Quality ProgressApril 2012

v Quality Progress | april 2012

QP Putting Best Practices to Work

www.qualityprogress.com | April 2012

QUALITY PROGRESS

The 7 New quality tools

The 7 new quality tools: When the basics just aren’t enough p. 18

Plus: Volume 45/Number 4

Quality Can Drive Economic Recovery p. 12

Meet the 2011 Baldrige Recipients p. 30

Moneyball: A Winning Strategy? p. 36

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Contents Putting Best Practices to Work | April 2012 | www.qualityprogress.com

FEATURES 18

BASIC QUALITY

Beyond the Basics You've heard about the seven basic quality tools, but how much do you know about the seven new quality tools?

20 21 22 25 26 27 28

Affinity Diagrams Arrow Diagrams Matrix Data Analysis Matrix Diagrams Process Decision Program Charts Relations Diagrams Tree Diagrams

by Grace L. Duffy, Scott Laman, Pradip Mehta, Govind Ramu, Natalia Scriabina and Keith Wagoner.

30

BALDRIGE AWARD

One Size Fits All

18

Profiles of four organizations that ratcheted up their quality efforts and claimed 2011 Baldrige awards.

@ Only www.qualityprogress.com

by QP Staff

36

STATISTICS

Fair or Foul? Baseball’s Moneyball method shows that using some analytics are powerful, but they can only take a team so far. by I. Elaine Allen and Julia E. Seaman

36

• ’Beyond’ Bonuses

A webcast series featuring authors of “Beyond the Basics,” p. 18, shows and tells more about the seven new quality tools, plus a sidebar with figures and tables describing prioritization matrixes, sometimes a stand-in for matrix data analysis.

• Not Fair Enough

Scatter plots that show the role on-base percentage plays in the Moneyball method described in “Fair or Foul?” p. 36.

• Next in the Queue

A flowchart, check sheet and other figures to illustrate an organization’s challenges in lining up the next project, the topic of 3.4 per Million (“Next in Line,” p. 44).

• Fishbone Focus

Examples of fishbone diagrams that can be used to jump-start a lean Six Sigma project, the subject of Back to Basics (“Creative Combination,”p. 72). Spanish version is also available.

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DEPARTMENTS 7

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14

8

Inbox

• Implementing a QMS for the long haul. • Undermining ISO 9000?

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• The best Six Sigma deployment model. • Accepting—and acting on—an audit’s results.

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Article Submissions

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52

Statistics Roundtable

61

Standards Outlook

71

One Good Idea

72

Back to Basics

Tools: the sequel.

Recovery requires shift in mindset.

Always something in the queue.

50 NEXT MONTH - HR and sr

Developing talent in a setting of sustainability and social responsibility.

Checklists for everyday activities.

The whistle-blower’s dilemma.

Inside overlapping confidence intervals.

Revisiting the rules of internal control. Bonus article!

Comparing when data are limited.

Tools to tackle an LSS project.

special section: asq world conference on Quality and improvement sponsors and exhibitors p. 54 - DMAIC for sR

Six Sigma to implement lean social responsibility at your organization.

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QUALITY PROGRESS

Publisher

William A. Tony

Tools: the Sequel Your guide to 7 more basic quality tools In january 2009, we published one of our most popular cover stories ever, “Building from the Basics: The seven essential quality tools,” which you can find at http://asq.org/ quality-progress/2009/01/basic-quality/building-from-the-basics.html. Readers wrote to say how much they appreciated the refresher on “the old seven”—the foundation of any

Executive Editor and Associate Publisher Seiche Sanders

Associate Editor Mark Edmund

Assistant Editor Brett Krzykowski

manuscript Coordinator Valerie Ellifson

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Amanda Hankel

COPY EDITOR

quality pro’s tool box. Quality veterans—who know the tools inside and out—said they

Susan E. Daniels

were happy to have a neatly packaged assemblage of tools to share with colleagues who

Art Director

were newer to quality. A few years have gone by, and we thought it was high time to revisit the basics once again. This time, though, we detail the “new seven,” as identified by the Union of Japanese Scientists and Engineers (JUSE) in 1976. Its purpose for grouping these tools? To promote ways to innovate, communicate and plan major and complex projects. We hope you find this sequel, “Beyond the Basics,” p. 18, just as riveting as you did the original. Don’t miss exclusive webcasts with some of the article’s authors at www. qualityprogress.com that will debut this month. And find these and more tools and templates in the Knowledge Center at www.asq.org. While we’re on the subject of movies, what do you get when you cross a star-studded cast with the power of sabermetrics? The critically acclaimed, Oscar-nominated movie “Moneyball,” which serves as the basis for the article “Fair or Foul?” p. 36. Authors I. Elaine Allen and Julia E. Seaman take a deep look at the Moneyball method the Oakland A’s employed beginning in the 2002 season and explain whether the tactic really made a difference long-term for the team. They also reveal whether the method is played out. To round out our feature roster, we take a look at the common threads present among this year’s Baldrige recipients. While the organizations themselves couldn’t be more different, all used the Baldrige criteria as the basis for vast quality improvements—think 98% customer satisfaction scores or a 40% drop in expensive ER visits. Get a glimpse into how these four organizations achieved Baldrige-level excellence in “One Size Fits All,” p. 30. QP

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Editorial offices Phone: 414-272-8575 Fax: 414-272-1734

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Managing Directors

Seiche Sanders Editor

Christopher D. Bauman Julie Gabelmann Brian J. LeHouillier Michelle Mason Laurel Nelson-Rowe To promote discussion of issues in the field of quality and ensure coverage of all responsible points of view, Quality Progress publishes articles representing conflicting and minority views. Opinions expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily of ASQ or Quality Progress. Use of the ASQ logo in advertisements does not necessarily constitute endorsement of that particular product or service by ASQ.

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INBox

QUALITY PROGRESS

Link in a chain

reasons, such as using a QMS

In the article “Get on Board”

just to get certification, or

E. David Spong, The Boeing Co. (retired)

(February 2012, pp. 37-40), the

the wrong way, such as using

CHAIR

author did an excellent job ar-

a QMS with no or minimal

guing that employee involve-

employee involvement. These

ment is critical to a successful

organizations are in it for

quality management system

the short-term benefits and

(QMS). Citing appropriate schol-

can’t take advantage of the

arly sources and providing em-

long-term benefits a sound

pirical findings can further en-

implementation can offer.

hance the content of this article.

Kishore Erukulapati

The author makes the following

Renton, WA

statement: “ISO 9001:2008 specifies QMS requirements an organization must achieve to consistently provide products or

Reference 1. W. Edwards Deming, Out of the Crisis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Press, 1986.

services that meet customer or regulatory requirements.” Regulatory requirements

Self-reflection

are not optional. ISO 9001:2008 clearly

Delivering quality-as-process and quality-

specifies that an organization must fulfill

as-result is the goal of quality professionals,

customer requirements and regulatory

correct? If we agree nothing is or can be

requirements.

unchanging, and we are planning for al-

Quality improvement benefits need to

ternative futures, we need thinkers, doers,

be reviewed from the perspective of W.

leaders and usable tools. Yes, ISO 9000 is

Edwards Deming’s chain reaction:

a usable tool. It is in the tool kit along with

1. Improving quality leads to decreased

many other tools.

costs. 2. Decreased costs lead to productivity improvements. 3. Productivity improvements lead to

Bob Kennedy has given us important issues to think about in his article (“Taken for Granted,” February 2012, pp. 12-13). As quality professionals, we support results.

increased market share, better product

We support systems that deliver results. If

quality and lower price.

we undermine our systems and if we lose

4. Increased market share leads to staying in business and creating more jobs.1 The real motivation for implementing

our tools, there are going to be significant problems. If we, the “quality experts” are under-

quality standards should be continuous

mining one of our tools, we are causing a

quality improvement and customer satis-

problem. Kennedy’s ideas had better be

faction.

considered.

Some organizations implement QMS frameworks and standards for the wrong

PAST CHAIR

James J. Rooney, ABS Consulting

CHAIR-ELECT

John C. Timmerman, Marriott International Inc.

TREASURER

William B. (Bo) McBee, Hewlett-Packard Co. (retired)

PARLIAMENTARIAN Karla Riesinger, ASQ

DIRECTORS

J. Michael (Mike) Adams, Allegheny Energy Inc. (retired) Belinda Chavez, United Space Alliance Darlene Stoddard Deane, Automotive Components Holding LLC Alexis P. Goncalves, Pfizer Inc. Kathleen Jennison Goonan, Goonan Performance Strategies Harold P. Greenberg, American Certification Corp. Eric A. Hayler, BMW Manufacturing Co. LLC Marc P. Kelemen, NanoSynopsis LLC Lou Ann Lathrop, Chrysler LLC Joanne D. Mayo Elias Monreal, Industrial Tool Die & Engineering Richard A. Perlman, Bayer HealthCare Art Trepanier, Lockheed Martin G. Geoffrey (Geoff) Vining, Virginia Tech J. Eric Whichard, JE Whichard & Associates Steven E. Wilson, U.S. Department of Commerce Seafood Inspection Program

QP EDITORIAL REVIEW BOARD Randy Brull, chair

Administrative Committee

Brady Boggs, Randy Brull, Jane Campanizzi, Larry Haugh, Jim Jaquess, Gary MacLean, R. Dan Reid, Christine Robinson, Richard Stump

Technical reviewers

I. Elaine Allen, Andy Barnett, David Bonyuet, John Brown, Bernie Carpenter, Ken Cogan, Linda Cubalchini-Travis, Ahmad Elshennawy, Tim Folkerts, Eric Furness, Mark Gavoor, Kunita Gear, Lynne Hare, Ron Kenett, Ray Klotz, Tom Kubiak, William LaFollette, Shin Ta Liu, Pradip Mehta, Gene Placzkowski, Paul Plsek, Tony Polito, Peter Pylipow, Philip Ramsey, R. Dan Reid, Wayne Reynolds, John Richards, James J. Rooney, Anil Sengupta, Sunil Thawani, Joe Tunner, Jeffrey Vaks, Manu Vora, Jack Westfall, James Zurn

Jerry Brong Ellensburg, WA

In Your Own Words

Let us know what you think about the topics in this month’s feature articles or anything else on your mind by emailing [email protected].

April 2012 • QP

7

expertanswe Six Sigma central Q: Which is the right way to deploy Six Sigma initiatives: 1. Set up a separate Six Sigma department headed by a newly created Six Sigma manager or site deployment manager, with all Black Belts (BB) being a part of this department. 2. Keep all BBs in their original departments, and have them report to their department managers, as well as Six Sigma leadership, which is not a newly created position, but instead is an existing manager who takes this task as an additional responsibility. This way, management can leverage BB resources organizationwide based on need. David Chen Lisle, IL A: Six Sigma deployment models vary depending on the organization’s goals, available resources, number of employees,

projects and getting some quick wins. This

embedded in the business units. The PMO

geographic distribution, process maturity

model requires a strong corporate PMO to

continues to provide the basic infrastruc-

and culture. Each has its own advantages

enforce relentless consistency, adherence

ture—tools, training, project tracking and

and risks. Sometimes, it helps to think

to common process, discipline, execution

reporting—but leverages the BBs in the

about where your organization is in its

cadence and a common language.

business units for identifying and executing

deployment life cycle—launch, growth,

the projects.

control over deployment decisions, timing

appropriate deployment model.

and outcomes, it does require significant

is paramount. The decentralized model

management oversight.

provides a more flexible approach for ad-

For larger, more geographically dispersed organizations that are just embark-

Over time, however, the model runs

Accountability at the business unit level

dressing the needs of the business units,

ing on their Six Sigma journey, I would rec-

the risk of never fully integrating the Six

particularly as the deployment progresses,

ommend a centralized or “federal” model

Sigma method, skills and mindset into the

and more creativity and ownership is

that has a corporate program management

rest of the organization’s business units,

required. In that evolution, the organization

office (PMO) responsible for designing the

preventing them from becoming more

moves from smaller, standalone projects to

curriculum and training program, select-

self-sufficient. This, in turn, can create a

larger initiatives that cross business units,

ing projects, and executing and managing

certain level of alienation between the

or shifts from traditional existing process

those projects with its own dedicated BBs.

