Continual improvement process – The world is too small? or Is it?

Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs – July 2015

Welcome to July 2015 edition of Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs.

The search for “Improving measures of measurement of process” took us to the first building block -‘performance measures and metrics’, followed by the search for resources relating to the ‘structuring for the process of improvement’. We now take one more step forward and look for some basics to search for “Deploying the Improvement Process”.

Techniques and lessons for improvement of deployment processes – the article would appear to be non-fitting jig-saw piece in the ‘Deploying the Improvement Process, puzzle. The article aims to make (software) deployment processes reproducible and reliable. It presents a number of interesting techniques and lessons that could improve the deployment process of a system, and hence our interest in the article.

1. Deal with the deployment complexity from the beginning in your development process

2. Make your deployment process script-able

3. Decompose your system and their build processes, for the following reasons:

It may significantly reduce build times, because only components that have been changed have to be rebuilt. There is no need to re-examine the complete codebase for each change.
It increases flexibility, because it becomes easier to replace specific parts of a system with other variants.
It allows a better means of sharing components across systems and better integration in different environments. As I have stressed out in an earlier blog post, software nowadays is rarely self-contained and run in many types of environments.
It allows you to perform builds faster, because they can be performed in parallel.

[The rest of the article deals with specific relating to software codes and products.]

The Practical Deployment of a Continuous Improvement Process provides the groundwork required for deployment of Improvement process.

Process Deployment and Monitoring proposes an approach for supporting successful deployment and monitoring of process improvements.

Deploy Continuous Improvement by Brian Anderson | @branderlog – describes how to put in place a framework called Improvement Kata. This is the first step we must take to drive continuous improvement in our execution of large scale programs.

Figure: The Improvement Kata, courtesy of Mike Rother

Process Improvement using a Deployment Chart – by John Halter – Despite superlative attitudes, immense dedication, and soaring urgency, results plummet on a downward trend. Such a perplexing Cycle of Un-Quality is sufficient to thrust any manager to the brink of anxiety and anger…

Cycle of Un- Quality

It is time to analyze if the right people are doing the right things, but in the wrong way. But when a process may be off-track and requires evaluation, seize a modest tool called a Deployment Chart created by quality guru Dr. W. Edwards Deming. The Deployment Chart is a flowcharting mechanism which allows you to inspect a process and apprehend the numerous relationships different people in the process have to the tasks and to each other……. An examination of our completed Deployment Chart will show us whether we have a smooth flowing process that makes sense. Often times the Deployment Chart will display a process containing multiple hand-offs back and forth between people, or worse, between departments. The matrix will highlight where “the ball will be dropped” and where departmental walls have the potential to block and delay the process. You will also be able to identify unfortunate scenarios where two people who are required to be associated and connected with a particular part of the process are entirely detached and removed from each other in the process structure.

An Integrated Approach to Deploying Performance Improvement – by Lindsey Dunn – excerpted from Performance Improvement for Healthcare: Leading Change with Lean, Six Sigma, and Constraints Management by Bahadir Inozu, Dan Chauncey, Vickie Kamataris, and Charles Mount (McGraw-Hill; 2011)

Successfully deploying Lean in healthcare – The objective of this white paper is to better allow healthcare professionals to engage senior leadership (including management and board of directors/trustees) in discussions regarding the successful deployment of Lean.

Obviously, there would be no ONE way of deploying the process of improvement, suffice it to say that in order to be sustainable, deployment of process of improvement must be quite a meticulously executed strategic change , so structured as to be scaled up (or down) to the needs of the circumstances.

We would continue our journey of the process of improvement for a few more months.

In the meanwhile, in the second part, we have David Levy’s Blog, David on Quality from among the Influential Voices Blogroll Alumni, where he shares his views as ASQ Influential Voice on a range of topics. His hard core professional work can be explored at Levy Quality Consulting LLC.

