2.4.4 Quality management

Question 1

Operations management

Answer 1

the control of the production function of the organisation relating to the production of goods

Question 2

Operational targets

Answer 2

productivity
capacity
efficiency
quality

Question 3

What is quality?

Answer 3

• meets the specification of the firm
• fit for purpose
• meeting requirements

Question 4

How to meet quality?

Answer 4

• find out what customers want
• specify what the product does
• make sure specifications are achieved

Question 5

Why is quality important for a business?

Answer 5

• customer satisfaction - loyalty- repeat purchasing
• less wastage - fewer defects and fewer refunds
• USP of high quality - competitive advantage
• Brand loyalty - reputation
• Increase sales
• Staff retention - quality can attract due to brand
• link to efficiency
• environmental/ethical importance
• Maintain/growth of market share

Question 6

Quality circles

Answer 6

A group of employees who meet together regularly for the purpose of identifying problems and recommending adjustments to the working processes.

Question 7

Pros of quality circles

Answer 7

• used to address known quality issues (defective products)
• useful for identifying better practices that may improve quality
• improve staff morale through employee involvement

Question 8

Cons of quality circles

Answer 8

Time consuming

conflict of opinions

Question 9

Zero defects

Answer 9

the aim to produce goods and services with no faults or problems
-many firms will have zero defects as a target to move towards without any realistic expectation of getting there

Question 10

Which industries will use zero defects as a goal?

Answer 10

Passenger aircraft production and the manufacture of surgical equipment will have zero defects as a serious goal because a fault can be dangerous and very serious

Question 11

Quality control

Answer 11

checking output to remove any faulty goods at the end of the production process

Question 12

Pros of quality control

Answer 12

• can guarantee no defective items will leave the factor and reach a customer
• Requires little staff training which suits a business with unskilled or tempeeoray staff

Question 13

Cons of quality control

Answer 13

• can only be trusted when all of output is test and not when based on sampling
• rejected products are expensive - it has gone through all production but can’t be sold
• doesn’t encourage employees to take responsibility if quality of their own work

Question 14

Quality assurance

Answer 14

the process that ensures production quality meets the requirements of customers at every stage of production

Question 15

Pros of quality assurance

Answer 15

• costs are reduced due to less wastage and re-working faulty products
• improves worker motivation as they have more ownership and responsibility of their work
• breaks barriers between workers and managers and eliminated feeling of being supervised

Question 16

Cons of quality assurance

Answer 16

• time consuming
• money and time to train staff
• can slow down production if having to stop and re-work products

Question 17

Total quality management

Answer 17

a system to encourage all staff to think about quality in business, so quantity is not just the job of production but for everybody

Question 18

Pros of TQM

Answer 18

• should be deeply rooted into the culture of the business - should be shown through design to manufacture
• leads to better products manufactured at a lower cost
• reduces waste and saves time leading to reduced expenses
• TQM provides customers with consistency that they value which creates customer loyalty and continued business
• engagement of all leads to employee engagement which reduces turnover and saves money on training and mistakes

Question 19

Cons of TQM

Answer 19

• may require expensive training to get TQM into culture

- its a company wide commitment

Question 20

Kaizen

Answer 20

empowering staff to make a series of small suggestions to improve processes in production

• improvements are based around people and their ideas rather than the investment in new technology
• continuous improvement

Question 21

Pros of kaizen

Answer 21

• gives employees a sense of worth in business
• improved teamwork - cross functional collaborations, different skills learnt from others
• boosts efficiency and time management

Question 22

Cons of kaizen

Answer 22

• change is difficult as will alter management system
• Requires training - tedious and demanding
• money and time consuming