Deming's Philosophy of Quality Management

Deming's 14 Point Philosophy of Quality Management

The need for a working understanding of basic quality management system statistical principles is at the heart of Deming's teaching. While accepting the ASQ's Shewhart Medal in 1955, he commented that "Statistical theory has changed practice in almost everything. Statistical techniques, in their ability to aid the discovery of causes, are creating a science of management and a science of administration." His quality process message, directed primarily at management, is stated succinctly in his famous 14 Points for Management:

1) Create constancy of purpose for improvement of product and service. Inspire the workers to stay competitive in the market and remind about the importance of stability in jobs and new opportunities which may come up in later stages, as inducing a sense of purpose in producing quality products will work as the inspiration to work efficiently.

2) Adopt the new philosophy. The customer demands and taste change very fast and the competition in the market grow at a rapid rate today, and we have to accept new philosophies according to the market trends and technology revolutions.

3) Cease dependence on mass inspection. Instead of inspecting the product for quality after production, infuse quality at the beginning itself with production quality control, as this will ensure no raw materials are wasted for the sake of quality.

4) End the practice of awarding business on price tag alone. Instead, minimize total cost - move towards a single supplier for any item, on trust.

5) Constantly and forever improve the system of production and service. Enterprise systems and services must keep growing indefinitely in order to catch up with the competitive market.

6) Institute modern methods of training on the job. A trained worker has more productivity and quality than an untrained one, so giving training sessions will drastically improve the quality of the person and directly it helps in better product quality performance.

7) Institute modern methods of supervision. A company can display stunning growth if potential leaders are identified and encouraged.

8) Drive out fear. Creating a fearful impression in the employees does not give more quality and productivity to work. If a person is not working willingly with satisfaction then he can never do a work perfectly even if he has the intention to be perfect in conscious mind, so driving out fear is essential.

9) Break down barriers between staff areas. The workers in design, sales, and production must work together to face problems and resolve them, which takes the company to better quality assurance management and also other profit with better planning.

10) Eliminate numerical goals for the work force. Slogans or exhortations call for more quantity in production than focusing on  quality control in manufacturing, which will severely damage the quality management process. Employees should have a calm and quiet quality atmosphere in the company.

11) Eliminate work standards and numerical quotas. This focuses on quantity rather than quality of product.

12) Remove barriers that hinder the hourly worker. Supervisor responsibility must be focused on quality, not numbers. Abolish annual or merit rating and MBO completely.

13) Institute a vigorous program of education and training. A person must grow after joining a company, and letting them learn new technology and techniques will increase employee longevity.

14) Create a situation in top management that will push every day on the above points. Just like products and services, every employee in a company must work to accomplish the transformation.