We turn to our regular sections now:

Bill Troy, ASQ CEO has presented guest post of Manu Vora – The Gift of Knowledge Transfer Through Technology. The author very strongly stresses the need for the professionals to be more proficient in communication practices and principles to be successful. He supports his case with a real-life example of use of Google Hangout on Air to share the knowledge with large audiences in organizations as diverse as Indian universities, large corporations, and ASQ member units, with more presentations planned for the future.

Julia McIntosh, ASQ communications in ‘June Roundup: Using Quality Tools In Everday Life’ shares how many of the ASQ Influential Voices bloggers use quality off the job.

We then move over to ASQ TV Episodes:

• Building Effective Teams – Keeping a team on track can be a challenge, especially if it’s virtually based. In this episode learn about effective virtual teams, a useful tool for prioritizing team projects, plus tips from the world’s… best teams for keeping your project on track.

• Corporate Sustainability – Many organizations have earned a reputation for over-consumption, unnecessary waste, and actions that damage the environment. Corporate sustainability takes a conscientious and lean approach of increasing … efficiencies, minimizing waste, and preserving the environment; all of which benefit the organization in a variety of ways, profitability being one.

Our ASQ’s Influential Voice for the month is – Luciana Paulise.

Luciana Paulise is a business consultant and founder of Biztorming Training & Consulting. She holds an MBA from CEMA University in Argentina, is a Quality Engineer Certified by ASQ, and a Senior ASQ member. Luciana has also participated as an examiner for the National Quality Award in Argentina. She blogs about quality and continuous improvement for small and medium size businesses, both in English and in Spanish @ BizTorMing Quality Consulting.

Here are some posts from the blog:

• Agile leadership: the future of quality in small business

• 8 Quality Lessons I learnt from my mother

• Instill a culture of happiness and quality will follow

I look forward to your active participation in enriching the blog carnival as we pursue our Improvement journey ………….

Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs – June 2015

Welcome to June 2015 edition of Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs.

The search for “Improving measures of measurement of process” took us to the first building block -‘performance measures and metrics’. We now take one more step forward and look for some basics to the ‘structuring for the process of improvement’.

Processes, Products & Services – The European Foundation for Quality Management, EFQM, as a first step in their holistic Excellence Model proposes to structure the improvement efforts by taking a Process view of the world rather than the more traditional view.

Providing structure to continuous process improvement – Khwaja Moinuddin – identifies Value Stream Mapping, Six Sigma DMAIC, Lean Methodology and organizational structuring as some of the ways to provide structure to continuous improvement methodologies.

Business Process Improvement Process hierarchy — Business Process Improvement Process Hierarchy

Structure for success with business process improvement – Jeff Fielding – identifies effective project management and change management as the base for managing the process of improvement. He further identifies some key organizational roles like Project Management Team, Process Owner, Process Improvement Team, Project Leader, Field Test Groups that can play the key role.

Driving business process excellence: structure initiatives to get quick results – Dave Bhattacharya – a well-structured framework can dramatically increase success of strategic initiatives – the proper framework has built in components to identify the proper project methodology and has accounted for change and project management.

Applying the DMAIC Steps to Process Improvement Projects – Harry Rever – provides a detailed application of DMAIC steps, as a basic structure for the process improvement projects.

Obviously, there would be no ONE way of structuring for the process of improvement, suffice it to say that in order to be sustainable, process of improvement must be flexibly structured so as to be scaled up (or down) to the needs of the circumstances.

We would continue our journey of the process of improvement for a few more months.

