Chapter 1: Differing Perspectives on Quality

Chapter Outline

 Differing Perspectives on Quality

 Recognizing Different Perspectives on Quality
 What is Quality
 Differing Functional Perspectives on Quality
 Three Spheres of Quality
 Other Perspectives on Quality

Overview

The entire concept of quality is what one of my professors once called an “arm-
waiver”. We all intuitively know what it means, yet when we are asked to explain it we
just sort of wave our arms.
Chapter one defines the terms. The author references various definitions of
quality. He makes the distinction between Service and Manufacturing from a quality
perspective and delves into “The Supply Chain”. Corporate America has taken the
concept of the Supply Chain to heart. In this third edition, Mr. Foster has taken the
concept of the Supply Chain and made it integral to the subject of quality. Any book on
quality must discuss Deming. The Author makes reference to Deming throughout the
book.

The focal point of the chapter is the question “What is Quality” Mr. Foster
supplies a list of topics that can be ideally used in a class discussion:
 Tangibles
 Service reliability
 Responsiveness
 Assurance
 Empathy
 Availability
 Professionalism
 Timeliness
 Completeness
 Pleasantness

The author looks at quality from different perspectives. This list is also an excellent
starting point for class discussion:
 Supply chain
 Engineering
  Operations
 Strategic management
 Marketing
 Financial
 Human resources

Discussion Questions
1. Why is quality a difficult term to define? How can we improve our understanding
of quality?

This is an ideal question to open the discussion of the topic of Quality. Ask the
class to define Quality and record their comments. You will typically find a myriad of
answers but there should be a common theme among them.

2. Briefly discuss Garvin’s eight dimensions of quality. Is Garvin’s multidimensional

approach a step forward in improving our understanding of quality? Why or why
not?

Garvin lists the following:

 Performance
 Features
 Reliability
 Conformance
  Durability
 Serviceability
 Aesthetics
 Perceived quality

Using Garvin’s terminology, these terms identify five different aspects of quality. One
might say, “Quality is in the eye of the consumer.”

3. Explain the differences between manufacturing and service organizations and

their implications for quality.

The basic differences include higher labor intensity, immediate consumption, and no
storage for the service. Some other differentiating factors for service organizations
include a higher degree of customization, a large volume of transactions, time sensitivity,
and an increased reliance on the human element. The quality dimensions important to
customers are different; thus, quality efforts are also different.

4. Define the concept of empathy.

On page 7 the concept of empathy is discussed:

Finally, consumers of services desire empathy from the service provider. In other words,
the customer desires caring, individualized attention from the service firm.

The author’s discussion of empathy uses the relationship between a waiter and
customer. You might extend this conversation by asking for other examples. Does
empathy enter into a manufacturing situation? Dilbert’s Pointy-Haired-Manager is an
excellent tool for this discussion.

5. Why is communication within an organization an important part of the quality

improvement process?

On page 7 the author says:

“It is difficult to devise a coherent strategic plan relating to quality when communication
is imprecise.”

Think about the people involved. Do the marketer, engineer, order processor and
manager all speak the “same language”? Communication enables planning. In a
multidimensional environment communication becomes more difficult, simply due to
their different backgrounds. How do you make this happen? What are the priorities that
must be shared?
6. Describe how a consumer’s perspective of quality differs from that of the
producer’s.

Consumers perceive quality in terms of how well a product meets its intended use; that is,
how well it does what it is supposed to do. From the product’s perspective, quality is how
well the product conforms to its design during the production process.

7. Describe the “systems view” that underlies modern quality management thinking.
Which of the perspectives of quality discussed in chapter 1 is most closely aligned
with the systems view?

Some discussion questions might be:

A. What is the systems view?
B. What do the approaches have in common?
C. How are the approaches different?
D. How do the different approaches affect the ultimate consumer?
E. This diagram depicts the basic approach to planning.
8. Why is planning an important part of the quality process? How could a firm’s
quality management initiatives be adversely affected if planning was not a part of
the process?

Refer back to the question on communication (Question 5). You might review
Garvin’s list
 Performance
 Features
 Reliability
 Conformance
 Durability
 Serviceability
 Aesthetics
 Perceived quality
 Which of these are the most dependent upon planning? Are there any of them that
planning does not affect? Does poor planning, adversely affect any of these items more
than others?

9. Research has shown that quality is still a major concern of the majority of CEOs
in American corporations. Is this level of concern about quality warranted? Please
explain your answer.

A discussion about the competition between American and foreign products would be
productive. How has the automotive industry been affected by the apparent quality or
lack of quality of foreign cars? Have other industries have been affected in this manner?
Has the movement of our nation from manufacturing to service been affected by
quality, either actual or perceived?

10. Explain the relationship between quality and cost. Select a firm and list the
several costs related to quality failure.

