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Ethiopian TVET System Sector/Department: Information Technology

Program Title: DATABASE ADMINISTRATION Level: III Year: II

Unit/Module Title: Maintaining Quality system and continuous Improvement process

Ac. Year: 2013 E.C Nominal Duration: 30 Hours Semester: I

Unit/Module Code: EIS DBA3 15 0811 Program: (Reg/Ext) Regular

Name of the Trainer:. __________________________

Unit Description

This unit of competency covers responsibility for the day-to-day operation of the work/functional area
and ensuring that quality system requirements are met and that continuous improvements are initiated.

Leaning Objectives:

At eh end of the course / Module, the trainee will able to:

 Develop and maintain quality framework

 Understand quality documentation requirements

 Provide training and workshops on quality system and improvement professes

 Prepare performance reports

 Evaluate components of quality system

The following Learning outcomes/elements are covered:

1. Develop and maintain quality framework within work area

2. Maintain quality documentation

3. Provide training in quality systems and improvement processes

4. Optimise and report performance

5. Evaluate relevant components of quality system

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LO-1: Develop and maintain quality framework within work area

1.1 Introduction
Frontline managers need to facilitate continuous improvement by ensuring that systems and
processes in their areas of responsibility are implemented properly and understood by all.
Individuals and teams who report to frontline managers need to be encouraged to participate
in the organization’s continuous improvement processes through mechanisms such as
mentoring and coaching, open communication and feedback on performance. Continuous
improvement implements systems and processes that support and encourage employees to
work constructively and, to the best of their ability, make decisions, take responsibility for their
actions and use their initiative.

Continuous improvement practices in the workplace stem from the Japanese concept of Kaizen,
which means change for the better (kai meaning alter, renew, reform and zen meaning good).
Many organizations have systems in place to help and encourage individuals and teams to
improve their performance over time and look for ways to improve an activity or procedure.

1.2 Distribute and explain information about the enterprise's quality system to
personnel
A key responsibility of a team leader is to encourage and support each member of the team to
function effectively by taking responsibility, making appropriate decisions and offering ideas to
enhance the team’s work practices. This will be easy to do if there are systems and processes in
place that allow team members opportunities to work independently and exercise initiative. It
is up to the team leader to see that systems are developed and implemented to promote
continuous improvement.

1.2.1 Formal and informal systems

Continuous improvement systems and processes can be formal, such as an organizationwide

quality assurance system that is externally audited and involves regular review meetings and
surveys, or informal, such as processes where team members are encouraged to contribute
ideas through a suggestion box. The degree to which processes are systemized is not as
important as finding the most effective means to encourage and support staff to work in a way
that will benefit their organization. Most managers use a combination of both formal and
informal systems. They draw from and implement standard operating procedures, use their
management skills to create a culture focused on continuous improvement within their own
teams, and devise systems that support this culture.
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1.2.2 Use a variety of organizational systems

Managers need to use a variety of systems or processes to encourage individual and team
effectiveness through improved participation, responsibility and initiative. They also need to
select an appropriate system or combination of systems to suit different workplace situations.
Here are some types of organizational systems that are used to create and encourage effective
workplace participation.

 Organizational systems

 Organizational procedures and policies.

 Team discussions.

 Web-based communication systems such as emails, social networks, and

newsgroups.

 Forums

 Meetings

 Newsletters

 Reports

 Suggestion boxes

Reports often include statistics or numerical information. When including this type of
information, remember that different readers respond to different methods of presentation.
For example, statistics on customer complaints can be presented in a graph, table or paragraph
format. To use reports effectively:

 make sure the report is appropriate for the intended audience and remember that it
may be passed on to others

 structure the report clearly

 try to keep the report as brief as possible

 Link the content of the report to organizational, individual or team objectives.

Suggestion boxes

An informal way to encourage team members to participate in continuous improvement is to

instigate a suggestion box. The box should be centrally located. The team leader should
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encourage any ideas and make no judgment about what is included. Suggestions that go in the
box could be anonymous or people could sign them if they want to. In this way, everyone
should feel able to say what they want. It is important to act on the suggestions by opening the
box regularly and discussing the issues that arise. Steps for using a suggestion box:

 Ensure people know that they do not have to use their name.

 Encourage all types of ideas.

 Check the box regularly.

 Discuss each suggestion with the team.

 Follow up each suggestion.

Mechanisms discussed earlier, such as team discussions, forums, meetings, newsletters and
web-based communications are all useful ways to ensure information is delivered to the right
people and that avenues are established to send and receive feedback. When providing two-
way feedback, thank those who give regular feedback and tell them why it is so useful, and
show how feedback has had an impact on your work. In most cases, sharing valuable ideas with
others in an organization and ensuring originators of ideas are acknowledged properly will help
build team morale.

Key points for effective feedback

 When asked to provide feedback, try to provide constructive criticism or praise

regarding the performance of a team or individual, as this will help them become
more proactive in solving problems on their own.

 Don’t forget that listening carefully to what people say and taking action on issues is
essential to providing constructive two-way feedback.

 Management consultant Michael Armstrong, in Performance management: key

strategies and practical guidelines, has developed guidelines for managers for
providing effective feedback in a continuous improvement environment. Here are
eight of Michael’s key strategy recommendations.

Key strategies and practical guidelines to incorporate feedback:

 Build feedback into the job

 Provide feedback on actual events

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 Make feedback an integral part of everything you do and make sure that if it is in
relation to any specific activity or task, it is provided within 48 hours.

 Back up any criticism with examples and evidence; don’t assume you know the
reason for any negative behaviour.

Here are some continuous improvement tips:

 Know the reasons for implementing the continuous improvement process.

 Ask why a particular process has been chosen over others.

 Inform an individual about their role in the process, and what is expected of them.

 Inform work colleagues on how, where and when they can provide feedback in
relation to the effectiveness of the process.

 Explain how the feedback will be used and who will review the feedback.

Employees will need to understand how the change will benefit them. Here are some ways to
obtain and evaluate feedback.

 Obtain ideas: Obtain feedback on current systems, processes, services or products

Informal system

 Ask employees for their concerns and ideas and keep a note of them

 Share any concerns and suggestions with the team

 Seek and analyse feedback on product and service quality from customers

 Ideas for improvements are made informally and written up on a specific

form as part of the company’s continuous improvement process
documentation.

 The form should be structured to include areas on ‘issues being experienced’,

‘summary of suggestion’, ‘why this will improve the current processes’ and
‘implementation resources and steps’

 Evaluate ideas: Evaluate ideas for modification or improvement to systems.

 Use information obtained from feedback: Once you have received and evaluated
feedback you will need to use it to improve the performance of your team. If the
feedback generates a change in the way the organisation operates, this information
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may need to be shared with those who will be affected. For example, sending a
letter out to customers explaining a change and how it will help the organisation
deliver better service will minimise problems the team might experience with
customers in the future. Here are some steps for making effective use of feedback.