In the meanwhile, in the second part, we have Samir Chougle’s Blog, Maverick SAM, from among the Influential Voices Blogroll Alumni. Samir Chougle is a bookworm. This is what his present list is:

• The Godfather by Mario Puzo

• Quality Management in Construction Projects by Abdul Razzak Rumane

• Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ by Daniel Goleman

• The Great Indian Dream by Arindam Chaudhuri Malay Chaudhuri

• The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

We turn to our regular sections now:

Bill Troy, ASQ CEO has presented guest post of Sunil Kaushik – our ASQ’s Influential Voice for the month: How Lean Helped Me Travel To Egypt With Just $500

Julia McIntosh, ASQ communications in ‘Roundup: How Should the Quality Field Prepare For the Future?’ many of the ASQ Influential Voices bloggers, in their responses share their views about how quality professionals will need to prepare for the future—and the past. The basis for the discussion is ASQ’s 2015 Future of Quality research report. ASQ has been preparing this report since 2006. This year’s report is a departure from the norm. The experts and authors beyond the quality community have compiled the major forces that will impact global priorities—and how the quality world will need to respond.

We then move over to ASQ TV Episodes: Introducing Quality Into Your Workplace – Not everyone in your workplace will be well-versed on quality methods and principals. This episode offers some ideas on getting quality novices in your organization familiar with basic concepts, including explaining how the absence of quality can have a major impact.

Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs – December 2014

Welcome to December 2014 edition of Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs.

We are presently exploring Continual Improvement. October 2014 edition delved into basics of Continual Improvement, and November 2014 had had a look at Continual Improvement vs. Continuous Improvement.

For the present edition, we have randomly picked up a few articles to get a flair of the concept in actual practice:

Continuous Improvement at Two Companies (PDF, 362 KB) Todd Schneider shares lessons learned from helping to integrate continuous improvement into the operations of two companies. Examples of improvement projects at his current employer, Serigraph, show how teams used Six Sigma to improve yield by more than 20 percent, saving $40,000 in 10 months, and improve vendor material management, saving $192,000 per year. June 2011
Electric Utility Deploys Powerful Approach for Continuous Improvement (PDF, 313 KB) The Information Technology and Business Integration (IT&BI) Business Unit at Southern California Edison launched a three-year plan to increase visibility, awareness, and focus on continuous improvement efforts to better meet client needs. August 2010.
The Challenge of Overcoming Success (PDF, 428 KB) A combination of theory of constraints, Six Sigma, and lean helped a DNA testing laboratory take a holistic approach to process improvement. Redesigning the workflow and laboratory layout and introducing new operating rules increased capacity without increasing costs. March 2010
Can a Fishbone Diagram Stop a Bully? (PDF, 373 KB) In Community Consolidated School District 15, elementary students use quality tools to set goals, track academic progress, and even address behavioral issues such as playground bullying. September 2009.
PDSA: A Road Map to Improved Writing Skills (PDF, 340 KB) Using the plan, do, study, act cycle, Winston Campus Elementary in Palatine, Illinois, boosted sixth grade student writing test scores by 36 percent. September 2009.
Former Baldrige Recipient Rekindles Its Quality Fire (PDF, 256 KB) Since Community Consolidated School District 15 in suburban Chicago received the Baldrige award in 2003, front-line staff members have continued the improvement effort by relying on quality tools such as the plan, do, study, act model. August 2009.
Quality Club Teaches Today’s Learners to Become Tomorrow’s Leaders (PDF, 186 KB) Students who participate in a quality club at Hunting Ridge School in Palatine, Illinois, learn continuous improvement methods and then conduct training sessions for their peers. August 2009.
Quality Engrained in Culture at Iowa Hospital (PDF, 250 KB) The plan-do-study-act (PDSA) cycle, data-based decision making, and lean methodologies are part of the quality culture at Guttenberg Municipal Hospital. In 2008, the hospital received a Silver Award in the Iowa Recognition for Performance Excellence program. June 2009.
Rural Hospital Thrives With Continuous Improvement and Innovation (PDF, 210 KB) High patient satisfaction resulted from a culture change at Wright Medical Center. They shifted to a more open communication model and a pillar system that focuses on six areas of performance improvement. The hospital is now a destination of choice for healthcare in north central Iowa, with some of the highest patient satisfaction scores in the nation. April 2009.
Medical Device Manufacturer’s Continuous Improvement Approach Reduces Errors in Records (PDF, 236 KB) Using a three-tiered approach that included technology-, process-, and people-related solutions, MEDRAD reduced errors in product history records by 26 percent. February 2009.
Match the Change Vehicle and Method To the Job (PDF, 260 KB) Process improvement teams must understand the definitions of the methodology, tools and change vehicles available to them, because mismatches can be fatal to a quality improvement program.
From Continuous Improvement to Continuous Innovation (PDF, 95 KB) A close-up look at the concepts of continuous improvement, continuous innovation, discontinuous innovation, incrementalism, exploitation and exploration.
Continuous Improvement: Methods and Madness (PDF, 28 KB) Employee involvement, daily and evolutionary improvement, and focusing on product features are all characteristics of continuous improvement.

