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The Quality Tool I Never
Use
Ronald Tatum
Manufacturing Manager
Dupont Nonwovens
Richmond, Va.
Ronald Tatum's 30 years of experience working in a
team-based environment distinguishes him as someone who
knows what works and what doesn't. Prior to working at
Dupont, Tatum was in the automotive industry as a retail
sales representative and his experience includes a
manufacturing career as a member of wage roll, and then a
team leader. Tatum is president of the Richmond chapter
of AQP.
What is the tool that didn't work
for you?
Measurements using status charts had less than
spectacular results for me. The blanket belief that
status charts can build team enthusiasm is lacking in
some regards. These might be line charts, bar charts,
control charts and so on. Yes, status charts do provide
feedback at a glance. They can tell us if success is
being achieved and that knowledge can serve as an
inspiration to continue improvement.
What made this tool less than
spectacular?
The status charting used was a combination of line and
bar charts. The purpose was to increase the awareness
around production needs. The leader of the group charted
production runs for four shifts in a manufacturing
operation. There were a number of problems associated
with this tool because not every team member was
consulted and there wasn't any discussion or sharing of
the needs for improvement.
How would you fix the
tool?
First, start with the awareness that motivation for
quality is not something needed solely by the work-force.
We need motivation for quality among all the human forces
within the company starting at the top with CEOs. The
subject of motivation for quality also presents a strange
contradiction which arises because the word
“motivation” has multiple meanings. Clearly
define the company's quality mission statement. The
motivation for quality generated in your mission
statement needs to address two critical areas: 1.
Motivation for quality that conforms to quality
specifications and adheres to procedures. 2. Involvement,
inclusion and empowerment of individuals within the
company.
What words of counsel/warning would
you give to someone else before they used the
tool?
Although charting does have some positive aspects, in
today's team-based organizations it has an overwhelmingly
negative impact. It's more rewarding to the company to
promote a win-win environment that does not identify who
is leading or losing, or which shift ranked first and
which was fourth. This kind of information has its place,
but not for everyone to compare. The truth of all this
is: “If your last-place team is not in first place
with the customer, you're already coming up short.”
Identifying divisiveness or posting performance causes
more harm than good within the company.
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