Quality management

http://www.qualitymanagementinfo.com/ Great site with lots of links and resources but it is proprietry and is aimed at getting customers for Quality management software.

Quality Management

Welcome to Quality Management Info!

Quality management is the key to smooth operations and effective communication for every type and size of business. Because there are so many management models in the market today, it's important to find a system that is user-friendly, concise and easy to implement.

Quality Management through Standardization
Quality management has its roots in a system of standards. This system was initially introduced by an organization called International Organization for Standardization, or ISO. ISO is the world's largest developer of standards. ISO quality manuals outline eight basic principles of business management.

Briefly, these eight quality management principles focus on customer relations, efficiency, decision-making, and relationships between complimentary and competitive businesses.

The Eight Principles of Quality Management
--The first principle focuses on customer needs and expectations.
--The second principle focuses on the importance of company leadership.
--The third principle focuses on involvement of all employees in the process. This includes performance analysis and innovation.
--The fourth principle involves the use of process. Simply put, how a business goes about its business.
--The fifth principle focuses on an approach to management that clearly defines employee responsibilities, and departmental duties.
--The sixth principle focuses on continual advancements in the company's performance and productivity.
--The seventh principle focuses on a fact-based approach to making decisions. This involves reviewing previous responses to similar problems, and access to all data by decision-making parties.
--The eighth principle focuses on supplier relationships. A mutually beneficial business relationship leads to higher profit, productivity and innovations.

A World Without Order
If you're not convinced your business will see increased productivity with quality management systems, imagine what the world would be like without a system of simple standards. Every product you purchase from light bulbs to new cars has to meet international standards for quality. If these standards were removed, you would receive inferior, unpredictable products at every turn. Parts wouldn't fit, quality would be inconsistent, flawed equipment may even be harmful to your health and safety.

These same principles of standardization apply to business management. When you create integrated quality policies and procedures you create a language or code for doing business. The language of quality management is easy to translate because it's uniform, completely reliable and consistent over the years.

Where to Find More Information on Quality Management
If all of this information is overwhelming, you can learn about quality management in just a few sessions. You can find user-friendly software to help you implement a new system for running your business. In just a matter of time, you'll see the difference in operations, communications and functionality. You'll see a difference in the way employees and managers communicate, the ease with which complex problems are solved, and greater relationships with business partners.

One of the most popular systems for quality and integration is the IS0-9000 model. It's the model from the people who brought you the original system of standards. It's used by 147 different countries as the standard for organizing their businesses. You can find information about this and many other management systems online.

http://www.hyperthot.com/pm_meth5.htm This gives a nice table..

Project Quality Management

The following table addresses the planning and management activities that make the project output conform to the requirements and help to ensure a satisfied customer.

	Priority
Area	4 Quality goals easily understood, achieved, and monitored.	3 Quality goals can be defined and measured using existing systems and methods; quality risk low.	2 Quality goals are extensive, require innovative approaches; and may impact project success.	1 Quality goals are difficult to define; hard to measure and achieve; significant risk to project acceptance.
Quality Assurance Plan	Define quality goals; discuss approach and plans to achieve goals; assess risks to success; discuss adequacy of approach; set high standards.	Document explicit quality goals; define methods and tests to achieve, control, predict and verify success; focus on customer satisfaction.	Document QA goals, plans, methods, and systems; consider ilities in quality goals; focus processes on minimizing correction costs.	Document QA plan including quantitative goals, statement of methods to achieve, quality metrics, controls and verifications; link QA to stakeholder and risk analysis.
Quality Management	Consider quality management integral to project work; ensure project team understands role in achieving quality goals; have PM maintain visibility of quality issues.	Implement integrated quality management through delegated quality goals; plan work methods, technologies, measurements and controls to achieve goals; build quality into processes and products.	Integrate quality management tasks into project plan; establish quality goals; delegate goals to work groups; report quality metrics and track progress.	Assign quality management oversight in PM staff; monitor metrics and trends to achieve quality goals; integrate quality management into project planning and risk management.
Quality Metrics, Measurements, and Controls	Conduct subjective (qualitative) or objective (quantitative) assessments periodically; monitor and report quality status at periodic project reviews.	Map quality metrics to quality goals, and report periodically; apply standard quality tools to measure, predict and control results.	Establish quality metrics and conduct quality audits to predict and verify achievement of goals and identify need for corrective actions; apply quality control techniques to project effort.	Implement best practices quality control organization; document quality methods integral to project plan; provide commitment of staff, tools, and methods to support quality effort.
Continuous Quality Improvement	Communicate continually a project goal to work smarter and find better processes; plan the project to accommodate future improvements.	Review the project approach and design concept for modularity, expandability and growth; consider CQI in product life cycle strategy.	Include CQI tasks in project plans and budget; establish CQI goals and metrics, and report progress periodically.	Incorporate CQI/TQM goals into specifications and plans; review project methods for improvement opportunities; institutionalize CQI processes and incorporate provisions into product design.

Project Quality Management

a. Quality planning

Six-sigma rule
Zero defects

b. Quality assurance

c. Quality control (QC)

Statistical process control
Seven basic QC tools

Project Quality Management

Course 349 - 3 Days
Outline

INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW

Concepts and definitions

Personal vs. formal quality concepts
Industry-standard definitions

IT and non-IT quality approaches

Application development
Infrastructure
Systems integration
Systems upgrade
Business re-engineering
Regulatory
Product development
Security

An organizational quality policy

Identifying organizational influences
Accounting for external industry factors

BUILDING A PROJECT QUALITY ENVIRONMENT

Creating a quality culture

Obtaining management buy-in
Ensuring team & third-party commitment

Focusing on customer satisfaction

Identifying your customers
Capturing customer requirements
Managing expectations, needs and wants
Prioritizing key quality metrics

Leveraging quality standards to your advantage

ISO
SEI CMMI
ITIL
Quality awards

Planning for project quality

Drafting a project quality approach
Selecting a product life cycle model
Establishing a project quality policy

MANAGING PROJECT-SPECIFIC QUALITY

Enhancing project management with modern quality methods

Preventing vs. inspecting for defects
Assigning ownership and responsibility
Structuring processes within phases

Maximizing the benefits of proprietary and non-proprietary approaches

Deming, Juran, Taguchi, Crosby & others
Total Quality Management (TQM)
Continuous improvement

Applying practical tools and techniques

Analyzing costs and benefits
Benchmarking to identify improvements
Flowcharting systems and processes
Testing potential solutions systematically

Calculating the cost of quality

Prevention
Appraisal
Lab tests
Surveys
Defect evaluation
Downtime
Warranty costs
Corrective actions

ENSURING PRODUCT-SPECIFIC QUALITY

Balancing quality & project constraints

Avoiding cost and schedule sacrifices
Determining quality tolerance levels
Distinguishing between quality & grade

Applying industry-standard techniques

Incorporating the Six Sigma approach
Deploying Just In Time (JIT) processes

INCORPORATING QUALITY FUNCTION DEPLOYMENT (QFD)

Translating needs to specifications

Spoken and unspoken customer needs
Focusing on customer satisfaction

Enhancing project formulation

Validating the work breakdown structure (WBS)
Solidifying the project definition

IMPLEMENTING QUALITY ASSURANCE

Evaluating and auditing quality

Measuring progress against the plan
Conducting quality audits

Tracking and forecasting performance

Anticipating potential deviations
Developing mitigation strategies

APPLYING QUALITY CONTROL

Devising quality control strategies

Deciding to accept or eliminate defects
Conducting prevention and inspection measures
Distinguishing between chronic and sporadic problems

Tools and techniques

Attribute sampling
Tolerance levels
Statistical methods
Change control
Pareto diagram
Ishikawa diagram

Correcting quality defects

Optimizing procedures and processes
Resolving outstanding issues
Avoiding recurrence

CLOSING THE PROJECT

Performing root-cause analysis
Facilitating a post-implementation review (PIR)
Conducting client satisfaction surveys
Compiling and sharing lessons learned

Monitoring and control systems
Project-control concepts
Designing a monitoring system
Effective project control
Quality management
Quality concepts
People and project quality
Achieving project quality
Project quality planning
The project quality plan
Quality and project structure
Quality-planning activities
Project quality control
Project quality control
Quality-control tools
Quality-control techniques
Cost of quality
Establishing a quality control system

http://www.bizhotline.com/html/project_management__quality_st.html

this site has a nice course if you want to pay 75 dollars…

http://web.umr.edu/~mahnkens/guides/emgt.html

this site has a kind of library of resources

Interesting site to steal essays from:

http://www.megaessays.com/category/technology/T/5.html

http://deming.ces.clemson.edu/pub/den/deming_philosophy.htm#points

Deming's 14 Points

(Excerpted from Chapter Two of OUT OF THE CRISIS by W. Edwards Deming )

1. Create constancy of purpose toward improvement of product and service, with the aim to become competitive and to stay in business, and to provide jobs.

2. Adopt the new philosophy. We are in a new economic age. Western management must awaken to the challenge, must learn their responsibilities, and take on leadership for change.

3. Cease dependence on inspection to achieve quality. Eliminate the need for inspection on a mass basis by building quality into the product in the first place.

4. End the practice of awarding business on the basis of price tag. Instead, minimize total cost. Move toward a single supplier for any one item, on a long-term relationship of loyalty and trust.

5. Improve constantly and forever the system of production and service, to improve quality and productivity, and thus constantly decrease costs.

6. Institute training on the job.

7. Institute leadership The aim of supervision should be to help people and machines and gadgets to do a better job. Supervision of management is in need of overhaul as well as supervision of production workers.

8. Drive out fear, so that everyone may work effectively for the company

9. Break down barriers between departments. People in research, design, sales, and production must work as a team, to foresee problems of production and in use that may be encountered with the product or service.

10. Eliminate slogans, exhortations, and targets for the work force asking for zero defects and new levels of productivity. Such exhortations only create adversarial relationships, as the bulk of the causes of low quality and low productivity belong to the system and thus lie beyond the power of the work force.

11a. Eliminate work standards (quotas) on the factory floor. Substitute leadership.

b. Eliminate management by objective. Eliminate management by numbers, numerical goals. Substitute leadership.

12a. Remove barriers that rob the hourly worker of his right to joy of workmanship. The responsibility of supervisors must be changed from sheer numbers to quality.

b. Remove barriers that rob people in management and in engineering of their right to joy of workmanship. This means abolishment of the annual merit rating and of management by objective

13. Institute a vigorous program of education and self-improvement.

14. Put everybody in the company to work to accomplish the transformation. The transformation is everybody's job.

Published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Center for Advanced Educational Study (MIT-CAES), Cambridge, MA 02139

Deming's System of Profound Knowledge

The following is excerpted from Chapter 4 of The New Economics, second edition by W. Edwards Deming.

The prevailing style of management must undergo transformation. A system can not understand itself. The transformation requires a view from outside. The aim of this chapter is to provide an outside view-a lens-that I call a system of profound knowledge. It provides a map of theory by which to understand the organizations that we work in.

The first step is transformation of the individual. This transformation is discontinuous. It comes from understanding of the system of profound knowledge. The individual, transformed, will perceive new meaning to his life, to events, to numbers, to interactions between people.

Once the individual understands the system of profound knowledge, he will apply its principles in every kind of relationship with other people. He will have a basis for judgment of his own decisions and for transformation of theorganizations that he belongs to. The individual, once transformed, will:

Set an example
Be a good listener, but will not compromise
Continually teach other people
Help people to pull away from their current practice and beliefs and move into the new philosophy without a feeling of guilt about the past

The layout of profound knowledge appears here in four parts, all related to each other:

Appreciation for a system
Knowledge about variation
Theory of knowledge
Psychology

One need not be eminent in any part nor in all four parts in order to understand it and to apply it. The 14 points for management in industry, education, and government follow naturally as application of this outside knowledge, for transformation from the present style of Western management to one of optimization.

The various segments of the system of profound knowledge proposed here can not be separated. They interact with each other. Thus, knowledge of psychology is incomplete without knowledge of variation.

A manager of people needs to understand that all people are different. This is not ranking people. He needs to understand that the performance of anyone is governed largely by the system that he works in, the responsibility of management. A psychologist that possesses even a crude understanding of variation as will be learned in the experiment with the Red Beads (Ch. 7) could no longer participate in refinement of a plan for ranking people.

Further illustrations of entwinement of psychology and use of the theory of variation (statistical theory) are boundless. For example, the number of defective items that an inspector finds depends on the size of the work load presented to him (documented by Harold F. Dodge in the Bell Telephone Laboratories around 1926). An inspector, careful not to penalize anybody unjustly, may pass an item that is just outside the borderline Out of the Crisis, p. 266). The inspector in the illustration on page 265 of the same book, to save the jobs of 300 people, held the proportion of defective items below 10 per cent. She was in fear for their jobs.

A teacher, not wishing to penalize anyone unjustly, will pass a pupil that is barely below the requirement for a passing grade.

Fear invites wrong figures. Bearers of bad news fare badly. To keep his job, anyone may present to his boss only good news.