PMO and the business units, even leading

improvement projects to designing new

to a perception of elitism—corporate BBs

processes or new products.

In this case, there’s a need to generate widespread transformational change, prove the business case, build credibility and gain momentum by tackling highly visible

8

While the centralized model offers more

expansion or mature—when selecting the

QP • www.qualityprogress.com

vs. all others. A decentralized or “state” model is characterized by a smaller PMO with more BBs

With this model, the PMO offers strategic support in terms of coordinating with other business units, helping build the business

rs Strive to understand your organization’s goals before designing your Six Sigma deployment. case, and guidance or expertise in using

Regardless of the model, I would stress

A: There is no justification for an auditee

methods such as design for Six Sigma. This

one guiding principle: Form should follow

unilaterally closing a nonconformance

model promotes self-sufficiency among the

function. In other words, strive to under-

report without taking corrective action just

business units and fosters a more seamless

stand your organization’s strategic goals

because the auditee does not agree with

cultural integration of the BBs.

and objectives before designing the struc-

the nonconformance cited. If and when this

ture of the deployment.

happens, it’s up to the lead auditor, team

Decentralized deployment models generally do not work well until the organiza-

Peter J. Sherman

tion has reached a certain level of process

Director, process excellence

maturity, moving from initial launch to

Cbeyond Inc.

scale, replication and sustainment.

Atlanta

For organizations without the resources to staff a team of full-time BBs to support all the business units, there is a third

leader or general auditor to raise this matter to the next level of management—preferably, to the client. The client is the person who originally authorized the audit and thus has a vested

For More Information West, A.H. “Jack,” “Critical Stage,” Quality Progress, September 2009, pp. 22-27.

alternative: a hybrid approach in which the

interest in an audit outcome; otherwise, the client would not have authorized the audit, even in the case of an internal audit.

PMO maintains only a small cadre of BBs

In denial

Every audit has a client, whether the audit

or Master BBs. While working on larger,

Q: In my internal auditing activities, I have

is internal or external, and it’s up to this

more strategic initiatives, the BBs also train

occasionally worked with auditees who

client to officially accept or not accept

and mentor internal, part-time Green Belts

unilaterally close nonconformity reports

the closure of any nonconforming items.

(GB) supplied by the business units. These

in response to audit corrective action re-

Therefore, the key is to figure out who the

internal GBs work on projects sponsored by

quests without any corrective action being

client is.

their business units.

taken. Usually, the auditee cites as justifica-

This model allows the PMO to effectively distribute resources and works

In the case you detailed, it may be that

tion their disagreement with the auditor’s

the auditee is able to convince the client

nonconformity finding.

that the nonconformance cited in the

well in smaller organizations during the

This does not seem to be supported by

early stages of a Six Sigma deployment.

logic, research or any training I’ve had, but

internal audit does not matter much, and

This is the model we currently use at my

I also haven’t seen it expressly prohibited.

organization.

Assuming there’s proper documentation of

that auditors—either by themselves or

therefore no corrective action is required. In this case, I would highly recommend

Some possible limitations of this model

the requirement and evidence of the non-

through their boss—bring the client up to

are an overwhelmingly unbalanced ratio of

conformance, is there any justification for

date about the incidents in which the audi-

GBs to BBs—10-to-1 is a good ratio—and

an auditee proceeding in this manner?

tee closed an incident of nonconformance

the reliance on smaller, low-hanging proj-

Peter McGuiness

ects that can be driven by part-time GBs.

San Ramon, CA

without any corrective actions simply because the auditee did not agree with the nonconformance.

Asked and Answered

Sooner or later, everyone runs into a problem they can’t solve alone. Let us help. Submit your question at www.qualityprogress.com, or send it to [email protected], and our subject matter experts will help you find a solution.

Pradip Mehta Principal Mehta Consulting LLC Coppell, TX

April 2012 • QP

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PERSPECTIVES

BY Tony Gojanovic

Theory of Evolution Radical change is needed for the global economy to truly recover In the Past decade, the face of the world

nizations create a precarious situation by

future will be based on the promotion of

has changed in many ways—from how

jeopardizing long-term objectives, espe-

products and services people truly need,

we purchase and consume products to

cially global economic and environmental

rather than marketing to create artificial

how we’ve become more intertwined, and

ones. It is impossible to make quality deci-

demand for things they don’t. The future

perhaps even entangled, through global

sions when you’re mesmerized by short-

will focus on product and service differen-

communication and financial systems.

term activities with no time to reflect. As

tiation through innovation and the ability

Our perception of big business has

Deming said, short-term profits aren’t an

to tackle new markets focused on less

indication of management ability.

consumption and better quality of life.

also changed after seeing how banks and investment firms overindulged in high-risk

2

A coworker once told me that being

Superlative quality will become the

moneymaking schemes and contributed

focused on short-term goals is like getting

superstructure on which the success of

to the recent economic calamity. But

laid off from your job and then bragging

innovations will wholeheartedly depend.

one of the biggest surprises of the recent

about how you’ve cut household costs by

Single-use disposable products and the

recession, especially in the United States,

eating stale bread, not driving anywhere

philosophy of built-in obsolescence will

has been that hyper consumerism is not a

and reading only during the day to save

not be tolerated by an environmentally

sustainable economic paradigm. In years

electricity—while at the same time not

conscientious society focused on eliminat-

past, it would have been cited as the rea-

understanding why no one will hire you.

ing waste. No one will part ways with their

son for tremendous prosperity. Thumbing through a well-worn copy of

To survive—and even thrive—requires you to invest in your education and skills,

hard-earned income for junk. The future will belong to courageous

W. Edward Deming’s timeless classic Out

develop an energized and fresh outlook,

people willing to take risks. Taking a

of the Crisis, it’s striking to see how the

and perhaps buy a new suit, even if it

chance on hiring and investing in bright,

current economic crisis, as well as quality

doesn’t seem like the right financial thing

creative people instead of figuring out how

crises related to a few highly publicized

to do at the moment. What does this teach

to cut them from the bottom line would

recalls, can be attributed to the factors he

us? We need to become comfortable mak-

be a good start. There are plenty of eager,

pointed out so many years ago as road-

ing what appear to be short-term sacrifices

talented individuals looking for work who

blocks to quality and productivity.1

for long-term goals. We need to trust our-

shouldn’t just be given anything to do, but

selves in the face of an uncertain world.

instead given a task they love so they have

Wrong focus

the opportunity to shine.

On the heels of the recent economic down-

Sustaining gains

turn, managers continue to be galvanized

The future will be based on a paradigm of

partnering with suppliers and customers

by cost savings, focusing on reducing

environmental and economic sustainabil-

in new, creative and mutually beneficial

headcount, cutting employee education

ity. What will we do for the long haul? How

ways. Innovation will be the wave of the

programs and eliminating research dollars

can we band together as human beings for

future, not only for products and services,

to satisfy short-term financial incentives.

the greater good?

but also for business processes.

In many cases, exaggerated cost savings

Organizations can no longer continue

A strong America will come from

For an example, look at the brilliant busi-

have become a cancer with no chance of

to churn out products as if there will be

ness model of Blake Mycoskie, who created

remission in the form of improved eco-

infinite demand. One of the greatest busi-

TOMS Shoes, one of the most successful

nomic health or the manufacture of quality

ness booms in the last decade in the United

footwear companies in the world, based on

products. Many organizations simply don’t

States has been self-storage lockers, which

the premise of selling a pair of shoes and

know what else to do, so they resort to

we need to hold all of our things. But how

giving a pair away to someone in need.3

what is simple rather than what is right.

much stuff can we actually accumulate?

Focusing only on short-term financial gains shareholders demand, these orga-

12 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

Thinking of some of the most influential

The idea of an economic perpetual-

and progressive organizations and products

motion machine simply doesn’t exist. The

of the past decade—such as Apple with its

iPhone or Google with its internet services

Discipline, today’s problems come from

ishing innovation industry—one focused

and products—you see that quality and in-

yesterday’s solutions. Many of the problems

on design, form and sustainability. Art

novation are no longer mutually exclusive

we encounter in our lives can be traced to

will meet science, and aesthetic quality

functions, but instead have merged.

a lack of systems thinking and even simple

requirements will be as vital as functional

memory failure about how what was done

requirements.

The Achilles heel for many organizations is an emphasis on mediocre prod-

6

in the past affects us today.

ucts and services buoyed by a snail’s pace

Senge wrote that the future will require

New quality tools based on holistic, system thinking will need to be developed

philosophy of change and innovation. As

individuals and organizations to focus on

to meet the challenge. Quality will never

Deming pointed out more than a half-cen-

learning, developing shared visions and

be dead, but it may reemerge as a com-

tury ago, real change comes from the top.

understanding key interrelationships be-

pletely new and broader entity. The quality

4

And when the best rises to the top, we see the results, such as Apple and its innovative former leader, Steve Jobs. Even the workforce is changing, with a higher level of educated workers in jobs

The future will belong to courageous people willing to take risks.

that have traditionally been classified as blue collar or service. Traditional top-

tween variables through systems thinking.7

practitioner of the future will need to be a

down obedience by corporations will no

Deming also advocated system thinking

visionary, creative, empathetic, a learner,

longer work if we expect to develop a syn-

and the big-picture approach.8

an educator and, above all, a steward of

ergistic relationship between employees

Individuals and companies will need

responsible action. More than just a mere problem solver

and management to tackle the problems of

to challenge and redesign their mental

the future, including answering the ques-

models—otherwise, as Senge pointed out,

or someone tasked with oiling the ma-

tion, “What will become of quality?”

many of our easy solutions will simply

chine, a quality practitioner will need to

lead back to the same problem, perhaps in

be courageous to inquire deeply into the

a slightly disguised form.9

nature of real-life quandaries through

The leaders who continue to focus on sustaining an environment of quotas, fear and general paranoia will go the way of

The relationship between variables that

dialogue, something that isn’t reinforced

the dinosaur and acquiesce to leaders

affect the long-term outlook will need to be

in today’s business environment but is

who create an atmosphere of cooperation,

dealt with to address questions of economic

sorely needed.

respect and progressive thinking, and

and environmental sustainability, encour-

who can give their employees a vision and

age ethical actions that benefit the planet

human mind, which is where the solu-

meaning to the work they do.

and bring quality not only to products and

tions also reside. There is hope for a

processes, but also to people’s lives.

better world, but it requires a fundamental

In this paradigm, quality will no longer

change to our mindset. QP

be a department or one person, but instead will become a fundamental way of thinking

New life

in the organization. This does not mean

According to Daniel Pink in A Whole New

we’ll impose a uniform Orwellian mentality

Mind, we are leaving the Information Age,

on people by putting them through Black

which is characterized by knowledge work-

Belt indoctrination camps. Instead, it sig-

ers, and entering the Conceptual Age, which

nals the emergence of quality practitioners

is characterized by creators and empathiz-

with the right education, a great attitude

ers.10 Now is the time for radical change and

and a creative, revolutionary spirit.

