SLP 4 MODULE 4 forecasting

For Trina's Gourmet Hot Dogs, it involves how best the delivery guys deliver the hot dogs to the customers in terms of timely deliveries and delivery of the right quantity as specified by the customer. Dimensions of service quality determination include reliability, assurance, responsiveness, empathy, and tangibles. Reliability is measured in terms of the ability of the service provider to perform the service accurately and dependently as promised. Assurance involves the measurement of the ability to extend courtesy and convey trust to the customers. Responsiveness is determined by how quickly the services and provided to the clients and the promptness in delivering the services. Empathy involves giving personalized attention to understanding the needs of the patients and caring for them while tangibles are the physical attributes such as equipment, appearance, and facilities.

Product quality. Product quality is measured by the ability of a given product to meet customer's requirement and the value of its characteristics and features. Product quality management can be defined as a comprehensive set of tools for enabling an organization control and manage data that relates to the quality of its products (Rose, 2014). These data include production defects, customer complaints, corrective actions requests and product improvements. Businesses operating in the consumer product industry such as Trina's Gourmet Hot Dogs are engaged in one of the most competitive industries today. The constantly changing customer preferences and tastes, pending product market regulations, new formulations, new packaging technologies and expanding geographic markets through online marketing are all top of mind for managers. For this reason, maintaining a trusted and long relationship with the clients is driven by product quality.

Process quality. Any form of production, whether it is consumer products or other products, involves sets pf processes that are interlinked. For better quality management and production of products that satisfy the consumers' needs, an organization has to maintain a good quality of its processes by ensuring that the right procedures are followed in the production process (Ford, Sturman, & Heaton, 2012). Trina's Gourmet Hot Dogs has to ensure that quality is given priority in the process of making the hot dogs for better customer satisfaction. Measuring and managing quality of products, services and processes are paramount since it ensures that an organization excels in meeting the requirements of the customers hence achieving organizational goals. Quality management is essential for continuous improvement and organizational growth.

Quality tools and techniques

Total quality management (TQM). This is a management approach for long-term success through enhanced customer satisfaction. In a TQM initiative, all members of a company or organization participate in improving products, services and processes and the organizational culture by focusing on continuous improvement (Evans & Lindsay, 2008). The core elements of TQM include focusing on customers, total employee involvement, process-centered, integrated system, continual improvement, communications and fact-based decision making. These elements are usually considered essential to TQM that most organizations normally define them as a set of primary values and principles on which they are to operate.

Six Sigma. Six Sigma refers to a measure of quality focused on near perfection. It is a disciplined, methodology and data-driven approach for eliminating defects in processes. Its fundamental objective is to implement a measurement-based strategy that is focused on variation reduction and process improvement by applying the Six Sigma improvement projects (Evans & Lindsay, 2008). It involves training of experts referred to as green belts and black belts to work on solving important problems while training others in the organization.

ISO 9000. This program is focused on making sure that organizations have standard processes put in place to be followed. It addresses various aspects of quality measurement and management that provide tools and guidance to organizations and companies that are focused on ensuring that their products and services meet customers' requirements consistently and that there are consistent improvements in quality (Evans & Lindsay, 2008). Standards in the ISO 9000 include ISO 9001:2015 that sets out requirements for a system for quality management, ISO 9000:2015 which covers the basic language and concepts. It also has ISO 9004:2009 that is focused on the procedures for making a quality management system more effective and efficient and finally ISO 19011:2011 which sets out the guidance on external and internal audits of the quality management systems.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the best quality measurement and management program that can be employed by Trina's Gourmet Hot Dogs is Total Quality Management. The methodology can help the organization to achieve excellence. The methodology is very useful for the hospitality industry given that most hotels, food and beverages stores normally focus on quality management for improving their business through enhanced competitive advantage, customer satisfaction and retaining the loyalty of customers. TQM is teamwork and every individual within the organization, in our case it comprises of the managers, chefs, delivery guys and service persons, must support each other and work cohesively together for the achievement of business excellence.

References Evans, J. R., & Lindsay, W. M. (2008). Managing for quality and performance excellence. Mason, OH: Thomson/South-Western. Ford, R. C., Sturman, M. C., & Heaton, C. P. (2012). Managing quality service in hospitality : how organizations achieve excellence in the guest experience. Clifton Park, N.Y.: Delmar, Cengage Learning. Rodrigues, L. L. (2013). Service quality measurement : issues and perspectives. Anchor Academic Publishin. Rose, K. (2014). Project quality management : why, what and how. Plantation, FL : J. Ross Publishing.