Quality Flashcards
Importance of the purchasing department
•to ensure that the purchase of quality and consistency of goods and materials that a business needs to keep the reputation they gained
•specialist purchasing managers can be employed who have qualifications and experience
•can purchase the goods and materials at competitive prices
•advantages of economies of scale- bulk purchasing, management economies
•to ensure they don’t run out of any raw materials
•build up close relationships with suppliers to ensure reliability
•to ensure that too much stock isn’t purchased which reduces waste
quality
those features of a product or service that allows it to satisfy customer wants
how can they ensure the provision of quality goods and services
•use good quality raw materials that ensure reliability and durability
•keep up to date with any developments in the market
•ensure that staff and sub-contractors are well trained and can carry out tasks effectively
•maintain effective after sales service (delivery, speed of response and availability of parts)
•to maintain the image of their retail outlets and ensure that customers are impressed with the service
•adopt various quality initiatives
•undertake market research on a regular basis to gain customer feedback
•ensure the workforce is well motivated in order that they provide quality workmanship and good customer service
benefits of quality
•increased sales
•reduced costs
•reduced waste
•market orientation
•customer satisfaction
how do the purchasing department ensure quality
ensure that the right quantity and quality of raw materials or components are available for the production process
how do the operations department ensure quality
structuring and managing the manufacturing process
how does the finance department ensure quality
ensuring that capital is available for appropriate investment
how does the human resources department ensure quality
ensuring that the factor of production labour is available in the right quantities with the right skills
how does the marketing department ensure quality
providing market research information in order that customer wants can be satisfied
total quality management
an operations management system that creates structures within an organisation that satisfy internal and external customers and suppliers- it creates quality through continuous improvement, development of systems and products and by creating an organisational culture of quality
quality assurance methods
•team working
•product design checking
•recognised standards
•benchmarking
•production control
team working
a team is responsible for a production process
benefits of team working
•the team is empowered to check the quality of raw materials, interact during the installation process and check the quality of the finished product; responsibility lies with the team
•teamwork can build trust and morale whilst improving communication between members
benchmarking
imitating the standards of an established leader in quality and attempting to better them; setting competitive performance standards against which performance can be measured
quality circles
a discussion group that meets regularly to identify quality problems, consider alternative solutions and recommend a suitable outcome to management, members are drawn from different parts of the business
benefits of using quality circles
•they may improve current practices within the business making it more efficient
•introduce ideas that will save the company money or improve sales
•motivates employees by involving them directly in improving the nature of the work they are doing
•may reduce labour turnover
product design checking
in addition to monitoring raw materials and components, the total design of the product must also be checked for quality
application of recognised standards
the use of recognised standards such as ISO 9000 is widespread amongst businesses- the achievement of these standards is often an indication of achievement and maintenance of quality
ISO 9000
supposed to guarantee quality of management of the whole organisation- it depends on proving that quality targets for all parts of the organisation have been met
production control
this is the method of ensuring that standards are set, and processes designed to meet these targets, are actually being used in the workplace
what does production control involve
•monitoring of costs
•control of operations
•supervision of output
•feedback methods
quality control
a system of maintaining standards in manufacturing by testing a sample of the output against expected standards, at the end of production
quality chains
trying to get every work group or department to think of those they work for as customers, even if they are fellow employees
a company-wide quality policy
it must start at the top with the chief executive and spread throughout the organisation to every employee