an open mind. The right-brained, logical,

These individuals will provide the right

linear-thinking quality practitioners of years

tools for day-to-day tasks and leadership

past will benefit by being more like their

in the form of coaches and mentors who

left-brained, creative, non-linear marketing

are not afraid to think. As Deming wrote,

and innovative counterparts.

we need to adopt a new philosophy and to provide leadership, not mere management.5 As Peter Senge pointed out in The Fifth

The world’s problems come from the

In this world, the well-worn, invaluable

References 1. W. Edwards Deming, Out of the Crisis, MIT Press, 1986. 2. Ibid. 3. Blake Mycoskie, Start Something That Matters, Speigal and Grau, 2011. 4. Deming, Out of the Crisis, reference 1. 5. Ibid. 6. Peter Senge, The Fifth Discipline, Doubleday, 1990. 7. Ibid. 8. Deming, Out of the Crisis, reference 1. 9. Senge, The Fifth Discipline, reference 6. 10. Daniel H. Pink, A Whole New Mind, Berkeley Publishing Group, 2006. Tony Gojanovic is a statistician at MillerCoors in Golden, CO. He has a master’s degree in statistics from the University of Colorado in Denver and is a member of ASQ.

tools of statistical process control will be reinvigorated by the emerging and flour-

April 2012 • QP 13

keepingcurre sports

Miscues and Misplays

B

Could a dose of quality help baseball improve its drug-testing process? Baseball fans will likely argue more than usual this season: How will Albert Pujols adjust to the American League? Is Bobby Valentine the answer in Boston? Does baseball need the new wild-card round? There’s one discussion no one could have expected, but perhaps now it’s warranted following Ryan Braun’s successful appeal of his suspension for testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs: How could quality be used to avoid an apparent process breakdown and improve Major League Baseball’s (MLB) sample-collection system? “This is a quality issue—bar none,” said Linda Wawrzyniak, owner of Higher Standards Academy, which specializes in language, quality and skills training for athletes, business owners, medical professionals and management. She is also the founder of ASQ’s Quality in Athletics intrerest group (http://asq.org/quality-athletics). “The MLB, the NBA, the NHL, the NFL—anyone that does drug testing—they really need to learn from this and learn about quality procedures. It’s really important in what they do.” Just as teams gathered for spring training, news about Braun and his successful appeal got out. The Milwaukee Brewers outfielder received much attention, in large part, because he was the National League’s Most Valuable Player last season. But other drug cases are now starting to get press: Two NFL players suspended for violating the NFL’s drug policy tried to overturn rulings, contending the leagueappointed drug test collector mishandled their urine samples.1 In Braun’s case, the urine sample taken in October tested positive for elevated testosterone. Braun’s camp said the ratio was the highest ever recorded in baseball’s testing program. Braun faced a 50-game suspension for violating MLB policy, but he appealed, and the ruling was overturned in late February. Reports surfaced that an arbitrator had sided with Braun because of chainof-custody issues surrounding the handling of Braun’s urine sample. “I am the victim of a process that completely broke down and failed,” said Braun, who also called the testing “fatally flawed.”2 The sample, taken from Braun after a game in Milwaukee, was destined via FedEx for a lab in Montreal. Because a FedEx facility near the stadium had already closed for the day, the collector took Braun’s sample to his home, which some reports say is not unprecedented in drug testing. Braun questioned that decision and why the collector did not return to FedEx until 44 hours after the sample was submitted.3 There has been no official statement from the arbitrator explaining the decision. MLB officials defended the collector and the process, however, calling the system “the highest-quality drug testing program of any professional sports organization in the world.”4 However, “the arbitrator found that those instructions were

14 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

not consistent with certain language in our program, even though the instructions were identical to those used by many other drug programs—including the other professional sports and the World Anti-Doping Agency,” according to an MLB statement.5 Some say Braun has escaped punishment through a loophole or technicality, while others contend these questions about the sample handling raise the possibility of tampering. “This [ruling] is really for the protection of the rest of the players,” said Wawrzyniak, who had just finished working with several teams during spring training. “What happened here was for the good of baseball.” “Everybody was doing what they felt was best,” she added. “Based on the conditions, they’re doing it [collecting and delivering the samples] the best they can. From this [Braun’s case], hopefully it will give baseball some better practices. And that’s always a good thing for every player.” Will the collection and handling process be closely reviewed and analyzed? Will the laboratory that conducted the testing be scrutinized as well? Will sample collectors be audited to ensure they have been complying with requirements and following the process? For now, MLB and the players union have said that the language in the drug policy regarding shipping of samples will be tightened.6 “As has happened several times before with other matters, this case has focused the parties’ attention on an aspect of our program that can be improved,” said players’ union director Michael Weiner. “After discussions with the commissioner’s office, we are confident that all collections going forward will follow the parties’ agreed-upon rules.”7 ––Mark Edmund, associate editor REFERENCES 1. Ken Benson, “Suspended Broncos May File a Lawsuit,” New York Times, March 10, 2012, www.nytimes.com/2012/03/11/sports/football/suspended-broncos-mcbean-and-williamsmight-file-lawsuit.html. 2. Clark Spencer, “Miami Marlins’ Gaby Sanchez Backs Ryan Braun’s Denial,” Miami Herald, Feb. 25, 2012, www.miamiherald.com/2012/02/24/2659560/miami-marlins-gaby-sanchez-backs. html. 3. Adam McCalvy, “Braun Speaks Out, Proud of ‘Integrity,’” mlb.com, Feb. 24, 2012, http://mlb. mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20120224&content_id=26834634. 4. Ibid. 5. Ibid. 6. Tom Haudricourt, “MLB Drug Process Designed to Prevent Tampering,” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Feb. 27, 2012, www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/140591403.html. html?ua=iphone&dc=smart. 7. Ibid.

nt Mr. Pareto Head

By Mike Crossen

quality report

measureMENTS can help promote quality culture An organization’s leadership simply cannot dictate or mandate the use of quality, and instead must use measurements to promote a true culture of quality within the organization. That’s what a new research report from the American Productivity and Quality Center (APQC) reveals based on responses from four high-profile organizations—Altera Corp., Caterpillar Inc., Chemonics International and Textron Systems— that shared how they organize quality functions, measure their impact and ensure a quality culture is used to drive business value. “What this study underscores is that quality is not just a set of tools, concepts or policies; it is the way work is performed every day, by everyone,” said Travis Colton, an APQC project manager. The report also identified eight imperatives for the enterprise quality function. To download the 62-page report, which was produced with support from ASQ, visit www.

banking

More Customers Leaving Big Banks Over Fees, Service Fed up with new fees and poor service, more big-bank customers switched to smaller institutions last year than previous years, according to a recent J.D. Power and Associates’ survey. The defection rate for large, regional and mid-size banks averaged between 10% and 11.3% of customers last year, the survey showed. In 2010, the average defection rates ranged from 7.4% to 9.8% “When banks announce the implementation of new fees, public reaction can be quite volatile and result in customers voting with their feet,” said Michael Beird, director of the banking services practice at J.D. Power and Associates. Customers do, however, weigh the price they pay against the value of their experience. “It is apparent that new or increased fees are the proverbial straws that break the camel’s back,” Beird said. “Service experiences that fall below customer expectations are a powerful influencer that primes customers for switching once a subsequent event gives them a final reason to defect. Regardless of bank size, more than one-half of all customers who said fees were the main reason to shop for another bank also indicated that their prior bank provided poor service.” Small banks and credit unions lost only 0.9% of their customers on average last year, a significant decline from the 8.8% defection rate in 2010. More details from the survey can be found at www.jdpower.com/content/ press-release/GAdX32O/2012-u-s-bank-customer-switching-and-acquisitionstudysm.htm (case sensitive).

apqc.org.

April 2012 • QP 15

keepingcurrent asq world conference

event features 15 Award Recipients, team competition

Thirteen quality thought leaders will be honored at this year’s ASQ World Conference on Quality and Improvement next month in Anaheim, CA. The recipients are: • Feigenbaum Medal: Paulo Sampaio, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal. • Freund Marquardt Medal: Joseph J. Tsiakals, Baxa Corp., Englewood, CO. • Grant Medal: Thong Ngee Goh, National University of Singapore. • Hutchens Medal: Joel Makower, GreenBiz Group, Oakland, CA. • Ishikawa Medal: H. James Harrington, Harrington Institute Inc., Los Gatos, CA. • Lancaster Medal: Janak Meht, TQM International Pvt. Ltd., Delhi, India. • Shainin Medal: Jack B. ReVelle, ReVelle Solutions LLC, Santa Ana, CA. • Shewhart Medal: Jerald F. Lawless, University of Waterloo, Ontario. • Brumbaugh Award: Bradley Jones, SAS Institute, Cary, N.C., and guest professor at Universiteit Antwerpen, Antwerp, Belgium; and Christopher J. Nachtsheim, Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. • Gryna Award: Michelle M. Deutsch,

QP

Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. Earlier this year, it was announced that Jim Bossert and Sister Mary Jean Ryan will be awarded ASQ’s Distinguished Service Medals at the conference. The award ceremony will take place Sunday, May 20, during the annual business meeting.

Advance audio You may now preview what keynote speakers will say at the world conference. Audio interviews with many of the scheduled keynote speakers will be posted this month at http://wcqi.asq.org/speakers.html. Scheduled speakers are: • James Albaugh, executive vice president of the Boeing Co., and president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. • Carletta Ooton, vice president and chief quality, safety and sustainable operations officer for the Coca-Cola Co. • Simon Sinek, leadership expert and author of Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action. • Majora Carter, president of MCG Consulting, a firm that advises organizations about climate adaptation, urban micro-

online onpaper

SOMETHING NEW This month, listen to a webcast series with the authors of this month’s cover story, “Beyond the Basics,” p. 18, telling more about the seven new quality tools and how to use them.



Ready to Go One quality professional shares her kayaking and hiking gear lists in this supplement to Quality in the First Person (“Quality Assurance at Home,” p. 48).

It’s Complicated An additional figure that shows the results of the two one-sided

16 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

agribusiness and leadership development strategies. • Joseph A. DeFeo, president and CEO of the Juran Institute and authority on transformational change systems and breakthrough management principles.

Team competition Thirty-two teams have been selected as finalists for the 27th annual International Team Excellence Awards. The teams represent nine countries and will participate in live project presentations at the world conference. The team’s project summaries and profiles, along with the presentation schedule, can be found at http://wcqi.asq.org/teamcompetition/index.html. Watch for further coverage of the 2012 award recipients in future editions of QP. Visit http://wcqi.asq.org/index.html for more about the speakers, the 100-plus conference sessions and a complete schedule of events and details. You can also access a mobile site (http://team.asq.org/wcqi) while attending the conference to more easily browse sessions and other details about the event.

t-tests used to demonstrate comparability, described in One Good Idea (“Complicated Comparison,” p. 71).

Quick Poll RESULTS Each month at www.qualityprogress.com, visitors can take an informal survey. Here are the numbers from a recent Quick Poll: “How would you describe your email use?” • Keeping up, but it takes too much time.

46.2%

• Totally in control.

36.2%

• Can’t keep up with my overloaded inbox.

