1. What is Quality?
A.The definition of quality varies from person to person depending on how one judges it. A person walking into the restaurant would have a certain parameters for judging quality, namely ambiance, food, service, response time and price. Big organisations like Boeing defines quality as providing customers with products and services that consistently meet their needs and requirements. Quality is dynamic in nature and generally keeps changing with time and requirements of the customers, what seems good today may not be equally good tomorrow.
The author David L. Goetsch Stanley Davis defines quality as: “Quality is a dynamic state associated with products, services, people, processes and environments that meets or exceeds expectations and helps produce superior values.”
Thus, quality refers to fulfilling the needs and expectations of the customers every time and exceeding customer expectations.
2. What is TQM?
A. Total Quality Management is a management approach to achieve long-term success by satisfying needs of the customer. It can be achieved by continuous efforts of all members of an organization in maintaining high standards in all operations the organization is involved in. The aim of total quality management is to continually improve the affect the quality of products, services, processes, environments. Total quality can be continually refined by getting and working on customer’s feedback on a regular basis.
It is management who is responsible for total quality. Empowering the right people using the correct processes and measuring quality using statistical methods ensures high quality products and services.
3. How can we achieve organizational excellence with quality?
A. Organizational excellence of a company can be illustrated by its long-term success, which can primarily be achieved with the help of quality. Quality does not necessarily refer to products and services, but also refers to people, processes and environments. Quality is something which cannot be embedded; therefore, it is very important that the right people complete their jobs using the laid down processes. Processes should be continually improved in the right environment. When all the five elements of quality i.e. products, services, people, processes and environments are being improved continuously to meet and exceed the customer expectations, the organization is bound to excel. As the key element in today’s global competitive market is quality, the organization which provides superior value and quality to customers stays the longest and benefits the most.
4. What is the Deming Cycle?
A.Deming Cycle is a quality improvement model which links the needs of the customer with the production of the product with the aim of continual improvement of products and processes. It can be explained using the figure given below:
1. PLAN – Carry out research and plan the product according to consumer requirement
2. DO – Implement the plan and produce the product
3. CHECK – Check if the product was made using the laid process and plan
4. ACT - Spread the word about the product in the market
5. ANALYZE – Analyse how market has taken the product and see if any changes are required
5. What are the most common errors when starting quality initiatives?
1. Some organizations hire external experts for driving quality initiatives
2. Some organizations usually don't teach people how to work in teams which can create problems later. Teamwork is very important in achieving the desired quality
3. Without proper planning, some companies develop quality initiatives and integrate into different functional units like sales, productions, finance, etc.
4. Some organizations follow the Deming approach, Juran approach or Crosby approach too religiously without making any alterations according to the need of the organisation
5. People are unaware and not too familiar with the skills required to apply to the tools of quality
6. Explain the cost of poor quality
When it comes to cost cutting, quality is the first thing that most of the companies let go. Companies take measures like eliminating quality audits, use of low quality raw material, reducing the customer service staff and many more. Though it helps in decreasing the company’s overhead but also leads to dissatisfied customers, unhappy employees and decline in business. Below are some examples of poor quality:
The right approach is to figure out the costs associated with poor quality instead of eliminating essential functions. An organisation can save money by working on key areas such as rework, late deliveries, billing errors, account payable errors, customer returns etc. It is important to first identify and estimate the cost of activities that exist due to poor quality, and later take necessary corrective actions in order to reduce the cost of poor quality.
7. What are the quality characteristics of world-class organizations?
American Management Association (AMA) has listed 15 characteristics of world-class organizations. Out of these characteristics, customer service, quality control and assurance, innovation, team-based approach to work, partnerships and alliances, and reengineering of processes are the quality characteristics of world-class organizations. Apart from these, a number of human resource topics are directly related to quality, namely, worker productivity, employee training and development, open communication between management and employees, employee benefits, codes of workplace conduct, employee satisfaction and flextime arrangements.
8. Responsibility and total quality
Responsibility and total quality go hand in hand. Accepting responsibility is a part of ethical behaviour. In modern workplace, people want all the rights but shun the responsibility that come along. Nobody wants to take the blame, they just want to pass it on to an unseen “they”. In a total quality environment, people are responsible for their actions and accountable for their performance. Accepted responsibility helps build trust, integrity, and all other elements of ethics which are vital for achieving total quality.
9. Discuss some models for ethical quality decisions.
Actual ethical model depends on the values of the organization and the community in which organization does business. Below listed are some ethical models:
1. Categorical imperative model: With this model, right is right, wrong is wrong, and there are no grey areas
2. Full-disclosure model: It depends on one simple question, “Could the organization explain its actions to the satisfaction of a broad cross-section of stakeholders?” If the answer is affirmative, the action is considered ethical.