We turn to our regular sections now:

Bill Troy, ASQ CEO had opened up a very timely debate on ‘Is Every Quality Professional a Leader?’ that can well shape the future of the profession. “Some have made the case recently that quality professionals lack the business skills needed to connect with the C-suite. Others note that quality professionals sometimes lack the “soft skills” needed to make the case for quality outside the quality department. Leadership encompasses all of the above. Business savvy, people skills, and decisive action all are required to get results in the world.”

Julia McIntosh, ASQ communications , in her ‘November Roundup: What Does Leadership Mean to Quality?. ASQ bloggers had interestingly diverse opinions on this topic. Some called for more quality training. Others said that being leader isn’t everyone.

And then move over to ASQ TV Episodes:

• Quality Goes to School. In this episode we take a look at the role of quality in the classroom, see how origami can be used to teach “lean,” and learn about the brainstorming tool, the lotus flower diagram.

• Improving Healthcare With Quality : Learn about the challenges of incorporating quality tools into healthcare, look at how one hospital implemented Six Sigma to improve patient discharge times, and explore design of experiments, a quality… tool that helped the hospital with its task. Read the full case study

Our ASQ’s Influential Voice for the month is – Rajan Thiyagarajan

Based in Chennai, India, Rajan Thiyagarajan is delivery head at Tata Consultancy Services and a senior member of ASQ. He blogs @ Quality Matters, where he shares his own thoughts and opinions, on topics focused by ASQ. For example, an article last year – Remembering the Great Leaders of Quality – as a brief snapshot, presents key contributions of 10 greatest leaders of quality.

We do not have a fresh insight this month in so far as Curious Cat Management Improvement Carnival category is concerned.

However, in such an event, we do pick up an interesting article posted recently. We take a deeper view and look at India tab to select Frugal Innovation this month. The article takes a concise look at First break all the rules. The article goes on to talk about several methods for how to profit from reducing costs which seem misguided. Frugal innovation is about thinking about meeting the needs of huge numbers of customers that can’t afford conventional solutions.

There is a great quote from Jeff Bezos that captures one reason why organizations so often fail to address frugal innovation: “There are two kinds of companies, those that work to try to charge more and those that work to charge less.”

I look forward to your active participation in enriching the blog carnival as we pursue our journey to Continual Improvement in the New Year…………….with very Best Wishes

Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs – November 2013

Welcome to November 2013 edition of Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs.

We have few good leads for Social Responsibilities vis-à-vis Quality.

Raj Sapru, Former Director, Advisory Services in BSR Insight presents Sustainability: What’s Quality Got to Do With It? : As the relative upstart to quality (which is three times older), CSR may follow a similar path, moving from executive mandate to corporate function to a set of integrated values. Some even argue that the success of CSR integration will be measured by a diminishing need for a corporate-level CSR or sustainability function—and there are many lessons from the path that quality has taken.

