Patent ID: 7383155

Claim:
A performance analysis and assessment tool, responsive to subjective input data obtained from plural groups of people, for monitoring and evaluating any industrial or commercial process, activity or system against a set of Performance Drivers for the industrial or commercial process, activity or system and for assessing the efficiency, capability or sustainability of that process, activity or system as a result of the monitoring after analyzing the subjective input data to eliminate any subjective bias therein, comprising: a central processor unit programmed with a plurality of predefined protocols to be followed in order that the industrial or commercial process, activity or system should comply with the Performance Drivers; at least one remote terminal, accessible by the central processor unit to enable the central processor unit to collect performance and compliance data from people distributed between a diverse number of groups, irrespective of location, all involved in or having an interest in the effects and results of the industrial or commercial process, activity or system; and means within the central processor unit for analysing the performance and compliance data collected and for assessing the efficiency, capability and sustainability of the industrial or commercial process by: analysing the Performance Drivers included within individual areas of the predefined protocols; relating each such Performance Driver to one or more assessment topics; identifying plural groups of people, each with a different input to or experience of the industrial or commercial process, activity or system, able to assess the performance and compliance data; obtaining from people in those plural groups subjective responses, being Performance Indicators, to predefined statements or questions for the assessment topics; assigning to each individual statement or question a maturity value indicating the relevance of the response elicited from that individual to the statement or question; obtaining from the totality of the responses a mean response to the statement or question; linking each of the statements or questions used to derive the performance and compliance data with achievement of one or more of the Performance Drivers; providing a weighting between each of the statements or questions used to derive the performance and compliance data, and thus of the mean responses thereto, and each of the Performance Drivers with which it has been linked; analysing the accumulated weighted performance and compliance data against the associated Performance Drivers; and from that analysis generating an assessment report that outlines overall and sub-group results against the Performance Drivers, assesses compliance against individual statements and indicates the potential risk or cause of any failure of the process, activity or system to attain its targets.