...Total Quality Pioneers Paper xxxxxxxx Quality Management and Productivity MGT/449 xxxxxx xxx Introduction People are confronted with scenarios concerning quality nearly every day. The word or notion of quality can be defined a number of ways. Some think quality should be determined by individual standards and expectations, while others believe quality is an ever changing state. Goetsch and Davis systematically broke down the elements of quality and determined that “quality is a dynamic state associated with products, services, people, processes, and environments that meets or exceeds expectations and helps produce superior value (Goetsch and Davis, 2010 p.5).” Whatever ones interpretation of quality might be, the intent of this paper is to more clearly define quality and its elements as well as describe how the quality pioneer's use of the total quality elements made the pioneers successful. Furthermore, this paper will explain why the elements of quality are useful in today’s environment and offer some insight as to what the future of quality might look like. Quality and its Elements Quality is defined with a variety of distinct explanations. Nevertheless, understanding quality is the key. End use consumers that are businesses explain quality unmistakably through the use of standards, specifications, and other measurable features. For instance, an individual in search of a new automobile will make his or her final purchase decision based on the quality of...
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...According to GE, (2010) there are three main elements of quality; customer, process, and the employee. GE has used these elements of quality to keep their business booming and maintain their competitive advantage. GE has a philosophy that says delighting their customers is a necessity because if they don’t delight their customers then someone else will. W. Edwards Deming is one of the most well known pioneers in Quality and is known for developing the Deming Cycle. The Deming Cycle consists of five parts; 1. Plan – Conduct consumer research and use the research in product planning. 2. Do – Produce the product 3. Check – Check the product to make sure it was produced the way it was planned 4. Act – Market the product 5. Analyze – Analyze how the product is received in the marketplace in terms of quality, cost, and any other criteria The Deming Cycle was developed to link the production of a product with consumer needs and focus the resources of all departments. This philosophy is both summarized and operationalized by Deming’s fourteen points. The fourteen points summarize Deming’s views on what a company must do to effect a positive transition from business as usual to world-class quality and they can be modified to fit specific applications. The elements of quality are useful in today’s business market because no longer are people just trying to compete locally. With the technology available today it is making it easier for companies to go global. When a company...
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...views on what the word quality means. Although there is no clear definition for the word quality, Goetsch and Davis (2010) define quality as a dynamic state associated with products, services, people, processes, and environments that meets or exceeds expectations and helps produce superior value. Quality is based on a matter of opinion of what an individual or group believes a product, service, or idea is worth. Quality differs in the eye of the beholder. There are two components to total quality: What and how. The how component has 11 critical elements: 1) Strategically Based – The strategic plan of a total quality organization is designed to give it a sustainable competitive advantage in the marketplace 2) Customer Focus – Customers define the quality of the service or product delivered. Additionally, customers also help define the quality of the people, processes, and environments associated with the products or services. 3) Obsession with Quality – The organization must become obsessed with meeting or exceeding customers’ perceptions of what defines quality. 4) Scientific Approach – using data gathered to establish benchmarks, monitoring performance, and making improvements. 5) Long-term Commitment – Establishing a whole new culture within how the company conducts business. 6) Teamwork – Doing away with internal competitive efforts and focusing energy to improving overall quality. 7) Continual Process Improvement – to continually improve the quality of products and services...
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...Although aspects of quality in the manufacturing environment have been around from the early 1900s, what one has come to know about quality today is that it was achieved through a process of evolution or continual improvement. Quality has always been driven by what the consumer wants or needs, but that provides a wide berth of true meanings. This paper will review some of the meanings, elements of quality and one of the pioneers in this area. As mentioned quality is based on one’s demands on the manufacturer or service provider that then takes into account the quality of the manufacturer’s employees, the processes to manufacture, and the environment in which products are produced. The goal of quality is to ensure that the manufacturer is producing a product that meets or exceeds its customer expectations and the ability to keep the customer for the long term. At the same time quality-driven practices help the company reduce productivity errors by empowering the employees, reduce their costs by requiring suppliers to do the same, and deliver the product on time based on a strategic plan. Of course, quality standards in the United States may and are different from other parts of the world. The origins of quality in the United States took much of its shape from Japan in the mid-1900s when it was realized that most consumers referred to Japanese made products as poor quality; by taking charge of their manufacturing destiny quality in Japan turned a 180 degrees....
