EB119 - Monitoring for Errors and Defects © Question:
We don't have the resources to implement sophisticated statistical methods to identify defects in our processes.  Are there some simple, effective methods we can use for monitoring errors?

Larry:  This is a dilemma commonly expressed by the folks that are responsible for monitoring processes.  The questions are always, "How much monitoring can I afford?" and "What is the point of diminishing returns where I am spending more on monitoring than is necessary?"  Those are questions that have to be answered by calculating the cost of doing things wrong in your processes.   But, yes, there are some simple and routine observations and calculations that can identify many, if not all, of your processes errors and defects.

First, remember that all processes are dynamic.  They are either improving or deteriorating depending on the attention we give them.  So if we want to produce quality products or services, the pursuit of defects should be a part of our everyday routine.   Here are a few practical methods for discovering errors that will help maintain the reliability of your processes.

1.    Receive and Evaluate Complaints.  Identifying errors can be as easy as receiving customer complaints.  When a customer tells us that we have fallen short of our stated values, we should take him or her very seriously. Their advice could help us discover a mistake that is costing us other sales.  The important thing to remember here is that for every customer who provides negative feedback, there may be many others who quietly find new sources.

2.    Manage by Walking Around.  We can identify non-conforming events by surveying office and production areas and talking to people. Through simple observation of the processes and the people who operate them - and a few minutes of relaxed conversation - we can check to see if work areas are clean, organized, and orderly, and identify conflicts in work relationships.

3.    Establish Routine Process Evaluations.  Create a schedule that allows you to routinely walk-through the processes with your leaders and compare the written policies and procedures with what is actually ;happening.  From the materials we receive to the ways we use them, ;everything should be compared to our requirements for a quality product or service.

4.    Create Reliable Measurements.  By defining “normal” rates of production, costs or other standards for an event or process, abnormal conditions can be identified as they occur.  The types of measurements can range from simple counts of activity by a process during a given period, to errors per hundred events, to the average cost per client, which can be a very easily calculated and revealing measurement.

Sometimes managers worry that their presence in offices and production areas will send the wrong message but when the organized pursuit of defects becomes a normal routine of the work place, people will be less inclined to feel like they are being put under the microscope.   They will eventually join your efforts to pursue defects and identify errors.  A QM workplace is a delight for everyone.