Many students lack problem-solving skills. As teenagers, they tend to blame external forces or other people when something goes wrong, instead of trying to understand the root cause to prevent it from happening again. This article discusses the Lean Six Sigma methodology for problem solving, which the Board of Cooperative Educational Services in…

Customers determine whether a product fulfills their needs or satisfies them. "Quality control", then, is the process of finding out what the customer wants, along with designing, producing, delivering, and servicing the product--and ultimately satisfying the customer's expectations. For many years, people considered a product to be of good…

Total Quality Management (TQM) is a poor fit with higher education and can only be made to fit by major reshaping either of TQM to a more appropriate methodology (and hence not TQM), or of higher education to an image of organisation that fits TQM. The paper revisits longstanding concerns about multiple aspects of TQM from a critical systems…

Describes differences between total quality management and self-directed teams in terms of job design, decision making, flexibility, supervision, labor relations, quality, customers, and training. Offers suggestions for which method to choose when. (SK)

This paper encourages the use of Total Quality Management (TQM) tactics and other strategies as a practical means of fostering a quality culture in institutional research offices of higher education institutions. In particular, four approaches are advocated for understanding and minimizing errors: (1) use of TQM tactical tools to enhance work…

Experience at Rio Salado Community College (Arizona) has shown that an administrative issue should be examined first to determine whether application of the continuous improvement process is an appropriate use of resources. Areas truly in need of significant improvement should have priority. (MSE)

Adaptation of the Total Quality Management approach to organizational improvement at Oregon State University involved creation of 10 pilot finance and administration teams and implementation of a 10-step problem-solving process. The approach has improved staff morale as well as client services. (MSE)

Total Quality Management (TQM) establishes business and industry standards and techniques that ensure the quality of products leaving and reaching firms through continuous actions rather than one final inspection. Deming, Juran, and Crosby, who initiated the process, share a common theme of participatory management. Management participation and…

Six Sigma is an organization wide program that provides common set of goals, language, and methodology for improving the overall quality of the processes within the organization (Davis & Heineke 2004). Six Sigma main concern is for the customer. What will the customers want? Need? Six Sigma has a model that helps Sigma get implemented DMAIC model…

Describes the Oregon State University library's experience with Total Quality Management (TQM) from initial training and development of two teams to its use as an impartial problem-solving tool which anyone can use. Staff concerns and fears about TQM are discussed, and benefits are explained. (Contains five references.) (EAM)

Outlines the problem-solving team training process used at Harvard University (Massachusetts), including the size and formation of teams, roles, and time commitment. Components of the process are explained, including introduction to Total Quality Management (TQM), customer satisfaction, meeting management, Parker Team Player Survey, interactive…

Statistical process control (SPC), which employs simple statistical tools and problem-solving techniques such as histograms, control charts, flow charts, and Pareto charts to implement continual product improvement procedures, can be incorporated into human service organizations. Examples illustrate use of SPC procedures to analyze behavioral data…

The University of Kansas experience in applying Total Quality Management methods illustrates how use of flow charts can reduce substantially the time spent on a complex data-collection and reporting process. Although flow chart construction can be time-consuming, it is a systematic way to uncover sensible solutions with significant payoffs. (MSE)

Intended for use in conjunction with guidance and instruction from a teacher or tutor, this guide provides an overview of the philosophy of quality as well as some tools used in business and industry today. Each of four sections consists of a teacher explanation of the topics followed by student worksheets with annotated teacher keys. The first…

Designed to help adult learners realize the importance and necessity of implementing continuous quality improvement (CQI) in a rapidly changing, competitive, and modern world of work, this document presents a comprehensive explanation of CQI. The following topics are discussed in the book's introduction and seven chapters: importance of quality in…