The cost of quality assurance is the cost of maintaining an effective quality program and
includes prevention and appraisal costs. The cost of nonconformance, or poor quality, is
the result of internal and external failures. These two costs react in opposition to each
other; as the cost of quality assurance increases, the cost of poor quality decreases.
Students can select a firm and illustrate the different internal and external failure costs.

11. Explain how human resource management can contribute to the quality of a
product or service.

Human resource management is responsible for hiring employees that have the required
abilities and skills and training them for specific job tasks. Employees not well trained in
their tasks will probably contribute to poor quality or service. HRM also has the
responsibility for educating employees about quality and ways to achieve quality in their
tasks. TQM requires that all employees throughout the organization be responsible for
quality.

12. Discuss the value-added perspective on quality. What are the implications of this
perspective for the manager of a business organization?

On page 24, the text defines value-added as:

A value-added activity can be pinpointed by asking, “Would this activity matter to the
customer?” In other words, in most cases, a value-added activity will have economic
value to the customer.
13. Describe the dimensions of quality with respect to a select product or service.

Students can select a product or service and define them with regard to the dimensions of
performance, features, reliability, conformance, durability, serviceability, aesthetics,
safety, and other subjective perceptions based on brand name or advertising.

14. What is your concept of quality? Is it multidimensional, or does it focus on a

single dimension such as features, reliability, or conformance? Explain your answer.

Do you react differently as a consumer or a supplier? Can you use these attitudes
in business? As we have marketing and manufacturing approach quality from different
perspectives. What are the common points? How does management deal with the
differences or the similarities?

15. Describe an instance in which you and a coworker (or superior) perceived the
needs of a customer very differently. How did your differences in perception
influence how each of you wanted to meet your customer’s needs?

What aspects of quality made the most difference to you or your co-worker?
Does your superior view quality in the same manner as you do? Why? In the class
environment, do your needs and expectations differ from your instructors? Does the
question of quality differ from you to your instructor?
Case Studies

1. “FedEx: Managing Quality Day and Night”

The Case Study “FedEx: Managing Quality Day and Night” provides an insight
into the unique problems faced by a service-based company. Central to this discussion
are three questions that the company asks its employees:
1. What do you need from me?
2. What do you do with what I give you?
3. Are there any gaps between what I give you and what I need?
This case also introduces the topic of QIP, Quality Improvement Process. This might be a
good time to set the tone of future lectures. This case study might be an excellent one
early in the semester

Case Questions:

1. What is FedEx’s “common language” of quality? Is it important for a company to

establish a “common language” of quality? If so, why?

How does Fedex’s three-pronged “People-Service-Profit” reflect quality? How

does Fedex’s twelve component “Service Quality Indicator” reduce communications
difficulties.

2. There are several different perspectives of quality, including the operations

perspective, the strategic perspective, the marketing perspective, the financial
perspective, the HR perspective, and the systems perspective. Which of these
perspectives are being emphasized by FedEx? Why?

Does the “Common Language” allow personnel to cross boundaries? Does

inclusion of management in the teams affect the concept of quality? The SQI is a cross-
functional tool. How does this affect the situation? The case states that the SQI

… Ensures the involvement of frontline employees, support personnel, and managers

from all parts of the corporation when needed.

Do the employee incentives assist this as well?

3. Is FedEx’s level of emphasis on quality appropriate? Why or why not?

Who is FedEx’s competition? Is quality a focal point in this industry? How does
the customer measure quality? What specific attributes do the customers use to judge
quality?
Web sites of Interest:
http://www.quality.nist.gov/ -- The home site for the Baldridge National Quality
Program
http://www.asq.org/learn-about-quality/quality-tools.html -- American Society for
Quality
http://www.thecqi.org/ -- Chartered Quality Institute
http://www.managementhelp.org/plan_dec/mbo/mbo.htm -- A detailed look at
Management by Objectives
http://www.ge.com/en/company/companyinfo/quality/whatis.htm -- An overview of Six
Sigma from GE’s perspective
 Chapter 2: Quality Theory
Chapter Outline:

 Quality Theory
 Leading contributors to Quality Theory
 W. Edward Deming
 Joseph M. Juran
 Philip Crosby
 The rest of the pack

Overview

When the author discusses theory, he is not being philosophical; rather he

discusses the major “players” and their contributions to the subject. The point is made
that “there is not a unified theory explaining quality improvement.” The author also
makes a statement that quality improvement is positively linked to employee morale. He
links Quality Improvement to the classic Theory X (and Z for that matter) approaches to
management.

1. Select some of the Deming’s 14 points that are related to quality management.

Of Deming’s 14 points, a significant relationship can be drawn with TQM for the
following:
 Break down barriers between departments
 Drive out fear
 Create a constancy of purpose
 Eliminate slogans, exhortations, and targets for the workforce that ask for
zero defects and new levels of productivity.