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...Goetsch & Davis (2010) define quality as being “an energetic condition linked with goods, services, community, developments, and surroundings that go beyond prospect and assists to turn out better worth”. There are many different thoughts on what quality means, and they differ almost as much as they are the same; one thing for certain is that the satisfaction the consumer experiences with a product says a lot about the quality of that product. People expect products that are of high quality without breaking the bank, and this feeds the competitiveness of organizations. Having to juggle putting out high quality products at a good price ensures that quality maintenance is going on in organizations. Each of us has our own view on what quality is, but we all know how important it is in that it not only allows but forces companies to remain competitive to stay in the game and to keep their customers happy. Elements of Quality According to David Chaudron Ph.D. (N/A), quality can be defined as “consistently producing what the customer wants while reducing errors before and after delivery”. Chaudron goes on to say that “quality is not so much an outcome as a never ending process of continually improving the quality of what your company produces”. The elements of quality help because they give the organizations a process in which they are able to maintain their quality standards. Essentially, there are three different elements when it comes to quality. First and foremost, the...
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...Total Quality Pioneer According to Goetsch and Davis, “organizations survive and thrive in a globally competitive marketplace by providing superior value to customers” (2010, p. 6). They further elaborate that, managers must understand how quality fits into the customers perceptions of superior value to satisfy them. Goetsch and Davis further state that total quality was developed into a comprehensive concept that pulled together elements from the different approaches of some of the early pioneers of quality. To gain a better understanding of the concept of quality, this paper will give a general overview of its elements. In addition, the paper will describe how Edward Deming, as a quality pioneer, use of the total quality elements made him successful. The paper will conclude with an explanation of why the elements of quality remain useful and what the author foresees about the future of quality in today’s environment. Overview of Quality Quality is defined differently by different people. For example, before enrolling a child in high school, a parent may look at the Department of Education’s grade for the school, accessibility to the campus, cost of sending the child to the school, and class size. Even though the parent may not verbalize a definition of quality, the attributes she looks at are her preferences for choosing a school that represent quality in her eyes. As a consumer, the parent’s decision about the quality of the school is based on a perception of the measurable...
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...learned to live in a world of mistakes and defective products as if they were necessary to life. It is time to adopt a new philosophy in America”). Regarded as the leading quality sage, Dr. Deming’s 14 Points have inspired important changes in many organizations endeavoring to compete in the ever-increasingly competitive world. The definitions of quality are continually changing as consumer preferences change, in looking toward the future, the common elements of quality will likely remain constant. In business today, the consumer defines quality. Products or services must not only meet but also exceed the needs, interests, and desires of the consumer. Common elements of the various definitions of quality are: “Quality involves meeting or exceeding customer expectations. Quality applies to products, services, people, processes, and environments. Quality is an ever-changing state (i.e., what is considered quality today may not be good enough to be considered quality tomorrow)” (Goetsch & Davis, 2010, p. 5). Therefore, the definition of quality is subjective and ever-changing. Dr. Deming used the common elements of quality by expanding them through the development of his 14 Points. After World War II, leaders in the United States showed little interest in Dr. Deming’s quality theory. Instead, Dr. Deming realized his success in Japan. Ready to make positive changes and find the best method for doing so, Japanese leaders invited Dr. Deming...
