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Introduction
The preparation of systems, procedures,
work instructions and training of employees systematically
to meet the requirements of the ISO-9000 standard will improve
a company's performance by bringing about better process yields,
a reduced level of nonconformity, more efficient management
control, etc. The ISO-9000 series of standards is designed
to produce consistency in actions, products and services.
ISO-9000 registration or certification should be viewed as
a minimum requirement and the objective should be the continuous
development and improvement of the system in relation to the
needs of the company. The following highlight those features
of the quality system which provide basic inputs for continuous
quality improvement and which can be used as a basis for TQM.
Quality improvement and ISO-9000
The following elements of ISO-9001 if practised scrupulously
shall be strong triggers for continuous quality improvement:
Quality policy and objectives. A relentless pursuit of
objectives and once achieved revising them
sets the company on an upward spiral.
Management review. The management review process improves
top management planning and provides resources
for improvement, if every deviation from desired result
is analysed systematically and root causes identified for
systemic improvement.
Corrective action. Nonconformities are analysed for their
causes and causes are eliminated systematically,
enabled by management reviews, leading to improved performance
and customer satisfaction.
Preventive action. By analysing performance data, an organization
can determine whether nonconformities will
be generated. It can then take action to prevent them from
happening.
Internal Quality Audits. The analysis of audit findings
to identify trends enables a company to
focus on areas requiring more attention. Audit reports are
thus a valuable basis for initiating quality
improvement projects in any company.
Guidelines for quality improvement
ISO-9004-4: 1993 provides guidelines for quality improvement.
This standard deals with the following aspects of quality
improvement:
Fundamental concepts of quality improvement;
Managing for quality improvement;
Methodology for quality improvement;
Supporting tools and techniques
for quality improvement.
ISO-9000 and TQM
A quality system
based on ISO-9000 is a pillar in a company's approach to total
quality management. It helps to ensure that improvements made
are maintained.
The discipline of Standard Operating Procedures and orderly
change for the better which ISO-9000 advocates is after all
one of the secrets of the Japanese post-war success.
TQM and ISO-9000 are not alternatives of each other. The ISO
quality system is an essential feature of TQM. ISO-8402 defines
TQM as a "management approach of an organisation, centred
on quality, based on the participation of all its members
and aiming at long-term success through customer satisfaction,
and benefits to all members of the organisation and to society".
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Customer focus
ISO-9000 is based on meeting customer requirements and the
Contract Review process is an enabler for customer focus.
It kindles the organisation to assess capability, understand
customer requirements unambiguously and see if capabilities
exist to provide those requirements. Contract review can therefore
be extended to a far more open-ended and wide-ranging approach
to customers. This can involve asking questions such as "What
can we do better?", "Should we do things differently?", and
"What can we do for the customer in future?". This approach
can involve a major shift in the perspective of a company
and, if meaningful answers to the questions are found, quality
improvement teams can develop means to produce a clear competitive
advantage for their firm. The practice of internal customers
auditing internal suppliers, when followed, can bring customer
focus into every action area and foster customer focus through
the entire supply chain.
Developing suppliers
ISO-9000 imposes purchasing systems which evaluate suppliers,
rates their performance from time to time, and promotes a
dialogue to improve quality of all inputs and by joint action
to reduce costs by eliminating non-value-added activities.
Developing staff
All companies are only as good as their employees. ISO-9000
emphasises planned systematic training based on needs identification
and assessment of effectiveness.
For companies which have taken Strategic Quality into the
Board Room, training is a means to achieve it. For example,
the great US pioneer in TQM, Motorola has estimated that an
investment of one US Dollar in employee training produces
a return of about 33 US Dollars in terms of quality and cost
improvement. Motorola allocates nearly 7% of employee costs
to training.
Data collection and analysis
ISO-9000 stipulates identification and use of appropriate
statistical techniques to assess process capability and product
characteristics and this promotes management decisions based
on facts which is an important prerequisite of TQM. Thus ISO-9000
system lays the foundation for the effective utilisation of
TQM principles and techniques.
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