Financial :: Lean Means Money in the Bank - More Money on Quicker Deposits

Project: The regional office of this national corporation couldn't get all of the mail-in payments from its customers deposited into the bank in a timely fashion each day.

Issues: Financial return-More money on quicker deposits would result in more interest accruing for a longer period

Solution: A cross functional team was created to document the process from receipt to deposit. Along the way they identified inconsistencies, missing steps in the process, and boundaries issues between departments. Value analysis identified non-value added activities in the process. At the same time, data was collected to track the volume of mail received each day. Run charts were used to revise staffing using temporary help to fit the pattern of mail arrival. Control charts were used to better understand variations in arrival rate.

Results: Cycle time was reduced by 20%. Overtime was reduced by 5%. Many thousands of dollars were deposited on the day of receipt, resulting in an increase in interest earned of $50,000 per year. Intangibles included better understanding of demand rate, closer relations between departments, and happier employees because overtime hours were reduced.