A committee appointed by the President of a company will report what the President wishes to hear. Would they dare report otherwise?

An individual may inadvertently seek to cast a halo about himself. He may report to an interviewer in a study of readership that he reads the New York Times, when actually this morning he bought and read a tabloid.

Statistical calculations and predictions based on warped figures may lead to confusion, frustration, and wrong decisions.

Accounting-based measures of performance drive employees to achieve targets of sales, revenue, and costs, by manipulation of processes, and by flattery or delusive promises to cajole a customer into purchase of what he does not need(adapted from the book by H. Thomas Johnson, Relevance Regained, The Free Press, 1992).

A leader of transformation, and managers involved, need to learn the psychology of individuals, the psychology of a group, the psychology of society, and the psychology of change.

Some understanding of variation, including appreciation of a stable system, and some understanding of special causes and common causes of variation, are essential for management of a system, including management of people (Chs. 6 -10).

Some Deming learning exercises:

Deming Electronic Network

(DEN)

Trainer's Exchange

T/E-0 -- What is the Trainer's Exchange?
T/E-1 -- Count the Pages, from Kim Melton
T/E-2 -- Communications Exercise, from Kim Melton
T/E-3 -- White Bead Process Development, from Harold Haller
T/E-4 -- Learning About Interactions in The System of Profound Knowledge(SPK), from Al Viswanathan
T/E-5 -- Tampering and the Nelson Funnel Exercise, from Bill Latzko
T/E-6-- The Cash Register Exercise, from Dan Hedberg
T/E-7 -- The Trust Building Exercise, from Liane Dolezar
T/E-8 -- Expanding Knowledge by Metaphorical Thinking
T/E-9 -- Table Top Experiment: Learning Curve, from Eric Budd & Margaret Mustafa
T/E-10 -- The Green M&M (tm) Production Company, from Robert Crow
T/E-11 -- Tinker Toys (tm) and Motivation, from Robert Crow

What is the Trainer's Exchange?

The Trainer's Exchange originated at the MAY96 W. Edwards Institute Conference and was designed as a vehicle to share tools and techniques used to teach the Deming Philosophy. The current list of activities represent the first 11 presented at that conference. Other submitted activities are currently being coded for inclusion in this listing. If you are interested in submitting such an activity, there is a format at the end of this page.

T/E-1 - COUNT THE PAGES

PURPOSE: This activity is intended to help people understand the need for operational definitions.

MATERIALS NEEDED: A book, a set of instructions, two envelopes (one with slips of paper inside and labeled 'PAPER'; the other labeled 'ANSWERS'), a pencil/pen if participants would not already have them.

TIME approximately 5 to l0 minutes to discuss. This needs to be at least 20 minutes into a session. (See instructor notes and/or activity description)

GROUP SIZE: at least l0

ARRANGEMENTS: any

CONTRIBUTED BY: Kim Melton, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Business, P.O. Box 844000, Richmond, VA 23284-4000 phone: (804) 828-1479 fax: (804) 828-8884 email: kmelton@busnet.bus.vcu.edu

SOURCE: Original

PERMISSION TO SHARE: This activity and guide may be shared with others provided the source is acknowledged.

DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITY: Give the book and instructions to one person, and tell the group that an exercise will be working its way around the room.

Collect the responses after about 20 minutes and discuss.

INSTRUCTOR NOTES: This activity needs to be started at least l5 minutes before you want to discuss it. The activity can go on 'in the background' while something else is taking place. All you need to do is to tell the group, "I am starting an exercise around the room. When someone gives you the book, please read the instructions provided and follow them to the best of your ability. This is not intended to be tricky. When you finish, pass everything on to the next person."

The instruction sheet should read: This exercise is to be done without consultation with anyone else. Please work independently.

Take one piece of paper from the envelope marked PAPER
Count the number of pages in the book
Record your answer on the piece of paper
Place your answer in the envelope marked ANSWER
Pass everything you received on to the next person

When the book is collected. Read the responses. Often they will vary by more than l00! Talk about the need for operational definitions. Sometimes people will ask, "What is the RIGHT answer?" Point out that an operational definition will take into account how the 'measurement' will be used (to order paper, to set margins, to obtain enough change to copy the material, etc.) You might also point out that different parts of the organization may use the same word (page) to mean different things!

T/E-2 - COMMUNICATIONS EXERCISE

PURPOSE: To help people understand how the same words communicate different things to different people.

MATERIALS NEEDED: Nothing necessary, but a flip chart or overhead transparency helps people see the results.

TIME: 5 minutes

GROUP SIZE: The larger the better

ARRANGEMENTS: any

SOURCE: Original

PERMISSION TO SHARE: This activity and guide may be shared with others provided the source is acknowledged.

DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITY:

Ask the group to close their eyes.
Pick some 'common' word (like 'most' or 'some') and ask each participant to associate that word with a number between 0 and l00 - as in "what percent of the total would 'most' represent?"
With their eyes still shut, ask them to raise their hand if they thought of a number between 0 and l0.
Count the hands and record the number.
Then ask how many thought of a number between 11 and 20.
Count and record.
Continue through 9l to 100.
Share the results.

INSTRUCTOR NOTES: This exercise can be done 'on the spur of the moment' to respond to a question from a group or as a planned activity.

The point to be made is that what people say and what people hear may not be the same-the words may match, but the meaning may be different.

T/E-3 - WHITE BEAD PROCESS DEVELOPMENT

BACKGROUND: Did you ever see Dr. Deming, acting as foreman, manage the production of "White Beads" in his famous Experiment with the Red Beads? If you did, you would no doubt remember that when willing workers are constrained by rigid procedures that are known not to work and are required to produce no more than three red beads in a workload of 50, they become frustrated and even mad.

The White Bead Development Process is an adult learning experience, which should follow the showing of a video of Dr. Deming conducting his red bead experiment.

PURPOSE: The purpose of the White Bead Process Development Game is to help adults see that if workers are empowered to change the system within certain guidelines and if the creative power of groups thinking about improving a process is encouraged by management, then the application of the continual improvement cycle, PDSA, also known as the Shewhart Cycle, results in improved quality and productivity.

MATERIALS NEEDED: Two plastic rectangular containers, a mixture of red and white beads in about the same proportion as used by Dr. Deming in his experiment, a paddle with 50 depressions for sampling the bead mixture, and a watch for timing the game.

TIME: Depending on the number of groups, 60 to 90 minutes total time is sufficient. If every group is permitted to demonstrate their process, two hours may be required.

GROUP SIZE: 4 to 6 people in a group is best in order for everyone to participate in the experiment.

ARRANGEMENTS: Groups are assigned to work tables or areas where, as a team, they can practice the PDSA cycle. The team may appoint team leaders if necessary as well as scribes.

CONTRIBUTED BY: Harold S. Haller, Harold S. Haller & Company, 24803 Detroit Rd., Bldg. E., Cleveland, OH 44l45-25l2, (2l6) 871-6597, FAX (2l6) 871-1182

PERMISSION TO SHARE: The developers of this exercise are committed to the spread of knowledge and ideas. As such, this activity and guide may be shared with others provided the source is acknowledged.

DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITY:

l. Teams meet and brainstorm how to manufacture "white beads" using the following manufacturing ground rules:

a workload of 50 beads must be removed from the supply with the paddle.
the beads must not be dropped on the table or the floor (environmental citation).
the beads must not be touched by any part of the body (OSHA citation).
the 50 beads removed from the supply must be separated into red and white beads before another load can be removed from the supply.
The teams develop PLANS for making "white beads".

2. Teams RUN TRIALS to determine the feasibility of their plans.

3. Teams STUDY the data to determine if there are gaps between the outcomes and expectations.

4. Teams TAKE ACTION to follow their plans, revise their plans, abandon their plans.

5. All the teams share in their learning experience about group thinking and PDSA.

6. Trainer answers questions relative to the applicability of this experience to the workplace.

INSTRUCTOR NOTES: The goal of the game is to produce 300 white beads for the customer in 5 minutes or less with no environmental citations, or OSHA recordable incidents. All the equipment needed by the teams other than the red bead experimental set-up must be improvised from whatever the groups find in the meeting room area.

Remember, people should play the game "To learn and have fun" as Dr. Deming always said!

T/E-4 - LEARNING ABOUT INTERACTIONS IN "THE SYSTEM OF PROFOUND KNOWLEDGE (SPK)

PURPOSE: Explore and stimulate the thinking about interactions between the components of the SPK

MATERIALS NEEDED: Flip charts and colored pens for each table of participants and facilitator; a paper tetrahedron for each participant. (Note: Paper tetrahedrons may be purchased from the contributors)

TIME: 4-l2 hours, depending on the level of familiarity with the SPK

GROUP SIZE: Up to 24 persons - four round tables with six persons each (based on current experience with this method)

ARRANGEMENTS: Room with round tables for participants and a table for the facilitator

CONTRIBUTED BY: Al V. Viswanathan: l2436 SE 26th Place, Bellevue, WA 98005 Phone: (206) 747-7l84; FAX: (206)5626673, Prasad L. Kaipa, The Mithya Institute for Learning: 4832 Pinemont Drive, Campell, CA 95008-57l4 Phone: (408) 866-8511; FAX: (408)866-8926, e-mail: PKaipa@IGC.Org. Note: Use of the tetrahedron to learn about interactions in the SPK was developed by the above contributors. The tetrahedron has other applications. The concept of such uses of the tetrahedron was initially developed by Prasad Kaipa and Chris Newham. Tetrahedrons have been used in companies such as Boeing, Pacific Bell, and Xerox to develop and deploy vision, strategies, etc.

PERMISSION TO SHARE: The overview of the activity as described here may be shared with others provided the source is acknowledged.

DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITIES: This description is written for the specific purpose of 45 minutes overview as presented at The Fifth WEDI Conference, (Trainers' Exchange) on May 4, l996. More written material is currently under development. Phone conversations are encouraged for further clarifications.

Note: At the start "ice-breakers" or some form of introductions at each table is encouraged.

l. Explain the purpose and overview of the activity.

2. Give an introduction of the SPK -its purpose and overview

3. Starting with one component of the SPK, each table has a dialog to establish their understanding of that component, followed by a report-out. The facilitator may add comments as needed. This is repeated for other components of the SPK.

4. Provide each participant with the sheet to form the tetrahedron and explain how to form it. Each vertex represents one component of the SPK. The name of the same component is written on each of the three tetrahedron faces meeting at the vertex. Each connecting edge between two vertices implies an interaction between the two components of the SPK represented by the vertices. Each table has a dialog to establish word/words describing their understanding of the interactions. These words are written along the corresponding edges of the tetrahedron. (Suggest using a pencil to write on the tetrahedron, so that it can be easily erased and new words written as the understanding is enhanced in the future. Correction tape can also be used). Each table reports out their findings.

5. Each of the four tetrahedron faces represent interactions between the three components of the SPK on the three vertices of that face. Each table has a dialog to establish their understanding of this interaction. In other words, what does "the world" look like through three components of the SPK only, with one component missing. (The missing component is represented by the vertex opposite to the face under consideration). Word/words describing the understanding of "the world" represented by each tetrahedron face is written in the middle of each face. Each table continues the dialog on what each of "the four worlds" described above ("the words" on each face) changes to when the missing component of the SPK is added to that face. Again word/words describing each "changed world" is written on each face, this time in a different color. Combining the four "changed worlds" results in the full interaction of the SPK components - the union of the four changed worlds. Each table reports out their findings.

6. Encourage the participants to have continual dialog about the interactions. As new meaning to the interactions are discovered, either new words may be added or previous ones replaced. The changes represent the continual journey in the understanding of the interactions in the SPK.

7. The tetrahedron may be used to view the situations/issues through the SPK.

REQUEST FOR FEEDBACK: The contributors request feedback from you and from those you share this with, including suggestions for improvements. These will be highly appreciated.

T/E-5 - TAMPERING AND THE NELSON FUNNEL

ACTIVITY: Tampering and the Nelson Funnel Exercise

PURPOSE: 1. Understand difference between special causes and common causes of variation
2. Learn different management approach to working on each cause.
3. Show the funnel Rules

MATERIAL NEEDED: Slides illustrating common and special causes of variation. Slides illustrating the funnel rules or a program for funnel rules. A complex shape to cut out and scissors.

TIME: 30 minutes for discussion. Students cut out the shape before and during the instructor's talk.

GROUP SIZE: Any number can participate. In fact, the larger the group, the better. Groups of less than ten may not get full effect of Rule 4 exercise.

ARRANGEMENTS: Any type of room format suitable for lecture works. Individual tables, U-shape, classroom style, theater style, etc., is OK

CONTRIBUTED BY: William J. Latzko, Latzko Associates, 2l5 - 79th St.,North Bergen,NJ 07047, Voice and Fax: 20l-868-5338. E-mail: latzko@worldnet.att.net.

SOURCE: W. Edwards Deming, The New Economics Chapters 8 and 9

PERMISSION TO SHARE: Anyone who understands the basic principles involved may use this method of teaching.

DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITY: Before the session begins, select one member of the group and ask him or her to help in a project. Give them the following:

1. A complex shape (I use a Duck)
2. A pair of scissors
3. A piece of paper with the following instruction.
(You can give the instructions verbally as well.):

"Please cut out a replica of the object given to you. Number your copy with the next sequential number. (The first person numbers their copy "l") Return the object you received to the person who gave it to you. Pass on YOUR copy to the next person with these instructions and ask them to following the instructions.

"For example, the first person receives the original object. He or she cuts out a replica marking it "1". This person returns the original to its source and passes the replica to person number 1.

Person number 2 cuts out a replica marking it "2". Person 2 returns replica "1" to person 1 and passes replica "2" on to person 3. And so on."

The more people that can participate in this process, the better. If other activities take place before the exercise, we can start the operation before this session begins.

The session is in the form of a lecture. The notion of special causes and common causes of variations presented. The discussion brings out the different approaches to working on a process that has special versus common causes. We introduce the idea of Scherkenbach's process elements. (See W.W. Sherkenbach, The Deming Route to Quality and Productivity Chapters 3 and 4.)

To confuse the type of cause of variation is tampering. We explain and illustrated the Nelson Funnel Rules with slide or program method. For each rule we ask that the audience give illustrations of where these occur in real life. When rule four is under discussion, the instructor asked for the last person to cut out a replica (the person with the scissors) to bring the replica to the podium. Placing the last cutout on the overhead one can easily compare it with the original.

The final step is to ask for the best way to move the funnel. The instructor then shows how the various funnel rules represent tampering while the final method does not.

T/E-6 - THE CASH REGISTER - A CONSENSUS-SEEKING ACTIVITY

OVERVIEW: An awareness/consensus-seeking activity.

OBJECTIVES: Demonstrate how decision-making is enhanced by consensus seeking. Explore the impact of assumptions in decision-making.

GROUP SIZE: Five to seven participants (per group or sub-group).

TIME: About 30 minutes.

MATERIALS: Cash Register Worksheet, pencils, paper, flipchart, etc.

CONTIBUTED BY: Dan Hedberg

PROCESS:

1. Distribute a copy of the Cash Register Worksheet to each participant. Instruct participants they have five minutes to read the story, then answer the questions True, False, or Unsure. -- based only on the story.

2. After individual work, remind participants of the principle of consensus and the behaviors that enhance it.

3. In teams of four to six, participants discuss the story, completing a new team Cash Register Worksheet. About ten minutes.

4. Announce the correct. All statements are Unsure, except for Statement 3 (False), and Statement 6 (True).

5. Ask participants individually to complete the Reflections Worksheet.

6. Lead a brief discussion about how assumptions affect decision making, and how seeking consensus seeking enhances the quality of decision-making, based on the recent activity. Also discuss what interactive skills were used and which might have been employed more effectively.

7. (optional) Discuss how participants can apply their new learnings back on the job.

8. Variations: Another ambiguous story can be used. An observer may comment on interactive skills used. Or, the discussion could be videotaped.

STORY:
A businessman had just turned off the lights in the store when a man appeared and demanded money. The owner opened a cash register. The contents of the cash register were scooped up, and the man sped away. A police officer was notified immediately.

1. T-F..A man appeared after the owner had turned off his store lights.

2. T-F..The robber was a man.

3. T-F..The man demanded money.

4. T-F..The man who opened the cash register was the owner.

5. T-F..The storeowner scooped up the contents of the cash register and ran away.

6. T-F..Someone opened a cash register.

7. T-F..After the man who demanded the money scooped up the contents of the cash register, he ran away.

8. T-F..While the cash register contained money the story does not say how much.

9. T-F..The robber demanded money

10. T-F..The story concerns series of events in which only three persons are referred to: the owner of the store, a man who demanded money, and a police officer.

11. T-F..The following events in the story are true: Someone demanded money, a cash register was opened, and a man dashed out of the store.

T/E-7 - TRUST BUILDING EXERCISE

NAME OF ACTIVITY: Trust Building Exercise

TIME REQUIRED: 45 minutes

PURPOSE: Illustrate the process of developing trust among members of a team. Develop a plan to improve the trusting relationship between individual team members.

MATERIALS NEEDED: Overhead projector or flip chart; pens; prepared handouts (optional)

CONTRIBUTOR: Liane Dolezar, Waukesha County Technical College, 800 Main Street, Pewaukee, WI 53072, PHONE: (414)691-5509, FAX: (414)691-5093, E-MAIL: ldolezar@waukesha.tec.wi.us

ORIGINAL SOURCE: Peter Scholtes, Liz Freeman, Roly Coates

DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITY:

1. Conduct a discussion about two key aspects of the psychology of trust.

l.l The process of developing trust within a team:

members begin at a neutral state
growth comes from doing useful work together in small increments
each subsequent experience improves or diminishes the level of trust
depending on the trustworthiness of others must become routine

l.2 The elements of the trusted state:

two dynamics include believe in competence and benevolence of other individual
four perceptual positions can be described as...

I believe you are an incompetent adversary
I believe you are an inept ally
I believe you are a competent adversary
I believe you are a competent ally (we have workable trust)

2. Ask participants to develop a plan to improve the trust among members of a real working team.
2.l Select a real team from their work setting or personal life:

individuals recall one incident, which improved their belief in the competence and/or benevolence of each member of that team
individuals record the major details of each incident in their own notes

2.2 Create a summary list of the key details of these trust-building experiences by listing elements described by all participants on flip charts or overhead

ask "What caused you to believe in the competence or benevolence of your team members?"
members contribute examples to a visible list of experiences that developed trust with individuals

2.3 Conduct a summary discussion that demonstrates proactive planning to improve trust among the participant and team members

ask "What will you do in the next month to help build trust with one or two team members?"
remind participants that the visible list of trust-growing tactics may give them some ideas
share the plans of several participants to lead a closing discussion about the need to be personally proactive in developing a trusted state among team members.

TRUST CYCLE
(from Peter Scholtes' "Teamwork in the Quality Era" - based on the work of Liz Freeman and Roly Coates.)

[diagram showing Neutral State evolving in concentric loops to a Trusted State - diagram pending...]

TRUST MATRIX
Prepared by Peter Scholtes

Trust consists of two basic dynamics. I trust you if I believe in your competence and your benevolence. If I know you are good at what you do but that you don't care for my welfare, I won't trust you. If I know you care for my welfare but are incompetent, I still won't trust you. The Trust Matrix illustrates these dynamics.

[[[trust matrix image missing]]] "BUILDING TRUST" EXERCISE

L. Dolezar: based on work of Peter Scholtes' Trust Matrix

Identify one experience, which caused you to believe in the COMPETENCE and BENEVOLENCE of other team members.

l. 6. 2. 7. 3. 8. 4. 9. 5. 10.

Discuss the key details (using no names) of these trust-building experiences with the other members of a small discussion team. List the common themes below. Share your team's ideas with the entire group.

Check Out Question:

What will you do in the next month to help build trust with one or two members of your team?

T/E-8 - EXPANDING KNOWLEDGE BY METAPHORICAL THINKING

NOTE: This exercise was presented using PowerPoint slides and handouts. The text below is therefore noted on a slide by slide basis.

Slide #1:
EXPANDING KNOWLEDGE BY METAPHORICAL THINKING

Slide #2:
AIM

Use metaphorical thinking to reflect on how personal, cultural, and organizational socialization informs how we make meaning. Metaphorical thinking allows us to reflect and critique assumptions that influence our decisions, feelings, thoughts and actions (Deshler in Mezirow and Associates, l990, Page 296).

Slide #3:
STEP ONE

Select an experience from your personal, cultural or organizational domain. In this exercise you may select your experience with The Deming Institute or some other aspect of your practice with continuous improvement.

Slide #4:

STEP TWO

Create a metaphor that reflects your experience.

In writing, we explore the world of the metaphor. What values are reflected in the world of the metaphor, what do authorities say about this world, what does it mean? What does our culture say? What does our society say about the world of the metaphor? What beliefs do we hold about this world? What assumptions are embedded in the world of the metaphor?

Slide #5:

STEP THREE

Compare this to your experience, values, and beliefs about your experience.

Share your exploration with your partner.

Slide #6:

STEP FOUR

Now, create a different metaphor that better expresses your meanings about your experience. In writing, as before, explore the world of this metaphor.

Slide #7:

CONCLUSION

What has changed in the way you make meaning of your experience as a result of metaphorical exploration?

What assumptions got challenged?

How does this change any action you might make in the future?

Slide #8:

CONCLUSION

Share your thoughts with your partner.

Slide #9:

This exercise was adapted from David Deshler's article, "Metaphor Analysis: Exorcizing Social Ghosts" in Jack Mezirow Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, 1990.

T/E-9 - TABLETOP EXPERIMENTS: LEARNING CURVE ACTIVITY

NAME OF EXERCISES: Learning Curve Activity

PURPOSE: Demonstrate that a new method, even if it is an improvement, may product initial results that appear worse than the original method.

ADDITIONAL PURPOSE: View the results through the lens of Profound Knowledge.

MATERIALS:
Overheads (attached)
Speaker notes (attached)
For each group (2 or 4) of participants:

Thirty 3 x 5 cards in two piles of l5 each (Have extra cards available in case of scrap or re-work)
Two ballpoint Pens
One Stopwatch
Data Collection Form
Overhead graph (for plotting results)
Red Overhead marker (for plotting day l results)
Green Overhead marker (for plotting day 2 results)
Data collection forms
Overhead graphs (transparency)

TIME: Apx.: 50 minutes

GROUP SIZE: 2 or 4 people per group. Multiple groups can participate at the same time.

ARRANGEMENTS: Round tables are preferred.

FORMAT: Activity, with people in pairs (when there is an odd number of participants, one set of three can be formed with two people sharing the date collecting role)

EXERCISE STEPS: See overheads and speakers notes

TEACHING POINTS: See overhead and speaker notes. Can be adapted to almost any situation in which a change/new skill will be occurring/learned

SOURCE: "ON TABLETOP IMPROVEMENT EXPERIMENTS OF JAPAN", by Alan G. Robinson and Margaret M. Robinson

CONTRIBUTORS: Eric Budd and Margaret Mustafa

ORIGINATORS: Eric Budd and Lori Yokich adapted this exercise based on the paper, On Tabletop Improvement Experiments of Japan, by Alan G.Robinson and Margaret M. Robinson.

PERMISSION TO SHARE: The developers of this exercise are committed to anticipating and providing knowledge and resources that enable the methodical implementation of improvement processes. This exercise may be shared with others provided the source is acknowledged.

NOTE: This exercise was presented using PowerPoint slides and handouts. The text below is therefore noted on a slide by slide basis.

Slide #1: TABLETOP EXPERIMENTS: LEARNING CURVE ACTIVITY

Notes: Adapted by Eric Budd and Lori Yokich. Presented at the May 1996 W. Edwards Deming Institute Trainer's Exchange by Margaret Mustafa and Eric Budd

"The Tabletop Improvement Experiments of Japan" were originally conceived by Frank and Lillian Gilbreth. The experiments have been used in Japan since 1925 to teach important principles of continuous improvement. This exercise makes use of the first two experiments described in the 1992 paper by Alan G. Robinson and Margaret M. Robinson: "On the Tabletop Improvement Experiments of Japan."

Handout #1: Construct a data collection form with 2 rows, 1 for Day one and 1 for Day 2. Each row has 15 columns for recording time in minutes and seconds.

Slide #2: PURPOSE

Demonstrate that a new method, even if it is an improvement, may produce initial results that appear worse than the original method.

Slide #3: ADDITIONAL PURPOSE FOR TODAY'S SESSION

Use the lens of Profound Knowledge to discover other lessons that may be learned with these experiments,

Slide #4: MATERIALS

Needed for each set of participants:

Thirty 3x5 cards in two piles of 15 each
Two Ballpoint pens
One stopwatch
Data collection form
Overhead graph (for plotting results)
Red overhead marker (day l results)
Green overhead marker (day 2 results)

NOTES:

Also needed will be two overheads: 1. Overhead with the phrase "STATISTICAL CONTROL" (for use in inspecting the output of Day l).

2. Overhead with the phrase "SAITCL OTO" (for use in inspecting the output of Day 2).

Slide #5 Day l - Groups of 4

Form into groups of four:

Printer will print on cards
Timer will time how long it takes to print
Data recorder will record times on data collection form
Data plotter/inspector will check for defects and plot data on graph

NOTES:

A method for selecting the Printer: the person in each pair who traveled the longest distance to get here today. Then in sequence down the list, the Timer, next shortest, Data recorder, next and Data plotter/inspector the shortest.

Slide 6: Day l - Pairs

Form into pairs
One person, Printer, will print on cards
Other person, Data collector will:
1. time how long it takes to print
2. record times on data collection form
3. plot data on graph

NOTES:

A method for selecting the Printer: the person in each pair who traveled the longest distance to get here today.

