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Looking for Gaps: Walking Through a Sample Analysis for a sample new household cleaning product. You will be taken through a sample gap analysis to help you understand how it is undertaken.
What Are We Missing?
Undertaking a gap analysis for a new household cleaning product to help improve the company doesn’t have to be a daunting task. Using the four steps in gap analysis methodology, (understanding the surrounding environment, taking a holistic approach to understanding the environment, determining a framework for analysis, compiling supportive data), you can obtain important information about key areas to focus on in your process or quality improvement project. It can be difficult; however, to understand exactly what it is that is meant by “gap analysis.” Viewing a sample gap analysis may help your understanding.
STEP 1: Identify Strategic Objectives
While many methods for undertaking a gap analysis start with looking at the company’s performance, it’s helpful to first have a goal, or end in mind before undertaking the analysis process. Some companies look to benchmarking and best practices of other companies to perform their gap analysis.
Now, as we go through the process of creating a gap analysis between what the company that manufacturers the new household cleaning product currently offers, what consumers want, we can decide what needs to be offered to deliver superior value. Once we have identified the gaps, we can place them into the strategic objectives boxes in the file, as you can see in the table below.
STEP 2: Identify Current Standings
Once you have clarified your strategic objectives, you will need to observe and collect data on your current standings with regards to each of the strategic objectives. To return to our sample gap analysis scenario, let’s imagine that the following four items are observed:
Now, enter your findings into your chart. You will see that in the template, we have allowed space to describe current conditions and to make note of deficiencies. Take a few minutes to fill in your chart appropriately. When you are done, it should look something like the chart to the right.