2. Do you agree with Deming’s statement that fear in the workplace inhibits
learning?

The text discusses this topic on pages 55 and 56:

At times, employees who surface problems and seek to create change are
considered troublemakers or dissatisfied. It might be true that such employees are
dissatisfied. However, does an organization want employees who are satisfied with the
status quo? Often employees who seek to create change should be most prized. Some fear
comes from making recommendations for improvement and having those
recommendations ignored.

Another type of fear should be recognized by top managers who desire to improve
quality. Many employees view process-improvement efforts as disguised excuses for
major layoffs.

If there is fear, people will not bring up problems. If there is no pride in work, there is no
motivation.

3. Explain the statement: “Cease mass inspection”. How this is different from the
traditional view of quality?

Deming’s views on mass inspection are described on pages 54 and 55:

Eliminate the need for inspection on a mass basis by building quality into the
product in the first place. In many companies still, the “quality department” performs in-
process and final inspection of a product. In this scenario, responsibility for quality lies
with the quality department. However, by the time the quality department inspects the
product, either the quality is built in or it is not built in. At this point, it is too late to add
quality.

The traditional view of quality control is to have rigorous inspection to find and
discard defective products so that only non-defective products pass inspection. But the
modern concept is to develop your process in a way that the final product or service is
bound to be of good quality, this precluding the need for inspection.

4. Select some of the Deming’s 14 Points and show their implications for college
education.

The answer can begin by defining the purpose of the college. Is it managed as a system?
Are faculty trained to teach? What constitutes fear in the college (among faculty, staff,
and students)? How are teams used? What about numerical quotas and MBO? What
processes rob faculty and students of joy in work?

5. Contrast Juran’s philosophy with that of Deming’s. In what respects it is similar

or different?

Many themes of Juran's philosophy are the same as Deming's. The major differences are
that Juran works within traditional management cultures and has a focused approach for
achieving the goals; that is, he is more pragmatic and less philosophical.
6. Does the phrase “quality is the responsibility of the quality department” reflect a
healthy perspective of quality management? Please explain your answer.

This revolves around the question – Whose job is quality? By centralizing quality, Taylor
removed it from the day-to-day operation of the company. As the topic of quality is
removed from the production floor, what is management’s response going to be? If we
look back at Juran, is this now a control or a breakthrough function? Why?

Taylor notes that by delegating quality to the quality manager, the line supervisors and
managers could devote their own time to other matters. As they did so, they became
progressively less and less informed about quality. When a quality problem develops,
management lacks the expertise needed to choose a proper course of action.

7. What was Joseph Juran’s primary contribution to quality thinking in America?

Discuss Juran’s three-step process to improving quality.

Juran’s three-step process was:

 Planning
 Control
 Improvement

This three-step process emphasized control over breakthrough. This was a major step
towards ongoing quality improvement, rather than mass inspections. This approach
moved the process of quality to the lowest possible level.

8. Compare and contrast Deming’s, Juran’s, and Crosby’s perspectives of quality

management. What are the major similarities and differences between their
perspectives?

Deming addressed the entire process and focused primarily the assertion that poor quality
is not the fault of the worker, but is the fault of the system. Deming also strongly opposed
the creation of quality inspection departments. He felt that the creation of a quality
inspection department gave the managers of a firm the impression that quality is for his
book entitled Quality is Free.

Juran's work focuses on the idea that organizational quality problems are largely the
result of insufficient and ineffective planning for quality. In addition, Juran fleshed out
many of the implementation issues involved with quality through his trilogy.
Crosby made two key points in his arguments about the responsibility of the quality
department, and not the individual worker. Crosby has enjoyed the most commercial
success of the three. First, he argued that quality, as a managed process, could be a source
of profit for an organization. Second, Crosby adopted a "zero defects" approach to
quality management, and emphasized the behavioral and motivational aspects of quality
improvement rather than statistical approaches.

Similarities: All three men were very passionate about the role of quality in business
organizations, and felt that quality is a process that must be deliberately managed. In
addition, all three of them saw quality as the focal point for organizational performance
and effectiveness.

Differences: Deming and Juran were more statistically oriented in their approach than
Crosby. The individuals emphasized different aspects of quality management in their
approaches. Crosby's zero defects approach probably goes further than would be
advocated by Deming or Juran. Crosby was also more prolific than Deming and Juran in
terms of the production of quality related materials (e.g., videos, workbooks, lecture
series, etc.).

9. Identify some products or services that, in your opinion, have very good quality.
Do you associate them with successful companies?

The answer will vary by student, but it is important to draw the correlation between good
quality and the success of the company.
10. Do you believe that CEOs and business managers should be skeptical about the
quality movement, or should they embrace the quality movement and try to involve
their firms in as many quality initiatives as possible? Please explain your answer.

The key to this question may be the phrase "as many quality initiatives as possible." Any
project requires planning. The more effect a project will have on a firm, the more careful
the planning must be.