Informal system

 Team discussion: Manager considers idea and determines whether possible benefits
outweigh resources needed

Formal system

 Cross-functional team meets quarterly to discuss and present ideas and review
organization processes. Cross-functional quality team speaks with other teams and
individuals working in the divisions they represent.

 Quality management.

 Best practice and benchmarking.

Summary
A key responsibility of a team leader is to encourage and support team members so they can
function effectively as a member of the team by taking responsibility, making appropriate
decisions and offering suggestions and ideas to enhance the team’s work practices.

Managers need to use a variety of systems and processes to encourage participation such as
organizational procedures and policies, web-based communication devices, forums, meetings,
newsletters and reports.

Every organization will have its own system of audit, review, feedback and evaluation to
systematically review and improve products, services and procedures.

Formal processes such as quality management, best practice and benchmarking may be put in
place.

Part of maintaining continuous improvement is the feedback process. Building feedback loops
into everything a team does helps managers and teams cope with the challenges of a changing
workplace and to proactively seek further change. It should always be a two-way process.

Mentoring and coaching are useful techniques to help team members implement continuous
improvement processes. Mentoring can help people discover and develop their potential.
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Coaching provides encouragement, direction or motivation as team members work towards

the achievement of particular goals.

SELF CHECK 1
1. What are the benefits to an organization if teams and individuals are proactive in the
continuous improvement process?

2. Explain the role of mentoring and coaching in the continuous improvement process.

3. Explain how you could encourage team members to participate in the workplace decision-
making process, exercise initiatives and take responsibility for their actions.
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1.2. Encourage personnel to participate in improvement processes and to

assume responsibility and authority
Every quality professional understands how important engagement is for realizing quality improvement
goals.

Your leadership determines their direction. Here are 10 ways to encourage personnel to participate in
quality improvement process of the organization:

 Share Your Vision. Communicate your mission and vision to them early and often, and ask for their
continual input so that they see what you see and are committed to working toward that result.

 Involve Employees in Goal Setting and Planning Activities. Seek out their ideas, knowledge, and
insights, and invite them to help make important decisions. At the very least, let them see your
process for making difficult decisions.

 Explain the Why. Don’t just tell someone what to do without making absolutely certain they also
understand why that task needs to be completed and why you’ve selected that individual for the
job. Give the job context in the bigger picture of your operation.

 Let Them Choose the How. Whenever possible, let your employees decide how to achieve the task
you’ve assigned. Agree upon what constitutes a successful outcome, then let them chart their own
course. This builds ownership in the process and they might figure out a method for getting the job
done that is superior to the one you would have assigned. If that happens, call attention to it. If they
choose a poor methodology, don’t jump in and scold them, but rather ask questions that enable
them to see better options and give them another chance.

 Delegate Authority, Not Just Work. Give employees a leadership role in some of the meetings they
attend. Leadership skills develop over time, and they require practice.

 Trust Them Before You Have To . Your trust in them will give them confidence, and that confidence
is crucial to their personal development.

 Encourage Them to Solve Their Own Problems . Listen to their problems but don’t bark out the
answer. Instead, ask probing questions that will lead them to determine the right answer. When
they get it, compliment them and tell them they don’t need to ask you about similar situations; that
you have faith in them to figure it out. Don’t abandon them, but prove that you trust their
judgment.

 Hold Them Accountable. Remember that employer trust and employee autonomy is a two-way
street. Holding employees accountable for their work and for meeting established goals and
deadlines motivates them to achieve better results. Don’t let ’em off the hook. Demand their best
effort.
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 Provide Constructive Feedback. Regardless of the results, let them know how they’re doing, and
give them the coaching they need to improve. Although they might not always ask for it, they want
and need your feedback to further develop their knowledge and skills.

 Acknowledge Them on the Spot for Stepping Up. A few seconds of genuine one-on-one
acknowledgement and recognition can go a long way toward reinforcing an employee’s willingness
to step up and stand tall. Show you appreciate their above-and-beyond commitment with a reward
that matches the result. Often times, the best reward is additional trust and an added level of
responsibility.

Employee engagement refers to the degree to which employees are fully involved in their work inand
the strength of their commitment to their job and company.

If everyone in an organization is to be committed to quality performance, then all staff members should
have the ability to contribute to its achievement. That means that people must have enough control
over their own jobs to do them effectively, and that everyone's opinions and ideas must be respected
and taken seriously.

Employee engagement is the result of good communication with employees. An engaged employee is
one who is fully involved in, and enthusiastic about, his or her work, and thus will act in a way that
furthers their organization's quality improvement objectives. An engaged employee works with
colleagues to improve performance within the job for the benefit of the organization.

Maximizing engagement includes involving employees in problem solving, continuous improvement

initiatives, training needs assessments as well as regular visits to their work areas. Increased employee
engagement results in increased retention, commitment, innovation, motivation, attitude, and
awareness.

To facilitate the engagement of employees, managers and leaders at all levels should:

 Provide incentives for employees to act with the initiative as well as recognizing good performance.

 Define clear objectives and related goals, delegate responsibility, and create a work environment in
which employees control their work processes and make their own decisions.

 Introduce a recognition system, based on the evaluation of the employee's individual and team
contributions and accomplishments.

Engaged employees at all levels throughout the organization are essential to enhance the organization's
ability to be successful. Empowerment improves the motivation of employees to take responsibility for
the quality of their work and achieve goals. This result provides employees with the necessary
information, authority, and autonomy to make decisions related to their work. Managers at all levels
should inspire employees to understand the significance and importance of their responsibilities and
activities to delivering quality products or services on time for customers or other interested parties.
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1.3. Allocate responsibilities for quality within work area in accordance with
quality system
Typical roles in the continuous improvement process

One of the biggest issues employees have is confusion over their actual role. Sometimes things get lost
in the mix, and it can take time to identify issues and act upon them.

To avoid this, every employee should have a set of goals and responsibilities. Keeping these goals in
documented format means you can remind employees of their roles and responsibilities and easily
manage any changes to them.

In your work area you are responsible for, you should ensure that responsibilities and authority are
defined and communicated within the organization.

A large proportion of avoidable errors and waste in an organization occur because employees are not
clear as to what they are responsible for and what decisions-making power they have.

Responsibilities and authority of each employee should be clearly defined and made known to all. It is
highly desirable for top management to provide duty statements and/or job/position descriptions that
clearly articulate responsibilities.

An organizational chart is an excellent tool for illustrating reporting lines within an organization. If it is
decided to include responsibilities and authority within procedures, care must be taken to ensure that
they do not contradict the content of the job/position descriptions.

Each employee needs to know who is responsible for the various elements of the QMS to ensure a
successful implementation. You should develop and make available to all employees a list of key
personnel and their job descriptions, responsibilities, along with an organizational chart of key
employees as they relate to the quality improvement process.

