management
Irenee1
mgmt.doc1
9
Assessment2:
Quality Management Tools to Improve Performance
Executive Summary
This paper provides a brief report on how a histogram and a cause-and-effect diagram can be used to improve the quality of output of the production line at Woolworths. It details how a cause-and-effect diagram can be carried out while considering the broad areas of enquiry in the line. It also details how a histogram can be used to identify the changes and trends in the line that need to be worked on. Consecutive data points will be collected, the histogram plotted, and analysis of the shape done.
Table of Contents
5 2.2. Cause and Effect Diagram
1.0 Introduction
1.1. Problem Statement
Woolworths is Australia’s largest supermarket chain, and is known for its range of products and efficiency of the services. However, the retail giant can focus on quality management to realize a higher level of efficiency and better customer satisfaction levels. After undertaking several interviews with the workers in the production line, it was realized that there are issues that need to be addressed to attain better quality. The efficiency of the line is low leading to output that is lower than expected. The following sections look into the use of histograms and cause-and-effect diagrams to improve quality of the output in the production line.
2.0 Discussion
2.1. Rationale
To address the quality issues at the retail chain, cause-and-effect diagrams can be applied. It is a diagram that is usually used for exploring all the potential causes of a particular problem. The causes are then arranged in terms of their severity or importance leading to a depiction of hierarchy of events. This will then help the parties define and find the root causes that need to be addressed (Barad & Raz, 2014). It is imperative to note that when using this method, the causes are usually arranged into four main categories and can be anything depending on the problems that need to be addressed. In this case, the production line will have four causes which are; manpower, methods, materials, and machinery.
2.2. Cause and Effect Diagram
A cause and effect diagram is important as it helps a party determine the actual causes of the problem. Notably, it is not based on statistics hence a team of few people will be able to implement it and find the root causes. A sample diagram has been shown in the appendices. This approach requires a person who can visualize and see the details of the production line. As such, individuals working in the production line should be involved in the whole process. Additionally, the other important aspect of the diagram is that it allows for the teams to consider the various issues without the need of quantifying them. For instance, the indirect output of a machine must not be considered when working with the diagram. Further, this approach does not consume a lot of time, especially when the teams involved understand the area that needs to be focused on. For instance, in the supermarket’s production line, the teams working in the establishment can be involved in the process. However, it is worth noting that the process requires the teams to make independent observations and pay much attention to the details of performance.
To undertake this process, a team should identify all the broad areas of enquiry where the cause and effect needs to be investigated (Goetsch & Davis, 2014). Due to the fact that the production line is being investigated, the broad areas of enquiry entails machine, manpower, methods, and materials. This is followed by the second step that involves the greatest amount of work and imagination. The teams need to write all the details regarding the possible causes in each of the identified broad areas of enquiry. For the best results to be realized, it is imperative that each cause is explored further so that more specifics can be written down (Sadikoglu & Olcay, 2014). Even other causes within causes should also be explored further. This is a process that is repeated where branching off is done finding more directions until the issue has been known.
2.3. Histogram
The histogram is a popular tool for improving processes and should be applied to the situation at Woolworths. It is basically a bar graph that depicts the distribution of frequency of occurrence of a range of data. The bars create a visual picture relating to the occurrences and it has no gaps between the bars so as to show information in a continuous format (Rose, 2014). A sample has been shown in the appendices. There are numerous situations where histograms can be used, including when the team wants to see the shape of the data’s distribution, analyzing the output of a process, and evaluating whether there has been a change in the process. The latter indicates the reason for which the histograms will be used. It will help the team identify changes in the production process that have led to effect on quality.
There are several reasons why the histogram should be used in the organization. First, they help visualize the data in a much comprehensible manner, meaning that the teams can learn about any discrepancies quite fast. This means that complex ideas will be communicated easily. Also, the tool will show how well the data is centered on a particular pivotal point (Osmani, & Maliqi, 2012). This way, any issues or trends will be revealed. Typically, the teams will collect at least 60 consecutive data points from the production process. These data points need to be collected while the process is running normally and without any external influences. The data values will then be put on a graph with a y-axis and x-axis. After ensuring that the whole processes operated normally in the production line, the histogram can be analyzed. The shape of the bars should be analyzed and cause for the changes or trends identified (Sartor & Orzes, 2019). When analyzing the histogram, it is imperative that attention to data points is paid in a manner that will correlate the causes and the effects.
3.0 Conclusion
To address quality issues in the production line and Woolworths, a cause and effect analysis can be undertaken where broad areas of enquiry will be focused on. Every cause is explored in details including possible causes within causes. Branching off will be done until an actual cause has been arrived at. Additionally, a histogram can be used where data points will be collected when the process is running normally. The data points must be consecutive. These data points will then be used for creating bars of the histogram. Upon assessing the credibility of the data points, the shape of the bars is analyzed in a manner that will identify the source of the issues in the production line. The causes identified will then be addressed to improve the quality of performance in the production line.
4.0. References
Barad, M., & Raz, T. (2014). Contribution of quality management tools and practices to project management performance. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management 17(4/5), 571-583.
Goetsch, D. L., & Davis, S. (2014). Quality Management for Organizational Excellence. Edinburgh, UK: Prentice Hall.
Osmani, F., & Maliqi, G. (2012). Performance Management, Its Assessment and Importance. Procedia 41(1), 434-441.
Rose, K. (2014). Project Quality Management. Boston, MA: J. Ross Publishing.
Sadikoglu, E., & Olcay, H. (2014). The Effects of Total Quality Management Practices on Performance and the Reasons of and the Barriers to TQM Practices in Turkey. Advances in Decision Sciences 14(1), 1-17.
Sartor, M., & Orzes , G. (2019). Quality Management: Tools, Methods and Standards. New York, NY: Emerald Publishing Limited .
5.0 Appendices
5.1. Appendix One
5.2. Appendix Two