17.5%

Visit www.qualityprogress.com for the latest question: “What’s the best way to build a successful baseball team?” • Count on development of drafted players. • Throw money at high-priced free agents. • Use analytics to find hidden gems.

asqnews NEW GM FOR ASQ CHINA Fred Zhang was recently appointed general manager of ASQ China. Zhang previously worked for Bureau Veritas (BV) ZHANG China, serving as its director for the greater China region and leading a team providing management certification service in quality, environmental, health and safety, and social accountability fields. Zhang is based in ASQ China’s Shanghai office. JOURNAL ADDED TO INDEX Quality Engineering, a journal co-published by ASQ and Taylor & Francis Group, has been added to Thomson Reuters Science Citation Index. The index provides citation data—impact factors—from science and technology journals throughout the world, measuring how often a journal article has been cited. The data help determine how journals are

evaluated and viewed, and it can raise a publication’s prestige and reputation when more readers and authors see how often a publication is cited. Quality Engineering’s inclusion in the index will be effective back to volume 21 (or 2009) content. TWO NEW BOARD MEMBERS Eric A. Hayler of BMW Manufacturing Co. in Boling Springs, SC, and G. Geoffrey Vining of Virginia Tech in Blacksburg have been named to the ASQ Board of Directors. They replace two directors who were appointed to serve additional six-month terms while ASQ transitioned its fiscal year from a July 1 to a Jan. 1 start. DOUBLE BUCKS IN MAY ASQ’s member referral program will feature “double bucks” in May for ASQ members who refer new members. Instead of receiving five ASQ bucks for each member referred, you will get 10 to use toward ASQ Quality Press books, standards, certification, training,

edwards medalist

First EXECUTIVE to BACK deming dies William E. Conway, known by many as the first Fortune 500 executive to work with W. Edwards Deming and truly embrace continuous improvement methods, has died. He was 85. The 1983 recipient of ASQ’s George D. Edwards Medal, he was president and CEO of Nashua Corp. when he was interviewed in “If Japan Can … Why Can’t We?” a 1980 documentary that introduced many of Deming’s methods to American industry. Conway later formed Conway Management Co. to help organizations improve operational effectiveness. He also authored many quality-related articles and two books: The Quality Secret: The Right Way to Manage and Winning the War on Waste: Changing the Way We Work. Conway’s full obituary can be found at www. davisfuneralhomenh.com/?menuitem=557& siteid=79&action=1&value=12&obituaries_ action=2&obituaryid=111593.

conferences and your own membership renewal. Visit http://asq.org/refer for more about the program. TRANSITION PLANS The Baldrige Enterprise has unveiled details on its plans to transition its business model after federal funding was eliminated from the program’s budget this year. For more details, visit www.nist.gov/baldrige/transition/index.cfm. NOMINATIONS SOUGHT ASQ is now accepting nominations for Six Sigma Forum Magazine’s editor position. Responsibilities include maintaining a qualified editorial review board, recruiting authors, overseeing the submission and peer review of suitable content, and building awareness of SSFM at conferences and through social media. The new editor’s term is 2013-2016. Send questions and nominations to William Tony, ASQ publisher, at [email protected]. For more information about SSFM, visit http://asq.org/ pub/sixsigma.

ASQ SURVEY OF ENGINEERS

Hitting the Books Pays Off Long hours studying to succeed and maintain high grades in science and math classes was the primary challenge most engineers said they faced while they pursued their degrees, according to a recent ASQ survey. The biggest factor in their success as engineers was the amount of time they spent studying, according to 43% of the respondents. Twenty-seven percent of engineers surveyed said the instruction they received from high school teachers and college professors had the most influence in their success as engineers. The latest ASQ-Harris Interactive Survey follows a previous study that reported 67% of sixth through 12th-graders said they were interested in pursuing a career in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), but they were worried about obstacles that might block their pursuit of professions in those areas. The results of both surveys were released during National Engineers Week. One-quarter of those students said they felt pursuing a STEM career involves too much work and studying compared with other career paths. One-quarter also said they were concerned their grades in math and science weren’t good enough. Most engineers polled in the latest survey said they are satisfied with their career: 49% said they are most satisfied with the challenging and interesting nature of engineering, and 35% are most satisfied with their contributions to projects and products. For more about the surveys, visit www.asq.org/media-room/index.html.

April 2012 • QP 17

Seven new quality tools help innovate, communicate and plan

basic quality

A

A movie sequel often can be as, if not more, captivating

than the original. Take “The Godfather: Part II.” Remember “The Empire Strikes Back”? More recently, what about “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers”? Audiences everywhere couldn’t wait to get inside theaters on opening night to see what happened to the Corleone family, Luke Skywalker, and Frodo and Sam. Essentially, a sequel builds on the original, continuing a journey with familiar characters and settings, developing ideas and unveiling more insight. In that spirit, we asked a supporting cast of QP contributors to help us write the script for the sequel to our January 2009 feature on Kaoru Ishikawa’s original seven quality tools.

Back then, we featured snapshots of each

there’s nothing new or groundbreaking in this

of the “old seven”—cause and effect diagrams,

re-release of the newer seven. But we think this

check sheets, control charts, histograms, Pareto

collection of articles about these new tools does

analysis, scatter plots and stratification—offer-

what JUSE set out to do when it devised the

ing the basics on what you need to understand

collection of seven: promote ways to innovate,

about them and how they are used. This month,

communicate and plan.

we’re throwing the spotlight on the seven man-

As noted in the original installment, our cast

agement and planning tools, often referred to as

of contributors could have provided much, much

the seven new quality tools: affinity diagrams,

more on each tool. Many of the tools include ad-

arrow diagrams, matrix data analysis, matrix

ditional resources at the end of each article if

diagrams, process decision program charts, re-

you want to learn more.

lations diagrams and tree diagrams.

You can also visit QP’s archives (www.

A team from the Union of Japanese Scientists

qualityprogress.com) to access the original

and Engineers (JUSE) first collected these tools

article (“Building From the Basics,” January

in 1976 to promote ways to innovate, communi-

2009, pp. 18-29), as well as other articles on basic

cate, and plan major and complex projects. At

tools. ASQ’s website, too, has plenty of resourc-

the time, some of the tools weren’t necessarily

es and publications (www.asq.org/books-and-

new, but their grouping and promotion were.

publications.html) to help you learn about the

Not to spoil the ending, but 36 years later,

basics of quality. April 2012 • QP 19

T

The affinity diagram is a visual tool that allows an indi-

As the next step in organizing the output of a brain-

vidual or a team to group a large number of ideas, issues,

storming event into relevant themes or categories for

observations or items into categories for further analysis.

• To actively involve stakeholders in the specifics of a

natural relationships or relevance to be placed together in

situation in which their understanding, experience, knowledge and support is required.

the same group or category.

1

The affinity diagram partners well with the brainstorming tool to organize many ideas and issues. The tool also

• As a vehicle for breakthrough thinking and creative association.

provides an opportunity to creatively identify categories

• To further analyze data, ideas or observations for

of team observations or input. Often, it helps to overcome

eventual hypothesis testing, prioritization and deci-

team paralysis by offering a step-by-step way to organize

sion making.2

multitudes of options. Groups can use affinity diagrams:

To build an affinity diagram, clearly state the issue being explored. Gain consensus among group members

Community partners brainstorming list / figure 1

Police department

the issue under consideration. Write one idea each on a sticky note. Make sure the

Faith-based groups

Technical college

AA/NA

on the issue statement, and brainstorm ideas related to

words are in large-enough print to be seen at least five

Business owners United Way

Hospitals

Mayor

Harley-Davidson riders

YWCA/YMCA

Armed forces recruiters

School board

Chamber of commerce AA = Alcoholics Anonymous NA = Narcotics Anonymous

Government

Private/commercial

United Way

School board

Faith-based groups

AA/NA

Parks department

YWCA/ YMCA

Police department

Hospitals

Armed forces recruiters

Business owners Chamber of commerce Over-55 community Harley-Davidson riders

YMCA = Young Men’s Christian Association YWCA = Young Women’s Christian Association

20 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

1 shows an example of a list created by a group that was brainstorming its organization’s community partners. As a group, cluster the ideas into categories or

munity partners can be organized through an affinity

Not-for-profit

Mayor

flip chart so they are visible to the whole group. Figure

Parks department

YMCA = Young Men’s Christian Association YWCA = Young Women’s Christian Association

Habitat for Humanity

feet away. Randomly place the notes on a board, wall or

Habitat for Humanity

Over-55 community

Technical college

•

themes suggested by the content in relation to the is-

Affinity diagram of community partners list /­ figure 2

AA = Alcoholics Anonymous NA = Narcotics Anonymous

analysis.

The tool groups the ideas in a way that allows those with

sue being explored. Figure 2 shows how the list of comdiagram. If an idea logically fits within more than one thematic category, reproduce the note so it can be posted in all relevant areas. Sometimes, it may be necessary to isolate ideas that do not naturally fit into the categories identified by the group. These one-offs may provide valuable insight into additional analysis later. Next, create an affinity card (or header card) for each group with a short statement describing the entire group of ideas. Review the resulting cluster themes for consensus. Two additional techniques can be used to encourage creativity among team members: 1. Allow no speaking among team members during the affinity categorization of the sticky notes. All associations of one idea with another should be done in silence. 2. Require team members to use their nondominant hand to move the sticky notes around during catego-

basic quality

rization. In other words, a right-handed person should

from idea paralysis and start its journey of exploring an

only use his or her left hand when moving ideas

issue or finding solutions to problems.

around the board, wall or flip chart. This simple exercise will encourage team members to be more deliberate and pay more attention to the decisions and moves they make. By using affinity diagrams, a group can move away

—Grace L. Duffy REFERENCES 1. John E. Bauer, Grace L. Duffy and Russell T. Westcott, The Quality Improvement Handbook, second edition, ASQ Quality Press, 2006. 2. Ron Bialek, Grace L. Duffy and John W. Moran, The Public Health Quality Improvement Handbook, ASQ Quality Press, 2009.

T

Simple arrow diagram

The arrow diagram—also known as activity diagram,

/ figure 3

network diagram, activity chart, node diagram or critical path method chart—is used to illustrate the order of ac-

▲

1. Select a supplier

tivities of a process or project. A basic example is shown

2. Sign an agreement with a selected supplier

in Figure 3. The arrow diagram can be simple and straightforward, but over time its use has evolved to that of orga-

rine. E.I. Du Pont de Nemours Co., planning to construct

nizing and monitoring complex projects and situations.

major chemical plants in United States, also used these

In the 1950s, two project management techniques—the

methods to plan, schedule and control its projects.

program evaluation review technique (PERT) and the

With PERT and CPM, the arrow diagram can include

critical path method (CPM)—propelled the development

very specific scheduling and monitoring tasks by infus-

of the arrow diagram to the next level.

ing additional information and details about each activ-

The U.S Navy developed the techniques between 1956

ity within a sometimes complex process or project be-

and 1958 while developing its Polaris nuclear subma-

ing defined. Table 1 (p. 22) summarizes PERT and CPM

Arrow diagram using CPM and PERT DR = 1 SL = 2

Negotiate with supplier A

DR = 2

SL = 0

ES = 1

EF = 3

ES = 3 EF = 4

DR = 5 SL = 0 ES = 7

EF = 12

LS = 1

LF = 3

LS = 5 LF = 6

LS = 7

LF = 12

▲

Evaluate supplier A

▲

▲

▲

Develop supplier evaluation criteria

/ Figure 4

▲ Project kickoff

LF = 1

DR = 3 SL = 0

DR = 1 SL = 0

DR = 3 SL = 2

ES = 3 EF = 6 LS = 3 LF = 6

ES = 6 EF = 7 LS = 6 LF = 7

ES = 7

EF = 10

LS = 9

LF = 12

▲

LS = 4 LF = 6 Create a purchasing agreement template

▲

DR = 3

SL = 8

ES = 1

EF = 4

LS = 9

LF = 12

Negotiate with supplier C

▲

▲

ES = 3 EF = 5

DR = 2

SL = 0

ES = 12

EF = 14

LS = 12

LF = 14

▲ ▲

Evaluate supplier C DR = 2 SL = 1

Choose a preferred supplier and send an agreement

▲

LS = 0

Negotiate with supplier B

▲

EF = 1

Rate suppliers

▲

ES = 0

▲

DR = 1 SL = 0

Evaluate supplier B

DR = 2 SL = 3 ES = 7

EF = 9

LS = 10 LF = 12



CPM = critical path method DR = activity duration EF = early finish time ES = early start time LF = late finish time LS = late start time SL = slack PERT = program evaluation review technique DR, EF, ES, LF, LS and SL are measured in days.