Slide 7: Day l - Groups of 4 - Production Cycle Sequence

1. Printer places blank 3x5 card in position to print
2. Timer says, "Begin" and presses START button on stopwatch
3. Printer prints the phrase "STATISTICAL CONTROL' on one 3x5 card
4. Printer turns the 3x5 card over (Data plotter will take card, ensuring that printing remains out of Printer's view)
5. Timer presses STOP button on stopwatch.
6. Data recorder records time on data collection form
7. Timer presses RESET button on stopwatch
8. Repeat until 15 times have been recorded.

NOTES:

Have the Data collectors practice starting, stopping and resetting the stopwatches.

Have the Printers begin each cycle with the card upon which they are going to print, on the table, rather than on top of the stack of blank cards. This will result in less variation (in cycle times) when they try to pick up and turn over the completed card.

Slide #8 - Day l - Pairs - Production Cycle Sequence

1. Printer places blank 3x5 card in position to print
2. Data collector says, "Begin" and presses START button on stopwatch
3. Printer prints the phrase "STATISTICAL CONTROL" on one 3x5 card
4. Printer turns the 3x5 card over (card remains turned over until output is checked for errors)
5. Data collector presses STOP button on stopwatch
6. Data collector records time on data collection form
7. Data collector presses RESET button on stopwatch
8. Repeat until 15 times have been recorded

NOTES:

Have the Data collectors practice starting, stopping and resetting the stopwatches.

Slide #9 - Day l - Groups of 4 - Production Cycle Sequence

Data plotter/inspector reviews output for errors. Errors are:
1. Letter(s) not printed or missing
2. Letter(s) not capitalized
3. Word(s) misspelled

Add 1 second to the recorded time for the card(s) with an error

Using the Red pen, the Data plotter plots the Day 1's production data on the graph

NOTES:

When the 15 cycles for Day 1 are completed, the Data Collector will inspect the output and adjust the recorded cycle times for any cards that contain an error.

The data can then be plotted on the graph transparency with the Red pen.

Slide # 10 - Day 1 - Pairs - Production Cycle Sequence

Data collector reviews output for errors. Errors are:
1. Letter(s) not printed or missing
2. Letter(s) not capitalized
3. Word(s) misspelled

Add 1 second to the recorded time for the card(s) with an error

Using the Red pen, plot the Day 1's production data on the graph

NOTES:

When the 15 cycles for Day 1 are completed, the Data Collector will inspect the output and adjust the recorded cycle times for any cards that contain an error.

The data can then be plotted on the graph transparency with the Red pen.

Slide # 11: STATISTICAL CONTROL

NOTES:

The aim is to produce 15 cards with the phrase "STATISTICAL CONTROL" printed on them and collect data on how long writing each phrase takes.

"STATISTICAL CONTROL" is to be:
1. printed
2. all caps
3. a capital "I" must have cross bars top and bottom
4. The letters "L" and "T" are to look like the one
in the sample, as should all the other letters.

Day 1 output should like this (show slide)

Slide # 12 - Day 2 - Production Cycle Sequence

The process you are going to follow in Day 2 is the same as in Day 1...except for one change.

The same rules for data collection and inspection apply.

Using the Green pen, plot Day 2's production data on the graph

The process change is to, beginning with the letter "S", only print every other letter.

NOTES:

Ask the Printers to turn over or removed all Day 1 output. Do not create cheat cheats from which to work during Day 2.

READ: "A cross-functional team made up of workers and managers has come up with a process that will reduce your workload by half."

"This change should be an improvement and should result in shorter cycle times."

"The process you are going to follow in Day 2 is the same as in Day 1...except for one change. The change that we want you to make to the process is to only print every other letter in the phrase "STATISTICAL CONTROL". The same rules for data collection and inspection apply.

"So you will begin by printing the letter "S" and then complete the production cycle by printing every other letter after the letter "S".

"The same inspection rules will apply, except the spelling will be judged using the change to the process. Data for Day 2 will be plotted on the graph with the Green pen.

"Keep the same job that you had in Day 1. You have been given sufficient instructions. Your objective is clear. Begin Day 2 production."

Day 1 process is repeated

Using the Green pen, plot the Day 2's production data on the graph

Slide # 13 - SAITCL OTO

The aim is to produce 15 cards with the phrase "STATISTICAL CONTROL" printed on them and collect data on how long writing each phrase takes. "STATISTICAL CONTROL" is to be:
1. printed
2. all caps
3. a capital "I" must have cross bars top and bottom
4. The letters "L" and "T" are to look like the one in the sample, as should all the other letters.

Day 2 output should look like this (show slide)

NOTES:

Some of the observations that may be made are:

Habit --Reduced mental effort comes from familiarity with performing a process.
Changes in a process result in the need to learn new habits, and increase mental effort.
Forming new habits requires effort.
Focusing on short-term results will encourage abandoning efforts that lead to the formation of new habits.
More variation during the learning curve.
Lack of operational definition prevented immediate improvement.
Experience is an output.

Our theory was that 1/2 the letters = 1/2 the time. We gathered data to test the theory. The data supported the theory in most cases. A person with dyslexia may never achieve statistical control.

Slide #14 - Observations, Continued

Changes is not comfortable.
Team didn't and wasn't allowed to help the printer. Let printer struggle alone.
Time became the priority. Be careful what you want to measure, you may get it.
If the task goes against the "nature" of the operator, additional aids will be needed.
Measurement systems affect results.
The lack of visual aids or visual controls cause increased variation and frustration.

Slide #15 - Through the Lens of Profound Knowledge

Form into groups of 6 - 8 people
Select a scribe to record ideas on flipchart
Discuss the Learning Curve Activity from the viewpoint of the assigned part of Profound Knowledge
1. - Appreciation for a system
2. - Knowledge about variation
3. - Theory of knowledge
4. - Psychology

Select three items to share with the group (time permitting, all will be used)

NOTES:

This is an optional approach to de-briefing the exercise with the group you are working with if it has an understanding of the system of profound knowledge.

Slide # 16 - How do these Experiments apply?

* The actions, concepts, and thought processes that are followed in learning any new task, process, or system are unfamiliar to us (in the sequence and patterns followed)
* The first several attempts at applying a new approach may feel awkward
* This new knowledge may seem to take more time and effort than your current methods of work and learning
* Gaining the benefits of a new process requires working through the learning curve by following many cycles.

Slide # 17 - Some Lessons

1. Habit
a. Reduced mental effort comes from familiarity with performing a process
b. Changes in a process result in the need to learn new habits, and increase mental effort
2. Forming new habits requires effort
3. Focus on short-term results will encourage abandoning efforts that lead to the formation of new habits

NOTES:

Habits are patterns of behavior Change the pattern and even though the individual components of the pattern are known/familiar to you, when the flow of actions is changed, the work becomes more difficult to perform.

Part of the knowledge you possess concerning the act of writing words is in how the letters are connected. Change the connections and you lose the ability to apply/and use that knowledge.

Learning has meaning beyond the individual letters. It is the meaning contained in the word and all the grammatical rules you have learned which allow you to write the word quickly, not simply your knowledge of the individual letters.

The theory used predicts a 1/2 reduction in cycle time. The predictions are not borne out in the results. Why? The overall work involved (the system of work) did not change by 1/2. Only a small portion of the work in the system was eliminated.

Slide # 18 - Applying the P-D-S-A Cycle

Current Knowledge gathered
Theory/Aim developed
[PDSA Cycle Graphic]
Plan
Do
Study
Act

NOTES:

Current knowledge gathered:

The process is documented
Data were collected from the process
Errors in the process are known
We can answer these questions:
What are we trying to accomplish? (reduced cycle time)
How will we know a change is an improvement? (cycle times will consistently be lower than previous levels)
What changes can we make that will lead to improvement? (see Theory developed)

Theory Developed

Letter writing taking a great deal of time
Reducing the time spent writing letters should reduce cycle time
Reducing the number of letters by 1/2 should reduce the cycle time by 1/2

Plan

Apply the theory to the current production process for one day's production
Train the organization - Minimal training is needed since we are only removing steps from a process that is already familiar to everyone
Measure the process using the measurement process that is currently in place

Slide # 19 - Applying the P-D-S-A Cycle

Current Knowledge gathered

Theory developed
[PDSA Cycle graphic]
Plan
Do
Study
Act

DO:

Performed test with the revised process step.
Collected data as planned
Observed
Discuss Printers experience

STUDY

Use graphs to discuss
Compared results to predicted results
The results were not exactly as expected
Our theory was partially correct, but the patterns of data might help us learn something new, to develop a new theory about change, learning, process improvement, etc.
We did not address the issue of defects in our plan and some observations indicate our defect rate may have increased. We might study that data, too.

ACT

We can adopt the change, it appears to be an improvement
We can re-test to see if the effect is long-term while also observing defect rates more carefully.
Abandoning the change, does not appear to be a useful alternative

T/E-10 - THE GREEN M & M'S PRODUCTION COMPANY

PURPOSE:

Allow group to experience the difference between motivating forces and dissatisfiers potentially exist in any work environment.
Demonstrate the power of the motivating force.
Reinforce System Theory

MATERIALS NEEDED:
Each group will need a small bag ($.59) of M & M's
Flip Chart, with markers

GROUP SIZE: 10-25 people divided into teams of 5

ARRANGEMENTS: You will need sufficient space for the groups to meet and complete the exercise on the floor.

CONTRIBUTED BY: Robert Crow, The Crow Group, 250 Thornton Drive, Fayetteville, Georgia 30214, (770)41-1177, FAX: (770) 461-1177, E-Mail jr1crow@mindspring.com.

SOURCE: Unknown, have been using this for 25 years.

DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITY: See attached.

THE GREEN M & M'S PRODUCTION COMPANY

Position the exercise as you would the Red Beads exercise.

I usually use this after a discussion of Systems. The participants already know what a system is, the flow of information, materials, etc. through the system. The importance of having and aim for the system, and that everyone in the system know what the aim is and how they contribute to that aim.

Divide the group into production teams of 5. Each team will consist of one production worker, two inspectors, one chief inspector and a recorder. Give the groups a couple of minutes to decide what role each member will play.

Give each group a small bag ($.59) of M & M's. Explain that they are not to open the bag until instructed to do so. There is a special method of doing this that was developed by your management team. It is a good idea to explain this before giving each group the M & M's as I have had groups immediately open the bag.

Explain that the company has a new customer. Management has worked to gain this business, and if we are successful this can be the salvation of the company. If we are not successful in meeting the customers'needs then our future is doubtful.

This new customer wants Green M & M's. There is the possibility of producing other products such as Red, or Brown M & M's in the future, but first they want to determine our ability to produce Green products.

Accordingly your management team has worked hard at developing a method for meeting the customers demands. It is very critical that you listen carefully and follow the procedures exactly so that we can satisfy the customers needs. There is an almost unlimited demand for this product, so the more you can produce the better.

PRODUCTION PROCESS:

The Production Worker will take the bag in his/her left hand, and with the right hand tear a small opening in the top of the bag so that one M & M can be ejected from the bag at a time. A production run will consist of 10 M & M's.

Once the Production Worker has ejected 10 M & M's from the bag the two Inspectors will check the work and jointly agree on the number of Green M & M's produced. They will report their findings to the Chief Inspector who will check the work, and finding it accurate, will report the numbers to the Recorder who will call out the number of Green M & M's when production reports are asked for.

PRODUCTION BONUSES

Explain that this work is so important to the future of the company that we are taking the unprecedented step of paying production bonuses to the team producing the most Green M & M's at the end of each production run. We are doing this to emphasis the importance of this work to the company's future.

DO ROUND ONE OF PRODUCTION

Pay production bonuses to the most productive team. I usually make a brief talk in appreciation of their dedication to the process, and give each member a penny.

If you have a team or teams that produced no Green M & M's question their ability to follow directions. After all this process was developed by management, and we know that it works. The fact that one team produced X number of Green M & M's demonstrates that the process works well.

PROJECTION

If your team produced 3 Green M & M's in the first production run and there are a total of 50 M&M's in the bag then what would you project the total number of Green M&M's in the bag to be? The production run of 10 represents 1/5 of the total in the bag so 5 x 3 = 15. Get the projected number of Green M&M's from each group and write them on the flip chart.

CONSTRUCT CONTROL CHART

Next do a control chart using the projected numbers. Note: By using the projected numbers you will be able to demonstrate that as your production runs increase the system becomes more stable.

Example of Round one:

Production

Team 1 = 3 greens
Team 2 = 0 greens
Team 3 = 2 greens
Team 4 = 1 green

Projections (1st run times 5)

Team 1 = 15 greens
Team 2 = 0 greens
Team 3 = 10 greens
Team 4 = 5 green
Total = 30 greens
Average= 7.5
UCL = 12.71
LCL = 2.29

In our first round of production the system is unstable having lots of variation. As you complete each round of production remove the control chart and tape it to the wall. This will allow you to compare each round of production, and will demonstrate that as the sample size goes up the variation is reduced. Dr. Deming states that the job of management is prediction. If we have a system that is unstable (lots of special cause variation) it is very difficult for management to predict the future. This makes it difficult to predict production, quality, cost, etc..

