Total Quality Management Glossary
Aim. The purpose of a system, subsystem and process.
The vital element of an organization that must be understood
by all employees of the organization.
Common Cause. Any variation that is common to a process.
When only common cause variation exists in a process,
it is said to be stable, and predictions about the
process can be made within a range of values.
Consensus. Agreement reached collectively by two or
more persons with which everyone can abide though it
might not be everyone’s first choice. This agreement does
not involve concessions or compromise on anyone’s part.
Constancy of Purpose. The unflagging support needed
for a quality culture, particularly by top management. The
patience and persistence required over time to seek, to
achieve, and to maintain a quality culture.
CPI. Continual Process Improvement. The everwatchful
tenet of the Deming theory of management
that epitomizes the desire for better and better quality.
Does not connote a constant improvement in a process
but a continual awareness of processes and their changing
need for improvement. Usually takes place in steps.
Empowerment. The act of enabling employees to make
decisions, or at least recommendations for changes, with
regards to the processes on which they work. Pushing
decision-making to the lowest possible level.
Infrastructure. The organizational structure from which
a company functions. In a quality-centered company, this
structure is keyed to quality, good communications, and
decision-making at the lowest reasonable level.
Group Mind. The cumulative effect of good teamwork.
This concept is an ideal that envisions a synergy of the
best in knowledge, abilities, and attitudes of all team
members into one powerful, collective mind.
Key Quality Characteristics. Those elements most critical
to the function of a product or service as envisioned
by the customer of the product or service. It is important
that the producer and customer agree to operational definitions
of these characteristics.
Linking Pin. On quality teams the representative from
the next higher management level who serves as the communication
link to the team to ensure open communication
lines and to ensure upper management support for
the team’s activities.
Optimization. Ensuring the system is as functional and
effective as possible. This means the system’s aim is being
achieved, even though portions of the system may not be
performing at their best. This requires a systems view.
PDSA. Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle developed by Dr.
Deming. It is the guide toward learning and improvement,
a procedure to follow to monitor processes/systems and
to make changes
Process. Any activity that takes an input, adds value, and
produces an output. It always has a beginning and an end.
Two or more processes make up a subsystem or a system.
Profound Knowledge. The philosophy espoused by
Dr. Deming that centers on the theories of systems,
variation, knowledge, and psychology—and their interrelationships.
Special Cause. Any variation that is caused from outside
the process or that is not common cause. The existence
of special cause variation in a process makes it an
unstable process, and no reliable predictions about the
process can be made.
Suboptimization. Said of a system that is not as functional
and effective as it could be. Often characterized by
internal competition or over-emphasized subsystems without
regard to the aim of the system.
Subsystem. Comprised of two or more related processes,
these units are the major parts of a system.
System. The whole organization, the company, that is the
responsibility of top management. This is usually made
up of two or more subsystems forming the whole.
Tasks. The steps in a process. The individual activities
that make up the parts of any process.
Transformation. A change to a new paradigm of management
(Deming). The necessary change to fully activate
the quality-driven organization. It must be understood
and desired by all members of the organization. It places
the emphasis on the individual’s and the organization’s
potential rather than on their past or present state.
Value-added Imperative. The requirement that every
process add value to the input, which becomes the value-added
product or service output of the process. If value is
not added, consider abolishing the process.
Voice of the Customer. The distribution representing what
the customers want. Management should seek to ensure
that the voice of the process agrees with this distribution.
Voice of the Process. The distribution representing the
output of the process. The control chart can be used to describe
the voice of the process. Management should seek
to close the gap between it and the voice of the customer.
Win-Win. The desired solution to problems and to company
increased marketshare. In this scenario, there are
no losers. Solutions or initiatives are sought that involve
cooperation rather than competition.
Source: DoD Small Business Guidebook to Quality Management
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