Over the last couple of decades there
has been an explosion of articles on the latest Quality trends. These
include: Lean Six Sigma, Design for Six Sigma, reengineering, balanced
scorecards, multi-model process improvement frameworks, CMMI and ISO
initiatives. The list goes on and on. Sometimes, however, it pays to go
back to the basics—to the roots that enabled America to compete with the
Japanese in the 80’s.
A relentless focus on Quality has emerged as the universal strategy to
ensure a company’s survival and competitive position. The Baldrige
Award, the Deming Prize, and a proliferation of State Quality Awards
offer impressive incentives to improve an organization’s reputation.
Despite such incentives, there are many companies that have not embraced
“Total Quality” as framework for continual improvement.
Total Quality—A Better Way to Manage
Total Quality is a management philosophy that focuses on a
customer-driven approach to continual improvement. Continual improvement
implies that everything a company does—every product, service or
business process—can be improved forever. This improvement occurs in two
phases: a critical sequence of management improvement first, from which
product and service improvement follows.
Interestingly, the emphasis on Total Quality is more about a management
system than on specific improvement opportunities. When you use Total
Quality as a business strategy, continual improvement is achieved by
involving everyone in the organization in a daily search for incremental
improvements. Everyone focuses on customer (internal and external)
requirements and on performance objectives.
The Management System
A comprehensive management system must extend throughout the
organization. An effective system produces a work climate conducive to
solving chronic problems, developing innovative processes, and
harnessing the hearts and minds of every worker. That’s the continual
improvement power. Also, the management system must change the focus and
order of work from the individual to the team.
The management system is developed through the existing organizational
structure. Staff meetings are an integral part of the functioning
system. Vertical and horizontal communication is improved dramatically,
setting the stage for the emergence of high-performance, “natural” work
teams. Complex interdepartmental or cross-functional problems may be
assigned to action teams in high-opportunity areas.
The Work Climate
Your organization’s culture is shaped, to a large extent, by management
style. A command and control philosophy should be replaced with coaching
and mentoring. That means leading by example and rolling up your
sleeves. Managers in traditional positions of command tend to believe
they have direct control. But this is just an illusion. Employees lend
their greatest support to objectives they help set.
The success of any organization depends, to a great extent, on the
effectiveness of its communication system. Obviously, information
flowing from the top down must be clear. But information flowing upwards
also must be free of distortion—that is, the channels must be open to
worker ideas and concerns. And multidirectional communication goes a
long way to doing the right job right the first time.
Process Improvement
Unfortunately, line and staff departments have become too myopic or
insular. Process management is imperative in order to manage and improve
cross-functional business processes. And the more process-centric an
organization is, the more performance-driven it will be. If you think
you can be customer-centric, without being process-centric—think again.
Processes must put the customer first.
The stark reality is, processes (especially cross-functional processes)
are usually not documented, not systematically and continually improved,
and not managed. So why improve and manage processes? Simply, processes
are the fundamental building blocks for achieving business results—and
streamlined processes are critical to building and maintaining a
competitive edge.
The Path Forward
Implementing a continual improvement initiative can be compared with a
large ocean-going ship changing course. Considerable force must be
exerted. When charting a new course, extreme care must be taken to
ensure that the direction is correct and that the course is completely
understood and fully accepted. It must be a practical, effective course
that employees will be motivated to travel.
You will need to pay careful attention to every phase of developing and
implementing the system. Your continual improvement effort must involve
teamwork across the organization. It will mean change—in how you manage,
in how you treat your employees, in how you view waste and inefficiency.
It will mean going beyond supporting Total Quality to actively
participating in it.
Learn how CMC can assist your
organization in achieving your quality objectives.
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