However if you have a stable system, with very little variation, and with lots of data to support our predictions, then management can say with some assurance to the customer, we can hit our delivery dates, meet your cost requirements, and assure you of a quality product. This is another reason to collect data and use control charts.

ROUND TWO OF PRODUCTION

Do round two after an inspiring speech regarding your confidence in the work force, and the importance of their work.

Once again give out production bonuses, and question those producing no Green M & M's.

Do your projection once again. We have now had a production run of 20 so that 2/5 of the bag has been ejected. Add these totals to the first round and determine the projected number of Green M&M's in the bag.

Round 1 production 3 0 2 1 Round 2 production 1 2 3 0 Totals = 4 2 5 1 Projected numbers are 10 5 12.5 2.5 Do a second control chart

Example of Round two:

Production

Team 1 = 1 greens
Team 2 = 2 greens
Team 3 = 3 greens
Team 4 = 0 green

Projections (1st & 2nd run times 2.5)

Team 1 = 10.0 greens
Team 2 = 5.0 greens
Team 3 = 12.5 greens
Team 4 = 2.5 green
Total = 30.0 greens
Average= 7.5
UCL = 12.71
LCL = 2.29

[continue the control chart diagram]
The system is becoming more stable.

ROUND THREE OF PRODUCTION

Example of Round three:

Production

Team 1 = 0 greens
Team 2 = 1 greens
Team 3 = 1 greens
Team 4 = 3 green

Projections (1st, 2nd run & 3rd times 1.66)

Team 1 = 6.64 greens
Team 2 = 4.98 greens
Team 3 = 9.96 greens
Team 4 = 6.64 green
Total = 28.22greens
Average= 7.05
UCL = 12.01
LCL = 2.01

[Construct another control chart.]

Note that as the sample size goes up the variation goes down. You can then do a fourth and possibly even a 5th round of production. With each round the variation between the groups should come down, but you may have a bag of M&M's that contains more or less than the average number of Green M&M's.

This exercise will demonstrate the power of the system to control what a group can produce. It will also demonstrate that production bonuses or punishment are of little value. The system controls what people can produce.

You will also note that the groups will begin to compete even though you have not said anything about competition. The fact that they are working independently, and you are paying production bonuses will cause the competition. This may even drive some groups to cheat. Last year while questioning a production team on their ability to follow the procedures (In the first round they had produced no Green M&M's. The lady, who was the production worker, said, "That group cheated." "What do you mean?" I asked. "They manipulated their M&M's until they found a Green one." Ah ha, caught in the act. The group next to her was so committed to producing green M&M's that this had in fact let them to cheat, and they were caught. They were making the numbers look good.

You can question the group on why the production bonuses, on quota's did not work. The group will see that to improve the production you must improve the process.

You can then do some brainstorming on how the process could be improved to enable the company to produce more product.

SOME IDEAS ARE:

Go the supplier, ask the supplier to provide you with bags with more or only Green M&M's.
Take all of the M&M's out of the bag at once instead of production runs of ten.
Go to the customer and see if you can develop a market for other colors.
Reorganize the production teams with fewer members so that you can get more bags into the process with each round.

CREATING A MOTIVATING WORK ENVIRONMENT - JOY IN WORK

This will be a discussion of various motivational theories, but first let's look at fear. What are some things people are afraid of?

Write the participants responses on the flip chart. Probe the group until you have 10 to 12 responses on the chart.

Maslow said that fear could prompt a person to take action. Could motivate people. Where did early man spend most of his time? He was a hunter gather in a very dangerous environment. Survival, or basic physical needs were of paramount importance.

On the bottom of the flip chart write SURVIVAL.

If you were in this kind of environment what are some things you might want to do? If you look at what we know about early man what are some things he did to give himself a better chance at survival?

Get responses. In doing these things what was he trying to accomplish? He was seeking more security. On the flip chart just above survival write SECURITY.

As mankind developed agriculture it was possible to settle down in one place. To build more permanent structures, to develop additional skills. The population began to grow rapidly. As populations increased what became more important? An ability to fit in. Above security write SOCIAL ACCEPTANCE.

As man became more aware of himself, and his accomplishments how did he begin to feel about himself? He gained self-esteem. Above social acceptance write SELF-ESTEEM.

As man continued to advance he developed writing, law, mathematics, architecture, and various other skills which we consider a part of modern man. Man is constantly reaching out, trying to be more, trying to learn more, constantly learning. Maslow called this SELF-ACTUALIZATION.

Now draw a triangle around the words written on the flip chart and briefly discuss Maslow's hierarchy of human needs.

LET'S LOOK AT HOW THIS WOULD APPLY TO A MODERN COMPANY

When a person comes to work for y you what basic needs are met? Survival and Security. The job will product income which will enable him/her to provide food, clothing, shelter. Many jobs also include benefits such as health care, sick leave, retirement, accident leave. There are laws in place which protect the employee from arbitrary firing.

Will Social Acceptance automatically be covered as a result of having a job? No. While our society values work, and a person's status in the community may be enhanced by virtue of having a job this does not automatically mean that they will be accepted by their fellow workers. As a supervisor when you get a new person what do you do? Generally you spend some time taking them around introducing them to the other people they will be working with? Why do you do this? You want to help them fit in. Why do you want them to fit in? If they don't fit you could have problems down the road.

Social Acceptance is a two way street. Both parties, the new workers, and the existing work force will work toward making this happen.

As this person begins to learn and develop skills, what can you do as the supervisor to help them develop a sense of self-esteem? Provide them with feedback on a regular basis on how they are doing. This person will also get feedback from his/her fellow workers, and as they gain knowledge of what is important about their work will get feedback from the work itself.

Why would you want to help a person work toward Self-Actualization? Being the best he or she can be. Certainly this person will require very little management on your part, and will help the group move forward. Pull this information from the group.

AS A PERSON'S LIFE SITUATION CHANGES WILL THEIR NEEDS CHANGE? YES

16 year old living at home, has food, clothing, shelter, the use of the family car on Saturday night. What would prompt him to get a part time job working 20 hours a week? Wants his own car. Why, what needs are he trying to satisfy? Social Acceptance will go way up with his own car. Independence, doesn't need to come to you for the family car. His girl friend will be impressed. Self-Esteem, pride of ownership. Enhanced Social Acceptance will influence this also. Self-Actualization. Want to be a good drive, customize car, special paint, twin exhausts, etc.

Age him two years. Finished high school, now in the army, and participating in a little exercise called Desert Store. What are his needs now? Survival, wants to come back alive to pick up his life again. Security, Social Acceptance. How about Self-Esteem, how important will this be at this point in time?

Now let's age him a couple of more years, he's back home, has his part time job back, his car off of the blocks, he's dating a girl down the street. What might cause him to enroll in a Jr. College? What needs is he trying to satisfy? Why would his girl friend want him to get some more education? Maybe thinking about her future. Maybe where his friends are? He may be thinking about the future. More education translates into a better paying job.

He's now 23 years of age and he gets married. Why did he do this? Why do people get married? Is it love? Think back to when you were 23, when you saw one of your uncles or aunts, what did they say? When are you getting married? When you saw all of your friends getting married what did you think? Social pressures are very strong. The need to conform to what society wants is powerful.

Age 24, completes his studies and is ready to seek that first real job. What kind of job will he be looking for? He will want something with a future, not just a job.

Age 25, first child. What is a very important need that will rise up at this time? Who did you get lots of correspondence from when your first child arrived? Insurance companies. Security now becomes a big issue. Why? Its no longer just you. You have responsibilities that will last for the rest of your life.

Age 26, first promotion. How will he feel about this? He will hit the ground above every 10 feet. His self-esteem will overflow. He may also begin looking beyond this promotion to what comes next. After he has had an opportunity to settle down some other things will begin to creep in. He had good security as a worker. Will he be as secure in his new position? He had good acceptance as a worker? Will he be able to gain the same acceptance as a supervisor. He was good at what he did. Will those skills carry over into his new position or will others skills need to be developed? It is ironic that just when a person has achieved a promotion and is riding high other things begin to creep in and you realize that it's a whole new ball game.

IS IT POSSIBLE TO MOTIVATE PEOPLE?

The group will generally agree that it is. What are some characteristics of a motivated person? You have seen people who are motivated, what are they like? You have been motivated at times, what were some things you experienced at that time? Prod the group until you get 7 to 9 characteristics on the flip chart, then flip it over and ask your next question.

You said earlier that it is possible to motivate people, how do you do this? Write their responses on the flip chart. The group will start off very positive. Positive reinforcement, feedback, having goals, etc. Continue to probe until someone says fear, threats, when all else fails, threaten them. Can you motivate with fear? You will see nods of agreement and some will disagree.

EXAMPLE OF THE USE OF FEAR TO MOTIVATE:

I want my dog to come to me, so I call him. He doesn't move. I go over, giving him a good swift kick, and tell him that when I call he had better come to me. I then call the dog again and he comes to me. Have I motivated that dog? The group will now be somewhat confused. While I got the dog to come, they don't like my method. So I ask, "did I get the dog to come to me?" They will reluctantly agree that I have done that.

ANOTHER EXAMPLE:

I have an 8-year-old son that I want to clean up his room. So I say, "Son I want you to clean up your room." His reply, "No, I don't want to do that!" What will be my response? Chances are that my parental blood will rise to the occasion, and I will say something like, "Let me tell you something boy, if you don't get back there right now and clean that room your hide won't hold chucks." He goes back and cleans the room. Did I motivate him? Once again the group will be somewhat confused. You got the room cleaned, but they don't like your technique. Now flip the chart back over that had the characteristics of a motivated person. Ask, "When my son was back there cleaning that room, how many of these characteristics did he have? None! So, did I motivate? I got the job done. You can get the job done with fear, but its not motivation. Who was motivated? I was motivated. I wanted the dog to come and the room cleaned. The dog came and the son cleaned.

Flip back to Maslow's needs. With the first three levels you are working with compliance. Basic needs of the job. People are doing the basic requirements of the job. To get above that you must move to the top two. Can you motivate people? No, motivation comes from within the person. It is possible to create a motivating work environment, and that is done with Tinker Toys.

T/E-11 - Motivation Theory using Tinker Toys

ACTIVITY: Motivation Theory using Tinker Toys

PURPOSE:

Allow group to experience the difference between motivating forces and dissatisfiers potentially exist in any work environment.
Demonstrate the power of the motivating force.
Reinforce System Theory

MATERIALS NEEDED:
Two boxes of Tinker Toys, preferably well worn
Flip Chart, with markers

GROUP SIZE: 10-25 people divided into two groups

ARRANGEMENTS: You will need sufficient space for the groups to meet and complete the exercise on the floor.

CONTRIBUTED BY: Robert Crow, The Crow Group, 250 Thornton Drive, Fayetteville, Georgia 30214, (770)41-1177, FAX: (770) 461-1177, E-Mail jr1crow@mindspring.com.

SOURCE: Unknown, have been using this for 25 years.

DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITY: See attached.

Divide the group into two groups and give each group a box of tinker toys.

They will have 20 minutes to plan and organize the group then 1 minute to build the highest freestanding structure possible. Explain that during the 20 minutes for planning there are no restrictions. They can take the tinker toys out of the box, count them, draw diagrams anything they want except they can't put the parts together. You want one group to work at the front of the room, the other at the back, and you want the structure to be built on the floor.

Let the planning begin. Monitor the groups to see that they don't begin building structures. You can't put the parts together! Answer any questions they have, tell them they have 10 minutes, 5, minutes, 1 minute of planning time left.

Planning time is up. Are both groups ready? Verify that both groups are ready to begin. Explain that you will give them a Ready, Set, Go, and then when one minute has passed you will say Time is Up. At that time everyone must step back from the structure. The structure must be free standing.

Oh, I forgot something, everything must go back in the box. That way we have an even start. Many groans will be heard, but they will put the parts back in the box. Have both groups put all parts of the tinker toys back into the box. Tell the groups that they do not have to put the top back on the box. We would not want to handicap you.

Once again verify that the groups are ready. Oh, something else, during the construction process there can be no talking. Again groans. Give them a ready set go, then when a minute has passed say time is up.

See which group has the highest structure, ask the groups to put everything back in the box and have a seat.

DISSATISFIERS:

On the flip chart write, Dissatisfiers. Ask, "What about this exercise was dissatisfying?"

Examples they will give are:

Not enough time
Lack of training
Defective materials, use old tinker toys with some broken pieces
Poor work area
Poor planning
Lack of experienced workers
Last minute changes
Couldn't communicate

Ask, where have you heard these before? You hear these at work. You may at times say some of them yourself. The dissatisfiers are naturally occurring phenomena that are potentially present in any work environment. They are caused by management neglect and ignorance of the needs of the work force. Can you eliminate the dissatisfiers? No, but some people make a career out of trying. It's called fire fighting. They are good at it. If a fire isn't burning they will start one so they can go dashing to the rescue. We must be aware of the dissatisfiers and keep them to a minimum.

