Paving the Way
Data and information are at the heart of good investigations and decision making, but are all kinds of data the same? What are the major categories and types of questions to ask to collect and analyze data?...
Tool Time
“Does everybody know what time it is? It’s ‘Tool Time’!” On “Home Improvement,” one of the most watched TV sitcoms in the U.S. in the 1990s, Tim and his assistant, Al, demonstrated to their television audience what tools they had and how to use them....
Beyond the Basics
A movie sequel often can be as, if not more, captivating than the original. Essentially, a sequel builds on the original, continuing a journey with familiar characters and settings, developing ideas and unveiling more insight....
Career Corner: Keep Your Toolbox Full
Be aware of all the tools at your disposal to excel at your job. Your career as a quality professional depends on your ability to recall a specific quality tool and apply it when necessary....
One Good Idea: Process Optimization for Service Organizations Isn't Rocket Science
The following is intended for service industry people who are mostly clueless about quality improvement. (You manufacturing people can skip the page because you already get this, right?)...
Use Basic Quality Tools To Manage Your Processes
The 2000 revision of ISO 9001 stresses the importance of process in a company's quality system. However, many firms operating under the traditional hierarchical view of structure have found it difficult to make the transition. The experience of a...
15 Waste Scenarios
When an effective model is not used to facilitate change, 15 scenarios of waste may result. While some models used for assessment are better than others, the important thing to consider is that the change initiative be based on the assessment’s...
Expect the Unexpected
The Idaho State Department of Water Resources (IDWR), whose mission is to provide oversight for the management of water within the state of Idaho, recently converted its Cobol based ADABAS database system to an structured query language (SQL) server...
Creating More Effective Meeting Facilitators
Ten recommendations for trainers cover the planning and implementation of meetings. First, trainers should be aware of the meeting style of the organization and thereby help facilitators increase the productivity of meetings. Second, the training...
Select Leaders Using a Quality Management Process
Assessment of managerial characteristics like leadership is amenable to nominal group techniques (NGP). The selection of a new leader for an organization involves identification of leadership elements, such as integrity, vision, and skills in...
Avoid a Flop: Use QFD with Questionnaires
Matching a data collection tool to the problem under investigation is key to making good decisions. Quality function deployment (QFD) methods can do this for questionnaires. Phase 1 of the QFD method is to define the problem in measurable terms and...
The Five Drivers of Total Quality
Service to customers, employees, and the business itself is the mission of the Menasha Corporation. A hierarchy of five drivers of quality implements this mission. People quality is the driver with the most influence. This requires selecting the...
