” HBS Professor Eugene Soltes says in Strategy Execution . “Young, nimble startup firms tend to maybe not have enough controls. And some very large organizations potentially have too many.”
Employees are foundational to that balance, which is why using control systems interactively is essential in strategy implementation.
“If you devote your time and attention to asking questions about certain projects or systems, about specific customer data and initiatives, and if you pull your employees into frequent conversations about them, you can bet your company’s strategic uncertainties will be keeping them awake at night, too,” Simons says in Strategy Execution .
In doing so, you can create a top-down culture of strategy execution wherein employees monitor changes in the competitive environment and focus on mitigating ways your strategy can fail .
“You need to push people out of their comfort zone,” Simons says, “forcing them to take risks and move the needle for the business. To make that happen, you must drive the top-down questioning.”
Take Control of Your Strategy Execution
Controlling your strategy doesn’t have to require external help. With the right frameworks, tools, and employee support, you can successfully guide its execution.
“I want to emphasize that you don't need to hire a fancy consulting firm to implement your ideas,” Simons says in Strategy Execution . “All you need is the knowledge and discipline to apply these common-sense ideas to your own organization.”
By enrolling in an online course, like Strategy Execution , you can help ensure your organization strikes a balance between innovation and control.
Want to learn more about levers of control? Explore Strategy Execution —one of our online strategy courses —and download our free strategy e-book to take the first step toward successfully executing your business strategy.
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