Many Quality efforts are missing a key ingredient: a set of meaningful measurements. The leaders of modern organizations typically believe that they have too many measurements. The fact is, people need training on how to choose and use this tool effectively. Here's a key opportunity to accelerate your quality activities and the results they produce.
What To Measure
Companies tend to measure certain areas:
• money- sales, costs, profits, assets
• activity - number of policies issued, units sold,
• sales calls made, etc.
• schedules - completion, delinquencies, deadlines
• "pain" - customer complaints, accidents, resignations, penalties
Managers are evaluated and rewarded according to "their numbers" in these areas, cutting costs, getting work out, meeting schedules, and avoiding pain. Quality is not really included as an integral part of departmental routines or managerial performance appraisals.
Properly selected measurements produce dramatic improvements in quality and profitability. Adequately-trained managers can use these measurements to tackle their assignments from a different perspective: focusing on the processes for accomplishing work, rather than "pointing fingers" at their co-workers. As an example, work groups could be measuring:
• Avoidable instances of overtime, express shipments or expediting
• Accuracy and completeness of outcomes or supplier inputs
• Delays, missing information, material shortages, changes in schedule
• Returned goods, lost time accidents or instances of employee dissatisfaction
The resulting information would demonstrate "Where, When and Why" quality isn't happening. This type of discovery leads to improvement. The company learns to operate better, faster and cheaper. Employees enjoy more satisfaction and less stress.
Use Of Measurements
Most of us have been raised in the traditional management system, shaping our expectations of what is measured and how the information should be used. Imagine a group of co-workers arriving at your office: "We're from the Measurement Committee and we're here to help you." How warmly would they be received? Like Internal Revenue Service auditors, most likely. Measurements have often been misapplied, in an effort to motivate people or place blame for problems.
Measurement should be used as a helpful tool, not a weapon. It can increase understanding of how processes are operating, and why operations are failing to produce expected results. Correct application of measurement helps answer the question "Where did the process break down?" Others to look at includes:
1. How many delays were encountered in entering or filling customer orders?
2. How often was the warehouse out of stock?
3. How much equipment downtime occurred on second shift?
4. What were the costs (and causes) of engineering changes?
These kinds of answers help employees learn about work processes, and lead to discovery of why problems occur.
The 10 Prerequisites For Successful Measurement
There are 10 preexisting conditions for successful measurement. The measurements are successful because the prerequisites for success have been provided. Has your operation developed the support necessary for successful measurement? It does if:
1. The areas being measured are important to the customers, employees or suppliers involved; i.e. timeliness, accuracy, completeness or cost.
2. Each measurement is part of a defined and documented process; i.e. clearly established methods, procedures, equipment, training.
3. The process is operated according to clear requirements; established for outcome, supplier inputs and sequence of operations.
4. The area being measured is important to managers or supervisors who control work group time and resources; i.e. improved performance pays personal benefits.
5. The employees involved believe they can do something to streamline or improve the process; knowledge and authority to make changes.
6. The measurement tools used are appropriate for the task at hand, i.e. not too simple or complex.
7. Measurement results are periodically reviewed; i.e. daily, weekly, monthly.
8. People use the measurements to stimulate thought, discussion and actions.
9. Employees trust that actions will be focused on the process, not the people involved; "How can we improve the process" versus "Who screwed up?"
10. Everyone is recognized for their efforts and rewarded for progress; a small celebration, pat on the back, or better bonus at the end of the year.
Showing posts with label Total Quality Management. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Total Quality Management. Show all posts
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Total Quality Management
Total Quality Management is a management style based upon producing quality service as defined by the customer. TQM is defined as a quality-centered, customer-focused, fact-based, team-driven, senior-management-led process to achieve an organization’s strategic imperative through continuous process improvement. TQM principles are also known as total quality improvement, world-class quality, continuous quality improvement, total service quality, and total quality leadership.
The word "total" in Total Quality Management means that everyone in the organization must be involved in the continuous improvement effort, the word "quality" shows a concern for customer satisfaction, and the word "management" refers to the people and processes needed to achieve the quality.