This should effectively define, document, and communicate the organizational structure of the quality
system and continuous improvement process framework.

Roles and responsibilities - develop an organization chart and create job descriptions to satisfy the
requirements:

 Clearly define roles, responsibilities and authorities

 Communicate those responsibilities and authorities throughout the organization

 Check the requirements are communicated and understood

 Responsibility for reporting, monitoring measurement, nonconformity and corrective action

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Examples of objective evidence to verify implementation might include:

 Communication of roles, responsibilities and authority

 Processes and procedures to fulfill requirements are adequately resourced

 Awareness of expectations is demonstrated in all relevant levels of the organization

 Reporting on the operation (audits & inspections) and performance of the QMS is done
(business meetings, KPI reviews, etc.)

Some examples of common Roles and Responsibilities in Quality system and continuous Improvement
process project include:

 Quality management team or top management

 Quality manager

 Middle level managers

 Supervisors

 Project team leaders

 Facilitators

 Team members

 Personnel

 Internal and external quality auditors

 Quality improvement Experts, consultants, and Training providers

 Operational level managers

 Customers

1.4 Provide coaching and mentoring to ensure that personnel are able to meet
their responsibilities and quality requirements
Mentoring and coaching is a key responsibility of the quality professional. Taking the time to sit with
struggling employees and discuss their challenges will not only make those people feel more valued, it'll
also help them to understand and engage more with quality.

You could improve quality mentoring by: Following a structured approach, Setting goals, track training
records, and assess performance results regularly.
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Coaching is often described as a process of unlocking a person’s potential, to maximise their own
performance. Coaching helps people to learn, develop and grow, rather than teaching them. Coaching
can be used in a number of situations. This may include providing help with:

 addressing particularly difficult challenges

 making the transition into a new role

 delivering challenging change initiatives

 Improving senior management, leadership, communication or influencing capabilities.

In every coaching relationship, the person being coached sets the agenda and finds the solution that
works best for them. In the coaching relationship, the coach is not an expert in anything except using
questions and coaching techniques to help the coachee find their own solution.

Mentoring has been defined as off-line help by one person to another in making significant transitions,
in knowledge, work or thinking. Mentoring is a relationship between a more experienced person
(mentor) and a less experienced person (mentee1), with the goal of achieving personal and professional
growth of the mentee.

Like coaching, mentoring focuses on future possibilities. However, it tends to focus on long-term
developmental goals such as career development, relationship management, transition into new roles
and development of leadership capabilities.

The aim of mentoring is to accelerate the mentee’s progress by helping the mentee:

 learn from the mentor’s experiences

 avoid the same pitfalls they fell into.

The mentor should therefore have relevant experience or expertise that the mentee can benefit from.
This need not necessarily be in exactly the same job, role or field of expertise, but there need to be
parallels. It very much depends on what the mentee is looking for.

Coach
Role Uses powerful questioning to help
the coachee find their own solutions
to an issue.
Expertise Not an expert in the coachee’s field,
and so does not have the answers —
the coach’s job is to help the
coachee find their own answers.
Duration Short-term
Focus Specific work-related goals.
Mentor
Shares their experiences and advice, to
help the mentee decide on a solution.
Will have experience or expertise
relevant to the mentee’s role — this can
be used to fast-track the mentee’s
progress (avoiding the same pitfalls and
learning from experience).
Long-term
Broader developmental goals.
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Benefits of Coaching and Mentoring

Benefits to individuals Benefits to organizations

Benefits of  Improved performance and
coaching (A) achievement of targets (A).
and
 Positive impact on performance (A)
mentoring
 Greater ownership and responsibility
(B)
(A)
 Increased self awareness (A)
 Improved managerial skills (A)
 Learn how to solve own problems
(A,B)
 Identification of solutions to specific
work-related issues (A,B)
 Improved confidence (A,B)
 Increased individual satisfaction
(A,B)
 Increased motivation (B)
 Improved working relationships (B)
 More effective and sustainable
career choices(B)
Legend: (A) - Benefits of coaching, (B) -
Benefits of mentoring,
 Increased quality, customer
satisfaction and customer service
(A)
 Demonstration of commitment to
individuals and their development
(A)
 Supports newly promoted
employees (A)
 Increased creativity (A)
 Consolidates and sustains impact of
training courses (A)
 Increased staff motivation (A,B)
 Increased organisational
productivity and performance (A,B)
 Improved employee satisfaction
and retention (A,B)
 Better interagency relationships
(A,B)
 Increased success of quality policy
implementation (B)
 Enhanced staff problem-solving
capabilities (B)
(A,B) - Benefits of coaching and
mentoring.

Mentoring differs from coaching in that mentoring has the general object of development, whereas
coaching is associated with a specific skill development. The time frame for coaching is typically short
term, whereas mentoring tends to focus on long-term development. Mentoring is more concerned with
modeling, counseling, supporting, advocating, introducing and sheltering. Coaching is more concerned
with goal setting, providing practical application, providing feedback, and teaching. Mentoring is a more
general, broader and a longer-term activity than coaching, but coaching is often one of the activities that
is performed as part of the mentoring process.
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Coaching provides a number of advantages over traditional training. It is even more effective when used
in support of training:

 Activities are designed to suit the individual needs of the project.

 Training is focused on teaching skills, whereas coaching focuses on developing and fine-
tuning the skills.

 Coaching is performed in the “live” project environment, where and when the needs exist
and actual results can be realized.

 Coaching transfers and extends knowledge learned in training to the real-world application,
where tailoring and value realization must occur.

Role of the Coach

The coach’s role is to facilitate the coachee to find their own solutions to the problems and challenges
they face. The coach uses questions to help rather than telling the coachee what to do.

The reason for this focus on the coachee’s agenda is that individuals are more likely to learn and
succeed from a solution they have found themselves.

If a coachee has put their own solution into action and it succeeds, they can draw confidence from it and
from their own ability. If it fails, the coachee can learn from it rather than discounting it as someone
else’s bad idea.

Types of Coaching

There are different types of coaching, each with their different diagnostic tools and models. Two of the
most high profile types of coaching are as follows.

 High Performance Coaching — this type of coaching is aimed at achieving peak

performance. Individuals seeking high performance coaching may be seeking ways to
improve and get better in their current work by being more efficient and/or effective.

 Peer and Hierarchical Coaching — coaching can be a manager-to-subordinate technique but

is more commonly a peer-to-peer relationship. Peer coaching is particularly useful in self-
managed teams, where the team is responsible for devising its own working methods and
achieving set objectives, but does not have a sole person in charge.

 Team Coaching — coaching can be carried out in a team. Teams are made up of individuals
but with additional emphasis on relationships/interactions and what the team members are
able to achieve together.
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Mentoring

Mentoring is a valuable method for gaining personal support for self-development and self-managed
learning. The role of the mentor is to help the individual gain a deeper insight into how to handle the
complexities and opportunities which present themselves in the workplace.

Mentors (or buddies) are generally offered to new employees, eg as part of their induction programme.
An effective mentoring relationship provides an opportunity for medium to long-term support, and is
usually related to personal and professional development. Mentors provide wisdom and experience, but
in ways which enable the individual to work through or to anticipate problems.

The role of the mentor is not to provide a ready-made solution, but to enable the other person to work
out a viable solution to problems. Mentors should not want to breed dependence, they should want to
see their protégés’ careers flourish with the wisdom they have learned.

Mentors are often more senior than the individual seeking personal support, but this need not always be
so. Mentors do not need to be from the same organisation. In fact, on occasions it is more appropriate
for the mentor to be someone from outside the organisation.

It is essential that the individual seeking support should respect the mentor and their opinions.
Mentoring demands a high level of trust as the individual being mentored needs to have confidence in
the techniques and/or information which they are given.

Role of the Mentor

The mentor fulfils a range of different roles, according to the mentee’s needs. The role of the mentor
fulfils at any given time will depend on two things:

 Where the mentee’s needs fall on a continuum between intellectual need and emotioanl
need.

 The amount of direction and suggestion the mentee wants from the mentor — from
directive advice to non-directive thinking space.

Some of the different roles a mentor might need to fulfil include:

 Sounding board, advisor, critical friend, challenger, listener, collaborator, catalyst, counselor,
role model, and guide.

Choosing which mentoring role to be in at any given time is not an exact science. The mentor needs to
listen carefully to the mentee to find out what kind of role they are seeking at that point in time.

Role of Coaching and mentoring in Quality system and continuous improvement process

 Commitment of staff, identifying gaps and skills employees need for successful
implementation of the quality improvement process.
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 Assist employees in solving problems and improve their creativity

 Provide examples from improvement teams, other countries to inform decisions

 Facilitate development of quality indicators.

 Assess individual’s capability and experience

 Provide opportunities to conferences and trainings

Mentoring and coaching are useful techniques to help team members implement continuous
improvement processes. Mentoring can help people discover and develop their potential. Coaching
provides encouragement, direction or motivation as team members’ work towards the achievement of
particular goals.

Coaching Skills needed:

1) Communicaon
2) Presentaon skills
3) Conict r esoluon
4) Group process/team building
5) QI process and tools
6) E ecv e meeng skills
7) Ability to ask clarifying quesons
8) Ability to give feedback

 Encourage teams to share both successes and challenges

 Facilies some mes focus on barriers that they have no control over, help them to focus on
things they do have the power to change

 Provide examples of successful strategies from other facilies when relevant

 Gauge support of senior leadership and address off-line if needed

 Ask open ended questions and follow with details

 Develop appropriate goals and follow-up with progress toward goals

 Use of quesoning techniques to facilitate client’s thought processes

 Identify specifuc training and capacity building needs

 Communicate regularly and document encounters: on-site, telephone, email

 Establish leadership contact at facility.

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SELF-CHECK 01
1. Write some methods you can use to distribute and explain information to stakeholders?

2. How do you encourage employees to participate and contribute to continuous improvement

process?

3. What is employee engagement?

4. Explain the difference between coaching and mentoring?

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LO-2: Maintain Quality Documentation

A quality management system (QMS) is a formalized system that documents processes, procedures, and
responsibilities for achieving quality policies and objectives and thus consistently delivering a quality
product or service to the customer. A QMS helps to coordinate and direct an organization’s activities to
meet customer and regulatory requirements and continually improve its effectiveness and efficiency.
The QMS documentation must accurately and succinctly document the organization’s structure,
procedures, processes and resources.

A well designed documented system has many benefits,

 it ensures quality standards are routinely met,

 minimizes the potential for error,

 reduces downtime when deviations occur due to being able to quickly access relevant data,
and

 allows for easy monitoring of the processes such that process outputs are analyzed and
appropriate adjustments are made.

QMS documentation fulfills many functions such as communication of information, providing evidence
of conformity and sharing knowledge and as such many different types and levels of documents are
needed. For example, a quality manual (policy), quality procedures (Standard Operating Procedure or
SOP), work instructions, and Quality records.

Documentation is required for regulatory purposes and must demonstrate the effective planning,
operation and control of the organization’s processes and the implementation and continual
improvement of the effectiveness of its QMS.

Quality Management System documentation ensures that all processes are understood and consistently
executed by employees such that a quality product/service is delivered to the customer each and every
time.

Here, you must first identify the documentation that your organization needs for implementation of its
QMS and the medium you want to use either hard copy or electronic media. The amount of
documentation needed depends on the size of the organisation and its business, the complexity of the
processes and their interactions and the competence of the personnel. Many organisations find it useful
to use a process map to document the processes and their interactions and use this as a tool to decide
on what documents are needed. Good planning at this stage will save time and effort later.

The next step is to decide on the structure of the QMS documentation, which usually follows the
organization’s processes or the structure of the applicable quality standard or a combination of both.
The structure or hierarchy of the documentation facilitates distribution, maintenance and understanding
of the documentation. Following the identification and structure of the documents needed Step 3 is
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where you generate the required documents. This is the most difficult part of the realization process as
the documents themselves will determine employees understanding of the processes such that they can
implement and document them accordingly as quality records. Implementation of the documentation
system is the next phase and is documented in the document control procedure which must be robust
and stringently followed.

The final step is maintenance and improvement of the QMS documentation throughout the lifecycle of
the product or service. Maintenance is performed by ensuring that QMS documents are controlled as
per document control procedure and improvement is achieved via analysis of QMS outputs and taking
appropriate action to continuously improve effectiveness and efficiency of the QMS.

Step 1: Identify documentation

Identify all your processes and the interaction between them using a Process Map. Analysis of the
processes should then be used to determine the amount of documentation needed for the QMS. QMS
standards will determine mandatory documents, and the six procedures as listed below as mandatory
documentation:

 Control of Documents

 Control of Records

 Internal Audit

 Control of Nonconforming Product/Service

 Corrective Action

 Preventive Action

Thereafter you only require procedures to cover each section of the standard that applies to your
business and the complexity of the business will dictate the amount of documentation and level of detail
needed.
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Figure 1: A typical QMS documentation hierarchy with different document types at each level.

Step 2: Identify structure of documentation.

This structure is applicable to all organizations regardless of its size or complexity and we would
recommend that this structure is adopted for your organization.

 Quality Manual. Describes both the QMS in place and what you are going to do as an organization
to implement the QMS. The Quality Manual should include the scope of the QMS, details of and
justification for any exclusion, references to documented procedures and a description of the
processes of the QMS and their interactions which is usually presented as a diagram.

 Quality procedures. Describes how the organization implements the QMS by documenting the
applicable processes. Format can include text, flowcharts, tables, a combination of the above as
best meets the needs of the organization. Procedures usually cross reference work instructions.

 Work Instructions. Describe an activity within a process and provide detailed descriptions of how to
perform and record tasks. The structure, format and level of detail required depends on the
complexity of the work, methods used, training undertaken and competence of personnel who
execute the work instructions.

 Quality Records. Serve as evidence that the organization has done the work documenting the
actions of an activity or process.
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Step 3: Generate QMS documents

QMS documents detail the organization’s structure, procedures, processes and resources and when
followed result in a quality product or service being consistently delivered to the customer. Good
documentation will determine employees understanding of the processes such that they can implement
and document them accordingly as quality records. Thus, documents need to be easy to read, have a
natural logical flow, use simple & clear language and be concise. These attributes will ensure an
understanding of the content and information being conveyed. If time and effort is employed at this
stage in getting the documents to required standard, it will avoid time and effort later in revision of
documents.

Documents should be generated by the process owners as they are the people who best understand the
processes. The first documents that need to be generated are the quality procedures of which the
document control procedure should be drafted. The document control procedure describes the
structure of all document types within the QMS and so is the first building block in the design of QMS
documentation. The document control procedure addresses the following:

 Review and approval of documents for adequacy prior to issue

 Review of documents and update as necessary and re-approval

 Ensures correct revision status and changes to documents are identified

 Ensures documents remain legible and readily identifiable

 Ensures documents of external origin are identified and their distribution controlled

 Prevents deterioration or loss of documents

 Prevents unintended use of obsolete documents and application of suitable identification

to them.

The next quality procedure documents to be generated should be those mandated by the quality
standard your organization is following and as you draft these documents you can start generating the
Quality Manual which will reference these documents.

Once all the quality procedures are generated you can start drafting the work instructions, and once all
the procedures and work instructions are generated cross check them against your Quality Manual to
ensure the Quality Manual gives an accurate overview of your QMS.

Step 4: Implement documentation system

Document control procedure details the documentation system in place and how it is to be
implemented. The system in place must ensure that all documents are controlled, legible, readily
identifiable, retrievable, available at points of use, and reviewed regularly for ongoing suitability
throughout product/service lifecycle. This procedure must be followed for all controlled documents.
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Documents detail the organization’s structure, procedures, processes and resources and are needed as
objective evidence for regulatory compliance and are auditable. Thus, document control procedure is
critical as if it isn’t operating properly you will very quickly run into compliance problems and will have
to apply costly resources to address problems.

Step 5: Maintenance and Improvement

Maintenance and continuous improvement of documentation is very important. Documentation needs

to be maintained in line with document control procedure such that the organization is in compliance
with QMS and regulations. Documentation needs to be regularly reviewed and data from QMS
processes evaluated to identify any changes required.

Documentation updates and improvements are identified because of changes in processes, non-
conformances, audits, training, identified improvements and changes to standards.

Good documentation will greatly improve your organizations effectiveness and efficiency by ensuring
that your QMS has a strong foundation. Good documentation is easily achieved by following the 5 basic
steps outlined above particularly if you are at the start (designing the process) of the process. If you
have identified that there is a need to update your QMS documentation you need to decide whether it is
the structure, content or a combination of both that is the root cause of the problem. This can be done
by auditing your QMS documentation.

SELF-CHECK 02
 What is QMS?

 Describe work instructions?

 What are the benefits of quality documents in quality system and continuous improvement process?

 Explain quality manuals, quality procedures, and quality records?

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LO-3: Provide training in quality systems and improvement processes

Everyone needs to exhibit competency in the job. Training is only the start and can happen on the job, it
can be a classroom or e-learning.

Training is the process of enhancing the skills, capabilities and knowledge of employees for doing a
particular job. Training process moulds the thinking of employees and leads to quality performance of
employees. It is continuous and never ending in nature.

Importance of Training
Training is crucial for organizational development and success. It is fruitful to both employers and
employees of an organization. An employee will become more efficient and productive if he is trained
well.

Training is given on four basic grounds:

 New candidates who join an organization are given training. This training familiarize them
with the organizational mission, vision, rules and regulations and the working conditions.

 The existing employees are trained to refresh and enhance their knowledge.

 If any updations and amendments take place in technology, training is given to cope up with
those changes. For instance, purchasing a new equipment, changes in technique of
production, computer implantment. The employees are trained about use of new
equipments and work methods.

 When promotion and career growth becomes important. Training is given so that employees
are prepared to share the responsibilities of the higher level job.

The benefits of training can be summed up as:

 Improves morale of employees- Training helps the employee to get job security and job satisfaction.
The more satisfied the employee is and the greater is his morale, the more he will contribute to
organizational success and the lesser will be employee absenteeism and turnover.

 Less supervision- A well trained employee will be well acquainted with the job and will need less of
supervision. Thus, there will be less wastage of time and efforts.

 Fewer accidents- Errors are likely to occur if the employees lack knowledge and skills required for
doing a particular job. The more trained an employee is, the less are the chances of committing
accidents in job and the more proficient the employee becomes.

 Chances of promotion- Employees acquire skills and efficiency during training. They become more
eligible for promotion. They become an asset for the organization.
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 Increased productivity- Training improves efficiency and productivity of employees. Well trained
employees show both quantity and quality performance. There is less wastage of time, money and
resources if employees are properly trained.

People will "turn on" when they sense what they are trying to learn is relevant to them. The trainer's job
is to make these people feel the subject is relevant to them and/or develop the training based on the
parts that are relevant to them.

That said, there is nothing wrong with a basic training on how to find the manual and the part that is
relevant to the trainee. Trainings on how to understand a process map, reference sections, relationship
to the business system, and basic definitions like input, output, metrics and corrective vs. preventive
action are things that everyone should know. Some additional important training areas are- Internal
auditor competence, Corrective Action training, Failure Modes Effects Analysis (FMEA) training, etc.

Some of the things for which training should be developed within the organization are listed below:

 Training on Quality management system and continuous improvement process.

 Training on organizational mission, vision, rules and regulations and the working conditions.

 Continuous improvement process tools and techniques such as process maps, cause & effect
diagrams, Failure Modes Effects Analysis (FMEA), etc.

 Training on new systems, software, machines, equipments, and tools.

 Improved processes, procedures, work instructions, etc.

 Identifying non conformance and corrective and preventive actions

 Document control procedures, records, reports, performance metrics, etc.

 Measurement tools, techniques, and data.

 Organizational roles, responsibilities, internal auditing and reporting activities.

 Inspection and testing procedures.

How to Use Training to Implement Quality Management Systems

If you are in the process of implementing quality management systems within your organization,
consider the following tips to ensure that all employees are given the tools they need to enable effective
results.

 Create clear processes and procedures for each step of the system, and ensure that these can easily
be accessed by all relevant employees. Document control tools provide the most effective way to
enable easily accessible procedures, with the most recent versions readily available to key
employees.
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 Use easy to understand language rather than jargon and technical terms that may not be fully
understood. Keep steps simple and avoid long sentences that could be misunderstood. Bullet points
are often the best way to communicate specific steps or tasks that are required.

 Clearly communicate the goals of the procedures as well as the overall objectives for your strategies.
This will ensure that all employees understand exactly why the system is being implemented,
allowing them to be included in the process as well as invested on a personal level.

 Determine actions for noncompliance of the procedures, and make sure that these are also included
in the documentation. Once employees have been given training on what is required from them to
achieve the results you wish, noncompliance can be prevented or at least reduced with clearly
states consequences.

 Conduct training of any tools or resources that may be used during the implementation phase. For
example, if employees are required to use specific software programs or perform new tasks, they
should be given demonstrations and learning opportunities to ensure that they understand how
these tools are used.

 Providing training resources that are either created in-house, or presented through external guides
and resources that are sourced elsewhere. On the job training can be done, or group training
sessions may be required depending on the nature of the tasks involved or the scope of the system
that is being taught.

 Provide clear channels for feedback throughout the training process, as well as after the training.
Give employees the chance to ask questions, bring up any potential problem areas and indicate
whether they have benefited from the training that has been provided. This will reduce the potential
for misunderstandings once the implementation phase begins.

Through clear communication, well-documented processes and thorough training, your employees will
have the resources they need to effective implement your quality management systems, thereby
enabling a far higher chance of desired results.

Planning the Training

The Training Plan is used to describe how the training requirements within the business area(s) will be
addressed to support the transformation in business processes. The structure of this section will vary
depending on the nature of the project and the business unit needs. Separate Training Plans may be
required for different business units. The following list is provided as potential sub-headings for the
Training Plan including some example issues:

 Strategy
 What is the overall objective of the Training Strategy?
 Describe the approach that will be used. This will largely depend on the implementation
approach for the project (e.g. big bang, parallel, site by site).
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 Ensure employees and managers are provided with the skills and information to
integrate the new technology/system into their jobs and business environment. This is
essential if maximum benefits are to be obtained.
 Training should be seen as a reward for good performance.
 Preparatory training needs will also require identification.
 Responsibilities
 Who is responsible for co-ordinating training activities?
 Will there be a "Train the trainer" approach?
 Who will be involved in facilitating and conducting the training -internal staff, external
consultants etc.
 Ensure managers and supervisors are trained appropriately to enable them to oversee
the introduction of the new technology (i.e. to have realistic expectations of what the
users can learn).
 Resources
 What resources are required - human, physical, financial etc
 Users frequently require more training than generally thought by vendors and
management.
 What is the scope of the training to be conducted?
 Environment
 Preferable if training is conducted off-site unless it is on the job training.
 Assess training conflicts with periods of high processing demands or reduced staffing
levels.
 Documentation and other materials
 Describe what types of documentation (electronic and paper) and materials are
required prior, during and after training. How will they be developed, supplied and
maintained?
 Schedule
 It may be appropriate to attach the training schedule as an appendix.
 Course Structure
 Training may be accomplished through external and internal courses (eg. team building
exercises), on the job training (OJT), computer-based training and self development (eg
books).
 Training must be relevant to actual work.
 Ensure non-technical users are provided with the opportunity to articulate their
requirements (consultation).
 Training is tailored to suit different types of users (needs analysis).
 On-going Training requirements
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 Ensure that users have the capability to reinforce their learning by application usage
post training.
 Ensure adequate and appropriate backup support is available to avoid reliance upon
individuals.
 Establish a timetable for a minimal level of proficiency of new technology / systems to
be demonstrated by impacted staff.
 Ensure that any training is assessed for relevance, effectiveness, adequacy etc after it
has been provided.
 Identify the on-going training requirements for employees over the next few months.
 Training Budget - Is there to be a separate training budget detailed? It may be appropriate to
include as appendix.

SELF-CHECK 03
 What is training?

 Why training is important in successful implementation of quality management system and

continuous improvement process?

 What is the difference between training, coaching, and mentoring?

 Write some benefits of training employees?

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LO-4: Optimize and report performance

4.1 Review performance outcomes to identify ways in which planning and
operations could be improved
One of the critical functions of a continuous improvement system is the review process. During review,
information is collected, monitored and analyzed to determine whether problems exist or whether they
could exist in the future.

Action is taken to improve one or more aspects of the organization’s operations so the negative effects
of a problem (or future problems) are minimized or avoided completely. Action could involve making
changes to a system or process or changing the way something is done for the better.

Management have responsibility for ensuring that operations in the establishment support the overall
enterprise goals and quality improvement initiatives. This pre-supposes goals, objectives and targets do
in fact exist, and they have been communicated to the appropriate staff and managers. Additionally,
some sort of automatic review will be built into most work operations, such as weekly or monthly
reviews and reports.

Monitoring is a process of determining how well our plans are being implemented. You cannot monitor
something if you don’t have a plan or basic structure of how something should be done, or a defined
goal or target.

Work operations refer to the work itself and includes systems and procedures, staff performance, and
levels of service in the workplace. These operations can include:

 Service delivery – ensuring staff provide the level of service established/determined as stated in
the quality standard.

 Customer satisfaction – generating feedback from customers about how they perceive the
service being provided

 Product and service quality.

 Control of documentations.

There are good reasons to monitor, review progress, adjust, and improve plans and work operations.
The benefits are:

 Things are more likely to happen as planned.

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 Management and staff actually know what is going on in the business.

 Problems are identified and corrected.

 Service and product are consistent over time.

 Work operations fit with work and organization quality improvement goals.

 Staff feel supported and involved.

 Customer needs are met - Measurements include individual product rankings that show
how a particular product is rated (perhaps by sales or customer opinion) against other
products or services in the same category, or market share data that shows how much of
the total available sales a company has. Community information includes environmental
impact studies, community surveys and evaluations of an organisation’s public image (larger
organisations measure this annually under the name of corporate social responsibility).

Reviewing Perrformance Outcomes Using Measurements

Most managers are familiar with the practice of comparing actual performance against targets or
goals. This practice enable:

 Managers to quickly see whether their team is on track to achieve objectives.

 Managers understand and measure their continuous improvement team’s progress as they
work towards certain goals. It can also aid in

 the evaluation of whether new or upgraded processes are having the desired impact on
performance, by measuring progress before and after the changes have been implemented.

Some example of performance measurements may include:

 Profitability

 Productivity measures (efficiency, effectiveness, outcome, etc)

 Process quality (delays, errors, safety, documentations, 3Ms, etc)

 Areas of waste and corrective action

 Workforce performance measurement (employee performance data such as balanced score

card records)

 Customer satisfaction information

 Marketplace and community data

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In quality environment, any aspect of work operations can be reviewed with a view to improvement.
Thus, measuring and reviewing organizational performance is critical in the successful implementation
of quality system and continuous improvement initiatives.

