Chapter 12: Quality Management

Question 1

What are the quality dimensions for goods

Answer 1

• performance: describe the efficiency with which a product achieves its intended purpose
• features: the attributes of a product that supplement the products basic performance
• reliability: the propensity for a product to perform consistently over its useful design life
• conformance: the situation when the specifications of the product are within the prescribed tolerances
• durability: the degree to which a product tolerates stress or trauma without failing
• serviceability: the ease of the maintenance and repair of a product or the provision of backup service
• aesthetics: the products subjective characteristics that appeal to the senses of taste, touch, hearing, sight and smell
• perceived quality: quality based on the users opinion
• safety: the degree to which the product protects users before, during and after use
• environmental friendliness: the degree to which the product could have a destructive effect on natural resources

Question 2

In what ways can quality be defined

Answer 2

• culturally
• in terms of value
• judgmentally
• in terms of a system
• in terms of fitness for use
• in terms of conformance to requirements
• in terms of freedom from deficiencies
• transcendentally

Question 3

What are the quality dimensions for services

Answer 3

• tangibles: the physical appearance of the facility, the equipment and the personnel
• reliability: the ability of the service provider to perform the promised service dependently and accurately
• responsiveness: the willingness of the service provider to be helpful and prompt in providing the requested service
• assurance: the knowledge and courtesy of employees and their ability to inspire trust and confidence
• empathy: the ability to satisfy customers desire for caring and attentive service

Question 4

Why has quality become a priority (pg 319)

Answer 4

• competition
• higher level of customer expectation
• the customer focus of organization
• performance improvement
• change in the form of organizations
• changing workforce
• the information revolution
• the role of the ‘quality department’

Question 5

Identify and describe the three quality spheres

Answer 5

1. Quality control - it is embedded within a process to meet standards consistently. It involves observing or measuring actual performance, comparing it with some standard and then taking appropriate remedial action if there are deviations. E.g. the feedback system and the feed forward system (pg 327)
2. Quality assurance - refers to activities associated with the guaranteeing of the quality of a good or service
3. Quality management - the management of processes that assist in integrating control and assurance activities

Question 6

What are the ISO9000 principles of quality management (pg 333)

Answer 6

1. Customer focused: organizations depend on their customers and therefore should understand current and future customer needs. They should meet customar requirements and strive to exceed customers expectations
2. Leadership: leaders establish unity of purpose and direction of the organization
3. Engagement of people: people at all levels are the essence of an organization and their full engagement enables their abilities to be used for the organizations benefit
4. Process approach: a desired result is achieved more efficiently when activities and related resources are managed as a process
5. Improvement: continual improvement of organizations overall performance should be a permanent objective of the organization
6. Evidence-based decisions: the organization needs to ensure the accessibility of accurate and reliable data, use appropriate methods to analyze the data, make decisions based on analysis, and balanced data analysis with practical experience when using this approach
7. Relationship management: an organization and is suppliers are interdependent, and a mutually beneficial relationship enhances the ability of both to create value