Total Quality Management is not a program; it is a systematic, integrated, and organizational way-of-life directed at the continuous improvement of an organization. It is not a management fad; it is a proven management style used successfully for decades in organizations around the world. TQM is not an end in itself; it is a means to an organizational end. Total Quality Management must not be the primary focus of an organization; it should merely be the means to achieve organizational goals.
Total Quality Management differs from other management styles in that it is more concerned with quality during production than it is with the quality of the result of production. Other management styles have different concerns. Some major styles are compared with TQM as follows.
Management-by-Objectives (MBO) emphasizes achieving specified objectives, under the control of individual managers. This approach works against multi-functional process performance and interferes with teamwork and quality. TQM is not objective-oriented, except for its one goal of achieving continuous quality improvement.
Management-by-Results (MBR) is management by viewing past results as an indication of future results. It has been compared to driving an automobile in a forward direction while looking in the rear view mirror. In today’s fast-paced, quick-changing business environment, managers cannot rely on past results as a predictor of future performance. In contrast, TQM is only concerned with current results and ways to improve them.
Management-by-Exception (MBE) is management by identifying specific targets for management attention and action. It produces short-term results by reacting to immediate problems, but there is no analysis of the processes that produced the problems, so long-term benefits are lost. On the other hand, TQM is more concerned with correcting processes that produce problems than it is with responding to individual problems.
Total Quality Management is very different from these and other management systems. It recognizes that quality as determined by the service provider might be much different from quality as perceived by the service receiver. If the customer is not satisfied with a service, then the service does not have quality and the processes that produced the service have failed.
Total Quality Management requires an organizational transformation-a totally new and different way of thinking and behaving. This transformation is not easy to achieve; it is not for the weak or the statistically untrained. At first glance, many TQM techniques may seem simple and based on common sense, but they must be understood and used correctly for TQM to function properly. Knowing the history of Total Quality Management may help in understanding its techniques.
The word "total" in Total Quality Management means that everyone in the organization must be involved in the continuous improvement effort, the word "quality" shows a concern for customer satisfaction, and the word "management" refers to the people and processes needed to achieve the quality.
Total Quality Management is not a program; it is a systematic, integrated, and organizational way-of-life directed at the continuous improvement of an organization. It is not a management fad; it is a proven management style used successfully for decades in organizations around the world. TQM is not an end in itself; it is a means to an organizational end. Total Quality Management must not be the primary focus of an organization; it should merely be the means to achieve organizational goals.
Total Quality Management differs from other management styles in that it is more concerned with quality during production than it is with the quality of the result of production. Other management styles have different concerns. Some major styles are compared with TQM as follows.
Management-by-Objectives (MBO) emphasizes achieving specified objectives, under the control of individual managers. This approach works against multi-functional process performance and interferes with teamwork and quality. TQM is not objective-oriented, except for its one goal of achieving continuous quality improvement.
Management-by-Results (MBR) is management by viewing past results as an indication of future results. It has been compared to driving an automobile in a forward direction while looking in the rear view mirror. In today’s fast-paced, quick-changing business environment, managers cannot rely on past results as a predictor of future performance. In contrast, TQM is only concerned with current results and ways to improve them.
Management-by-Exception (MBE) is management by identifying specific targets for management attention and action. It produces short-term results by reacting to immediate problems, but there is no analysis of the processes that produced the problems, so long-term benefits are lost. On the other hand, TQM is more concerned with correcting processes that produce problems than it is with responding to individual problems.
Total Quality Management is very different from these and other management systems. It recognizes that quality as determined by the service provider might be much different from quality as perceived by the service receiver. If the customer is not satisfied with a service, then the service does not have quality and the processes that produced the service have failed.
Total Quality Management requires an organizational transformation-a totally new and different way of thinking and behaving. This transformation is not easy to achieve; it is not for the weak or the statistically untrained. At first glance, many TQM techniques may seem simple and based on common sense, but they must be understood and used correctly for TQM to function properly. Knowing the history of Total Quality Management may help in understanding its techniques.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)