Showing papers on "Quality circle published in 2001"

Management fads: Emergence, evolution, and implications for managers

Abstract: Executive Overview Management fads often get a lot of attention. Should managers be concerned about the latest management fad, or is it just a waste of time?1 Considerable interest has been shown in the literature about management fads and fashions. Journal and newspaper articles abound,2 and professional books have been written on the subject.3 Unlike many literature-based, academic concepts, these fads and fashions are well known by practicing managers. This article focuses on five management fads of the late 20th century, each one representative of a management trend of a specific decade: MBO (1950s), sensitivity training (1960s), quality circles (1970s), total quality management (1980s), and self-managed or self-directed teams (1990s). In each case, this article explores the origin of the fad through its evolution into mainstream management practice. Further, each fad is examined to determine relevance to current management practice. The article offers practical guidelines for managers regarding which...

'Flexible' Work Practices and Occupational Safety and Health: Exploring the Relationship between Cumulative Trauma Disorders and Workplace Transformation

Abstract: This paper matches establishment-level data on workplace transformation (e.g., quality circles, work teams, and just-in-time production) with measures of cumulative trauma disorders at these same establishments to explore the relationship between 'flexible' workplace practices and workplace health and safety. The results reveal a positive, statistically significant, and quantitatively sizeable relationship between cumulative trauma disorders and the use of quality circles and just-in-time production.

Satisfaction, work involvement and R&D performance

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to investigate which are the concepts of Social Identity Theory that explain the dispersion of research performance. Regression models were applied on data of ten National Research Council (CNR) institutes of Piemonte, a region in North Western Italy. Results show that there is a good positive correlation between research performance and job satisfaction (r=0.55). Moreover the 72% of total variance of job satisfaction is explained by work involvement. The influence of job satisfaction and work involvement on research performance places the strategic role of human resources management. If the problems are underestimated, a lack of interest in the work carried out in public research organisations can arise. The therapies that are proposed are the adoption of a total quality approach, including a suggestions box, quality circles and improvement/project groups.

Employee Perceptions of Job Influence and Organizational Participation Employee Perceptions

Abstract: An analysis using British matched employer-employee data finds that workers in establishments operating employee participation schemes feel that they have greater influence over their jobs. Schemes involving broader forms of participation, such as representative participation and briefing groups, are shown to be more strongly associated with greater influence than those of a more focused type, such as quality circles and work teams. There is little evidence of a strong positive interaction between these types of schemes.

Beyond quality circles and improvement teams

Abstract: Whole enterprise worker participation is key in company competitiveness. But a new approach to participation is needed in companies where schemes to promote involvement (suggestion systems, quality circles and improvement teams, etc.) are failing because they merely act as window dressing, or token acts of keeping up with the Joneses in management fashion. In this article we explain the approach we have developed to encourage continual improvement as a tool for competition. It is outlined in an implementation plan and structured in what we call 'improvement projects'. Applying improvement projects in a company is an attempt to carry out an organizational redesign to increase current levels of productivity, quality, deadline cutting and cost reduction. This is done with regard to human resources and existing materials and always relies on involvement of all personnel (workers, middle management and top management), not only in design but also in development and implementation. Its implementation is illustr...

Perceived effectiveness of diagnostic and therapeutic guidelines in primary care quality circles.

Abstract: Objective. The main objectives of this study were to implement quality circle programs among general practitioners and to evaluate this quality management tool as a way to develop clinical guidelines in general practice. Design. The quality circle program was evaluated within a formative and summative evaluation design by both participants and moderators for a period of 18 months using structured questionnaires. At time one, participants were asked about their goals and current job satisfaction, and rated the perceived effectiveness and the usefulness of predefined guidelines of each quality circle meeting. At time two, participants and moderators reported again about their achieved goals and job satisfaction.

Facilitating change and empowering employees

Abstract: This paper describes how one organisation involved all its employees in recognising and prioritising issues needing attention to improve productivity and retention, and to make their organisation ‘a great place to work’. It coincided with the introduction of a new technology that enabled scientists to define more efficient, and cost effective ways to translate genetic information into targets that facilitate the development of medicines. This technology fundamentally affected the role of the scientist and their motivation. The change initiative was borne from discussion of quality circles and continuous improvement, and a desire to involve employees in their workplace culture. It continued to evolve as the team became more experienced and enjoyed the responsibility of empowerment. A team of employees led the initiative — they designed and analysed quarterly web surveys that collected views and tracked changes each quarter, and suggested and often led change implementation activities. Results show changes ...

Japanese healthcare quality improvement

Abstract: Are there lessons for the West from the way Japanese managers and healthcare workers use quality methods in healthcare? This paper describes the Japanese approach to quality in healthcare by drawing on a research visit and published research. It describes the similarities and differences between Japanese and other public healthcare systems and the factors leading to the application of quality methods in Japan. The paper discusses why quality methods have been used less in healthcare than in industry, and the methodology of quality circles. It describes why total quality methods have not been adopted, the approach of “evidence based participatory quality improvement” which is being developed and proposes that western healthcare can learn from the methodical “bottom‐up” introduction of quality methods as a foundation for TQM.