Integrating a quality program is no exception. Every part of the firm is affected. Poor
planning can be disastrous.
 Case 2-1 Rheaco, Inc.:
Making a Quality Turnabout byAsking for Advice
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Many companies fail in their efforts to improve quality without ever having asked
for advice. In your opinion, what are some of the reasons that inhibit firms from
asking for timely advice? If you were a manager at Rheaco, would you have sought
out an agency like the ARRI?

Many companies get into “Fire Fighting Mode.” They are so busy solving immediate
problems that no one has time to dig into the cause of the problems.

Many of Deming’s 14 points speak to this problem:

Adopting a new philosophy (2), Driving out fear (8). Remove barriers to pride (12), all
seem to be based upon Number 7, Improve Leadership. The problem is that sometimes
leadership does not realize that they are the roadblocks.

Firms can be insulated. Cultures can be stagnant. One solution is insuring that
management participates in professional organizations. Another solution might be
encouraging employees to continue their education and bring in the ideas from their
classes. A firm such ARRI can be in the vanguard of conceptual development. The major
problem is finding out that they exist.

2. Discuss ARRI’s recommendations to Rheaco. How did these recommendations

help Rheaco improve its product quality?

First, AARI helped Rheaco develop an Enterprise Excellence Plan, which acted as a
roadmap for Rheaco's improvement efforts. Consistent with this effort, AARI helped
Rheaco implement several standard quality improvement programs, including cellular
manufacturing, just-in-time inventory control, total quality management, and employee
empowerment. Through this process, AARI worked in partnership with Rheaco to
implement the recommended initiatives and to gradually turn over the change process to
Rheaco itself. Other improvements were made, particularly in the areas of shipping and
receiving, inventory control, and human resource management. Collectively, these
changes had a profound influence on Rheaco's ability to improve its product quality.

A key statement made on page 61:

After ARRI had been working with Rheaco for a period of time, the company started
identifying and correcting problem on its own, which is exactly what is supposed to
Happen.

People want to succeed. In an environment where success is rewarded people will thrive
and bring the company along with them
 Chapter 3: Strategic Quality Planning

Chapter Outline:

 Strategy Content
 Importance of Time in Quality Improvement
 Leadership for Quality
 Quality and Ethics
 Quality as a Strategy
 Quality Strategy Process
 Deploying Quality (Hoshin Kanri)
 Does Quality lead to Better Business Results?

Overview

Quality is strategic. This may seem somewhat obvious, but the actions of companies
implementing quality measures often obscure this fact. This is especially true when a
company is in a reactive mode and does not use effective planning. In this important
aspects of strategic quality planning are discussed.

Strategic planning has two important dimensions. These are content and process.
Strategic content answers the question of what is to be contained in the strategic plan.
Strategy process consists of the steps used to develop the strategy

Discussion Questions

3. Explain how a lack of top-management leadership in a quality effort can hinder

or destroy it.

The text maintains that Leadership Equates with Power. This power is defined as:
 Power of expertise
 Reward power
 Coercive power
 Referent power
 Legitimate power

The text also states that for the employees to feel empowered, power must be shared.
This establishes an environment where a leader can effectively influence the organization
through mutual trust.

Employees also must trust that if they make recommendations for improvement, the
recommendations will be taken seriously and considered for implementation by
management. Nothing can damage a quality improvement effort faster than
management’s failure to consider implementing changes that employees recommend.
Employees may begin to think, “nothing will really change.” Quality specialists who find
themselves in companies not implementing a majority of employee suggestions need to
work with management to increase the percentage.

This all implies that direction, in the form of strategic planning, must originate from the
top. In an environment where the mutual trust has been established, the line will then
follow along.

4. Explain the hazards of the “management by dictate” model.

Management by dictate typically involves setting goals and insisting that the goals be
met. For example, as illustrated in the chapter, a top management team might set the
goals of "a 50% reduction in defects during the next year." This is a numerical goal for
lower-level managers to meet.

On page 105, the text’s definition of leadership is:

Leadership is the process by which a leader influences a group to move toward

the attainment of super-ordinate goals.

Achieving the goals in what management hopes for. However, the text also states that
effective management involves sharing power. It is this sharing of power that makes
success possible. Management by dictate infers that all power is directed downward. All
management theories address the inefficiency of this attitude.

5. Trust has been identified as a very important attribute for leaders who are
initiating quality improvement efforts. Why do you believe trust is such an
important attribute?

As quality becomes a continuing part of the line, the worker is, by default, more visible.
For a genuine quality environment, an employee must feel that he is part of the solution,
not the problem. An employee who feels that he is not trusted might not show the
initiative to suggest methods for ongoing quality improvement. On page 107, the text
states:

Employees must trust that if they make recommendations for improvement, the
recommendations will be taken seriously and considered for implementation by
management. Nothing can damage a quality improvement effort faster than
management’s failure to consider implementing changes that employees recommend.
Employees may begin to think “nothing will really change.”
7. Discuss some of the ways leaders resolve conflict in organizations. Which of these
ways have you found to be most effective? Why?

Conflict has been present in relationships as long as people have been around. While our
knee-jerk reaction to conflict is that it is unhealthy, when properly managed and
encouraged, conflict can help improve product or service quality. Table 4-1 identifies the
set of leadership skills. Quadrant 2: Communication deals with conflict. The point being
subtly made is that negative conflict is a subset of poor communications. It is a
commonly held concept that while in a conversation, most people spend more time
formulating their reply than they do listening to each other.

Conflict arises when two people have different ideas about a topic. If they pursue their
ideas without understanding the other person’s thoughts, destructive conflict arises. It is
management’s responsibility to establish an environment where all ideas are considered

8. How important is it for managers to maintain and promote ethical behavior in

dealing with quality issues? Does it depend on the product or service involved?

Ethics is discussed on page 116 in the text:

Quality appears to be good business. Quality is also good ethics. It is unethical to ship
defective products knowingly to a customer. Reliable products and low defect rates
reflect an ethical approach of management’s care for its customers. This ethic is stated in
the well-known mission statement of a New Bedford, Massachusetts, shipbuilder: “We
build good ships. At a profit if we can, at a loss if we must. But, we build good ships.”

Ethics can have an impact on the company’s reputation, and there may be cost, liability,
legal and safety issues. Although the risks may differ substantially for different products
and services, ethical standards should be maintained across the board.
9. Why do companies that focus on their customers often develop a set of ethics that
includes valuing employees? Please make your answer as substantive as possible.

Question 9 is a direct quotation from page 107 of the textbook. The text goes on to state:

This is reflected in education, training, health, wellness, and compensation programs that
show empathy for the employees … Integrity gets down to honesty. Are we honest to our
customers, employees, colleagues, family members, and ourselves? This must be the basis
for business. There is not a new business model that obviates the need for integrity… It is
true that companies that focus on their customers often develop a set of ethics that
includes valuing employees. Perhaps this is true because a company that focuses on it
customers, in effect develops a culture of focusing on people, which in the end include its
customers, employees, and other stakeholders.

10. Suppose there is an agreement between a supplier and a customer where the
supplier must ensure that all parts are within tolerance limits before shipment to the
customer. What would be the effect on the cost of quality to the customer?

This agreement (ideally) eliminates the need for this inspection. Appraisal costs, such as
materials and supplies inspection and reliability testing, will be reduced since the
agreement would ensure that the supplies are totally within tolerance. This allows the
customer to focus attention on quality improvement within his or her own processes,
requiring an increase in prevention cost. Scrap and rework costs will initially drop
because of the improvement in the quality of the part supply. Once prevention programs
are in force, scrap, repair, rework, and downtime costs will drop even further because of
improvements in the internal process. External failure costs will drop because of
improvement in the product and the process.

11. Describe the difference between external and internal failure costs. Is one cost
more important than the other? Explain your answer.

The following two tables illustrate the situation:

They are associated with product failure after the production process. External failure
costs include failure after the customer takes possession of the product. While the cost of
failure may vary across circumstances, common sense says that external failure costs are
the most expensive. It is always better to catch mistakes as soon as possible. The worst
possible scenario is to find out that a part is defective after the customer has already
started using it.

12. What are the potential costs of poor quality and of various quality assurances
that might be associated with a television manufacturing company?

The cost of poor quality could include external failure costs for customer complaints,
returned TVs that have to be repaired under warranty, lost future sales, and liability costs
if someone is hurt because of the problem. Costs of quality assurance might include
improved design costs for the TV, process costs, inspection costs for the final product,
and costs at various stages of the TV production process.

13. Think of a product you buy that is differentiated through quality. Do you believe
the manufacturer’s strategy to differentiate this product through quality is
sustainable, or will the manufacturer eventually have to find other ways to attract
you to the product? Explain your answer.
The answer depends greatly upon the industry and technology. Rolex and Rolls Royce
will probably never lose the generated respect of quality. However consumer, products
usually do not have that luxury. On page 113, the text makes the statement:

Differentiation is achieved by a competitor if the consumer perceives the product or

service to be unique in an important way. (Note: Emphasis is the author’s)

The word perception is the key to this. Toyota and Datsun (now called Nissan) impacted
the American market due to the perception of quality. In spite of the fact that American
cars improve their quality, Japanese cars still sell extremely well. Fiat, a major brand in
Europe, was saddled by a reputation of being a poor quality automobile. Fiat no longer
sells cars in America.

15. Explain why strategic planning may benefit from a quality management
program.

Quality management tends to give some focus and structure to strategic planning. It
provides identifiable goals and many well-documented initiatives for quality
improvement such as quality circles, employee training, and empowerment. Quality
management also provides a means for measuring success, which is essential in a
strategic planning process.

16. Describe the benefits of strategic planning.

On page 101, the text outlines the basic reasons for strategic planning:

The basis for assuring quality is strategic planning that prioritizes and plans quality
improvement. The question is: “If we want to achieve our goals, how are we going to get
there?”

Continuous quality improvement is dependant upon long-range strategic planning.

Figure 4-5 illustrates the steps needed for supply chain strategic planning. The steps:
 Define
 Identify
 Observe
 Organize
 Implement
 Monitor
They are integral for any activity.

17. Why is the forced-choice model particularly useful for companies that are
relatively inexperienced in strategic planning? Explain your answer.
The forced-choice model, illustrated in Figure 4-2, is an organized approach to strategic

planning. It provides a road map for effective long range planning. The process involves
sequestering six to twelve managers and having them construct the plan following the
steps identified. The advantages for this are obvious. When a company embarks on an
involved process for the first time, direction becomes important without a roadmap, or
documented procedure results are unpredictable at best. Using a forced-choice model
provides that direction for the first few planning efforts.

18. What factors have led companies to pursue a strategy based on quality?

Consumers have become tougher and demand quality. Quality can have significant
market advantages. Many companies pursue quality as a strategy to rise up from a
competitive crisis; other sees it as an opportunity to further improve.

19. Describe the concept of catchball.

Catchball is a process taken from the Japanese “Hoshin Kanri” school of management.
In English this is referred to as Policy Deployment. The term catchball refers to those
steps that occur as control is passed between levels of management where plans are
reviewed and discussed before the next lower level of management takes control of the
process. Catchball refers to the interactive nature of these interfaces.
20. Discuss Juran’s ideas about quality. Compare Juran’s philosophy with that of
Deming’s.

Juran’s quality trio is quality planning, quality control and quality improvement. Many
themes of Juran's philosophy are the same as Deming's. The major differences are that
Juran works within traditional management cultures and has a focused approach for
achieving the goals; that is, he is more pragmatic and less philosophical.
Case 4-1: Ames Rubber Corporation: Realizing Multiple
Benefits through Improved Quality

1. In developing its Excellence through Quality program, Ames initially

benchmarked against Xerox. Is benchmarking against another company’s quality
program a good idea? What are the potential hazards and benefits involved?

In general, benchmarking is a good idea. It helps a firm emulate the practices of a

company that is very good at a particular activity (like quality), and as a result helps a
firm avoid "reinventing the wheel" every time it wants to launch a new initiative. The
downside of benchmarking is that no two firms are exactly alike. As a result, it is naïve
for one firm to think that it can exactly copy the practices of another firm. A firm needs
to learn what it can from a benchmarking experience, and then incorporate what it learns
into its own corporate culture. (Note: of course, sometimes what a firm learns is that it
needs to change its culture).

2. Discuss the manner in which Ames implemented its Excellence through

Quality program. Did the company place its emphasis in the right areas? Please
explain your answer.

The company did an excellent job implementing its Excellence Through Quality
program. The emphasis of its initiatives seemed to be equally split on systems issues
(e.g., reject tracking, cost of quality collection systems, strategy and operations review
meetings) and human resource management issues (e.g., involvement groups, teamwork,
training, egalitarian culture). As discussed in previous chapters, this is the ideal
combination. To improve quality effectively, a firm must improve its quality-related
systems, and must provide its employees the skills and level of motivation necessary to
implement the quality improvement program.

3. Discuss the benefits that Ames Rubber achieved from its quality program. Are
these benefits more encompassing than you would have expected? Why or why not?

Most students will be impressed with what Ames Rubber has accomplished, and will
argue that the benefits have been more encompassing than they would have expected.
The benefits are clearly articulated towards the end of the case. Particularly impressive is
Ames' successful run for the 1993 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. The
approach that Ames took to upgrade its quality serves is an excellent model for other
firms.
 Chapter 4: The Tools of Quality

Chapter Outline:

 Improving the System

 Ishikawa’s Basic Seven Tools of Quality
 Seven New Tools for Improvement
 Other Tools for Performance Measurement
Discussion Questions
1. Why is it important to pursue quality management from a systems perspective?

As we have seen, no part of the business operates independently. For a quality system to
be successful, the interrelationships between the business systems must be taken into
account. A quality system must therefore take the business system into account. Figure
10-1 presents the quality model and depicts the relationships.

2. Why is continual improvement necessary for a business organization?

Deming made the point that for optimum results, the quality process must be continuing.
If quality is treated as an add-on process, quality will suffer. As Figure 10-1 shows, the
business model focuses on the customer and prompts continuous change and growth.
Without this approach the business will grow stagnant.

3. What are the seven basic tools of quality? Who developed these tools?

Kaoru Ishikawa identified seven tools that when used together, provide a path to
continuing quality improvement.
4. Describe the purpose of a histogram.

The figure below presents a histogram.

As stated on page 300, a histogram presents data pictorially in a manner that enables
simple comparison.

This histogram provides a comparison between occurrence and services hours for four
separate production lines. It also provides a means of comparing these factors across the
production lines.

6. For a business you are familiar with, develop a Pareto Chart that encompasses
the major service defects.

This depends on the business the student selects. If, for example, they selected a
restaurant they eat at frequently they would need to identify the categories of quality
problems, which might include the employees, food quality, restaurant environment,
waiting time, price, service, and menu.

7. What are the three basic rules for constructing Pareto charts?

On page 307, the three basic rules are presented as:

  Information must be selected based on types or classifications of defects that
occur as a result of a process. An example of this might be the different types of
defects that occur in a semiconductor.
 Data must be collected and classified into categories.
 A histogram or frequency chart is constructed showing the number of
occurrences.

A Pareto chart enables you to isolate and focus on the 20% of failures that cause 80% of
the problems.

8. Write the four broad categories of “causes” to structure the Ishikawa diagram.

The major causes in an Ishikawa diagram are machines, materials, people, and methods.

9. Describe the purpose of a check sheet. Describe an instance (other than the ones
in the book) in which a check sheet could be effectively used.

A check sheet is a simple mechanism that is

used to gather information that can be used to
diagnose a problem. On page 298, the text
uses the check sheet to collect information that
will be used to compile a histogram. In
Question 7, a class discussion was suggested to
find alternative uses for a Pareto chart. This
topic would be ideal for that discussion.

10. Describe the purpose of a scatter diagram.

Figure 10-12 presents a scatter diagram:

This diagram presents a series of points that show the relationship between prevention
and appraisal costs and percentage of conformance. A mathematic technique called
“curve-fitting” presents a smoothed line that indicates the relationship between the two
variables. A statistical tool called “regression analysis” will provide a value called the
“correlation” that uses the data to present the relative value of the relationship.

I loaded the data into Excel and ran a correlation between the two sets of data. The
resulting correlation was .8824 or approximately 88%. This tells me that there is
approximately an 88% probability that there is a cause-and-effect relationship between
the two values.

13. Describe the purpose of a flowchart. What are three of the rules for designing
and using flowcharts?

A flowchart is a picture of a process. The first step in many process improvement

projects is to flowchart the process, as it exists. This step presents the parameters for
process improvement. The concept is that one must know the process before he or she
can improve it.

Three basic rules for designing and using a flowchart are as follows:

 Use these simple symbols (shown in Figure 10-3) to chart the process from the
beginning with all arcs in the flow chart leaving and entering a symbol.
 Develop a general process flowchart and then "flesh it out" by getting more detailed.
 Step through the process by interviewing those who perform the process as they do
the work.
 Determine which steps add value and those that don't in an effort to simplify the
work.
Before simplifying work, determine if the work really needs to be done in the first place.
13. What is the purpose of a control chart?

A control chart provides information about a product or service that has measurable
quantities. Figure 10-14 presents two control charts together:

14. Which of the seven (Ishikawa) tools of quality described in the chapter have
been the most helpful to you in your experiences? Please make your answer as
substantive as possible.

Ishikawa’s seven basic tools consist of:

1) process maps
2) check sheets
3) histograms
4) scatter plots
5) control charts
6) cause-and-effect diagrams
7) Pareto analysis

Each of these tools provides a unique look at the environment that you are analyzing.
Each student will probably have a different view based upon his/her respective
backgrounds. This can make a lively class discussion.
 Case 10-1 Corporate Universities: Teaching the Tools
of
Quality
Motorola University: www.motorola.com/motorolauniversity.jsp
Sears University: www.aboutsears.com

1. Are corporate universities a good idea? If so, why?

Most students will argue that corporate universities are a good idea. The corporation that
dedicates resources to education signals to its employees that the corporation considers its
employees an asset. A corporate university also provides an organization a permanent
place to train its employees in the methods and procedures that make the company unique
and successful.

2. How can a corporate university do a better job of teaching a firm’s

employees the “tools of quality” than traditional training programs?

Corporate universities can do a better job of teaching a firm's employees the "tools of
quality" than traditional training programs in the following ways:

 Corporate universities can prioritize a firm's training initiatives and quickly share
with a firm's employees the skills, techniques, and best practices that are necessary to
remain competitive.
 Corporate universities can provide focus to a company's training and development
activities.
 Corporate universities can develop a standard curriculum to ensure that all of a
company's employees receive consistent training.
 Corporate universities, because they are permanent, can provide "follow-up" training
and consulting services to firm employees.

3. Select a corporate university and visit its Web site. How does the company’s
corporate university facilitate the company’s overall quality-related goals
and initiatives?

Each of the listed companies are in a different industry and have a different product mix.
Each has a different set of needs for its employees.