An organization’s quality management system and improvement process involves:

 Continuous monitoring,

 Regular comparisons between planned and actual performance outcomes, and

 Optimizing and taking corrective actions or revisions of objectives and setting realistic
performance goals for improvement of outcomes.

Here is an outline of the steps involved in performance monitoring and review process:

 Measure performance outcomes - How performance is measured, the tools and

techniques to be used, and what is to be measured should be outlined. Measurement is
generally focused on analysis of performance outcome compared to what was forecast.
First, criteria or key performance indicators (KPI), metrics, critical success indicators, or key
process output variables (KPOV) needs to be identified as performance measures.

 Compare actual performance with planned performance outcome - This step involves
analyzing the variance or deviations between actual performance and what was planned,
budgeted, forecast, projected or anticipated. Regular monitoring will reveal variance, and
this variance is what will guide action to improve performance.

 Optimize and Improve performance - If the variance between actual and planned
performance outcome is minimal, no action is needed. If there is a large deviation,
management take immediate corrective action to resolve issues, such as to adjust plans to
be realistic or redesign a process to minimize delays.

 Measuring Performance of Work Operation/Process

After identifying the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) or quality metrics for a particular work operation,
the work isn't complete. To be a useful performance indicator, you must create a clear, precise
description of the KPI. The description allows everyone to evaluate and count the same way. This
ensures a common understanding of and agreement on the results.

To describe performance indicators or quality metrics fully, create an operational definition that
includes:

 Who measures (by role, not person's name)

 What is to be measured (attributes, entities, measurement units)
 When to measure (timing and frequency)
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 Where to measure (physical location in the process to make measure)

 How to measure (tools, techniques, equipments, steps involved)
 Why you measure it (what is the measure used for, tells, or indicates of the work
operation?)

Types Performance Measures

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) or measures include efficiency, effectiveness, quality, impact,
outcome (change) measures, and outputs:

 Efficiency Measures - Efficiency measures are used to determine productivity or cost effectiveness,
and involve comparing inputs to outputs. It internally measures the process and relates to the level
of resources used in the process to achieve the desired result. Examples include the number of calls
taken by a customer service team per day (on average), cost per product or outputs per unit of
time. To understand process efficiency, ask these questions:

 What is the process cycle time? - A measurement of cycle time, such as hours to
process an entity.

 What is the process yield? - A ratio of input-to-output value, such as cost per entity
processed or process yield.

 Efficiency metrics include:

 Process Lead Time

 Work content, such as assembly time per unit
 Process cost, such as labor and materials cost per unit
 Resources required such as budget, waste incurred, staff, etc.
 Cost of poor quality (COPQ), such as Defects per Million Opportunities,
Rework, Re-inspect, and Re-audit.

 Effectiveness Measures - The extent to which a process meets its intended outputs and/or
objectives. It is measured as the ratio of planned or projected output to the actual output achieved.
An example would be the total number of tests completed to the total number of tests planned.
Effectiveness measures include delivery performance, quality performance, customer satisfaction,
etc. To understand effectiveness, ask questions such as:

 How closely are Customers' needs and requirements met?

 What defects have they received?
 How satisfied and loyal have they become?

 Quality Measures - Quality measures are used to determine effectiveness in meeting customer
expectations related to product reliability and service responsiveness. Manufacturing organizations
will also measure error rates. For a customer service team, a quality measure may relate to the
satisfaction level of customers who had contact with the team.
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 Impact Measures - Refers to the measures of change that result from the outputs being completed,
such as responses to surveys, requests for further information, or number of products taken up (eg.
Number of new WiFi services installed).

 Outcome (change) measures - Measures the change in behaviour or resource use in relation to goal
of the continuous improvement. Outcomes are usually considered in terms of their expected
timeframe: short-term, intermediate, or long-term. Without thorough outcome evaluation, it is not
possible to demonstrate whether a behaviour change continuous improvement project has had the
desired effect. It is important to capture both intended and unintended outcomes.

 Outputs - Products or services delivered as part of the activities of the work operation (eg. Number
of units produced, services delivered, workplace incidents recorded, workshops, etc).

2) Comparing and Analyzing Performance Reports and Variances

Performance reports on costs, quality, safety, customer service, and other relevant aspects of the
business operation provide you information about the current state of the organization's processes.
From the reports you can determine systems or processes that need improvement and it helps you
prioritize them based on their importance or urgency.

You should collect data and analyze reports on the current performance of processes and systems to be
improved. This enables you

 to quantify the performance of processes and systems from various viewpoints,

 to identify problems and develop a problem statement,
 to understand the current effectiveness of the processes and systems, and
 to improve and adjust planning activities by comparing actual performance outcomes with
the planned so as to minimize variances and increase efficiency.
 to identify potential improvements.

It is important that you routinely seek out the views of the employees, customers, and suppliers of the
process or system regarding process/system and product/service performance. Analysis of performance
reports on performance outcomes of process activities encompasses:

 Budget or cost variance - Is the process running under/over budget? Is the cost variance
(the minimum and maximum ranges of total estimated cost) acceptable?
 Customer service - customer complaints, satisfaction rates, increase/decrease in number of
new customers, etc.
 Environmental pollution - Pollution rates, eco friendliness, impact of waste produced and
disposed on the environment, Is it above local regulatory rate?
 OH&S - number of workplace injuries, cost of OHS issues, hazards recorded, is it higher than
expected?
 Quality - quality of products/services, failure to meet standards, quality defects reported so
far, cost of quality (cost to ensure quality), error rates, etc.
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 Other operating parameters - such as delays, Effective utilization of resources (labor,

materials, utilities, etc), workflow, delivery process, inventory control, etc.
 Documentation standards - use of standard document formats and templates,
inconsistencies, timely reports, etc.

Analyze planning activities and operational processes for:

 Efficiency, Effectiveness, Quality, Output, Outcome (achieving the desired, planned, or

anticipated result), Impact (change in behavior),
 Customer satisfaction (quality of product/service as seen by customer),
 Identifying non-value-added steps,
 Comparing before and after changes to a process,
 Developing a quality system documentation,
 Helping quality improvement teams to understand a process (coaching and mentoring),
Training aid for understanding the process, and
 Understanding the interrelationships of existing processes (value stream mapping, process
mapping)

3) Improving performance
This involves making the necessary adjustments to improve the level of service, productivity or
customer satisfaction. Depending on what is being monitored and improved, involving staff in all or
some stages of the improvement process is likely to achieve better results.

Sometimes you will realize your original target was unrealistic or there have been changes that require
you to adjust your original target.

4.2. Enhance customer service through the use of quality improvement

techniques and processes
The important task towards streamlining your work processes is identifying what’s slowing them down.
There are many quality improvement techniques and processes (methodologies) to identify bottlenecks
and inefficiencies in your work processes.

Some examples the most effective quality improvement techniques and processes that you can easily
make use of include:

1) Lean Tools
The Lean tools are used to eliminate wasteful process steps or activities that do not add any value. The 8
types of waste you’ll be able to remove with the following Lean tools are:

 Defects
 Overproduction
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 Waiting
 Non utilized talent
 Transportation
 Inventory
 Over processing

Getting rid of these wasteful steps in your processes will help you improve product quality, reduce lead
time and reduce total cost. Here are 3 Lean tools that you can use to improve your business processes:

a) 5S

An organized office environment is essential to efficient processes. With the 5S methodology, you can
create a clean, safe, and productive environment for your work team.

Generally used in : All types of industries, from manufacturing to small businesses.

This technique is used for:

 Promoting OH&S safey,

 Lowering costs,
 Increasing process/team efficiency, and
 Driving out waste from manufacturing processes.

Documentations include:

 Photographs (of workspaces before and after implementing 5S)

 Team activity documents or checklists
 Evaluation forms to check the status of the first 3 steps
 List of guidelines to keep the office organized and clean

Ease of use: As it does not require any technical analysis, it can be used by everyone at work.

b) Value Stream Mapping

A value stream map is a graphical representation of the flow of materials and information that are
needed to bring your product or service to your customer.

Generally used in: Manufacturing industry

Useful for:

 Identifying waste within and between processes

 Gaining insight into the decision-making and the process flows
 Identifying and prioritizing areas for improvement
 Setting measurable goals for improvement tasks
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Documentation:

 Current state map showing how you serve your customers at present
 Future-state map showing how the process will look like once the changes are
made.

Ease of use: The mapping process can take up to 3 days to complete, but with the right team, it can be
done faster.

c) Continuous Improvement (Kaizen)

Continuous improvement is a technique that calls for the constant improvement of every function of
your business. It can be implemented through the PDCA cycle.

Generally used in: Management departments, but also by those in quality control circles, waste
disposal analyzers and common workers.

Useful for:

 Improving processes, quality of products/ services and customer satisfaction

 Improving team productivity and job satisfaction
 Promoting better safety and faster delivery

Documentation:

 Reports of the current situation of the workplace

 Surveys to check the team’s attitude towards job satisfaction
 Kaizen strategy plan aiming to improve team productivity

Ease of use: It’s an ongoing process and requires the active contribution of the entire company.

2) The Six Sigma Tools

Sigma is simply a smarter way to manage a business. It’s about collecting data on processes to
understand what’s happening. This data is then analyzed and interpreted to find effective ways to
improve the process. By doing so you get to

 Increase customer satisfaction

 Reduce cycle time
 Reduce defects

Let’s look at a few six sigma tools that are widely used to improve processes in businesses.

a) DMAIC
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DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control) is a 5-step method (a direct descendant of the
Plan-Do-Check-Act Cycle) that is used to improve current processes.

If your products/ services or business processes aren’t meeting your customer expectations or not
performing well, DMAIC can help you figure out why and find long-term solutions to the problem.

Generally used in: All types of industries, especially by teams working on projects

 Useful for:
 Improving processes or products
 Finding solutions for problems within processes
 Cutting excess costs and time

Documentation:

 Project charter
 Process map with process inputs and outputs
 Data on the performance of the project
 Documentation of the new solution

Ease of use: It can be rolled out in a matter of month or over the course of a year.

b) Cause and Effect Analysis

It’s also known as fishbone diagram diagram. It is a technique that can be used to visually display the
causes of a certain issue or effect.

Generally used in: All types of industries

Useful for:

 Identifying and analyzing all possible causes for a problem/ effect

 Facilitating team problem-solving brainstorming sessions

Documentation:

 Documents on information related to the issues that are being analyzed

Ease of use: Can help a team identify and analyze causes of a problem in a single brainstorming
session.

c) SIPOC analysis

The SIPOC analysis is a technique that helps organize data on people and things that are involved in your
business processes.
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Generally used in: Manufacturing industry

Useful for:

 Identifying all relevant elements needed for a process improvement project

 Define complex projects that are not properly scoped
 Understanding the process during the define phase of DMAIC

Documentation: In the SIPOC analysis you’ll be listing data under each of these following
categories, and therefore you’ll need information on them.

 Supplier : the people, departments, organizations etc. that provide you the
input needed to carry out a process
 Input : raw material, equipment, forms or information and even people that are
needed to carry out a process
 Process : a graphic of the process steps
 Output : a list of things the process provides to the internal and external
customer
 Customer : a list of internal and external customers who will be receiving your
outputs

Ease of use: The 5 columns are filled during a brainstorming session. As long as the relevant
information is provided by the team, the diagram can be completed and analyzed quickly.

d) Process Maps (Process Flowcharts)

Process maps graphically represent each step of a process. And they are an essential part of process
documentation.

Generally used in: All types of industries, from manufacturing to marketing

Useful for:

 Understanding how processes work

 Identifying process areas that need change

Documentation:

 Information available on the process that is being mapped.

 Job descriptions and responsibilities of those who are involved in the process

Ease of use: To map a process, you need the participation of those who are involved. Gathering
them in one place, mapping the process and analyzing it may span over a few days, especially if
the process is complicated.
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4.3. Adjust plans and communicate these to personnel involved in their

development and implementation
Managers need to identify quality problems and issues quickly and take appropriate action swiftly. An
on-going approach to monitoring and reviewing outcomes of workplace operations is needed to adjust
and improve plans as well as identify and address problems. This requires measuring performance
regularly and consistently. This involves using tools to help you do this such as observation, statistical
and written reports, surveys, checklists, flowcharts, audits, and benchmarking. You then need to
compare the actual outcome against the planned and make adjustments to improve performance.

Once information about current or potential problems has been collected and analyzed, you need to
take action by identifying ways in which operations and planning can be improved. Depending on the
issue, there are several ways that planning and work operations can be improved within an organization.

Adjusting and Setting Process Goals

During planning process consider these general topical areas when setting goals:

 Meeting or exceeding customer requirements for the product/service.

 Efficiency, effectiveness, quality, planned vs actual performance outcomes,
 Number of non conforming products/services, deviations occurred,
 Ensuring that the process makes a contribution to the organization ’s profits (or
cost containment).
 Ensuring that the product or service design and execution follows good
practices.
 Ensure user's safety, including unintended use.
 Ensuring that the product or service doesn't present a hazard to users or to the
environment during the life of the product or service.
 Ensuring the safety, security, and well-being of employees.
 Meeting or exceeding industry-accepted practices for a good working
environment.
 Continually improving the process through elimination of non-value-added
product/service features, process steps, and materials.
 Continuing the quest to reduce cycle time.

Defining the process goal depends on the strategic direction of the organization and the level of the
process being addressed (for example, from order entry through design, production, and shipping; or
the sub process of accepting and entering a customer's order).
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Self Check 4
1)