MOTIVATORS:

On the flip chart next to dissatisfiers write Motivators. Ask, "What about this exercise was motivating?"

You will usually get four things. At times a group will add we won, or it was a change of pace. If the groups says it write it down.

We had a clearly defined goal
It was a challenge
There was teamwork
There was competition

What was the goal? The highest free standing structure possible in one minute.

The challenge was to see how high you could build it. All groups seem to enjoy getting down on the floor together and sharing ideas and working together to build the structure.

Did we have competition? The group will say yes. Challenge this. What was our goal? Highest freestanding structure possible in one minute, not who can build the highest. The group will now protest that by virtue of dividing the group into two groups you get competition, and this is true, but I did not say thing about competition. This reinforces Deming's concept that the system must be managed otherwise it deteriorates into competing factions. The lesson here is that the two groups could have worked together, could have combined their resources, but for their interpretation of the competition. Management must be aware of this natural tendency in our culture, and try to design out things which cause internal competition, to create a more focused internal working environment.

Now ask, "How do you feel about this exercise, was it more motivating or more dissatisfying? While the group will have listed two to three times more dissatisfiers than motivators they will agree that the exercise was more motivating.

WHY?

There was a clearly defined goal. You can relate this back to the system and the importance of having an aim for the system. What is our purpose? The aim shapes the system. In this case it was a shared aim. Deming says that the aim must permeate the system. Everyone must know the aim of the system.

Team work. There was no formal leader. What I have observed is that during the 20 minutes the group has for planning the leadership may change several times at different stages of the planning process. In this exercise the people are equal. There is no rank. Each person is free to share his or her ideas with the group, and the group can accept or reject the input.

Feedback - While this won't generally come out as one of the motivators, when you say time is up both groups will immediately look to see where the other group is. This reinforces the idea that feedback must be immediate and frequent. Feedback can also be provided in the form of charts and graphs that show a group how well a process or system is working. These feedback loops also help people feel part of the process, and are a way of stimulating involvement.

INTRINSIC VS. EXTRINSIC MOTIVATION

Lead the group in a discussion of the difference between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. What parts of the exercise were extrinsic and what parts were intrinsic. How could you tie this to the organization as a system, and use it to create a motivating work environment or create an environment in which people take joy in work.

MCGREGOR'S THEORY X/Y

Lead the group in a discussion on the difference between these two theories of human behavior. What was McGreggor talking about? How would management's concept of people influence management style? If you are a Theory X manager how will you manage? If you are a Theory Y manager how would you manage? How will the management style of your boss influence your behavior? How will the system of the culture of the organization you are a part of influence your behavior? How does this tie into Deming's concept of the transformation beginning with the individual?

FREDERICK HERZBERG HYGIENE VS. MOTIVATORS

How do Herzberg's Motivators (Achievement, Recognition, Work itself, Responsibility, Advancement, and Growth) compare with the motivating forces? Are we talking about the same thing? Compare Herzberg's hygiene factors (Company policy and administration, Supervision, Relationship with supervisor, Work conditions, Salary, Relationship with peers, Personal life, Relationship with subordinates, Status, Security) compare with the dissatisfiers? What is the difference between creating a motivating work environment and motivating people?

Trainer's Exchange Format:

The following format is used to document Trainer's Exchange exercises. If you would like to have one or more of your exercises posted here, send the file to Jim Clauson using the following outline (MS Word is preferred, but other formats can be transferred).

TITLE OF EXERCISE

PURPOSE:

MATERIALS NEEDED:

TIME

GROUP SIZE:

ARRANGEMENTS:

CONTRIBUTED BY:

SOURCE:

PERMISSION TO SHARE:

DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITY:

INSTRUCTOR NOTES:

Acknowledgements:

MIT/CAES for the use of their Deming image.
SPC Press for the use of their Deming background image.
Clemson University for the use of their CQI server and support.
Del Kimbler for his technical support for the DEN.

The URL for this page is http://deming.ces.clemson.edu/pub/den/deming_trainers.htm

This page was created by Jim Clauson on 05OCT97 and last updated 03DEC97.

http://curiouscat.net/guides/qglink.cfm?URL=http://www.gembakaizen.com/

All about Kaizan

Introduction to KAIZEN^®

KAIZEN^® as originally defined in the book of:
"KAIZEN^®, the Key to Japan's Competitive Success", by Mr. Masaaki Imai, is:
KAIZEN^® means improvement. Moreover, KAIZEN^® means continuing improvement in personal life, home life, social life, and working life. When applied to the workplace KAIZEN^® means continuing improvement involving everyone - managers and workers alike.

KAIZEN^® is a Japanese word meaning gradual and orderly, continuous improvement. The KAIZEN^® business strategy involves everyone in an organization working together to make improvements 'without large capital investments'. KAIZEN^® is a culture of sustained continuous improvement focusing on eliminating waste in all systems and processes of an organization. The KAIZEN^® strategy begins and ends with people. With KAIZEN^®, an involved leadership guides people to continuously improve their ability to meet expectations of high quality, low cost, and on-time delivery. KAIZEN^® transforms companies into 'Superior Global Competitors'

Two Elements of KAIZEN^®

There are two elements that construct KAIZEN^®, improvement/change for the better and ongoing/continuity. Lacking one of those elements would not be considered KAIZEN^®. For instance, the expression of "business as usual" contains the element of continuity without improvement. On the other hand, the expression of "breakthrough" contains the element of change or improvement without continuity. KAIZEN^® should contain both elements.

KAIZEN^® Concept in Our Individual Life

KAIZEN^®, as you could learn from the definition, is a common word and very natural to individual, continuous improvement in personal life, home life, social life and working life. Everybody deserves to and should be willing to improve himself/herself for the better continually. "If a man has not been seen for three days, his friends should take a good look at him to see what changes have befallen him" quoted from the old Japanese saying, describes how natural KAIZEN^® is.

Maintenance, Innovation, and KAIZEN^®

In our concepts, three functions should happen simultaneously within any organizations: Maintenance, Innovation, and KAIZEN^®.

By maintenance, we refer to maintaining the current status, the procedures are set and the standards are implemented. People in the lower level of organization maintain the standards. By Innovation, we refer to breakthrough activities initiated by top management, buying new machines, new equipment, developing new markets, directing R&D, change of strategy etc. In the middle there is KAIZEN^®, small steps but continuing improvement. The lower/middle management and the workers with the encouragement and direction of the top should implement KAIZEN^®. The top managements responsibility is to cultivate a KAIZEN^® working climate and culture in the organization.

http://deming.eng.clemson.edu/pub/tutorials/qctools/stdntndx.htm

Here are some nice statistical tools for measuring quality.

http://www.goalqpc.com/tqmwheel.htm

Some nice diagram on TQM

1. TQM/L Decision
Top management's decision to implement TQM – the CEO's and top management's commitment to TQM

2. Customer Focus
Understand the customer – the core of the entire TQM process. Defining the "Voice of the Customer" is used to facilitate this understanding.

3. Critical Processes
Identify and evaluate critical processes – the necessary steps taken to meet and exceed customer needs.

4. Initial Teams
Initial pilot project teams – how various employees begin to get involved in TQM (may focus on critical processes).

5. 5-Year Plan
Assess organization and create 5-year plan – based on a thorough assessment, breakthrough objectives are established.

6. Managing Momentum
Managing TQM momentum – beginning of phase 2 organization-wide implementation.

7. Hoshin Planning
Achieving breakthrough objectives through Hoshin Planning – the vision and master plan guide managers to achieve breakthrough objectives.

8. Daily Management
Daily management and standardization – allows employees to contribute to the TQM effort by making individual job improvements.

9. New Teams
New functional and cross-functional teams – builds alignment through organization-wide interaction.

10. Evaluate Progress
Review TQM progress and revise 5-year plan – plans for the future are based upon careful analyses of the successes and failures of the past year's efforts.

The GOAL/QPC TQM Wheel and the Ten-Element Model

The GOAL/QPC TQM Wheel

What is TQM?
Total Quality Management (TQM) is a structured system for meeting and exceeding customer needs and expectations by creating organization-wide participation in the planning and implementation of improvement (continuous and breakthrough) processes.

Why TQM?
In a global marketplace a major characteristic that will distinguish those organizations that are successful will be the quality of leadership, management, employees, work processes, product, and service. This means that products must not only meet customer and community needs for value, they must be provided in a continuously improving, timely, cost-effective, innovative, and productive manner.

The GOAL/QPC Ten Element Model


View a printer friendly version

GOAL/QPC’s Synthesis
There are a variety of strategies being used to implement quality management. These include a "guru" approach, a "quality award" approach, and an ala carte (pick a few pieces of different things and try them) approach. From observation and direct experience with companies implementing TQM, as well as an analysis and critique of different TQM implementation strategies, GOAL/QPC constructed a TQM Wheel to provide a holistic view, and a Ten-Element Model to outline an implementation strategy that allows organizations to get started fairly quickly and begin to improve effectiveness, even though it will take several years to become fully operational. A suggested method for operationalizing TQM is explained in GOAL/QPC’s 63-page Research Report, Total Quality Management Master Plan: An Implementation Strategy.

TQM Evolves
What is called TQM has never stood still. As with any dynamic management system, TQM has continuously evolved over the last half of the Twentieth Century. GOAL/QPC has been an active partner in this evolution since 1980.

While numerous improvements have been made throughout the world, the elements that make up the TQM Wheel and Ten Element Model are foundational to good quality management.

In today’s world, two of the most effective and popular "new" management models are Lean and Six Sigma. Both of these models utilize the basic TQM elements and add on some extra refinements to achieve a more robust and powerful system for customer-focused product and service excellence that also focuses on optimizing costs and profits.

GOAL/QPC’s newest product offerings are in this Lean Enterprise and Six Sigma domain.

12B Manor Parkway • Salem, NH 03079 • 800.643.4316
Sales Direct: 603.893.1944 • Fax: 603.870.9122
Email us: service@goalqpc.com • webteam@goalqpc.com

Memory Joggers. l . Site Map. l .Course Schedule. l .About GOAL/QPC. l .Journal

http://deming.ces.clemson.edu/pub/tqmbbs/train-exchange/games.txt

QUALITY GAMES FOR GROUPS

[This file consists of a series of messages exchanged on the TQM-L list among trainers in quality. Each offers a game or exercise

useful in a training setting. To provide feedback or ask

questions, see the addresses provided with each text.]

 PDCA Card Game

 This activity is designed to illustrate the benefits of the PDCA

cycle.  Prior to the activity you will need to presort several

decks of cards.  Arrange the decks so that each deck has eights

aces, eight 2s, eight 3s, and so on through eight 10s.  Do not

use the face cards.  There should be 80 cards in the deck. Eight

of each number ace through 10.

FIRST (The old way)

 Give out one deck to each team.  Don't tell them anything about

the cards yet, like total number of points or anything else.

They may not touch the cards at all until the trainer says "GO".

Tell them the object is to divide the cards as evenly as possible

among the team members according to point value on the face of

the cards.  Ace counts 1 point, 10 counts 10 points, all others

count the actual number (2 counts 2, 3 counts 3, etc.).  Member

totals may vary by one point.  Say "GO" and stop them after 30

seconds.  Did they get them all divided evenly?  Probably not.

 Put the cards back in the middle of each table and tell them

once again that they can't touch the cards until you say "GO".

 Go on to the plan stage.

PLAN

 Briefly explain the concept of PDCA.  Tell them they will now

have a chance to "plan" how to divide the cards equally before

actually doing it.  Tell them anything they want to know about

the cards now. Give them about 5-10 minutes.  Be clear that they

are not to touch the cards until you say "GO". Most teams will go

to great lengths to get their hands on the cards (one team even

spilled water on their cards so they could spread them over the

table to dry, face-up.)  After most of the teams have their plan

together, tell them they have 2 minutes to execute their plans,

say "GO".

DO

 Let them execute their plans and time them (you may want to put

a grid on a flipchart to record their times).  They will probably

take 1.5-4 minutes here.

CHECK

 Have the teams discuss at their tables how they can improve

their process.  Again, they may not touch the cards until you say

"GO". After 3-5 minutes, say "GO".

ACT

 Let them execute their improved plans.  Many will come very

close to the original 30 second time allotment.  Record the new

times, almost everyone will improve.

Discuss as a large group the various processes and improvements.

Review the concept of PDCA.

Well, that's it for today.  Hope others have ideas they are

willing to share.  Let's all grow together in our ability to

communicate the quality concepts to our students.

