What is Quality Management?

What is Quality Management? | Quality Management Tutorial | Invensis Learning

Quality and Quality Management:

• Defining Quality: Quality often lacks a precise definition in business and is commonly used in marketing rather than critical processes.
• Understanding Quality Management: It involves aligning organizational traits to achieve a particular level of perfection, encompassing all activities ensuring product/service quality and emphasizing continual improvement.

History of Quality Management:

• Origins: Quality management traces back to the middle ages, but formalized approaches emerged in the 1920s using statistical theory for product quality control.
• Total Quality Management (TQM): Developed in the 1940s, influenced by quality gurus like Deming and Duran, emphasizing continuous improvement and customer focus.

Importance of Quality Management:

• Market Competition: In a competitive market, prioritizing quality through continuous improvement is essential to stand out and meet customer expectations.
• Customer-Centric Focus: Understanding and meeting customer needs, refining products, and ensuring consistent quality are vital for long-term success.

Quality Management Process:

• Phases: Quality management involves planning, assurance, and control phases, utilizing tools such as ISO standards, quality metrics, and methodologies like Six Sigma and Kaizen.
• Continuous Improvement: Structured approaches like Six Sigma focus on error correction and continual enhancement through data-driven decision-making and small incremental changes.

Role of Quality Management Tools:

• Data Collection and Analysis: Quality management tools help collect and analyze data, identify common problems, and their root causes, facilitating error correction and process improvements.
• Examples: Tools like Pareto Charts, Six Sigma methodologies, and Histograms aid in pinpointing and resolving deficiencies, focusing on continuous improvements and efficiency gains.

What is Quality Management?

• Quality management ensures products and services meet specifications and are delivered cost-effectively, emphasizing consistency.
• Components include quality planning, control, assurance, and improvement, focusing on both product and service quality.
• Using a fictional company, ACM Rose produces pens in different colors and maintains consistency through a quality control team.
• Inspectors randomly sample pens to ensure color consistency, functionality, and proper fitting covers.
• Quality management personnel at ACM Rose also oversee timely delivery by monitoring stock levels and coordinating with delivery drivers.

Quality Management and Continuous Improvement | Google Project Management Certificate

Quality Management Concepts

• Triple Constraint Consideration: Balancing time, scope, and budget impacts overall project quality.
• Quality vs. Completion: Emphasizing the distinction between merely finishing a project and meeting customer-defined quality standards.
• Definition of Quality: Meeting outlined deliverable requirements and surpassing customer needs or expectations defines quality in project management.

Components of Quality Management

• Quality Standards: Establishing requirements ensuring products, processes, or services are fit for the desired outcome.
• Quality Planning: Actions to identify relevant quality standards and plan procedures to achieve them.
• Quality Assurance (QA): Evaluating the project's progress toward delivering a high-quality service or product throughout the project lifecycle.
• Quality Control (QC): Checking and correcting adherence to the quality plan, ensuring meeting standards and customer satisfaction.

Practical Application in a Project Scenario

• Example: "Plant Pals" Project: Setting quality standards for reliability and usability, reflecting the implementation of quality management concepts in a specific project context.
• Negotiation and Customer Satisfaction: Utilizing negotiation skills to address discrepancies and ensure customer satisfaction regarding quality standards.
• Feedback Incorporation: Discussing the timing and methods of feedback integration for product improvement or user experience enhancement.

Continuous Improvement and Beyond

• Data-Driven Improvement Frameworks: Utilizing actual data to make decisions, enabling continuous improvement.
• Projects, Programs, and Portfolios: Understanding the hierarchical structure of projects within programs and portfolios, emphasizing the interconnectedness.
• Retrospectives for Improvement: Leveraging retrospectives to facilitate team understanding, identify areas for change, and drive continuous improvement.

Phases of QMS Implementation:

• Quality Planning: Determining standards, practices, and resources relevant to specific products, services, or projects.
• Quality Assurance: Managing documentation and controls for consistent, intended results.
• Quality Control: Techniques to observe, measure, and evaluate product or service characteristics meeting customer requirements.

Dimensions Defining Quality:

• Performance: Measurable attributes and primary operating characteristics.
• Features: Supplementary characteristics enhancing basic functioning.
• Reliability: Probability of product malfunction within a specified time.
• Conformance: Adherence to established standards in design and operating characteristics.
• Durability: Lifespan or usage before deterioration or breakdown.
• Serviceability: Speed, competence, and ease of repair or service.
• Aesthetics: Subjective judgment based on appearance, sound, taste, or smell.
• Perceived Quality: Consumer perception, influenced by marketing and inferred quality.

Course Forward:

• Interested in leading a Quality Management pillar, sub-pillar, or project team? 
• Learn more about our Quality Management Leader coaching program!  See the benefits below, and find more details in this link.  https://www.beltcourse.com/quality-management-leader-course-page