BSR’s recent report in partnership with the American Society of Quality, “CSR and Quality: A Powerful and Untapped Connection,” explores in more depth the connection between CSR
Building Socially Responsible Organizations: ASQ’s social responsibility (SR) initiative, TheSRO, has a new website. If you haven’t checked it out yet, I strongly encourage you to do so. Here’s the link: www.thesro.org. It’s mission is to “increase the use and impact of quality to meet the diverse needs of the world.”
Increasingly, accountability and social responsibility are the expectation of consumers around the globe. To be socially responsible, people and organizations must behave ethically and with sensitivity toward social, cultural, economic, and environmental issues…….We believe that quality offers the tools to meet these emerging needs. TheSRO is a collaborative movement to integrate socially responsible practices into systematic approaches that meet the diverse needs of the world. To learn more about the connection between quality and SR, click here

As an organization, Business for Social Responsibility’s mission is to work with business to create a just and sustainable world. We envision a world in which everyone can lead a prosperous and dignified life within the boundaries of the Earth’s natural resources.
BSR ‘s Theory of Change believes that a just and sustainable world will result when the unique skills and resources of all sectors—business, civil society, and government—are aligned toward that goal. The role of business is to create and deliver products and services in a way that treats people fairly, meets individual’s needs and aspirations within the boundaries of our planet, and encourages market and policy frameworks that enable a sustainable future.

Lowell Centre for Sustainable Production – By taking up the challenge of pursuing the long-term goal of Lowell Center projects and affiliates to redefine environmentalism and occupational health and safety while also demonstrating how these concepts are compatible with new systems of production and consumption that are healthy for workers, environmentally sound, economically viable, and socially accountable.

At this point, we take a sudden detour to more technical aspects of Quality.

October 2013 issue of IRCA’s magazine INform brings Japan’s inside scoop on the new ISO 9001 standard and tests your standards knowledge in our exclusive quiz

In its technical section, Richard Green talks about the generic approach to transition training for future Management Systems Standards.

Whilst on the subject of enriching Internal Audit as a tool for Quality Improvement, in a regular column in Quality Digest , GOTTFRIED GIRITZER suggests Using Internal Audits as an Efficiency Improvement Tool to check for the efficiency of the System . Formal “Internal Auditor” trains co-auditors. For them it’s not necessary to have education and training as an internal auditor. It is only their duty to study all the relevant regulations of the management system that are valid for the department in question prior the internal audit.

51 Objects in ISO 9001 has identified 51 objects in ISO 9001,which should exist or be implemented in order to control customer satisfaction. 34 (66%) of these objects are processes/procedures. In a few cases quality dimensions of these objects are explicitly mentioned: commitment (5.1), customer focus (5.2) competence, awareness (6.2.2), traceability (7.5.3) and continuity (8.5.1). Some key words are: control (6), design and development (6), quality (3) and review (3).

The Most Common Mistakes with ISO 9001 to Avoid has re-visited the fundamental basis for pursuing the design and implementation of ISO 900 standards, so as to align the overall business strategy with the body of QMS within the organization.

APPLY THE PDCA CYCLE FOR CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT ON EPCI PROJECT has graphically explained application of continual improvement in project management set up.

Jørgen Winther@ The No Crisis Blog has put the PDCA in its right perspective – “a cultural habit – not a project , not something that can be done by force, but a way of working on every day basis” in How Long is “Continuous”? – On PDCA.

We once again take a turn to take on a macro view of Quality.

Greg Goodwin has posted 3 Questions to Answer When Shaping Your Quality Management Culture, because achieving a model of operational excellence and optimizing the company’s key resources of people, processes, and technology requires the efforts of the entire organization.

The three questions are:
1.      Are you cultivating quality management leaders in your organization?
In order to best manage quality and foster an environment of innovation and continuous improvement, it’s important to provide a corporate framework while leaving room for some decisions that may be best left to local leaders.
     2. What is the proper ratio of corporate versus local quality management?
The most effective approach is usually a “hybrid” between the two that focuses on standardizing only the processes that are essential to meeting the organization’s overall quality goals, allowing for continuous improvement and local control where they are deemed more effective.
    3. What is the role of technology in building a quality culture?
On top of the superior data collection and analysis capabilities enabled, having integrated solutions is an important way of improving communication and collaboration around quality.