3. Golden Rule model: Like full disclosure model, it considers the viewpoints of shareholders in deciding what is ethical
4. Organizational ethic model: The most ethical decision is one that best serves the organization’s interests
5. Proportionality ethic model: Take a decision such that good outweighs bad
6. Professional ethic model: The decision is ethical if it can be explained to the approval of a broad cross-section of professional peers
10. What is the engineering manager’s role in quality ethics?
Managers are very much responsible in maintaining quality ethics of an organization. They are responsible for following and actually illustrating ethical behaviour. They are ones who establish high ethical standards, consistently set up a good example by following those standards and take immediate actions when they something unethical. Managers should always promote ethical behaviour.
Managers follow the below approaches to carry out these responsibilities:
1. Best-ratio approach: Managers should maintain the best possible ratio of good choices to bad choices and ethical behaviour to unethical behaviour
2. Black and White approach: Managers should make right, ethical, fair and impartial decisions regardless of the outcome and short-term circumstances
3. Full-Potential approach: In this approach, decision depends on how they will affect the ability of those involved to achieve their full potential
The decision to follow which approach depends entirely on the manager and values of the organization.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF SOCIAL NETWORKING ARTICLES:
FORD SELF-DRIVING ARTICLES ON THE CHEAP
The article discusses a research carried out in University of Michigan and funded by Ford on creating cheap self-driving cars using inexpensive camera, access to 3D maps and algorithms that researchers are still working on. In my opinion, the company should not rely on cheap cameras and undefined algorithm as it can be a threat to the lives of people. Another view on the same article is that the company should stick to old technique of using fancy laser and radar and also suggests shortening the reaction time in order to avoid accidents. A very debatable point was raised by one of our classmates, he says as researchers have expertise, so they will be able to high-tech self-driving car using sophisticated systems and make roads safer.
To sum up, I believe that Ford should continue with their research and develop a flawless algorithm using hi-tech cameras keeping in mind not just the cost but also the safety.
Moodle link: http://njit2.mrooms.net/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=58746
ELECTRONIC SPINE CURES PARALYSIS
The article talks about researchers working on creating electronic spine to cure paralysis. This electronic spine can remain intact and with recent improvements, the problem of inflammation has been solved. The experiments so far have been conducted on rats and have proved to be successful. Researchers are now planning to move forward and experiment on humans. The article claims that there are more than 250,000 people in US itself with spinal injuries. In my opinion, anything of this sort would be highly expensive and would not be affordable my major section of the society. The sole purpose of electronic spine is to help people who actually need it. Secondly, the experiments so far have been conducted on rats. And it is quite evident that rats and human beings are completely different and might react to the same device differently. Most of the people in Moodle discussion are in agreement with the above points.
Hence, the researchers should not come to conclusion just on the basis of experiments carried out on rats and cost is a major concern which needs to considered before making the product available in market
Moodle link: http://njit2.mrooms.net/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=59290
MOBILE PAYMENTS TO BE HOT TOPIC AT MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS 2015
The article talks about mobile payments to be next big discussion in Mobile World Congress 2015. It talks about Apple Pay and how well it is doing in the market. Many companies will be showcasing new models having NXP PN66T using Near Field Communication (NFC) technology. According to me Apple Pay is a great innovation and is already doing very well as over 500 financial institutions are still waiting for Apple’s approval to join Apple Pay. I feel Apple Pay is a secure as it does not use our original debit and credit card numbers. Instead it creates unique Device Account Number which is used for all transactions. A question is raised on Moodle by one of our classmates that what happens in case of mobile theft. Apple Pay has a solution for that too. In case you lose your iPhone, you can delete all the information on your phone using ‘Find my iPhone’ application if your phone gets stolen so that nobody can make payments.
With the introduction of NXP PN66T, we could be able to use Apple Pay on android devices. It is definitely a great idea as it would the increase the functionality of Apple Pay. However, one major flaw is that Apple Pay can be used only on iPhone 6 currently.
Moodle link: http://njit2.mrooms.net/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=58738
REFERENCE:
Textbook: Quality Management for Organizational Excellence: Introduction to Total Quality by David L. Goetsch Stanley Davis
7. What are the quality characteristics of world-class organizations?
American Management Association (AMA) has listed 15 characteristics of world-class organizations. Out of these characteristics, customer service, quality control and assurance, innovation, team-based approach to work, partnerships and alliances, and reengineering of processes are the quality characteristics of world-class organizations. Apart from these, a number of human resource topics are directly related to quality, namely, worker productivity, employee training and development, open communication between management and employees, employee benefits, codes of workplace conduct, employee satisfaction and flextime arrangements.