Dave Vollmer

Chippewa Valley Technical College

620 W Clairemont Avenue

Eau Claire, WI 54701

715-833-6510

715-833-6470  (fax)

DVollmer@mail.chippewa.tec.wi.us

------------------------------

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 09 Dec 1994 09:35:48 MST

From: Jim Campbell <hum_mgr03@hg.uleth.ca>

To: learning-org@world.std.com

Subject: Re: Boring firms `are killing creativity' in the

workplace

A thought on the Boring Firms Killing Creativity issue that in my

mind belongs in the discussion, Organizational understanding, and

a technique that is both illustrative and instructive. I was

preparing for a presentation to 100 people on team building, the

title of which was "Team Building: Tuning Up Your Response

Ability".

The technique consisted of a ball of wool long enough to

connect 30 - 40  people, the ball is handed to one person who

makes one wrap around their hand and then passes the ball to

someone of their choosing, and so on until the ball is exhausted.

The result is that they weave a "cat's cradle" linking the group

together in a "random" way. I put the quotes around random

because each new link is founded on the basis of a good idea at

the time the ball is passed. I then compare this living metaphor

to the evolution of organizations, any organization, YOUR

organization. All of the links were built on the basis of a good

idea or good need at the time with all the care and thinking of

the deciding group (guided of misguided). The point is that the

organization did not evolve through premeditation or with the

intent to damage at the decision time. It is most often in the

hind sight that the decision may look bad.

NO ONE is to Blame.

That final statement usually gets a little discussion going,

ranging from there must be someone at fault after all look at the

mess, to I never thought about the way we got here, to what's

the next step. That evolutionary process is well developed and is

the working model for most decision making within

organizations today.

The shift that has to take place at various points in the

developing process is at some point some group or individual

has to sort out some of the mess and make it into a more orderly

process. A big challenge in a big organization. Why not just

leave it boring rather than risk the slings and arrows from those

who must experience the change.

The final point is the need to develop full system/organizational

perspective in everyone. If we are to be able to change and

survive, we will need all of the collaboration, cooperation,

ideas and knowledge, at every level in the organization, to

reorder the cat's cradle. The dialogue base that can develop from

here, in support of the reorder, may be of the think-pair-share

progression I mentioned observing in my introductory note.

I find this No Fault perspective a very effective discussion

leader in freeing the thinking for experienced managers and board

of directors workshops that I facilitate. Seeming to free up the

thinking into where do we go from here.

Your Thoughts.............please..

Jim Campbell  Email: Campbell@HG.ULeth.CA

              Phone: (403) 329-2753 Fax: (403) 329-2685

    Training & Development, Human Resources

    University of Lethbridge

    4401 University Dr., Lethbridge, Alberta,  Canada T1K 3M4

_______________________________

Date:    Thu, 15 Dec 1994 07:25:30 CST

From:    robisj@uwwvax.uww.edu

Subject: Re: Trainers Exchange

I am reminded of another  exercise (this exercise does not teach

procedures) regarding operational definitions.  It uses animal

crackers.  Either portion out a big box or get those cute little

circus crate boxes.  Each team (4-6 people) gets a pile of animal

crackers.  They are to identify each critter and count how many

of each critter there are. Don't tell them anything else at this

point.  Just let each team complete the task.  Then ask them to

name the types of animals they identified and to give you the

number of each type.  The object is to teach a common

understanding that is, an operational definition.  This is a fun

exercise because people find all sorts of creative ways to deal

with the broken crackers; some put them together to form a new

animal, some eat them!  Different teams may identify the same

animal as something else; for example, one team identified the

ram as a bunny.  It's lots of fun, it makes a point, and people

love to munch on the crackers when the exercise is over.

(This exercise was developed by Dr. Mary Leitnaker, a professor

of statistics at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville and is

featured in W. Edwards Deming's book, *The New Economics*,

pp. 108-09.)

Joanne Robis

U of WI-Whitewater

800 West Main St., L-1006

Whitewater, WI  53190

phone: (414) 472-1931

fax: (414) 472-1518

"ROBISJ@UWWVAX.UWW.EDU"

____________________________

Date:    Sun, 20 Nov 1994 19:06:20 -0600

From:    DVOLLMER@mail.chippewa.tec.wi.us

Subject: Profound Knowledge Activity

It's a little late in coming, but thanks to all who publicly or

privately responded to my earlier request for an activity to use

in a presentation on profound knowledge.  The presentation which

I did with Rick Miech from Fox Valley Technical College when well

and we used a variation of an activity suggested by David

Kerridge ("THANKS DAVID")  I could have perhaps focused the

discussion a bit by providing more initial information and some

have asked so let me fill in some of the blanks.

I work for one of 16 technical colleges in the Wisconsin

Technical College System.  Wisconsin is divided up into 16

districts, each served by a locally controlled (district board)

college.  We are not affiliated with the University of Wisconsin

system which also has a variety of two and four year campuses

around the state.  We are two year post-secondary schools that

grant vocational diplomas, associate degrees, and serve business

and industry through customized training and technical

assistance.  The presentation was part of a meeting of the State

Quality Group.  This group meets twice a year and is made up of

those who market, deliver, or administer instruction in quality

at any of our 16 districts.  Your right this could be anyone at

the school.  It tends to be those who do customized training with

business and industry and instructors in quality related programs

(quality assurance technician, quality improvement process

technician, industrial engineering technician, etc.) and their

deans/supervisors.  We do get others who are interested in

integrating quality into their individual programs.  In addition

most districts have some type of internal quality effort going,

so the standard activities like red beads and funnel would have

been seen already and the beer game takes more than an hour.

The meeting is a nice example of inter-district sharing as these

folks come together from around the state.  It has been said that

we don't always work and play well together, but we are getting

better and these meetings have really helped.  The meetings are

two days and we try to include some learning (usually by

someone from one of the districts), some collaboration on a

state-wide initiative, and some interaction with business and

industry.  The first day we had presentations on Covey's Seven

Habits, Profound Knowledge, and System Thinking and

Archetypes in the morning.  In the afternoon we did an affinity

process to identify the element of a new course on "The Human

Side of Quality".  The second day we reviewed the output of the

affinity  and developed an instrument to take back to businesses

in our districts to determine need for such a course (we had lots

of anecdotal evidence but wanted something more formal) and

validate the content was appropriate.  We finished the day with a

panel from businesses who have worked with the colleges

through what we call Centers for Industrial Competitiveness.

This is always helpful to have the opportunity to visit with our

customers and they are pretty honest about what we are doing

right and where we need to do some work.

In terms of the actual presentation, we used the following

references:

"The New Economics" by Deming

"The Deming Dimension" by Henry Neave

"Deming's Road to Continual Improvement" by William

Sherkenbach

"Deming's Profound Changes" by Delavigne and Robertson

"Profound Knowledge" Booklet 6 by British Deming Assoc.

(BDA)

"A System of Profound Knowledge" Booklet 9 by BDA

To break up the discussion we did little mini activities and

finished with the activity from David.  We split into small

groups and had them look at the issue of TQM in the Classroom

from the perspective of each of the elements of Profound

Knowledge.

To the discussion on where to find the standard activities, I

would add that the Beer Game is commercially available from

Innovation Associates in the Boston/Cambridge area.  The Red-Blue

Game is mentioned in Sherkenbach's book starting on page 171 and

he refers you to Neave's book chapter 15.  We did a simplified

version as one of the mini-activities.  Split group up into

"teams" of two.  Have each "team" play 10 games of tic-tac-toe

between themselves with the goal to see which "team" records the

most wins.  If competing with their teammate they play to 10

draws and the "team" scores zero.  If cooperating with their

teammate they will sacrifice the individual win and the team will

score 10 wins.  I think this makes the same point in much less

time.  Again we only had an hour of time.

Hope this answers the questions that came up and again thanks

for the help.  All the discussion regarding the activities caused

me to think of an offer to the list, but that will be another

post.

Dave Vollmer

Chippewa Valley Technical College

DVollmer@mail.chippewa.tec.wi.us

------------------------------

Date:    Sun, 20 Nov 1994 21:03:56 -0600

From:    DVOLLMER@mail.chippewa.tec.wi.us

Subject: Learning Activities

All the discussion that developed around how and where the

activities for profound knowledge worked and were available

cause me to think about something we started doing locally.  It's

called a "Trainers Exchange".  We get together a couple of times

a year and the price of admission is that you bring along some

type of activity, demonstration, mini-lecture, etc. to share with

the group.  At the end of the day we all go home with a dozen

or so new activities to use in our own training.  This has been

very useful for us here.  As we get busy delivering training, we

tend to have less time available to develop new activities.  This

sharing has built a network of  people who we can call for ideas

and support and the get-together serve as a real energy booster.

I know I come away charged up.

My thought was that we might want to do something similar on

the list.  Many people were very helpful in providing ideas for

me to use in the profound knowledge presentation.  I know not

everyone is out doing training, and there is probably varying

opinion on the use of activities in the classroom, but what do

you think.

Listed below are a couple of activities that I have found useful.

You are welcome to use them if they seem to fit what you are

doing. Call it my way of giving something back to the list for

the help I have received.

Continuous Improvement Activity

Participant Notes:

     Arrange the class into a loose circle.  Using a koosh ball

or bean bag, define a work process.  Have each participant raise

one hand.  Give the ball to one of the participants to start.

They may throw the ball to any other person with their hand up.

The person who gets the ball throws it to any other person with

their hand up and then lowers his/her hand. (The hand up is just

a way of identifying who has had it and who has not).  Continue

tossing the ball around until everyone has had the ball.   The

last person to touch the ball throws it back to the one who

started.

     You have just defined a work process for this activity.  Now

repeat the process.  Each person must touch the ball in the same

order as defined above and return it to the starter.  This

requires that you pay attention to who your supplier and customer

are in the process definition part of the activity.

     Your instructor will time you during the operation of your

process and give you additional instructions as appropriate

during the remainder of the activity.

Instructor Notes:

     Once you have defined the process and allowed them to

practice it once (while you timed them).  Tell them that a

competitor down the street can do it in 1-2 seconds depending

on your class size.  They will have to get faster.  Let them go

again and time them.  There will probably be some slight

improvement.  The only rules are that everyone must touch the

ball in the same order as defined at the start and the same

person has the ball at the start and finish.

     The groups will usually start by moving closer or throwing

harder/faster.  This usually causes someone to miss and then they

get blamed for the failure to meet the time goal.  We are back to

blaming people.  The only way to meet the goal is to change the

process.  They will usually start by lining up in order and pass

the ball around.  Then the person who starts might run around the

circle or down the line and touch the ball to the outstretch d

hands of the participants in order.  The fastest way seems to be

if they form a tight circle in order and the starter kneels in

the middle and twirls the ball over his/her head and touches all

the hands in order.

     Discuss the activity and what people observed and

experienced. The main point is that things don't improve by

working faster and harder, they get better by improving the

process.

Operational Definition Activity.

     This is one of the mini activities that we did as part of

the profound knowledge presentation.  Have everyone write down

the first 10 words that come to mind when they hear the word

"learning".  Put them in groups of 2-3 and have them compare

their lists.  For each word that appears exactly the same on all

the lists in the group the team gets a point.  After comparing

ask how many got 10 out of 10. They will laugh because most got

one or two if any.  Count down, 9 out of 10, etc.  Here was a

group of educators from institutes of learning, yet learning

meant different things to different people. Come back to the need

to operationalize particular data items before we go out to

collect them.  A nice follow-up is to have them define late for

class.  Is it measured by the clock, do I just have to be in the

room or seated, or as long as the instructor hasn't started yet?

They will get very creative.

     I have others but don't have time right now to list.  Also,

I'd like to hear from others whether this is appropriate for the

list.

Dave Vollmer, Chippewa Valley Technical College, 620 W

Clairemont Ave., Eau Claire, WI 54701, 715-833-6510,

715-833-6470 (fax), DVollmer@mail.chippewa.tec.wi.us

PAPER CUTTING EXECISE

[The following is a message from Grant Blair on an exercise he

developed. The exercise is offered here with his permission. If

you want to provide feedback or ask questions, you can find his

address at the end of the text.]

Appreciate the feedback, and I hope the explanation I am sending

will provide the detail you need to run the Paper-Cutting

demonstration successfully...In order to avoid a Split, I am going

to provide the detail in 4 parts:

Part 1: How to construct the Measuring and Cutting Template

Part 2: How to demonstrate Common Cause Variation

Part 3: How to Demonstrate Special Cause Variation

Part 4: Process Improvement & Developing a control chart

Part 1 Follows:

Preparing the Measuring Template:

Starting from the bottom of an 8 « by 11 piece of paper:

Step 1: Scribe across the paper every « inch (There should be 21

lines)

Step 2: Number the lines up the  Page as follows:

15,14,13,12,11,10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1,0,-1,-2,-3,-4,-5

Preparing the Cutting Templates:

Using yellow construction paper create the following:

Number as:        Size:

 1                3 « inches

 2                4 inches

 3                4 « inches

 4                5 inches

 5                5 « inches

 6                6 inches

Give these to the participants.

Using  blue construction paper create the following:

Number as:        Size:

-5                « inch

-4                1 inch

-3                1 « inches

-2                2 inches

-1                2 « inches

 0                3 inches

 7                6 « inches

 8                7 inches

           ..........through

15               10  « inches

The instructor will keep these and only hand them out if needed.

