Quality Management

• What is quality control?

  the checking of a hood or service before it is delivered to a customer (at the end)
• what is quality assurance?

  the checking of a good or service at each stage of its production
• what are quality circles?

  informal groups of workers who volunteer to meet on a regular basis to discuss issues relating to the workplace
• what is total quality management (TQM)

  an attitude towards quality assurance in which each employee is a link in a chain and treats the next link as if they were an external customer
• what is continuous improvements (kaizen)?

  a quality management technique that concentrates on small but frequent improvements in very aspect of the production process
• how can quality be measured

  • customer service ratings
  • product returns
  • warranty claims
  • rejected output from production
  • levels of repeat business
  • market surveys
  • profit margins
• how to improve quality?

  • understanding customer expectations
  • training and motivating employees
  • using technology
  • working closely with suppliers
  • quality systems
• advantages of quality control?

  • qualities can be monitored
  • stops faulty products reaching customers
  • common problems can be identified
  • inspector takes responsibility
  • often a robust sustem
• disadvantages of quality control?

  • takes responsibilities away from operatives
  • requires additional personnel
  • problems only identified at the end of the process
  • waste levels may be high
• advantages of quality assurance?

  • spot faults early on
  • saves resources
  • motivates
  • aims to achieve zero defects
  • enhances reputation as less faulty products will reach customer
• disadvantages of quality assurance?

  • requires staff training
  • high level of commitment needed
  • slow down production
  • higher unit costs
  • can demotivate if under pressure
  • opportunity costs
• quality control vs quality assurance

  control :

  • focus on outputs
  • achieved by inspection
  • targeted at production activities
  • emphasis on required standards
  • defective products are inspected out
  • assurance:
  • focus on process
  • achieved by improving production
  • targeted at the whole organisation
  • emphasises the customer
  • quality is built into the product
• advantages of TQM?

  • puts customers at heart of production
  • motivational
  • less wasteful
  • eliminates costs of inspection
• disadvantages of TQM?

  • requires strong leadership
  • investment is training
  • may become bureaucratic
  • disruption and costs may outweigh benefits
• benefits of greater quality?

  • competitive advantage
  • customer satisfaction
  • repeat purchase
  • customer recommendations
  • lower marketing costs
  • higher customer loyalty