8. Responsibility and total quality
Responsibility and total quality go hand in hand. Accepting responsibility is a part of ethical behaviour. In modern workplace, people want all the rights but shun the responsibility that come along. Nobody wants to take the blame, they just want to pass it on to an unseen “they”. In a total quality environment, people are responsible for their actions and accountable for their performance. Accepted responsibility helps build trust, integrity, and all other elements of ethics which are vital for achieving total quality.
9. Discuss some models for ethical quality decisions.
Actual ethical model depends on the values of the organization and the community in which organization does business. Below listed are some ethical models:
1. Categorical imperative model: With this model, right is right, wrong is wrong, and there are no grey areas
2. Full-disclosure model: It depends on one simple question, “Could the organization explain its actions to the satisfaction of a broad cross-section of stakeholders?” If the answer is affirmative, the action is considered ethical.
3. Golden Rule model: Like full disclosure model, it considers the viewpoints of shareholders in deciding what is ethical
4. Organizational ethic model: The most ethical decision is one that best serves the organization’s interests
5. Proportionality ethic model: Take a decision such that good outweighs bad
6. Professional ethic model: The decision is ethical if it can be explained to the approval of a broad cross-section of professional peers
10. What is the engineering manager’s role in quality ethics?
Managers are very much responsible in maintaining quality ethics of an organization. They are responsible for following and actually illustrating ethical behaviour. They are ones who establish high ethical standards, consistently set up a good example by following those standards and take immediate actions when they something unethical. Managers should always promote ethical behaviour.
Managers follow the below approaches to carry out these responsibilities:
1. Best-ratio approach: Managers should maintain the best possible ratio of good choices to bad choices and ethical behaviour to unethical behaviour
2. Black and White approach: Managers should make right, ethical, fair and impartial decisions regardless of the outcome and short-term circumstances
3. Full-Potential approach: In this approach, decision depends on how they will affect the ability of those involved to achieve their full potential
The decision to follow which approach depends entirely on the manager and values of the organization.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF SOCIAL NETWORKING ARTICLES:
FORD SELF-DRIVING ARTICLES ON THE CHEAP
The article discusses a research carried out in University of Michigan and funded by Ford on creating cheap self-driving cars using inexpensive camera, access to 3D maps and algorithms that researchers are still working on. In my opinion, the company should not rely on cheap cameras and undefined algorithm as it can be a threat to the lives of people. Another view on the same article is that the company should stick to old technique of using fancy laser and radar and also suggests shortening the reaction time in order to avoid accidents. A very debatable point was raised by one of our classmates, he says as researchers have expertise, so they will be able to high-tech self-driving car using sophisticated systems and make roads safer.
To sum up, I believe that Ford should continue with their research and develop a flawless algorithm using hi-tech cameras keeping in mind not just the cost but also the safety.
Moodle link: http://njit2.mrooms.net/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=58746
ELECTRONIC SPINE CURES PARALYSIS
The article talks about researchers working on creating electronic spine to cure paralysis. This electronic spine can remain intact and with recent improvements, the problem of inflammation has been solved. The experiments so far have been conducted on rats and have proved to be successful. Researchers are now planning to move forward and experiment on humans. The article claims that there are more than 250,000 people in US itself with spinal injuries. In my opinion, anything of this sort would be highly expensive and would not be affordable my major section of the society. The sole purpose of electronic spine is to help people who actually need it. Secondly, the experiments so far have been conducted on rats. And it is quite evident that rats and human beings are completely different and might react to the same device differently. Most of the people in Moodle discussion are in agreement with the above points.
Hence, the researchers should not come to conclusion just on the basis of experiments carried out on rats and cost is a major concern which needs to considered before making the product available in market
Moodle link: http://njit2.mrooms.net/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=59290
MOBILE PAYMENTS TO BE HOT TOPIC AT MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS 2015
The article talks about mobile payments to be next big discussion in Mobile World Congress 2015. It talks about Apple Pay and how well it is doing in the market. Many companies will be showcasing new models having NXP PN66T using Near Field Communication (NFC) technology. According to me Apple Pay is a great innovation and is already doing very well as over 500 financial institutions are still waiting for Apple’s approval to join Apple Pay. I feel Apple Pay is a secure as it does not use our original debit and credit card numbers. Instead it creates unique Device Account Number which is used for all transactions. A question is raised on Moodle by one of our classmates that what happens in case of mobile theft. Apple Pay has a solution for that too. In case you lose your iPhone, you can delete all the information on your phone using ‘Find my iPhone’ application if your phone gets stolen so that nobody can make payments.
With the introduction of NXP PN66T, we could be able to use Apple Pay on android devices. It is definitely a great idea as it would the increase the functionality of Apple Pay. However, one major flaw is that Apple Pay can be used only on iPhone 6 currently.
Moodle link: http://njit2.mrooms.net/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=58738
REFERENCE:
Textbook: Quality Management for Organizational Excellence: Introduction to Total Quality by David L. Goetsch Stanley Davis