April 2012 • QP 21

terminology. Figure 4 (p. 21) is an example of applying

without delay because they are critical to meeting the

PERT and CPM to selecting a supplier and signing a pur-

scheduled end date. All other activities can be conducted

chasing agreement.

using a more flexible schedule.

The critical path, marked in red on the arrow diagram

The creation of a purchasing agreement template,

in Figure 4, includes activities that should be conducted

for example, can start anytime between the first and the ninth day of the project, and it can take more than the

Arrow diagram acronyms

/ Table 1

Term and acronym

What is it?

How it is calculated?

Early start time (ES)

The earliest time a given task can start.

A duration of the activities leading into this one.

Early finish time (EF)

The earliest time a given task can be finished.

ES + a duration of this activity.

Late finish time (LF)

The latest time a given task can be finished and still keep the projection schedule.

A duration of the activities following this one.

Late start time (LS)

The latest time a given task can start and still keep the project on schedule.

LF − a duration of this activity.

Slack (SL)

The time this activity could be postponed without delaying the project schedule.

LS − ES or LF − EF.

anticipated three days if an early start day was chosen. The example illustrates how the arrow diagram helps to balance project resources and identify activities that are critical for the completion of the project on time.

M

—Natalia Scriabina BIBLIOGRAPHY Berger, Roger W., The Certified Quality Engineer Handbook, ASQ Quality Press, 2006. Heagney, Joseph, Fundamentals of Project Management, AMACOM Division of American Management Association, 2011. Levy, Ferdinand K., Gerald L. Thompson and Jerome D. Wies, “The ABCs of the Critical Path Method,” featured in Managing Projects and Programs, Harvard Business School Press, 1989. Miller, Robert W., “How to Plan and Control With PERT,” which appeared in “Managing Projects and Programs,” Harvard Business Review, reprint series No. 10811, Harvard Business School Press, 1989. Wilcox, William H., and James J. O’Brien, “How to Win Campaigns,” National Civic Review, Vol. 56, No. 5, 1967, pp. 265-269.

Many of the seven new quality tools packaged and pro-

style, while older consumers place greater emphasis on

moted by JUSE are referred to by names different from

stability and safety of the design. Similarly, there may be

what JUSE originally called them, but only one has actu-

preference discrepencies between men and women in

ally been modified through the years: matrix data analysis.

terms of color and comfort.

In its original form, matrix data analysis was heavy

To analyze this data, the traditional seven quality tools

on mathematics. Sometimes, it has been replaced on this

may not be adequate. The matrix data analysis method

list by the similar prioritization matrix (see the online

can be used to analyze the data arranged in matrix for-

sidebar and five additional tables on this article’s web-

mat. For example, you may want to analyze the customer

page at www.qualityprogress.com). There is very little

responses to several attributes of a new product to form

reference material on matrix data analysis itself, but I

a smaller number of uncorrelated variables that are eas-

have compiled the limited information and developed an

ier to interpret. The matrix diagram arranges items in a column and

example. In more complex industrial problems, data are not

row format, with the degree of correlation entered into

necessarily one dimensional. Often, we get into analyz-

the relevant columns using symbols or numerical values.

ing data that have many possibilities. For example, auto-

This idea appears similar to the relationship matrix tool.

mobiles are built with several

In the matrix data analysis, however, the correlation co-

Hear and see more from the authors

features

efficient is used to identify the relationship instead of

who contributed to this package

consumer demographics. Dif-

featuring the seven new quality tools.

ferent

targeting

different

symbols.

groups

One type of matrix data analysis is principal com-

may react differently because

ponent analysis. This technique is used in multivariate

webcasts throughout April at

the features and preferences

analysis. Principal component analysis is a selective

www.qualityprogress.com.

vary. Younger consumers may

measurement technique in which the representative

pay more attention to design

characteristics can be mathematically calculated. Prin-



Find links to prerecorded

22 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

demographic

basic quality

variability, suggesting the first two principal compo-

cipal components analysis can reduce your data and avoid multicollinearity, or a situation in which you

nents adequately explain the variation in the data.

have too many predictors relative to the number of

4. The degree of preference for each feature by demo-

observations. Principal components analysis often can

graphics was reviewed. Such value expresses the de-

uncover unsuspected relationships, allowing you to in-

gree of preference. The value of characteristics’ vec-

terpret data in a new way.

tor changes from positive to negative in accordance

For the automobile example, 100 potential custom-

with age for men and women (Figure 5, p. 24). Gen-

ers (both genders of various ages in urban and rural

eral preference affected by demography, age and sex

areas) were asked to score five automobile features.

are calculated. This is graphically represented by the

A score of one was the lowest preference score, and

score plot and biplot in Figures 6 and 7. The score

10 was the highest. The following steps were used to

plot graphs the second principal component scores

construct and analyze data using matrix data analysis:

Matrix data analysis

1. The scores were averaged and each data item was arranged in row and column format, as shown in Table 2.

Group

2. The correlation coefficient matrix was calculated

/ Table 2

Feature one

Feature two

Feature three

Feature four

Feature five 6.5

for each observed group. The example in Table 3 is

United States: urban

the sex and age of the observed groups.

Men (age < 35)

7.5

7

8

9

Men (age 36-60)

5.5

8.8

8.5

7.5

6

relation matrix were calculated, as shown in Table

Men (age > 60)

5

8

8.5

7

6.5

4 (p. 24). In our example, the first principal compo-

Women (age < 35)

8

5.5

8

9

6

nent has variance 7.607 (equal to the largest eigen-

Women (age 36-60)

8.5

6

7.5

8.5

7.5

value) and accounts for 0.634 (63.4%) of the total

Women (age > 60)

9

6.8

7

8

8

variation in the data. The second principal compo-

United States: rural

nent (variance 3.608) accounts for 0.301 (30.1%) of

Men (age < 35)

6

7.5

8.5

8.5

7

Men (age 36-60)

5.5

8.5

8

7.5

7.5

Men (age > 60)

5.5

8

8

7.5

8

Women (age < 35)

8.5

6.5

8.5

9

6.6

Women (age 36-60)

8.5

5.5

7.5

8.5

7.5

9

5

7

8

6

3. The characteristic values and vectors using the cor-

the total data variation. The third principal component (variance 0.652) accounts for 0.054 (5.4%) of the total data variation. The first two principal components with variances equal to the eigenvalues greater than one represent 0.935 (93.5%) of the total

Women (> 60)

Correlation coefficient matrix

/ Table 3

Urban Men (< 35)

Urban

Rural

Men (36-60)

Men (> 60)

Women (< 35)

Rural Women (36-60)

Women (> 60)

Men (< 35)

Men (age 36-60)

0.26

Men (age > 60)

0.142

0.937

Women (age < 35)

0.894

−0.125

−0.185

Women (age 36-60)

0.558

−0.635

−0.624

0.839

Women (age > 60)

0.064

−0.928

−0.967

0.41

0.803

Men (age < 35)

0.613

0.761

0.818

0.318

−0.115

−0.664

Men (age 36-60)

−0.046

0.847

0.921

−0.421

−0.738

−0.944

0.724

Men (age > 60)

Men (36-60)

Men (> 60)

Women (< 35)

−0.108

0.671

0.842

−0.404

−0.608

−0.837

0.707

0.951

Women (age < 35)

0.881

−0.082

−0.163

0.99

0.795

0.379

0.29

−0.436

−0.448

Women (age 36-60)

0.531

−0.638

−0.596

0.826

0.996

0.782

−0.096

−0.716

−0.565

0.78

Women (age > 60)

0.223

−0.854

−0.783

0.6

0.933

0.906

−0.389

−0.839

−0.654

0.554

Women (36-60)

0.942

April 2012 • QP 23

versus the first principal component scores. As in

ence, importance) plots of the first two principal com-

this example, if the first two components account

ponents. The second principal component scores are

for most of the variance in the data, you can use the

plotted versus the first principal component scores.

score plot to assess the data structure and detect

The loadings for these two principal components are

clusters, outliers and trends. For examples with

plotted on the same graph.

multiple variables, the plot may reveal groupings

The plot may reveal groupings of points, which

of points, which may indicate two or more separate

may indicate two or more separate distributions in the

distributions in the data.

data. This may be evident with an example that uses

The biplot overlays the score and loading (prefer-

hundreds of features. Only five features of the matrix data analysis technique have been mentioned for illustration purposes.

Characteristic values and vectors / Table 4 First principal component

Second principal component

Third principal component

Men (age < 35)

0.102

−0.489

0.204

Men (age 36-60)

−0.300

−0.257

0.343

With the exception of the youngest age group, the

Men (age >60)

−0.314

−0.245

−0.038

biplot (Figure 7) seems to indicate that rural and ur-

Women (age 60)

−0.306

−0.116

−0.603

Women (age < 35)

0.222

−0.399

0.240

Women (age 36-60)

0.327

−0.187

−0.302

Women (age > 60)

0.344

−0.014

−0.369

Eigenvalue

7.607

3.608

0.652

Proportion

0.634

0.301

0.054

Cumulative

0.634

0.935

0.989

Score plot of evaluated groups / figure 6 2

move to the left.

Vector changes Least preferred features

2

5

Second component

−1

1

2

1

0

Urban women (age > 60) Rural women (age > 60)

0

Rural men (age > 60) Rural men (age 36-60)

Rural women (age 36-60)

Urban men (age > 60)

−1

Urban women (age 36-60)

Urban men (age 36-60) Rural men (age < 35)

3

−3

−2

−1 0 1 First component

24 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

3

−2

4

−4

2

Most preferred features

5

1

2

−2

/ Figure 5

▲

Biplot of evaluated groups / figure 7

1 Second component

horizontal axis, and features that are not preferred

▲

0.348

Men (age < 35)

preferred features appear as you move right along the

▲

Women (age > 60)

Rural

around zero. In the score plot diagram, the generally

Groups

▲

Urban

If the data follow a normal distribution and no outliers are present, the points are randomly distributed

3

4

Rural women (age < 35) Urban men (age < 35)

Urban women (age < 35) 4

−4

−3

−2

−1 0 1 First component

2

3

4

basic quality

35 years old share the same preferences—regardless of gender. This tool can be used to analyze market data, new product introduction and for narrowing down root cause analysis. Relationships among defects and their causes, location of defect occurrence or process step can be analyzed using the tool.

BIBLIOGRAPHY Brassard, Michael, The Memory Jogger Plus+, Goal/QPC Inc., 1989. Domb, E.R., “7 New Tools,” Quality Digest, December 1994. Minitab, “Meet Minitab 16” software documentation, www.minitab.com/en-us/ products/minitab/documentation.aspx?langtype=1033. Quality Council of Indiana, Certified Manager of Quality Primer, 2010, pp. vi-19. Shigeru, Mizuno, Management for Quality Improvement: The Seven New QC Tools, Productivity Press, 1988. Tetsuichi, Asaka, and Ozeki Kazuo, Handbook of Quality Tools: The Japanese Approach, Productivity Press, 1990.

—Govind Ramu

K

Knowing how to visually present data is absolutely criti-

reached at which we identify po-

cal in today’s workplace, especially when you consider

tential solutions. The 2 x 2 matrix

that visual representation of data is the only way you will

helps the business partner differ-

2 × 2 impact and effort grid / figure 8

reach some individuals. Matrix diagrams can be used to

entiate the solutions.