Motorola University bases its training on Six-Sigma.

Sears provides an ongoing Management Skills Curriculum.

Food for Thought: How do these programs reflect the needs of the company? How do
they reflect the culture of the company?
 Case 10-2 Lanier: Achieving Maximum Performance by
Supporting Quality Products with Quality
Services
Lanier home page www.lanier.com

1. Why was it important for Lanier to develop specific programs, such as

Customer Vision and Performance Promise, to facilitate its dual emphasis on
quality products and quality services?

The specific programs have "focused" Lanier's employees and customers on areas that
have been particularly important to the company in achieving its dual emphasis on
quality products and quality services. For instance, the Customer Vision program
focused the company's employees on providing high customer service. Similarly, the
Performance Promise program focused the company's customers on the strength of
Lanier's commitment to guarantee total product satisfaction. Lanier's commitment to
quality products and quality services might not have come through as clearly to its
employees and customers without these tangible programs to rally around.

2. What steps has Lanier taken to reinforce the importance of quality services
to its employees?

Lanier has initiated the programs referred to including Customer Vision, The
Performance Promise, 100 Percent Sold and The Lanier Team Management Process as
tangible evidence of its commitment to quality service. Lanier has also shifted its
marketing emphasis from sales to customer satisfaction and has shifted its corporate
culture accordingly.

3. Do you believe that Lanier continued to be successful? Why or why not?

Lanier has grabbed an interesting niche. The field of document production has been
massively enhanced by the current stat of office automation. This trend will most likely
continue. Their success obviously depends on how well they integrate themselves into
the burgeoning culture. Will they continue to be successful? This is a fascinating
question for a classroom discussion.
 Chapter 5: Implementing and Validating the
Quality System

Chapter Outline:

 Building Blocks for the System of Quality Improvement

 Internal Validation: Documenting and Assessing the Quality System
 Quality Audits
 Validating the Quality System

Overview

Now that the text has defined all of the facets of being best-in-class or best-in-the-world,
how do you implement the plans and procedures to achieve that status?

How does a company assess where they are in achieving this goal? How do they move to
the next level? This chapter provides the tools to evaluate your position and move to the
next level.
1. The model in Figure 15-1 shows people as the basis of the quality system. Do you
agree with this assertion? Why or why not?

The base of the entire system in this diagram is people. A theme of this text has been
empowering people so that continuing quality improvement is a part of the job. On page
473 the text states:

People represent the core of a firm’s capabilities because they provide the intellect,
empathy, and ability that are required to provide outstanding customer service.

2. There are regions where the three spheres of quality overlap. What are some of
the overlaps between management, assurance, and control? Why are they
important?

The overlaps are really quite obvious. None of these three spheres are independent.
Chapter 1 presents a simpler view of the three spheres of quality on page 21:
An overview of the tasks for these spheres can be identified as:

 Quality control: monitoring, measuring, and optimizing

 Quality assurance: design, engineering, and process improvement
 Quality management: planning, leading, and facilitating.

The relationships are obvious.

3. Review the concept of enterprise capabilities. Pick a firm and determine what you
think is the enterprise capability for that firm.

On page 477, enterprise capabilities are defined as:

Enterprise capabilities are those capabilities firms have that make them unique
and attractive to customers.

In any industry there are facets of some firms that differentiate them from their
competition. One might ask: “What is the difference between a Chevrolet and a
Cadillac?”

An interesting classroom discussion might be having the class identify products within an
industry and list the facets that differentiate them fro m each other.

4. Why is internal assessment a necessary tool for outstanding companies?

Internal assessments provide a cadre of trained people who can continuously monitor the
internal systems. An external audit, while potentially delivering valuable information, is
a single even. An internal auditor can regularly view the process and any improvement
accomplishment.
With a proper system of internal assessments, the external audit can be even more
valuable.

5. At what stage do you believe a company would be ready for internal assessment?

Chapter 5 discusses gap analysis. Figure 5-3 on page 139 defines the context of the
analysis.

Correction of these gaps, or a procedure in place to eliminate them, is the first element for
being prepared for internal assessment. If many gaps exist, the internal assessment would
be self-defeating.
6. Define the different types of audits. Pick a company and define which type would
be best for it. Support your answer.

The textbook goes into detail on the various types of quality audit. They include:
 Supplier audits
 Operational audits
 Performance audits
 Certification audits
 Award audits
 Consultant audits

Each audit has a different goal and potential outcomes. The class discussion will be very
useful here.

7. What are the enablers for quality improvement in a school? What are they in a
firm where you have worked (see Fig. 15-4)?

Figure 15-4 identifies the generic

auditing steps. The answer is
probably related to the culture at
the school or firm. In class
discussion, one might list the
steps and identify people or
positions that fall under these
categories. After this has been
done then the class can perform
the exercise as either a team or
individual.