Quality management

Quality management is an approach aimed at improvement of the efficiency and flexibility of all the organization in order to meet customer requirements, needs and expectations. It uses all management functions throughout the enterprise to achieve this. It is the fourth stage of quality approach evolution after: quality inspection, quality control and quality assurance.

Quality assurance vs. Quality management

Quality assurance is related to production (or services), product and technology design. It's aimed at delivering good product to the customer, that will fulfil customer's requirements and needs. It uses double feedback loop, which enables self-improvement of product, process and production system.

Quality management makes a step forward. As every activity in the company can impact the quality of the product, it covers whole enterprise, every function. In quality management every employee in the company should strive to improve quality of his/her work. That is especially visible in Total Quality Management.

Principles of quality management

The quality management principles were defined in ISO 9001 standard. They bring closer the normative approach (ISO standards) to Total Quality Management. In the first version, there were 8 quality principles, but the ISO 9001:2015 removes one of them leaving 7. Those principles are:

• Customer focus
• Leadership
• Engagement of people (formerly Involvement of people)
• Process approach
• System approach to management (removed in ISO 9001:2015)
• Improvement (formerly Continual improvement)
• Evidence-based decision making (formerly Factual approach to decision making)
• Relationship management (formerly Mutual beneficial supplier relationships)

In parentheses principles from ISO 9000:2000 were presented.

Development of quality approach

Quality management approaches

According to D. Kroslid, quality movement developed into two schools:

• Deterministic,
• Continuous improvement.

The developed in parallel, however since 2000 they started to penetrate each other. Examples are: Lean Six Sigma and current approach in ISO 9001 standard.

Deterministic approach

The deterministic approach to quality begins with:

• Frederick Winslow Taylor,
• ideas of standardization in American defense industry and
• Crosby's Zero defects idea.

Standards, procedures, specifications and their exact fulfilment are the main principles. Therefore, managers are mainly responsible for quality improvement. Current approaches based on this approach are ISO 9000 standards family (especially before 2000 issue) and Six sigma. This approach usually ignores economic dimension of quality (quality costs, quality levels, profitability of quality focus).

Continuous improvement approach

The continuous improvement approach stems from

• statistical process control by Walter A. Shewhart,
• Total Quality Control by Armand Feigenbaum and
• Japanese Company-Wide Quality Control.

The main direction of pro-quality activities is fulfilment of ever changing needs and requirements of customer. Quality is understood as dynamic process. The continuous improvement and low costs is more important than non-changing level of high quality. Economic dimension of quality is important, especially through quality costs. Current approaches based on this approach are: Total Quality Management and Lean management.

Advantages of Quality management

Quality management has a number of advantages, including:

• Improved customer satisfaction: Quality management ensures that customers receive products and services that meet their expectations. It also encourages customer feedback, allowing organizations to respond to customer needs and concerns.
• Enhanced efficiency: Quality management helps organizations to reduce errors, optimize processes and save time and money. By preventing mistakes, organizations can increase the efficiency of their operations.
• Increased profitability: Quality management can help organizations increase their profit margins by reducing waste and improving efficiency.
• Improved safety: Quality management helps ensure that products and services are safe and meet safety standards. This reduces the risk of accidents and injuries and improves customer satisfaction.
• Increased competitiveness: Quality management can help organizations stay competitive by improving their products and services and staying ahead of the competition.
• Improved employee satisfaction: Quality management can help organizations ensure their employees are well-trained and productive. This increases job satisfaction and loyalty to the organization.

Limitations of Quality management

• Quality management can be expensive, as it requires investments in personnel, technology, and training.
• Quality management also takes time, as it involves planning and implementation.
• Quality management can be difficult to implement as it requires a shift in organizational culture and mindset.
• Quality management requires commitment from all team members and leadership, which can be difficult to achieve.
• Quality management requires accurate data, which can be difficult to collect and interpret.
• Quality management may not be suitable for all organizations, as not all organizations are able to commit resources to the process.

Other approaches related to Quality management

Quality management is an approach aimed at improvement of the efficiency and flexibility of all the organization in order to meet customer requirements, needs and expectations. It is the fourth stage of quality approach evolution after: quality inspection, quality control and quality assurance. Other approaches related to Quality management include:

• Total Quality Management (TQM): This approach is an integrated organizational effort designed to improve quality at every level in an organization. It is based on the idea that everyone in the organization is responsible for quality and it requires a strong customer focus.
• Six Sigma: This approach is a data-driven process improvement methodology that focuses on reducing defects, increasing customer satisfaction and eliminating waste. It is based on measuring, analyzing, improving and controlling processes to reduce variability and improve quality.
• Lean Management: This approach is based on the idea of reducing waste and improving efficiency. It is a systematic approach to identifying and eliminating waste through continuous improvement.
• Kaizen: This approach is based on continuous improvement and emphasizes the importance of small improvements. It focuses on small, incremental changes that can lead to major improvements in quality and efficiency.

In summary, Quality management is an approach aimed at improving the efficiency and flexibility of the organization in order to meet customer requirements, needs and expectations. There are many other approaches related to Quality management, such as Total Quality Management, Six Sigma, Lean Management, and Kaizen, which focus on various aspects of quality improvement.

Quality management — recommended articles

World class manufacturing — Total quality control — Philip B. Crosby — Kaizen principles — Lean manufacturing — Continuous improvement — Kaizen — Toyota production system — House of total quality model

References

• Juran J.M., De Feo J.A., Juran's Quality Handbook, Sixth Edition, McGraw Hill, 2010
• Tague N.R., The Quality Toolbox, Second Edition, ASQ Quality Press, 2013
• Flynn BB, Schroede RG (1995) The Impact of Quality Management Practices on Performance and Competitive Advantage, A Journal of the Decision Sciences Institute, 26:5
• Masood A. Badri, Donald Davis, Donna Davis, (1995) A study of measuring the critical factors of quality management, International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 12 Iss: 2

Author: Slawomir Wawak