As a result of continuous improvement, increasingly less time is necessary to complete a production cycle. This graphic illustrates the intent behind such improvement efforts as TQM and Business Process Reengineering.
The overall intent of the customer focus, from a supplier (operational) perspective, is to continuously reduce the cycle time and cost of a production transaction while maintaining quality. This allows the supplier to respond more quickly to customer demand, adapt to changes in the environment, and to save time and money in performing the mission. This corresponds to the principle of accomplishing the mission (effective operations) while conserving resources (efficient operations).