High

of information.

This differentiation is centered on the effort required to

There is a fundamental need for matrix diagram us-

implement a given solution and

ers to be familiar with data. To get started, you must

what the potential impact would

determine ahead of time where the comparisons are go-

be. Solutions are placed on the

ing to be. The tool can be an excellent way to compare

grid in response to the evalua-

customers, associates in a call center, departments and

tion of the solution against a pre-

processes, for example. The entities being compared are

defined set of criteria that defines

typically listed across the page (x axis). Features or as-

effort and impact.

pects for comparison are listed going down the page (y axis). Suppose a back-office processing area is scanning

Potential solutions falling into the green block—high impact

Effort

show the relationship between two, three or four groups

Low Low Impact

and low effort—are the targeted

forms into a system. When you look at productivity data,

solutions. These are typically labeled as quick hits. So-

you can quickly see there are two groups with distinctly

lutions falling into the red block—high effort and low

different productivity.

impact—are prioritized lower on the list because more

List the names of the associates across the page, keeping in mind the total number of associates. If the number

resources are required to implement a solution that will make less of an impact.

is small, you can list all the associates. If the number is

Using the two extremes as an example, the matrix

large, you may need to create a composite employee,

diagram of impact and effort shows the relationship be-

showing how typical high and low performers appear.

tween the solutions by their positions on the grid. Using

Brainstorm potential areas that participants say they

the predefined criteria enables a group to use this dif-

think might be at the root of driving performance. The

ferentiation to make business decisions regarding which

output of this activity would be listed down the page.

solutions to pursue.

Start filling in the matrix with the data you have. You will

Matrix diagrams are a simple yet powerful means of un-

then have something to show management about how

derstanding data. Perhaps more importantly, they are an

employees differ in performance and what may be caus-

effective way to convey information to decision makers. —Keith Wagoner

ing the performances to be different. One particular matrix diagram my organization uses on a regular basis is the 2 x 2 matrix (Figure 8). When we conduct workshops with clients, invariably a point is

High

BIBLIOGRAPHY ASQ, “Seven New Management and Planning Tools—Matrix Diagram,” http:// asq.org/learn-about-quality/new-management-planning-tools/overview/ matrix-diagram.html.

April 2012 • QP 25

T

The process decision program chart (PDPC) is an excel-

could be used to help select key initiatives or programs

lent tool for what can be called project risk management.

from several alternatives. A second level is program plan-

Risk management involves looking ahead proactively

ning. “Program” means a portfolio of projects or a group

during planning to identify potential future problems.

of interrelated activities with specific endpoints.

PDPC provides a structure to identify what can go wrong

A PDPC can be used to help select the projects or ap-

and then plan what to do when the wrong things happen.

proaches that are most likely to succeed and weed out those

PDPC is a visual tool that combines and builds on ele-

that are not feasible because of high risk or unavailability

ments of several other techniques. It may enhance a tree

of resources. After a specific project has been chosen, the

diagram in which an objective and one or two levels of

PDPC can be used in its most basic form for detailed contin-

activities or tasks already have been defined. It has some

gency analysis within the scope of project planning. Figure 9 is a simplified example of a PDPC with infor-

characteristics of failure mode and effects analysis, such as

mation from program and project planning. The initiative

the identification of risks, consequences and mitigations. The PDPC also can be described as a graphical version

of training quality engineers was chosen as a way to sup-

of the good project management practice of proactively

port the strategy of improving product quality in design.

identifying issues, risks and assumptions. Therefore, a

Alternative projects addressing different methods to de-

PDPC is a nice tool to place into a project plan or charter.

liver the training were evaluated. The concept of using internal resources was chosen as the preferred strategy.

Many levels of planning could benefit from the PDPC.

Then, within the scope of this project, several risks

The top level is strategic planning, for which the PDPC

Process decision program chart example

/ figure 9

Strategic planning initiative selection Improve product quality in design

Quality engineer training (selected initiative) Program planning project selection Obtain training from external sources or consultants

Self-study and individual certification

Use internal resources (selected project) Project planning contingency selection

Difficult to track progress, ensure consistency and motivate

Lack of benefit of interaction

Cost too high

Lack of understanding of internal company systems

Time commitment too high

Do not have expertise in training

Provide oversight of individuals

Bring students together periodically for discussion

Allocate funds in the budget

Train the external trainers on internal processes and procedures

Solicit management support, place on employees’ objectives

Provide training on presentation skills and training dynamics

X

O

Logistics

Project benefits do not outweigh risk.

26 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

X

Cost

X

Schedule

Project benefits do not outweigh risk.

O

Selected mitigation

O

Selected mitigation

Benefits outweigh mitigated risks. Trainers increase knowledge and presentation skills, cost savings compared with external, team building with interaction and participation.

basic quality

were identified and mitigations developed during the planning phase. Throughout the process, decisions were made

Many of the authors drew from Nancy R.

by considering the potential risks at each step and elimi-

Tague’s The Quality Toolbox (ASQ Quality Press,

nating the activities for which risk mitigations or counter-

2005) to develop the summaries of the seven

measures were not considered practical.

management and planning tools. For more about

Figure 9 also shows the common PDPC practice of

the book and to read a sample chapter, visit

denoting impractical countermeasures with an X and

http://asq.org/quality-press/display-item/index.

practical countermeasures with an O. Identification of

html?item=H1224 (case sensitive).

countermeasures deemed impractical was based on conbest benefit and risk ratio, and likelihood of success. The

straints in the project cost, schedule or logistics. Ultimately, using the PDPC thought process facilitates project planning, identifies risks and mitigations, and

process decision program chart is, therefore, very deserving of its accurate and descriptive long name.

helps secure approval to execute a project based on the

A

A relations diagram is a graphical representation of the

—Scott Laman

meeting so group members have a chance to think

relationship between cause and effect or a given out-

about it and come to the meeting somewhat prepared.

come, and all the factors that influence or contribute to

3. Ask everyone to write on a sticky note one factor they

that outcome. Figure 10 shows an example of a relations

think contributes to the problem. Collect the notes

diagram, which is a variation of a typical fishbone or

and place them on a wall or a board. Do this a second

cause and effect diagram.

or third time, or until all factors are covered. These

Developing a relations diagram is a structured approach to problem solving. The diagram also can be used

notes do not need to be placed in any order—placing them randomly is fine.

to learn more about the problem being addressed, be-

4. Write the problem statement on another wall, board

cause it can clarify thinking about how various factors

or a flip chart. Then, take one of the notes and discuss

are related or contribute to the problem being addressed.

whether it is a contributing factor and whether the

After you know these factors, you can address each one, depending on its importance in terms of severity

Relations diagram

of effect and the cost of addressing it or not.

/ figure 10 Lack of purchasing professionalism

Lack of training No account of incoming materials

Low pay

Developing a relations diagram involves brainstorming and organizing thoughts as explained in the fol-

Lack of advancement

High operator turnover Low-quality materials

lowing five steps: 1. Identify a group of people—usually no more than five or seven—

Poor working conditions

to participate in developing a

Buying from the cheapest source

Poor quality

relations diagram about a problem. Include people from various departments and people with dif-

Poor machine maintenance

ferent perspectives. 2. Distribute a clear problem statement to be reviewed at least a day or two in advance of the first

Production too busy

Ongoing conflict between quality assurance (QA) and production

Management not understanding link between quality and profitability

Inadequate QA and HR budgets

No accurate cost-of-quality data available

April 2012 • QP 27

group agrees it is. Place it near the problem statement,

hold more than one session.

and draw an arrow from this note to the problem

Looking at Figure 10, it is clear the lack of manage-

statement. Repeat the same process with another note

ment understanding about the link between quality and

(factor). Continue this and a relations diagram will

profitability contributes to many factors leading to poor

emerge, as shown in Figure 10. If one factor contrib-

quality. However, there are no cost-of-quality data avail-

utes to more than one outcome, you can have arrows

able, so the link between quality and profitability cannot

starting from a factor leading to several outcomes, as

be explained.

shown in the figure.

Therefore, to address poor quality, the first step must

5. Schedule a relations diagram session for no more than

be to collect cost-of-quality data for a certain period. Af-

one hour because of the fatigue factor. If necessary,

ter sufficient data are collected and analyzed, a presentation on the subject can be made to management. Ideally,

Check out the article that inspired this month’s sequel. “Building From the Basics” appeared in the January 2009 edition of QP and continues to QUALITY PROGRESS | JANUARY 2009

Putting Best Practices to Work

www.qualityprogress.com | January 2009

12 Tips To Survive The Recession p. 8

receive rave reviews from readers. You can find the open-access article at http://asq.org/qualityprogress/2009/01/basic-quality/building-from-

QUALITY PROGRESS

BUILDING FROM THE BASICS: 7 QUALITY TOOLS

BU L NG

the-basics.html. Share the link with colleagues

B SI S

templates for most of the seven basic tools at

FR M HE The seven essential quality tools

p. 18

through email, Twitter or Facebook. Also find ASQ’s Quality Tools & Templates corner of its

Plus:

The Big Three: Did Quality Fail Them? p. 14

VOLUME 42/NUMBER 1

Lean Six Sigma Saves Millions p. 42

website at http://asq.org/learn-about-quality/

after management understands the link between quality and profitability, it will support quality efforts and also look into the professionalism of the procurement and purchasing function. Before the relations diagram was developed, the normal tendency for everyone in an organization was to blame poor quality on high operator turnover, poor-quality materials or poor machine maintenance. The relations diagram clarifies what ultimately drives those factors, which in turn helps address the root cause of poor quality. —Pradip Mehta

tools-templates.html.

A

A tree diagram allows you to detail a conceptual or high-

called a tree structure because the classic representation

level goal into more operational tasks to achieve the

resembles a tree, even though the chart is generally upside

desired result. The tree diagram starts with one item

down compared with the shape of an actual tree.

that branches into two or more branches, each of which branches into two or more, and so on. Tree diagrams can be used to break down broad cat-

Some quality improvement teams often represent the tree from left to right, with the root at the left and the increasing levels of detail branching out to the right.

egories into finer levels of detail and can be adapted for a

Every completed tree diagram has a root or root node,

wide variety of uses.1 Developing the tree diagram helps

which also can be thought of as the starting node. The

move team thinking from generalities to specifics. The

lines connecting elements are called branches, and the

tree diagram is a generic tool that can be adapted for a

elements themselves are called nodes. Nodes without

wide variety of purposes:

children are called leaf nodes, end-nodes or leaves.2

• Developing logical steps to attain a specific result.

To construct a tree diagram, begin with the root node.

• Conducting a five whys analysis to explore a root cause.