Teams and TQM: A comparison between Australia and Thailand

Abstract: A survey of Australian and Thai employees was conducted in organisations implementing total quality management (TQM) to examine the effects of membership of teams on participation and positive attitudinal outcomes. MANOVA was employed to test for differences between team members and non‐members on perceived influence, skill utilisation, satisfaction with participation, job satisfaction, and positive attitudes toward consultation. The results indicated that, in the Australian sample, operators who participated in teams were more satisfied with participation, while professionals who were team members perceived a higher level of influence than non‐team members. In the Thai sample, operators who participated in teams reported a higher level of skill utilisation and satisfaction with participation than non‐team members, but reverse effects were found on perceived influence for Thai professionals. In general, the effects of team membership were more positive for lower‐level employees than for professional/technical staff in both countries.

Service Quality in Higher Education: Expectations versus Experiences of Doctoral Students

Abstract: Despite the importance of measuring service quality in today's educational marketplace, little empirical research has been conducted in the delivery ofprofessional services to doctoral students in higher education. This research employed gap analysis to gain insight into the service quality expectations and experiences of doctoral students at state-supported universities in Tennessee. Background Because of an increase in consumer sensitivity, an intensification of competition, and an ever-increasing emphasis on accountability by the governing bodies of colleges and universities, professional service quality in higher education has emerged as a subject in need of investigation. Meeting or exceeding the customer's expectations in the delivery of services has been shown to increase market share and can be a key factor in maintaining a competitive business advantage (Berry 1995). A long list of successes, credited to TQM and TQS, in the business sector has prompted institutions of higher education to imitate the business model of measuring service quality (e.g., Boulding et al. 1993; DiDomenico and Bonnici 1996; Hampton 1993; Kearney and Kearney 1994; Schwantz 1996). Quality Improvement (QI), Total Quality Management (TQM), Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI), or any number of other titles and acronyms have been used to describe the principles that have evolved from W. A. Shewhart's work at Bell Telephone Laboratories in the early 1920s on statistical quality control (Seymour 1992). Shewhart developed the concept of improving quality by improving processes. All of the quality improvement acronyms listed above evolved from "total quality control," originally coined by A. V. Feigenbaum in 1951 (Sherr and Lozier 1991). Seven decades after Shewhart developed the concepts that helped transform businesses around the world, rapid change has again brought opportunities and special challenges to people who seek to help their organization perform better. During the past two decades, a demand for better quality in products and services has caused a rebirth of interest in, and a renewed appreciation for, Shewhart's work. Organizations are learning how to standardize processes, solve problems, eliminate waste, and reduce variation in order to make significant gains in quality and productivity (Joiner 1996). Because of his successes in Japan and throughout U.S. industry, W. Edwards Deming is considered the preeminent 20th Century authority on quality and quality improvement in both the manufacturing and service industries (Stamatis 1996). Deming's contributions are important for two reasons. First, Deming was an early practitioner of total quality, and much of the work in the field is directly or indirectly influenced by his ideas. Second, Deming's Fourteen Principles provided the foundation for a philosophy of quality improvement that has transformed American business (Deming 1986). The theories of Juran, Crosby, and Taguchi have also made notable contributions to the application of quality concepts to the service industry. Two premises that emerged from the research and literature on service quality improvement formed the underlying rationale for the current study: (1) customers do evaluate service encounters and the process of service delivery to form perceptions of service quality and, ultimately, organizational quality; and (2) services are definable, measurable, and improvable (Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry 1985). GAP ANALYSIS METHODOLOGY The one factor that can distinguish competitors in a service environment is service quality. Quality has always been an important consideration in the purchase of goods and services. Although the quality of goods can be measured objectively by using indicators such as durability and defects, because of factors unique to services and to the delivery of services, the measurement of service quality has proven to be more difficult (Falzon 1990). …

Quality Mining: A Data Mining Based Method for Data Quality Evaluation.

Abstract: The value of information depends directly on the quality of the data used Decisions are no better than the data on which they are based How can organizations assess the quality of their information? How can they know if their data are useful? Quality control and management have become competitive needs for most businesses today, and there is a wide experience on the topic of quality Approaches range from technical, such as statistical process control, to managerial, such as quality circles An analogous experience basis is needed for data quality In this paper we present a method for data quality evaluation based on Data Mining We introduce QuAsAR, a mechanism for the systematic analysis of correctness based on the information itself In order to evaluate the performance of the method, we apply it to a real case study This case study helps us to analyze support and confidence intervals and distribution of erroneous data

Building quality into academic programmes using quality circles

Abstract: The use of teams or quality circles is a relatively new approach to quality improvement in higher education in South Africa. This article describes some of the advantages in using the approach and some of the pitfalls that need to be considered. The debate of the "quality circle life cycle", which culminates in the demise of the tool is addressed. While quality circles in the traditional production environment are likely to self destruct in the long term, by modifying their nature, function and form in an academic environment they can still make a valuable contribution not only to quality improvement, but also staff moral and job satisfaction. South African Journal of Higher Education Vol.15(1) 2001: 197-204

