The Techniques and Tools of Quality Management

The Techniques and Tools of Quality Management

Quality Planning

  • Quality planning involves setting the standards, identifying quality aims and specifying necessary operational processes.
  • Benchmarking against the industry standards is a common method to help set your own organisation’s standards.
  • When quality aims are set, these must be aligned with overall business objectives.

Quality Assurance

  • Quality Assurance (QA) is a preventative measure that aims to avoid defects by focusing on the process used to make the product.
  • Regular audits are used to ensure that the processes are functioning as planned and meet the predefined quality standards.
  • QA requires establishing a good quality management system and evaluating the output in relation to the system’s functionality.

Quality Control

  • Quality Control (QC) is a reactive process that identifies and corrects defects in finished products.
  • Techniques in QC can include inspections, reviews, walkthroughs and testing.
  • QC aims to prevent defective products from reaching customers, and modifies processes to ensure the errors do not reoccur.

Total Quality Management (TQM)

  • TQM is a management strategy aimed at embedding awareness of quality in all organisational processes.
  • It requires an understanding and implementation of quality at every stage of production, not just at the end.
  • TQM fosters a culture where quality is everyone’s responsibility, and not solely of a specific department.

Continuous quality improvement (CQI)

  • CQI is a philosophy that emphasises the need to improve services and practices continually.
  • It uses a set of statistical tools such as Pareto chart, control chart and more, for data analysis.
  • A CQI approach encourages the workforce to always look for opportunities to apply incremental improvements.

Six Sigma

  • Six Sigma is a disciplined, statistical-based methodology for eliminating defects in any process.
  • The core of Six Sigma is the DMAIC methodology- Define, Measure, Analyse, Improve, Control.
  • Six Sigma requires a high level of commitment from the entire organisation, especially from top-level management.

ISO Standards

  • The International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) offers numerous quality management standards.
  • These are internationally recognised and foster trust among businesses and consumers alike.
  • Adherence to ISO standards denotes commitment to continuous improvement, customer satisfaction and regulatory compliances.

Balanced Scorecard

  • The Balanced Scorecard is a strategic performance tool which helps managers to monitor and manage the organisation’s operation and production.
  • It provides a balanced view of organisational performance by combining financial measures with measures on customer, internal process and organisational innovation.
  • The Balanced Scorecard helps in quality management by providing a clear prescription as to what companies should measure to balance the financial perspective.