Develop a short statement of the goal, issue or item be-

• Communicating to encourage involvement in the devel-

ing broken down. Locate the root node either at the top

opment of a jointly supported result.

or far left of the diagram. Brainstorm what will take the

• Drilling down to more detailed levels of a process flow.

hierarchy to the next level of detail. For an action plan,

• Graphically representing a hierarchical progression, such

this may be the next steps to be taken. For an organiza-

as a genealogy or classification scheme.

tion chart, it’s the person who reports to the next level of

The structure of the tree diagram represents the hi-

the organization.

erarchical nature of a structure in a graphical form. It is

28 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

Brainstorm all possible items for each level until there

basic quality

is no item or action available at a finer level of description. For a vertical tree, write each idea in a

Tree diagram to prepare for CMQ/OE exam / figure 11

line below the branch. For a hori-

Prepare for CMQ/OE certification

zontal tree, write it to the right of the first statement. Do a “necessary and sufficient” check. Are all

Take ASQ review course

the items at this level necessary for

Take other course

the one on the level above? If all the items at this level were present

Public course

E-learning

Research options

Provide justification

Self-study from ASQ Body of Knowledge

Research other options

Study alone

In study group

or accomplished, would they be sufficient for the one on the level above?3 Figure 11 shows an example of

Local

Travel required

Gain approval

Gain approval

Provide justification

Register

Register

Gain approval

Attend

Register

a tree diagram that illustrates how to prepare for ASQ’s manager of quality/organizational

excellence

(CMQ/QE) certification. “Prepare for CMQ/QE” represents the goal, or root, of the tree diagram, while

Use ASQ CMQ/OE review guide

Order review guide from Quality Press

Borrow from friend

Study

Study

Use other texts

from ASQ Body of Knowledge” are

Contact participants Secure study location

Participate

“Take ASQ review course,” “Take another course” and “Self-study

Consider participants

Decide times and schedule

Study Make travel plans

the next level of details, or nodes,

Attend

CMQ/OE = certified manager of quality/organizational excellence Note: This tree diagram is intended to be used an example and is not a complete guide to prepare for the CMQ/OE exam.

that branch from the root. Further activities and descriptions below each of these three nodes continue until options and ideas seem exhausted. —Grace L. Duffy

REFERENCES 1. Nancy R. Tague, The Quality Toolbox, second edition, ASQ Quality Press, 2004, p. 501. 2. Wikipedia, Tree Structure, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/tree_structure. 3. Tague, The Quality Toolbox, p. 502, see reference 1.

GRACE L. DUFFY is president of Management and Performance Systems in Tavares, FL. She earned a master’s degree in management and information systems from Georgia State University in Atlanta. Duffy is an ASQ fellow and holds ASQ certifications as a quality auditor, manager of quality/organizational excellence and improvement associate.

GOVIND RAMU is a senior manager for global quality systems at SunPower Corp. in San Jose, CA. Ramu is a licensed professional mechanical engineer from Ontario, Canada. An ASQ member since 1998 and an ASQ fellow, Ramu holds six ASQ certifications: manager of quality/organizational excellence, engineer, Six Sigma Black Belt, auditor, software engineer and reliability engineer. He is co-author of The Certified Six Sigma Green Belt Handbook (ASQ Quality Press, 2008).

SCOTT A. LAMAN is a senior manager of quality engineering and risk management for Teleflex Inc. in Reading, PA. He earned a master’s degree in chemical engineering from Syracuse University in New York. Scott is an ASQ fellow and is certified as a quality engineer, reliability engineer, manager of quality/organizational excellence, auditor and Six Sigma Black Belt.

NATALIA SCRIABINA is a vice president and cofounder of Centauri Business Group Inc. in Waterloo, Ontario. She earned a master’s degree in engineering sciences, automated control of electrical systems from the National Technical University of Ukraine in Kiev. Scriabina is a member of ASQ.

PRADIP MEHTA is the retired director of quality assurance for the Army & Air Force Exchange Service in Dallas. He earned master’s degrees in textile engineering from Lowell Tech in Lowell, MA, and business administration from the University of Dallas in Irving, TX. A certified quality auditor and systems lead auditor, Mehta is an ASQ fellow and the former chair of its diversity committee.

KEITH WAGONER is a director of continuous improvement at Lincoln Financial Group in Greensboro, NC. He is a senior member of ASQ and a certified quality engineer.

April 2012 • QP 29

One Size Fits All

BAldrige Award

Baldrige recipients prove organizations of all sizes can benefit from using award criteria by QP Staff Every Handyman Relishes the chance to use his biggest and baddest tool: the circular saw, the power sander, the power drill—pretty much anything with the word “power” in it, actually. But while those are fun to use, it’s rare to find a home-improvement project that doesn’t require having a hammer somewhere in the vicinity. There’s a reason why a tool like that endures in this age of technology: It works, regardless of the situation. That’s a characteristic shared by the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence, which has helped every type of organization you can imagine—from those with 100 employees in one location to those with 100 sites around the world—improve all facets of their operation. The wide-ranging impact of the criteria is evident in the four organizations selected to receive the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award in 2011. From a small publishing house in St. Louis to a massive healthcare system headquartered in Detroit, the quartet found common ground in their desire to improve and the tool they used to achieve their goal.

April 2012 • QP 31

Schneck Medical Center

A

Ask anyone who has ever been treated at a hospital to

3. Fiscal and operations. By rigorously monitor-

list the jobs that are key to a positive patient experi-

ing its daily and monthly activities, in addition to an

ence, and you’ll hear the obvious: doctors, nurses and

annual review of key performance measures, SMC has

receptionists. But what about staff that deal with money

improved its bond rating and its operating margin in

more than medicine? Or those in HR instead of the ER?

the years since the 2009 economic downturn. Because

That all-inclusive approach to putting the patient

of those efforts, its reported results are in line with

first helped Schneck Medical Center (SMC) in Jackson

Standard & Poor’s “A” and “AA” rated median levels.

County, IN, earn a 2011 Baldrige award and, more im-

Also, from 2008 to 2010, SMC achieved revenue

portantly, created an organizational culture as healthy

growth in its five strategic focus areas: women’s health,

as the customers it serves.

joint replacement, noninvasive cardiac care, cancer care

SMC created a patient-focused system supported by

and bariatric surgery. That’s no surprise considering that

four areas—quality of care, customer service, fiscal and

in the county in which it resides, SMC’s market share

operations, and human resources (see Online Figure 1

is better than 60% for inpatient care, 70% for outpatient

at www.qualityprogress.com)—and each area saw the

care and 80% for ambulatory care.

improvement you’d expect from a Baldrige recipient.

4. Human resources. Since implementing the Bal-

1. Quality of care. For any organization, it’s quite a

drige criteria in 2007, SMC’s staff turnover rate has

feat to measure your time between negative incidents

dropped by 25%. Those results stem from an increased

in years. SMC is in that elite class thanks to a focus

focus on staff feedback, as well as a hiring program that

on preventing hospital-acquired infections. It recorded

features peer interviewing and collects employee input,

zero central line-associated bloodstream infections in

both of which contribute to the selection of new hires.

2011, the last case of ventilator-associated pneumonia

On the nursing side, from 2009 to 2011, SMC report-

was in 2009, and the overall rate of hospital-acquired

ed a satisfaction level above the benchmark set by the

infections has remained at or below 1% since 2008.

National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators. The

SMC proved its commitment to putting the patient

results for doctors are equally impressive thanks to a

first when it noticed that a measure related to its treat-

revamped approach by the medical executive commit-

ment of heart attacks was far beyond what it could have

tee, which welcomes physician input for staffing deci-

been. Its “door-to-balloon time”—how long it takes to

sions. Because of that, 90% of SMC doctors said they

assess and diagnose a myocardial infarction, and de-

felt engaged and aligned with the organization.

liver the necessary intervention—was 120 minutes, so

Perhaps the most intriguing approach to ensuring a

SMC partnered with a competitor 25 miles away to co-

satisfied staff comes from SMC’s “Grow Our Own” pro-

ordinate handoffs. The new system drastically reduced

gram. In it, local students at the middle and high-school

door-to-balloon time to as low as 53 minutes.

levels shadow staff members, and then return to work

2. Customer service. Consulting firm Press Ganey

at SMC during college. The program is directly respon-

helps those in the healthcare industry improve perfor-

sible for 17 individuals joining the current medical staff.

mance by tracking measures in crucial service areas.

“Our employees are our most important contribu-

In the last round of surveys, SMC landed in the top 25%

tor to Schneck’s performance excellence,” said Gary A.

for nine of 10 measures and earned a spot in the top

Meyer, SMC president and CEO. “Receiving this award

10% for overall satisfaction in each customer segment

is an extraordinary accomplishment and recognition

and overall satisfaction for adult inpatients.

of their commitment to continuously improve patient

Those numbers were supported by the Hospital

outcomes while safely reducing the cost of care.” —Brett Krzykowski, assistant editor

Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems, which verified that SMC bested other Indiana hospitals from 2008 to 2011 in areas such as the ability of nurses and physicians to listen, understand and provide clear discharge instructions.

32 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

Sources Schneck Medical Center, “Schneck Receives 2011 Presidential Award for Quality and Performance Excellence,” http://schneckmed.org/aboutus/ newsdetail.aspx?id=167, Nov. 22, 2011. National Institute of Standards and Technology, “Schneck Medical Center,” www.nist.gov/baldrige/award_recipients/schneck_profile.cfm.

BAldrige Award

Henry Ford Health System

A

As one of the most comprehensive integrated health systems in the nation, Detroit-based Henry Ford Health System (HFHS) employs a workforce of 29,856 at 140 sites spanning a three-county area. The system includes: • Seven hospitals, including a large, level-one trauma flagship hospital.

• 33 multispecialty ambulatory care centers. • Affiliated physician practices. • A research and education component. • A Health Alliance Plan providing health coverage to more than 467,000 members. • 91 community care operations, including outpatient behavioral health, nursing homes, hospices and dialy- DOCTORS FROM HENRY Ford Health System meet as they walk the hallways of sis centers, and retail operations offering such servic- one of the organization’s 140 sites. es as optometry and home medical products. So when HFHS decided to use the Baldrige framework, it knew it would take work to successfully imple-

• A series of interventions focused on mortality reduction. Since 2004, the system has reduced its mortality rates by 40%.

ment it on a systemwide level. But, as Susan Hawkins, se-

• A “No Harm” campaign modeled after the Institute

nior vice president of performance excellence at HFHS,

for Health Improvement’s 100,000 and 5 Million Lives

explained, the system’s leaders were undaunted.

campaigns to reduce patient morbidity and mortality.

“We think it may have been easier for one of our hos-

The HFHS program focuses on reducing harm on a

pitals or business units to apply for the award as an indi-

broad scale. In the program’s fifth year, the system has

vidual entity,” she said. “But our CEO never wavered in

seen a 27% reduction in harm.

her belief that we have to do this as a system. Everything

• A systemwide effort to reduce readmissions by iden-

that we have to do around the Baldrige criteria supports

tifying necessary actions needed for patients deemed

integration—all units working together for a common

at high risk for readmission.

purpose. We took the harder road.”

• A focus on innovation in ambulatory patient care.

Because of its systemwide approach, one of the key

To drive improvement, the system established and

contributors to the success of HFHS has been its senior

spread a medical home model—called Patient Cen-

leaders team, which consists of about 25 CEOs from each

tered Team Care—and created bundles of clinical

of its business units and key corporate leaders.

interventions and screenings focused on prevention

The team meets bimonthly for two to three hours at

and diabetes management. These bundles are linked

a time, focusing on strategic planning activities and or-

to quality bonuses for physicians.

ganizational performance review. Each leader is respon-

HFHS plans to travel this year and host “sharing days”

sible for communicating and implementing ideas from

to discuss its quality strategies with other organizations.

these meetings back at his or her business unit.

But this doesn’t mean the system will stop moving for-

According to Hawkins, the team represents a dramat-

ward in its own quality journey.

ic shift in the way the organization is led and has been

“We can’t stop improving,” Hawkins said. “We have

a key part in its Baldrige success. “Each member of the

work to do. We know what our opportunities are—they

senior team is accountable to the others for sharing ac-

were validated by our feedback in the Baldrige site visit

tions and results—both strengths and opportunities—

experience—and we’ll continue to look at those things.

routinely and transparently,” she said.