Shaun Spearmon , an engagement leader at Kotter International loves Lewis Carroll’s quote, “If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there.” In the article, Your Company Vision: If It’s Complicated, It Shouldn’t Be, he amplifies that visions are intended to clarify the pathway forward. When effective, the vision statement has an illuminating quality that allows organizations to move fast and with great precision. Simply stated: It’s NOT complicated.

Kurt J. Harden@ Cultural Offering – They don’t care about you touches upon one of toughest lessons to teach new employees, in the workforce, is a simple guiding service principle: They don’t care about you.

It isn’t a sad commentary on society; it is commerce. It is basic psychology and can be incredibly liberating. Armed with this understanding and acting on it, your problems may actually lessen, your load may even lighten as you serve others with greater focus. ……Learn the lesson and you are on your way to success.

Caroline Ceniza-Levine , on Forbes – has quoted Albert Einstein – Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts. – in What Is The Better Metric: Feelings Or Numbers?. And then builds up: Einstein has it exactly right. There is no one suitable metric for everything. You have to run the numbers and understand your data. But not everything can be boiled down to numbers, nor should it.
Ideas for World Quality Month 2013 : November is the Fourth Annual World Quality Month, a celebration of quality, its impact on the world, and quality practitioners whose knowledge, experience, and passion make improved quality available for anyone who asks. You can learn more about the event on www.worldqualitymonth.org.

Eyesore 9001 & Other Humor Documents – Face it, Quality is a tough profession, and sometimes you need a break from the stress. This is where Oxebridge’s free humour documents come in.
EYESORE 9001 was first published in 2004, and has since been downloaded over 250,000 times. It’s a hilarious and biting look at not only the ISO 9001 standard, but the machine behind the creation of such standards. Updated for ISO 9001:2008, you can still download it for free below.

DUMBAS9100 takes on the aviation, space and defence industries, with this parody of the aerospace standard AS9100. For mature readers only (some adult language), you can download it here.

We begin our usual round of ASQ Videos with 2013 World Quality Month, supplemented with Videos with keyword “World Quality Month”

ASQ TV Episode 10: Teamwork: Learn what makes a team work successfully to accomplish goals and deliver results.

Our ASQ’s Influential Voices this month is Daniel John Zrymiak.

“Daniel John Zrymiak is from Surrey, British Columbia, Canada. He has worked in quality for two decades, mostly recently at Accenture as a Mobilization Lead. Daniel is active in ASQ as a Quality Press author and reviewer, member leader, and Technical Committee chair (Finance and Governance – Quality Management Division). He blogs at AQualitEvolution.

“With respect to Quality, I have as many questions as answers, and through the exchange I hope to create a community of like-minded people to help advance our profession in order to achieve and sustain relevance and positive breakthroughs as we pursue and realize our ideals.””

“A QualitEvolution is intended to capture positions and experiences as a participant in the evolution of the Quality profession into the 21st century. From its origins as the brainchild of Corporate Industrial Statisticians, our profession has transformed and evolved to incorporate and adapt to the demands and expectations of our modern existence.

The scope of the subject matter within A QualitEvolution extends to the furthest ranges of quality, business transformation, management science, and all that jazz ..”

And we finally round up our present edition with- John Hunter’s Management Improvement Carnival # 201.

There cannot be iota of doubt that what we cover in each episode here may not be totally representative of what was written on Quality. It is also not all that I came across to read. It is only what I found to be interesting in so far as tour main topic – QUALITY – is concerned. Hence, it also can be taken as an accepted fact that your constructive inputs would go a l..o..n..g way to enrich the content on this carnival………