MENU Ralph Smith
Ralph Smith is Executive Vice President of Strategic Services for Orion Development Group and the head of our healthcare and aviation practices. In this capacity, Mr. Smith is responsible for facilitating the implementation of strategic plans and strategic measurement systems for clients in all sectors. Mr. Smith has personally supervised the performance improvement efforts in more than 100 organizations worldwide. He is the author of the highly rated text Business Process Management and the Balanced Scorecard.
Mr. Smith’s full bio is below. Click here to view his blog.
Mr. Smith on the importance of clear and actionable vision statements.
Testimonials
“I learned a great deal and can see where we need to make changes in our scorecard. I wish I had taken this course a year ago.”
– Margo Schmidt, Consultant, Michigan Department of Transportation
“Entertaining, enlightening and involved class with valuable examples and tips!”
– Eric J. Gall, Manager-Global Quality Programs, Ford Motor Company
“Ralph is a phenomenal teacher! He stayed on point and kept us engaged throughout the 2-day session.”
– UNCC Continuing Education Student
“This was the best CSE Class I have taken. Ralph kept the class interesting and delivered the materials at an easy pace. His real life examples were interesting and gave me a way to relate the material to my work environment.”
– Process Transformation Student
“Moved quickly – explained everything fully…would recommend this class to anyone.”
– Global Account Manager, AT&T Mobility
“Ralph provided relevant materials and instructions, and was a very credible expert.”
– Lean Healthcare Student
“Ralph Smith is the best instructor that I have had in any of the courses I have taken. Those of us in the class all agreed that he is the best that we have had.”
– Process Innovation Student
“Ralph Smith was an excellent presenter. I liked how he kept things moving along and used real world examples to make points. He was very good about there being no wrong answer and built on anything that was mentioned in class.”
– BPM & the BSC Student
Mr. Smith on the importance of process improvement and data analytics in healthcare.
Mr. Smith has also been a major supporter of strategic planning and balanced scorecard initiatives at CNA Insurance, two departments of the State of Michigan, Toshiba America Information Systems, Memorial Blood Center of Minnesota and Delta Dental.
Over the last twenty-five years, Mr. Smith has utilized his strategic planning and process improvement experience and expertise for a diverse group of clients, including: Texas Children’s Hospital, BlueCross BlueShield of Illinois, Evangelical Community Hospital, Cingular Wireless, Fairfax County (VA), Dakota County (MN), Arbitration Forums, FedEx Kinko’s and Johns Hopkins University. He has designed training solutions, facilitated team activity and served as a consultant to management.
As an instructor, Mr. Smith consistently receives ratings that average over 9.2 on a scale of 1 to 10. Seminars he teaches include Process Mapping, Using the Balanced Scorecard, Strategy Maps, Facilitating High-Performance Teams, and Measuring & Improving Processes.
Prior to becoming a consultant, Mr. Smith was an internal quality resource for Kawneer Company, a manufacturer of architectural aluminum products. He coordinated the improvement efforts in 23 facilities throughout North America and Europe. Mr. Smith has a Masters degree in Operations Research from the Georgia Institute of Technology and a Bachelors degree in Mathematics and Statistics from the University of Georgia. He is a member of ASQ and the Association of Business Process Management Professionals (ABPMP).
Client successes Mr. Smith has contributed to include:
- Texas Children’s Hospital – Achieved dramatic gains in efficiency via quality improvement teams
- Alcoa Packaging – Improved return on assets from -60% to +40% in 18 months
- XL Insurance – Transformed from industry neophyte to industry leader less than four years after major acquisitions