Maintaining High Process Capability in a Student Project Course

Abstract

We have provided a focus on process management and improvement as a basis for conducting student group projects. This paper summarises the lessons learnt from eight years of experience in improvement-focussed projects. The approach has been based upon the establishment of the course as a separate and identifiable organization unit, with its own set of process assets. The responsibility for establishment of these assets resides with the students. Assessment for the course is based on an intensive assessment of the capability of the processes implemented by the project team. The project was assessed on three criteria: the process capability achieved; the achievement against a target capability profile defined by the student team in an Improvement Plan; and the comparison of the capability achieved compared to previous year's achievements We have found that it has been quite possible for the student project to achieve capabilities equivalent to Level 3 (as defined in ISO 15504) for a significant set of processes under their control. This work demonstrates the feasibility of maintaining organizational identification in a student project course, with the accompanying benefit of achieving improvement in process capability. The educational benefit of the course derives from exposure to process improvement as a critical goal for the students.