Part 2-

Paper-Cutting Without Adjustment

Designate one person as a worker, and provide him with:

cutting templates 1-6, scissors, die, pencil, and 20 sheets of

paper. Use a second person as an inspector, and provide him with

the measuring template. (You could also designate someone as a

machine, and let him roll the die).

Procedure will be to roll the die and use the face number to

select a cutting template to mark and cut the paper. The part of

the sheet of paper covered by the template will be discarded, and

the remainder will be passed to the inspector. Stress the

importance of placing a dot on the piece passed in order to avoid

mistakes. Point out, (either now or later) that this is what

Deming meant by Written procedures and training. Show the blue

templates to the class and indicate they are available if needed.

Produce about 20 sheets of paper and create a histogram. Determine

the rounded average (3 or 4) This will be used in the next

exercise.

Example: 3,2,4,4,3,5,1,4,1,1,1,6,4,1,4,4,5,1,6

Part 3-

Paper-Cutting With Adjustment

Designate an additional person as an engineer to calculate a

machine adjustment for producing the next piece. Instead of

selecting the template from the dice, the worker will add the

adjustment to the face value to select the cutting template. This

is a good time to introduce the concept of negative numbers and

use a numberline centered at 3 (or 4) to let the class visualize

the adjustment.

Once again, show the blue templates and indicate they are

available if needed.

Usually, the process will go out of control well before 20 pieces

are made.

This exercise illustrates the most common type of overcontrol in a

plant environment, and production workers usually see it quickly.

Using the same data as an example:

Dice + Adj.=            Use Template #         Calculate next

adjustment

3=    ........................... 3....................3-3=0

2 + 0=............................2....................3-2=+1

4 +1=.............................5....................3-5= -2

4 +(-2)=..........................2....................3-2=+1

3+1=..............................4....................3-4= -1

5+(-1)=...........................4....................3-4= -1

1+(-1)=.......................... 0................... 3-0=+3

4+3=............................. 7................... 3-7= -4

1+(-4)=......................... -3................... 3-(-3)=+6

1+6=..............................7................... 3-7= -4

1+(-4)=......................... -3................... 3-(-3)=+6

6+6=............................ 12................... 3-12= -9

4+(-9)=..........................-5................... 3+(-5)=+8

1+8=............................. 9................... 3-9= -6

4+(-6)=......................... -2....................3-(-2)=+5

4+5=..............................9................... 3-9= -6

5+(-6)=......................... -1................... 3-(-1)=+4

1+4=..............................5....................3-5= -2

6+(-2)=...........................4................... 3-4= -1

2+(-1)=.......................... 1........................ Stop

Finally, plot the histogram and compare it against the first one.

Part 4-

Special Cause Variation:

Provide the team with a stack of legal paper (8 « x 14). When the

worker notices the paper is longer, ask him." What is your job

title? (Answer s, "worker"!)

Use this to illustrate Deming's Point #8...Creating trust in

workforce.

Now check out the reason for the longer paper, and report that

Purchasing has made a "real deal" on this paper. Encourage the

worker to "make this work". This illustrates Point #4...awarding

business on price tag only.

Once you have a couple of readings, calculate an adjustment as you

did in the second exercise and show that a single target

adjustment would bring the process in line.

Next, provide a team with an 8-sided die and show that adjustment

won't work (or you can shuffle the regular and legal paper

together.

Improving the Process:

Although a coin will work, I use poker chips:

The first one has 3 on one side and 4 on the other; The second one

has 3 on both sides. Emphasize that Common Cause must be improved

by Management. Special Cause by the Workforce.

Control Chart

Finally we develop a control chart for this process using averages

and ranges (Subgroups of 4 ). Logically, the upper control limit

is set at 6, the lower limit at 1, with a UCL on the Range Chart

of 5. I provide a set of data, and we calculate and plot the

chart. We also plot a histogram of the averages and develop the

properties of the Normal Distribution to introduce the Central

Limit Theorem.

grantblair@aol.com

or call,

Grant Blair,

319 Port Royal Drive

Ninety-Six SC 29666

803-543-4052

Some Powerpoint quality stuff

http://thequalityportal.com/q_press.htm

http://www.iso.ch/iso/en/iso9000-14000/iso9000/qmp.html

Quality management principles

The following text is an integral reproduction of the content of the document "Quality Management Principles".

Introduction

This document introduces the eight quality management principles on which the quality management system standards of the revised ISO 9000:2000 series are based. These principles can be used by senior management as a framework to guide their organizations towards improved performance. The principles are derived from the collective experience and knowledge of the international experts who participate in ISO Technical Committee ISO/TC 176, Quality management and quality assurance, which is responsible for developing and maintaining the ISO 9000 standards.

The eight quality management principles are defined in ISO 9000:2000, Quality management systems Fundamentals and vocabulary, and in ISO 9004:2000, Quality management systems Guidelines for performance improvements.

This document gives the standardized descriptions of the principles as they appear in ISO 9000:2000 and ISO 9004:2000. In addition, it provides examples of the benefits derived from their use and of actions that managers typically take in applying the principles to improve their organizations' performance.

Principle 1 Customer focus

Organizations depend on their customers and therefore should understand current and future customer needs, should meet customer requirements and strive to exceed customer expectations.

Key benefits:

Increased revenue and market share obtained through flexible and fast responses to market opportunities.
Increased effectiveness in the use of the organization's resources to enhance customer satisfaction.
Improved customer loyalty leading to repeat business.

Applying the principle of customer focus typically leads to:

Researching and understanding customer needs and expectations.
Ensuring that the objectives of the organization are linked to customer needs and expectations.
Communicating customer needs and expectations throughout the organization.
Measuring customer satisfaction and acting on the results.
Systematically managing customer relationships.
Ensuring a balanced approach between satisfying customers and other interested parties (such as owners, employees, suppliers, financiers, local communities and society as a whole).

Principle 2 Leadership

Leaders establish unity of purpose and direction of the organization. They should create and maintain the internal environment in which people can become fully involved in achieving the organization's objectives.

Key benefits:

People will understand and be motivated towards the organization's goals and objectives.
Activities are evaluated, aligned and implemented in a unified way.
Miscommunication between levels of an organization will be minimized.

Applying the principle of leadership typically leads to:

Considering the needs of all interested parties including customers, owners, employees, suppliers, financiers, local communities and society as a whole.
Establishing a clear vision of the organization's future.
Setting challenging goals and targets.
Creating and sustaining shared values, fairness and ethical role models at all levels of the organization.
Establishing trust and eliminating fear.
Providing people with the required resources, training and freedom to act with responsibility and accountability.
Inspiring, encouraging and recognizing people's contributions.

Principle 3 Involvement of people

People at all levels are the essence of an organization and their full involvement enables their abilities to be used for the organization's benefit.

Key benefits:

Motivated, committed and involved people within the organization.
Innovation and creativity in furthering the organization's objectives.
People being accountable for their own performance.
People eager to participate in and contribute to continual improvement.

Applying the principle of involvement of people typically leads to:

People understanding the importance of their contribution and role in the organization.
People identifying constraints to their performance.
People accepting ownership of problems and their responsibility for solving them.
People evaluating their performance against their personal goals and objectives.
People actively seeking opportunities to enhance their competence, knowledge and experience.
People freely sharing knowledge and experience.
People openly discussing problems and issues.

Principle 4 Process approach

A desired result is achieved more efficiently when activities and related resources are managed as a process.

Key benefits:

Lower costs and shorter cycle times through effective use of resources.
Improved, consistent and predictable results.
Focused and prioritized improvement opportunities.

Applying the principle of process approach typically leads to:

Systematically defining the activities necessary to obtain a desired result.
Establishing clear responsibility and accountability for managing key activities.
Analysing and measuring of the capability of key activities.
Identifying the interfaces of key activities within and between the functions of the organization.
Focusing on the factors such as resources, methods, and materials that will improve key activities of the organization.
Evaluating risks, consequences and impacts of activities on customers, suppliers and other interested parties.

Principle 5 System approach to management

Identifying, understanding and managing interrelated processes as a system contributes to the organization's effectiveness and efficiency in achieving its objectives.

Key benefits:

Integration and alignment of the processes that will best achieve the desired results.
Ability to focus effort on the key processes.
Providing confidence to interested parties as to the consistency, effectiveness and efficiency of the organization.

Applying the principle of system approach to management typically leads to:

Structuring a system to achieve the organization's objectives in the most effective and efficient way.
Understanding the interdependencies between the processes of the system.
Structured approaches that harmonize and integrate processes.
Providing a better understanding of the roles and responsibilities necessary for achieving common objectives and thereby reducing cross-functional barriers.
Understanding organizational capabilities and establishing resource constraints prior to action.
Targeting and defining how specific activities within a system should operate.
Continually improving the system through measurement and evaluation.

Principle 6 Continual improvement

Continual improvement of the organization's overall performance should be a permanent objective of the organization.

Key benefits:

Performance advantage through improved organizational capabilities.
Alignment of improvement activities at all levels to an organization's strategic intent.
Flexibility to react quickly to opportunities.

Applying the principle of continual improvement typically leads to:

Employing a consistent organization-wide approach to continual improvement of the organization's performance.
Providing people with training in the methods and tools of continual improvement.
Making continual improvement of products, processes and systems an objective for every individual in the organization.
Establishing goals to guide, and measures to track, continual improvement.
Recognizing and acknowledging improvements.

Principle 7 Factual approach to decision making

Effective decisions are based on the analysis of data and information

Key benefits:

Informed decisions.
An increased ability to demonstrate the effectiveness of past decisions through reference to factual records.
Increased ability to review, challenge and change opinions and decisions.

Applying the principle of factual approach to decision making typically leads to:

Ensuring that data and information are sufficiently accurate and reliable.
Making data accessible to those who need it.
Analysing data and information using valid methods.
Making decisions and taking action based on factual analysis, balanced with experience and intuition.

Principle 8 Mutually beneficial supplier relationships

An organization and its suppliers are interdependent and a mutually beneficial relationship enhances the ability of both to create value

Key benefits:

Increased ability to create value for both parties.
Flexibility and speed of joint responses to changing market or customer needs and expectations.
Optimization of costs and resources.

Applying the principles of mutually beneficial supplier relationships typically leads to:

Establishing relationships that balance short-term gains with long-term considerations.
Pooling of expertise and resources with partners.
Identifying and selecting key suppliers.
Clear and open communication.
Sharing information and future plans.
Establishing joint development and improvement activities.
Inspiring, encouraging and recognizing improvements and achievements by suppliers.

Quality Management

Project Quality Management

Priority

Area

4

Quality goals easily understood, achieved, and monitored.

3

Quality goals can be defined and measured using existing systems and methods; quality risk low.

2

Quality goals are extensive, require innovative approaches; and may impact project success.

1

Quality goals are difficult to define; hard to measure and achieve; significant risk to project acceptance.

Quality Assurance Plan

Define quality goals; discuss approach and plans to achieve goals; assess risks to success; discuss adequacy of approach; set high standards.

Document explicit quality goals; define methods and tests to achieve, control, predict and verify success; focus on customer satisfaction.

Document QA goals, plans, methods, and systems; consider ilities in quality goals; focus processes on minimizing correction costs.

Document QA plan including quantitative goals, statement of methods to achieve, quality metrics, controls and verifications; link QA to stakeholder and risk analysis.

Quality Management

Consider quality management integral to project work; ensure project team understands role in achieving quality goals; have PM maintain visibility of quality issues.

Implement integrated quality management through delegated quality goals; plan work methods, technologies, measurements and controls to achieve goals; build quality into processes and products.

Integrate quality management tasks into project plan; establish quality goals; delegate goals to work groups; report quality metrics and track progress.

Assign quality management oversight in PM staff; monitor metrics and trends to achieve quality goals; integrate quality management into project planning and risk management.

Quality Metrics, Measurements, and Controls

Conduct subjective (qualitative) or objective (quantitative) assessments periodically; monitor and report quality status at periodic project reviews.

Map quality metrics to quality goals, and report periodically; apply standard quality tools to measure, predict and control results.

Establish quality metrics and conduct quality audits to predict and verify achievement of goals and identify need for corrective actions; apply quality control techniques to project effort.

Implement best practices quality control organization; document quality methods integral to project plan; provide commitment of staff, tools, and methods to support quality effort.

Continuous Quality Improvement

Communicate continually a project goal to work smarter and find better processes; plan the project to accommodate future improvements.

Review the project approach and design concept for modularity, expandability and growth; consider CQI in product life cycle strategy.

Include CQI tasks in project plans and budget; establish CQI goals and metrics, and report progress periodically.

Incorporate CQI/TQM goals into specifications and plans; review project methods for improvement opportunities; institutionalize CQI processes and incorporate provisions into product design.

Deming's 14 Points

Deming Electronic Network

(DEN)

Trainer's Exchange

What is the Trainer's Exchange?

T/E-1 - COUNT THE PAGES

Acknowledgements: