Assessing and Tracking Organisational Operational Excellence (OPEX) Maturity Level with Power BI Visualisation of OPEX KPIs

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Achieving operational excellence is no longer just a competitive advantage; it’s a strategic necessity. Organisations across all industries strive to streamline processes, improve service quality, and build a culture of continuous improvement. But how do you know where your organisation currently stands? How do you track progress and identify areas that need transformation?

This is where the Enterprise OPEX Maturity Assessment Tool becomes a game-changer.

 

What Is the Enterprise OPEX Maturity Assessment Tool?

The Enterprise OPEX Maturity Assessment Tool is a solution designed to help organisations assess and continuously track their operational maturity. It was developed through a collaboration between Professor Sanjay Bhasin of the University of Buckingham Business School, John Dennis of the International Lean Six Sigma Institute (ILSSI), and Fredric Bouillet of Lean Digital in France.

Rooted in Professor Bhasin’s operational excellence framework, the tool evaluates organisational maturity across eight key dimensions:

  • Leadership

  • Strategy

  • Business Benefits

  • People

  • Culture

  • Performance

  • Processes

  • Customer Focus

By leveraging Microsoft Power BI for data visualisation and integrating with Microsoft Lists, this solution transforms subjective assessments into intuitive dashboards—making it easy for executives, operational managers, and continuous improvement teams to make data-driven decisions that drive sustainable excellence.

Understanding Operational Maturity

Operational maturity refers to an organisation’s level of development, discipline, and capability in executing business processes to achieve strategic goals. It determines how well your company can sustain performance improvements, drive innovation, and adapt to change.

 

Why Does Operational Maturity Matter?

Whether you’re a small-to-medium enterprise (SME) trying to sharpen your competitive edge or a large organisation focused on maintaining market leadership, knowing your operational maturity level helps you:

  • Identify inefficiencies and waste

  • Improve the quality of products/services

  • Align operations with strategic goals

  • Boost stakeholder confidence

  • Enhance customer satisfaction

The 5 Levels of Operational Maturity

The journey towards operational excellence is typically measured in five levels of maturity. Each level describes how advanced your processes and culture are in sustaining high performance.

  1. Beginning
     Few, if any, defined or documented processes. Inconsistent execution and minimal structure.
  2. Emerging
     Basic processes exist but are inconsistently applied. Standardisation efforts are underway.
  3. Scaling
     Processes are documented and standardised. Systems begin to support scalability.
  4. Optimising
     Performance is measured, monitored, and continuously improved. Risk management is embedded.
  5. Innovating
     Operational excellence is ingrained. The organisation is agile, data-driven, and innovation-led.

How the Enterprise OPEX Maturity Assessment Tool Helps

This tool enables organisations to visualise and track their progress through the five maturity levels across the eight core dimensions. Here’s how it adds value:

  • Centralised View: All OPEX metrics in one visual platform

  • Data Integration: Connects with Microsoft Lists and other enterprise data sources

  • Actionable Insights: Uncovers opportunities for continuous improvement

  • Progress Monitoring: Tracks improvements with interactive charts and maturity maps

  • Strategic Alignment: Ensures operations are aligned with business objectives

Key Tools and Methodologies Supporting the Assessment

  1. Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI)
     Evaluates process maturity across disciplines like service delivery and project management.
  2. Lean Manufacturing
     Eliminates waste and maximises value with tools such as 5S, Kaizen, and Kanban.
  3. Six Sigma
     Reduces process variation with the DMAIC method (Define, Measure, Analyse, Improve, Control) to boost quality and satisfaction.

These methodologies complement the Enterprise OPEX Maturity Assessment Tool, making it a strategic solution for long-term transformation.

Steps to Assess and Improve Operational Maturity

Step 1: Define Assessment Objectives
 Clarify which dimensions to assess and what outcomes are desired.

Step 2: Select the Right Framework
 Adopt Bhasin’s methodology or integrate it with Lean, Six Sigma, or CMMI.

Step 3: Data Collection
 Gather both quantitative and qualitative data using integrated tools.

Step 4: Analyse Current Practices
 Benchmark current operations against best practices with visual scoring.

Step 5: Identify Gaps
 Use heatmaps and radar charts to highlight weak areas.

Step 6: Develop an Improvement Plan
 Set SMART goals—specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.

Step 7: Implement and Monitor
 Track implementation in real time using Power BI visualisations.

Step 8: Communicate Results
 Share dashboards and visual insights to keep stakeholders informed and engaged.

Step 9: Sustain and Evolve
 Use the tool to embed continuous improvement into the organisation’s DNA.

 

Benefits of Using the Enterprise OPEX Maturity Assessment Tool

✅ Improved Efficiency
 Quickly identify bottlenecks and redundant steps to streamline operations.

✅ Enhanced Quality
 Address service or product quality issues proactively and consistently.

✅ Stronger Risk Management
 Forecast and manage operational risks before they escalate.

✅ Greater Stakeholder Confidence
 Showcase your organisation’s maturity with clear, data-backed insights.

✅ Elevated Customer Satisfaction
 Deliver value more effectively by aligning operations with customer expectations.

Conclusion

Organisations that actively assess and improve their operational maturity consistently outperform peers in agility, quality, efficiency, and customer satisfaction. The Enterprise OPEX Maturity Assessment Tool—developed by Professor Sanjay Bhasin, John Dennis, and Fredric Bouillet—offers a structured, intelligent, and visually compelling platform to support that transformation.

By embedding continuous improvement into your culture and aligning operations with strategic objectives, you’re not just optimising performance for today—you’re securing resilience and growth for tomorrow.

 

Ready to Begin Your Operational Excellence Journey?
 Explore how the Enterprise OPEX Maturity Assessment Tool can support your transformation. Whether you’re just beginning or refining a mature system, this tool helps you assess, align, act—and achieve.