Three Distensions of Knowledge Economy and Roles of QC Groups

Abstract: The process from the beginning to the development of the Quality Circle pursuit is that constantly engaged in quality management and knowledge creation, mixing together the Orient and Western culture.Consciously observing this process to continue work,it is sure to push the knowledge creation of enterprise forward.Under the condition of knowledgeeconomy, knowledge share is the important content of enterpriseto knowledge management. The main characteristic of Quality Circle pursuit is collective key tast team,it can provide good environmental condition for enterprise bring about knowledge share. Quality Circle pursuit is quality management movement of a mass character in the staff of all trades and professions, it can play the role of the main carrier in pushing the work forward of quality concept, expanding of application and knowledge main body shift. In Information-economy era, the function of Quality Circle pursuit will extend to above-mentioned three aspects. In new century, the intelligence revolution of quality control group will develop in giving play to the function.

[Analytical quality assurance in environmental medicine - experiences by a quality circle in Baden-Württemberg].

Abstract: . In connection with the implementation of the study "Sentinel Health Departments" which was performed in 1992 in Baden-Wurttemberg by the Landesgesundheitsamt (LGA) the importance of Analytical Quality Protection (AQP) in the environmental medicine was emphasized. In 1994 the LGA established a quality circle in Baden-Wurttemberg (BW) in the area of the human biomonitoring. In 1998 the area of responsibilitiy was expanding and the quality circle was occupied with the "Biological Indoor Pollution" and the "Chemical Indoor Pollution" as well. In 2000 a group of members of the Sozialministerium BW, the Landesarztekammer BW and the four Kassenarztliche Vereinigungen of Baden-Wurttemberg was set up at the LGA. In 2001 the working group "Landerarbeitsgruppe umweltbezogener Gesundheitsschutz" (LAUG) intends to establish a project team which is called "Certification in the realm of the Human Biomonitoring". The coordination will be effected by the LGA. Until now the work of the qualitiy circle led to an improvement of the comparability of the results of the different laboratories and to a more realistic assessment of the uncertainty of the results referring to the environmental medical examinations.

Successfully Using Teams to Assist in Structural Realignments or Downsizing Initiatives

Abstract: The value of teams to the change process has been increasingly emphasized in the organizational literature over the last decade. Yet there has been little discussion of the inherent obstacles to using teams in structural realignments or downsizing initiatives. This article points out these obstacles and offers guidelines for the successful use of teams in such environments. Teams are effective in assisting organizations in overcoming the inherent deficiencies of the specialized line-staff structures that evolved in 19th-century America. Teams can address issues of process simplification, internal communications, and customer outreach under multiple change models applied to diverse organizational settings. Yet they are rarely properly used during restructuring or downsizing initiatives. The antiquated federal position classification program, questionable normative organizational behavior theory, and the tendency of supervisors to opt for the immediate, short-term solution create additional barriers to effective team utilization. This article addresses these issues and suggests how best to utilize the expertise of teams in such environments. The Value of Teams In the post-Civil-War period, specialized line and staff functions and hierarchical organizations were eminently logical. Specialization facilitated the assimilation of a largely agrarian and immigrant workforce. The growing complexity of law, regulation, and operations made specialized staff expertise essential. Taylor and other theorists of the time advocated these hierarchical structures and specialized work assignments under the theories of "scientific management." Little wonder that the Federal Classification Act of 1923 created a position classification system designed to support stable and hierarchical organizations. The act established the basic rank-in-position classification concept still applied in the federal and numerous state and local governments. Grade levels (and pay) are based upon duties performed and not the qualifications of the employee. Since it is assumed that most positions fit neatly into a single occupational series, relatively little credit is given for variety of duties in determining the appropriate grade level of a position.[1] The emergence of teams and teamwork within the constraints of a specialized hierarchy organized by function was equally logical. Project accomplishment often requires the talents of various functional specialists. Thus, project-focused teams likely emerged in the earliest manufacturing operations. Both organizational development and total quality change models assume the existence of hierarchical structures with line-staff relationships. Most disagreements between OD and TQ theorists (and sometimes consultants using the same change model) involve management's role in initiating and executing change or the sequence and balance of process and cultural change within an organization. OD theorists advocate an external intervention by a consultant using behavior-based "action research" to change the organizational culture and then its processes, structures, and other components. Typically this is a bottom-up model with heavy initial input from the workforce. As evidenced from the Quality Circle movement, bottom-up initiatives give the team wide latitude in problem identification and resolution.[2] TQ models vary. The TQ model most distinctly different from OD assumes a top-down implementation with cultural change following process simplification. The activities of working-level teams are limited primarily to process analyses of predefined existing conditions with defined boundaries. Both models assume teams are essential to the change process, since only the person doing the job truly understands how it is done.[3] In re-engineered organizations, hierarchy is replaced by process-centered structures composed of teams who receive technical, logistics and career-development support from specialized units. …