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...Look at Quality and Its Impact on Today’s Environment MGT/449 June 11, 2012 Nikki Henderson Instructor: Ian Finley What is quality? “Quality itself has been defined as fundamentally relational: ‘Quality is the ongoing process of building and sustaining relationships by assessing, anticipating, and fulfilling stated and implied needs,’ Quality Digest, 2001).” Even those quality definitions which are not expressly relational have an implicit relational character. Why do we try to do the right thing right, on time, every time? To build and sustain relationships. Why do we seek zero defects and conformance to requirements? To build and sustain relationships. Why do we seek to structure features or characteristics of a product or service that bear on their ability to satisfy stated and implied needs? To build and sustain relationships. The focus of continuous improvement is, likewise, the building and sustaining of relationships. It would be difficult to find a realistic definition of quality that did not have, implicit within the definition, a fundamental express or implied focus of building and sustaining relationships (Quality Digest, 2001.) Elements of Quality There are three key elements of quality: customer, process, and employee (Key Elements of Quality, n.d...
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...Total Quality Pioneers Joshua McCourt MGT/449 February 13, 2012 Dr. Olivia Herriford Total Quality Pioneers This paper will give the definition of quality and define its elements. We will also define the total quality of elements that made the pioneer successful. We will also explain how the elements of quality one used in today’s business environment as well as for future endeavors. Define Quality and its Elements According to the text “Quality is a dynamic state associated with products, services, people, processes, and environments that meets or exceeds expectations and helps produce superior value” (Goetsch, Davis, 2010). What individuals and or organizations consider to be quality at a particular point in time will evolve and eventually change as the organization move forward into the future (Goetsch, Davis, 2010). A company must always produce what the consumer wants but it must also increase its quality of the product or service before it gets to the consumer. The organization must also have a durable product or service that lasts without any problems into the future. This continual improvement in the quality of products or services will insure customer loyalty and increase business for the organization because of its satisfied customers. Quality is applied towards all products and or services as well as the people, processes and environment. Several key elements of total quality are made up of strategically based, customer focus approach, obsession with quality...
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...Total Quality Pioneers Quality is very often an elusive concept that can vary in meaning, depending on the context in which it is used. In many cases it is difficult to measure or define quality, particularly when the service or product is intangible. Quality is often the term consumer’s use in reference to an acceptable or unacceptable service, goods, or experience. Goetsch and Davis (2010) stated, “Quality is a dynamic state associated with products, services, people, processes, and environments that meets or exceeds expectations and helps produce superior value (p. 5 ). This paper will highlight the definition of quality and it elements as well as describe the pioneer’s success in using the elements of total quality. In order for an organization to offer quality services, products to customers that service provider must have the desire to provide that quality. The notion of what is quality is constantly changing; what is perceived as acceptable quality by some individuals or organizations today may be unacceptable by those same people the next. In order for any organization to be successful, consumer satisfaction of the service or product must be consistent. The task for management of an organization is to seek elements of quality management that work best in the specific workplace and to match them to other elements that work best in the entire organization. As changes occur in consumer preferences so does the definition of quality changes. Pioneers Process After World...
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...Total Quality Pioneers MGT/449 Quality Management and Productivity Andy Barron Victor Rayneri June 6, 2011 Total Quality Pioneers Abstract W. Edwards Deming was a very influential person when it came to quality. He influenced the Japanese industrial renaissance after World War II. Deming was also very influential in the United States, but not until after his influence in Japan was heard in the United States. At the beginning, Deming’s own country, the United States, wouldn’t listen to his ideas, so he went to Japan and became known as one of the major contributors of total quality (Petersen, 1987). Define Quality and its Elements Quality is defined in many different ways by many different people. Quality according to Goetsch and Davis (2010) is in the eye of the beholder and customers define quality clearly using specifications, standards, and other measures, showing us that quality can be defined and measured (Goetsch & Davis, 2010). Everyone sees quality in different ways. Consumers concern themselves with quality throughout each day, such as when they eat at a restaurant, go shopping, purchasing a car or a house. Quality is how well we judge what it is we are purchasing or looking to purchase. In purchasing a car consumers look at quality different that if they are buying a hamburger for McDonald’s. In a restaurant a customer might look to see if the meat is well cooked, if the tables or clean, and how long it takes to get their meal to define the quality...
