Building the Bridge Between Regulation and Reality
In complex organizations, regulatory mandates often expose long-standing structural cracks. This project set out to rethink how ICAs (Instructions for Continued Airworthiness) were produced and delivered—end-to-end.
The goal was clear: define a new ICA process that would meet regulatory requirements and reflect how people actually worked across design and support functions. What we uncovered was a much deeper need: a shared map, a shared language, and a shared vision.
The Challenge
A Fragmented Process Meets a Non-Negotiable Deadline
The need to rework the ICA production process stemmed from a compliance trigger—but the reality on the ground made things far more complex:
- The E2E ICA process was fragmented across multiple teams (Engineering, Maintenance, Tech Data)
- There was no shared view of the current state, only partial knowledge scattered in silos
- The data flow between Support & Engineering was unclear, inconsistent, and undocumented
- Teams were working on overlapping priorities with no unified coordination
The task wasn’t just to define a new process—it was to get dozens of professionals to align on what reality even looked like, and co-create something better.
Our Approach
From Complexity to Coherence: Co-Building the New Way of Working
I led the entire process architecture effort, from diagnostics to design. Here’s how we structured the work:
1. AS-IS Mapping & Root Cause Analysis
- Conducted targeted interviews with key stakeholders to surface local realities
- Facilitated cross-functional workshops to map the current-state E2E process
- Identified over 20 critical pain points—categorized by root cause, not just symptoms
- Used visual stream mapping to illustrate gaps, loops, redundancies, and delays
2. TO-BE Design
- Based on pain point analysis, developed a modular high-level architecture for the new ICA process
- Defined clear responsibilities, inputs/outputs, and validation checkpoints
- Conducted 2 major co-design workshops using virtual collaboration boards to prototype TO-BE scenarios
- Validated assumptions and architecture with small focus groups before broader rollout
3. Challenge Phase
- Ran a large-scale challenge cycle with 13 workshops, involving over 140 participants
- Allowed teams to test and question the proposed design before executive-level endorsement
- Captured feedback on feasibility, coherence, and risk areas
What We Delivered
✅ Complete AS-IS Process Map
- Visually mapped the full process chain across Engineering and Support
- Documented critical failures and ownership gaps
✅ New Process Architecture
- Designed a future-ready process with regulatory alignment and role clarity
- Created supporting material for cross-team understanding (flowcharts, principles, interface maps)
✅ Operational Buy-In Through Co-Design
- Engaged 140+ stakeholders in co-construction and validation
- Created shared language and a common baseline for next transformation phases
The Impact
- The new ICA process was validated operationally and documented for deployment testing
- It provided the structural foundation for the broader transformation(tools, standards, people)
- Teams gained a clearer understanding of both the why and the how behind regulatory changes
- The challenge process built a level of buy-in and realism that would not have been possible through top-down design alone
Reflections
This was one of the most foundational—but fragile—missions I’ve worked on.
The good? We aligned over 140 people across functions and designed a process that was both grounded and forward-facing.
The hard? The project structure shifted multiple times—along with its leadership. Despite meaningful collaboration, some stakeholders later questioned the validity of results they had helped create. A frustrating reminder that credibility doesn’t come just from doing good work—it comes from being backed at the right level, consistently.
“You can only build trust when the people doing the work are trusted themselves.”
Still, this project shaped the road ahead. Without this groundwork, the subsequent transformation phases wouldn’t have had a leg to stand on.
Meta Description
How cross-functional stream mapping and collaborative process design helped an Aerospace & Defense organization create a compliant, realistic end-to-end ICA process—laying the foundation for future transformation.