10 Ways To Get The Most Out Of Membership

Membership in the Center for Operational Excellence means your company is committed to being part of a larger community of leaders with their sights set on working better, faster and smarter. COE offers many avenues for learning and connecting with the broader operational excellence community – what’s crucial is leveraging your company’s membership to its maximum potential. Here are the 10 ways you and your organization can make the most of membership:

1. Attend our year-round events and webinars

Your company’s annual COE membership includes complimentary admission to the dozens of events/webinars we host throughout the year on a variety of operational excellence topics – from core lean to data analytics and leadership. Regardless of your company and organizational role, you’ll find value in a number of events we host – so head to our events page and get started. All of our in-person events are on hold for now, but we hope to see you at an upcoming webinar.

2. Access the Digital Content Archive

The digital age is changing the work we do and the roles we have, requiring a culture that values continuous learning. Our Members Only Digital Content Archive includes 100+ recorded sessions on topics ranging from robotic process automation and digitalization to remote working and diversity and inclusion. You can view the session, download the presentation slides, and access our discussion guides. If you don’t have an account for our digital content archive on the members only portion of our website, you can create an account. You can view additional instructions / guidance.

3. Connect with our cutting-edge researchers

COE member companies might all be focused on the pursuit of process excellence, but we recognize different industries have different needs. That’s why we’re connected with a variety of Ohio State faculty members who have spent decades researching the managerial problems that keep leaders up at night and bringing their leading insights to the operations community. For our members, they’re on hand for on-site visits, project connections, or simply to offer up research insights.

4. Benchmark with another company

Not all learning takes place during COE events. Many companies leverage their COE membership to connect with other organizations on their process excellence journey, using COE staff as a starting point. Over the past two years, COE has facilitated 75+ benchmarking opportunities between member companies. Member organizations shared best practices on a variety of topics including: sourcing and recruiting a diverse candidate pool, developing a core continuous improvement team, 5S practices, technology and tools for customer experience, lean transformation, HR analytics, remote work, and more.

5. Tap Into Fisher’s talent base

Looking to recruit an intern or a full-time hire? COE membership gives you preferred access to the Fisher College of Business Office of Career Management, which can help fulfill your employment needs. Each year, COE posts a resumé book for first- and second-year MBA students who have submitted their resumes with the express intent of connecting with COE member companies. Resumé books are separated by the students’ year in the program, which is designed to help companies better determine candidates for projects and/or internships (first-year MBAs) and full-time employment (second-year MBAs). The resume books can be found in the members only section of the COE website.

6. Bring your team to our annual summit

Looking for the one can’t-miss event COE hosts each year? Look no further. COE’s annual summit is a dynamic three-day experience that brings together hundreds of process excellence practitioners from around the globe for a wide-ranging look at the latest in leadership and problem-solving skill development through workshops, off-site tours, breakout sessions, keynote speakers and networking events. As an employee of a COE member company, you receive discounted admission to the summit. Bringing a group not only maximizes the value of your experience but also further minimizes your cost.

7. Participate in the COE Index

In 2020, COE launched a new offering, the Operational Excellence Index. The goal of the Index is to measure process performance across four systems (strategic alignment & adaptability, people development, problem framing & solving, and daily management) to better understand the continuous improvement culture at member organizations and provide recommendations related to these systems. The Index involves surveying five team members at multiple levels of the organization from two initiatives over a period of time. The data collected is then reviewed by Fisher for the purposes of reporting back to the organization in summary with recommendations.

8. Take the next step in your continuing education journey

COE is just one part of the broader process excellence ecosystem at Fisher College of Business. Its Executive Education department offers a wide range of degree and non-degree opportunities, ranging from its groundbreaking Master of Business Operational Excellence program to Six Sigma Green Belt and Black Belt training. COE staff can help you determine what’s the right next step for you or your team, whether it’s an existing offering or a potential custom program, and get you connected with the right people.

9. Enjoy our relevant content

If you’re reading this, you’ve found our blog! Did you know we post weekly on ThinkOpEx? We share blogs by COE speakers and Fisher faculty, highlight members and organizations leading the way, and announce important events and milestones. You can also follow us on LinkedIn to see our blog posts and relevant articles!

10. Set up a personal meeting with COE

Want to talk about how to get the most out of your membership? Need a sounding board for your operational excellence visit? Looking to run a learning event for your staff? Let’s chat. We’d love to help you make it happen! 

For more information COE membership, maximizing your membership value, or joining the Center for Operational Excellence, please reach out to Annie Platten.