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...Total Quality Pioneers School of Business MGT/449 Total Quality is a way of doing business; it improves the quality of products, services, people, processes, and environments. This is also known as “The Big Q”. The total quality approach is achievable by fallowing and acknowledging the characteristics of having a successful business, these characteristics are also known as the elements of total quality; strategically based, customer focus (internal and external), obsession with quality, scientific approach to decision making and problem solving, long term commitment, teamwork, continual process improvements, education and training, freedom through control, unity of purpose, and employee involvement and empowerment (D.L. Goesch & S.B. Davis, 2010). Dr. W. Edwards Deming is known as the father of the Japanese post-war industrial revival and was regarded by many as the leading quality guru in the United States. Deming’s expertise was used during World War II to assist the United States in its effort to improve the quality of war materials. Deming’s motto was "We have learned to live in a world of mistakes and defective products as if they were necessary to life. It is time to adopt a new philosophy in America.” (Leadership Institute, 2005). There were three specific things that Deming was known for; the Deming Cycle, The fourteen points, and the seven deadly diseases. Deming was very successful in helping organization understand what needed to be done to help...
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...is one of the various quality pioneers in the United States. According to Deming biographer Andrea Gabor “Deming has become by far the most influential proponent of quality management in the United States” (Goestsch, Davis, p. 13, 2010). In this paper the subjects to describe are quality and its elements and how Deming’s use of the total quality elements made the pioneer successful. The elements of quality are useful in today’s environment, and this paper will also describe what is needed to ensure quality in the future. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, quality is the degree of excellence, a distinguishing attribute, and a social status or high rank (2011). From a management and organizational perspective there are several thoughts that address the meaning of quality. The ISO 9000 family of standards defines quality as the totality of a product or service features and elements that ensures the satisfaction of stated or implied needs or wants of customers (ISO, 2008). Edward Deming, one of the renowned pioneers of quality management states that quality is defined by the customer and consists of several measurement categories, and each category is considered to be important to customers (Deming, 1986). Drawing from the aforementioned definitions, quality can be defined as the ability to effectively and efficiently produce or deliver what the customers need or want while minimizing errors through the process. Edward Deming’s “quality movement” was developed...
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...Total Quality Pioneers Nicholas McLaughlin MGT-449 Timothy Peters Introduction This paper will cover quality and its elements, the pioneers of quality and what made them successful. What makes the elements useful in today’s market place and how quality can affect the future. The paper will also what Deming tried to teach for quality and how others expanded on his ideas. As an adjective quality means having a high degree of excellence. As a noun quality means a distinguishing characteristic("American Heritage Dictionary", 2009). The elements of quality are strategically based, customer focus, obsession with quality, scientific Approach, Long-term Commitment, teamwork, continual process improvement, education and training, freedom through control, unity of purpose, and employee involvement and empowerment. Deming was the first person to define quality and what it required to obtain quality. Deming uses the Deming cycle, Deming’s fourteen points, and Deming’s diseases. The cycle talks about consumer research, producing the product, checking the product and marketing the product. Finally, it talks about analyzing how the product is received. This final step is one that is important so that a company can learn about the marketplace. The fourteen points talk about leadership and employee empowerment to make a more efficient workplace. There is also the point of replacing quotas with leadership. Motivation of employees is more...
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...Total Quality Pioneer Paper Virginia Rackins MGT/449 Bill White October 3, 2011 Quality is something every customer wants in a product he or she is buying. As consumers, we value quality in everything we purchase and expect in life. Quality is something every human need to fulfill his or her wants and needs in life. In this paper, I will try to make the readers understand on how important quality is to our environment and will break down the different elements for quality. “Quality is a dynamic state associated with products, services, people, processes and environments that meet or exceeds expectations and helps produce superior value” (Goetsch and Davis, 2010). Quality simply means that a consumer needs are being met when a product has no defects or deficiencies in it and when the service, people, and the overall experience are handled with the best quality. What is considered as today’s standards may change as time passes. In order for a business to succeed in the business world the consumer has to continually get quality service provided by the employees and the management of the business. Total quality definition has two elements which include: what and the how of total quality. The how element of total quality has eleven components which include: strategically base, customer focus, making quality the #1 focus, scientific approach, hard work and dedication, teamwork, continual process improvement, education and training, freedom through control, unity...
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