This is just the beginning.” —Amanda Hankel, contributing editor

HFHS’s patient-safety and quality-of-care efforts—key drivers in its pursuit of the Baldrige award—hinge on initiatives the system continues each year, including:

Source National Institute of Standards and Technology, “Henry Ford Health System,” www.nist.gov/baldrige/award_recipients/ford_profile.cfm.

April 2012 • QP 33

Concordia Publishing House

B

Bruce Kintz, president and CEO of Concordia Publishing

“The process improvement process that we use—

House (CPH), a nonprofit organization headquartered in

plan, do, check, act—has been inculcated throughout

St. Louis, MO, says the Baldrige criteria has been in his

CPH,” Kintz said. “When you couple those along with

head pretty much his entire career. But he knew he needed

voice of the customer (VOC) and voice of the employee,

to get quality into the heads of his employees at CPH be-

we have all we need to work well with our board of di-

fore formally rolling out the criteria as the company’s per-

rectors and plan for the future.”

formance improvement framework in 2001.

He added that with help from those tools, CPH’s over-

“I started off slow and went the route of making sure

all customer satisfaction scores soared above 98% and

we had proper buy-in before I actually announced that

exceeded levels set by the annual Purdue University

there was criteria associated with the effort,” Kintz said.

Benchmark Study of U.S. Call Centers.

“So while we’ve been using it and known the actual

“We focus on our customers in everything that we do,

words of the criteria for a decade, it’s been about 13 years

and our quality improvement is aimed at improving our

in total that we’ve been implementing it.”

relationship with the customer,” Kintz said. “VOC feed-

CPH has pursued quality excellence via the Baldrige

back actually drives our product development here.”

criteria for more than a decade. The organization first

CPH uses VOC to gather input from customers for

gained recognition in 2009, winning the Missouri Quality

compliments, product ideas and complaints. Core prod-

Award.

uct teams analyze customer data, prioritize product and

“That told us we were on the right track. Then, two years later, to win the national Baldrige award was a ma-

service offerings, and design products to meet and exceed customer requirements and expectations.

jor milestone in our quality journey that further proves

In addition, CPH’s emerging products team explores

we run as efficiently as many other benchmark compa-

the use of state-of-the-art technologies to deliver new

nies,” Kintz said.

and innovative products, such as eBooks, iPhone/iPad

He attributes CPH’s success to several efforts that have helped leaders run the organization efficiently while keeping customers and employees happy. First, CPH’s annual strategic planning process is continuously improved through multiple review cycles

apps and customizable online curriculum builders. As a result, the number of digital products CPH offers increased from 457 in 2008 to 1,927 in 2010. “It’s the future—digital publishing rather than traditional,” Kintz said.

that engage management and employees. The organiza-

CPH also gathers employee feedback through a bi-

tion employs an inverted strategic planning process that

annual employee survey, the results of which have im-

involves three planning horizons—long, medium and

proved every two years over the previous survey taken.

short-term. This strategy provides in-process measures that help predict end-of-process measures, Kintz said.

“Our employees are our reason for success,” Kintz said. “They’re our associates, partners and family, and they’re also the future of this business. If we listen as a management team, then our employees are going to be responsive to that and give us good ideas.” It seems there is no shortage of good ideas at CPH. It recently launched an innovation team to ensure employees are actively involved in developing new ideas and seeing them come to fruition. It’s just another way the organization continues its commitment to quality improvement. “It’s never over,” Kintz said. “It’s a quality journey, and this is one step forward in that journey.” —Amanda Hankel

CONCORDIA PUBLISHING HOUSE’S increased focus on electronic offerings resulted in a nearly five-fold increase in e-products from 2008 to 2010.

34 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

Source National Institute of Standards and Technology, “Concordia Publishing House,” www.nist.gov/baldrige/award_recipients/concordia_profile.cfm.

BAldrige Award

Southcentral Foundation

A

Anyone who thinks a grassroots, homegrown effort

SCF can do that because it has constructed a system in

can’t transform a stumbling organization into a bastion

which 70% to 80% of appointment slots are unfilled at

of efficiency and excellence, Southcentral Foundation

the beginning of the day.4

(SCF) has one word for you: nuka.

That access has contributed to a customer-satisfac-

That’s the Alaska Native word used for strong, gi-

tion rating that reached 91% in 2010. In addition, Con-

ant structures and living things. It’s also the name of

sumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems

the healthcare model that helped transform the service

(CAHPS) surveys put SCF’s overall satisfaction rating at

provided to Alaska Natives and American Indians from

73.3%, well above the CAHPS benchmark of 46%.5

a slogging system to a streamlined one that helped Anchorage-based SCF earn a 2011 Baldrige award.

Those numbers wouldn’t have been possible if SCF hadn’t changed its leadership makeup and involved a

“This award recognizes and honors the strength and

group of people that had a vested interest in its suc-

traditional values of the Alaska Native people and our

cess. Now, the majority of managers are Alaska Na-

customer-owners, which Southcentral Foundation’s

tives or American Indians.

Nuka System of Care was built upon,” said Ileen Sylves-

“It is so wonderful for external experts to recog-

ter, SCF vice president of executive and tribal services.

nize the amazing journey of Alaska Native people in

“A large component of our vision is a healthy, thriving

creating and running SCF’s Nuka System of Care,” said

community for generations to come. This award reflects

Douglas Eby, M.D., vice president of medical services.

that we are well-positioned to see that vision through.”

With that change in leadership came a philosophy

Back in 1998, that wasn’t the case. Patients waited

centered on the values of the Alaska Natives, which

weeks for an appointment, and then waited some more

SCF credits for its ability to provide same-day service,

after finally arriving at the doctor’s office. When they

as well as several other improvements:

actually saw a physician, often it was a different doc-

• A 40% decrease in expensive ER and urgent-care

tor for every visit. The connection between patient and provider was simply nonexistent.1 Everything changed in 1999, when SCF completed its transition away from a government-run healthcare system to a customer-owned approach. That process began in 1982 and culminated with an organization that bases everything it does on relationships. That’s not as easy as it sounds because of the ground SCF must cover. The organization’s 1,400 em-

visits. • A 50% decrease in specialty care. • A 20% decrease in primary-care visits. • A 30% decrease in admissions and the number of days that patients spend in the hospital.6 If anyone is as pleased with those numbers as SCF, it’s the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium (ANTHC), which partners with SCF to operate and manage the Alaska Native Medical Center.

ployees serve around 55,000 people, including 10,000

“Undoubtedly, the accolades will continue for

in 60 remote Alaskan villages.2 But SCF has established

Southcentral Foundation,” said ANTHC Chairman

an environment in which it puts what it calls its “cus-

and President Andy Teuber, “not only through awards

tomer-owners” first, and it did it via its Nuka System of

such as the Baldrige National Quality Award, but also

Care, which is founded on four principles:

through the continued recognition of the Nuka System

1. Customers drive everything.

of Care that acknowledges that relationships support

2. Customers must know and trust the healthcare team.

wellness.”

3. Customers should face no barriers in seeking care. 4. Employees and supporting facilities are vital to success.3 SCF’s results prove those tenets aren’t just words. Gone are the days of waits measured in weeks. Now, if customer-owners call by 4 p.m. and arrive by 4:30 p.m., they can see their primary-care provider the same day.

—Brett Krzykowski References 1. Southcentral Foundation, “Southcentral Foundation’s Nuka Model,” www. arcticparl.org/files/080812katherinegottlieb1.pdf. 2. Southcentral Foundation, “About Us,” www.scf.cc/about/index.ak. 3. Baldrige.com, “A Unique Healthcare Delivery System,” www.baldrige.com/ sector/healthcare/a-unique-healthcare-delivery-system, Dec. 1, 2011. 4. Ibid. 5. Ibid. 6. Southcentral Foundation, “Southcentral Foundation’s Nuka Model,” see reference 1.

April 2012 • QP 35

Fair

1

or

Foul?

statistics

The innovative Moneyball management approach can make a difference—up to a point

Headline Goes In This Area by I. Elaine Allen and Julia E. Seaman

Deck goes here

by Author Name 1 AFTER MONEYBALL WAS published nine years ago, Oakland A’s General Manager Billy Beane was hailed as a genius for adopting analytics in baseball. His goal was to create a small-budget Major League Baseball (MLB) team that could compete with big-spending teams in the American League (AL), effec-

In 50 Bold Words First three words are Vectora 18 pt all In 50 Words tively turning the old system of recruiting players upside down. Or Less Ullamet iustrud dipit nulla alit nonsecte modolenibh eum OrNearly Lessa decade later, Beane’scap. • The Oakland A’s were methods for discovering and • Text for 50 words or first baseball team at, quat. Ibh eui ea faccumsan henim atue the magna faccum quat. less is undervalued Vectora Roman players are baseball’s worst-kept secret. drafting to implement analyti9 on 11 with hanging Odolortio odo dolor alit ipis at, con utatuercal-based ad tat luptatumsan methods to What’s become known as the Moneyball philosophy has become indents. evaluate players, an enissecte molendrem iriure er acil eu feumapproach eummolobor iurem • Text for 50 words or referred to as well entrenched in the sport and the mainstream. Every baseball less is Vectora Roman Moneyball. er sim quatet illa facidunt wisi. on 11 with hanging club9 employs statisticians who leverage sabermetrics2 to assem• The A’s had limited indents. Gait nullam quat. Ut inibh ero ex exerostrud tat nos success with autet the ap-ex ble the for best • Text 50 possible words or baseball team based on analytics. proach, in part because ea feugiat iusto consed tatie dolorper iril utat less is Vectora Roman otheretueraessis areas of the ex Last year, Hollywood heavy hitter Brad Pitt played the role 9 on 11 with hanging game be considonulpute modoloreet lum augueril dit must vulputem venit, indents.in the movie adaptationeugiamc of Beane of Moneyball, which received ered as part of an over• Text for 50 words or statistical analysis of sit nulput ut voloborper illa feum vendrer all cincipi sisit, conse some buzz. “The Simpsons” even poked fun at Moneyball lessOscar is Vectora Roman a team. erciduis dolorperos nulputpatum dolor iusto odolore rciniat, 9 on 11 with hanging andindents. sabermetric principles in a 2010 episode. se venis ad dunt lum ip ea facidunt ea am, veleniam volortinit

2

QP • www.qualityprogress.com

April 2012 • QP 37

Beyond baseball and entertainment, business media

Basing value on OBP

also took note of Moneyball and applied it to the world

As a general rule, because better players demand and re-

beyond balls and strikes. For example, Forbes distilled

ceive higher salaries, the number of games won tracks

the use of Moneyball principles to help businesses hire

with the team’s payroll. Teams with large payrolls tend

employees, and Harvard Business School suggested

to have more experienced and higher-rated players, and,

Moneyball analytics should play a role in preparing all

therefore, should have greater success in the regular sea-

business management candidates.3-4

son and postseason.

These and other articles on Moneyball offer one main

In 1999, the A’s ranked 11th of the 14 AL teams in pay-

message to the business world: With analytics, you can do

roll and fifth in games won. By 2002, its total payroll had

more with less.5 The success of Moneyball also suggests

fallen to 12th in the league, but the team had moved into

there is a way to overcome the odds and field a competi-

first place in games won. The A’s first-place spot was an

tive, championship-level team by understanding the at-

unprecedented outcome.

tributes that make the whole team a winner rather than

Going against the assumption that large payrolls translate into postseason wins, the A’s used analytics—

simply a collection of individuals with unique talents.

6

But was this approach actually a winning strategy?

relying heavily on team on-base percentage (OBP) rather

Was it a sustainable strategy for the A’s? Using baseball

than individual players’ performances—to acquire and

data from 1999-2011, which includes pre-Moneyball base-

sign players. Rather than looking to his scouts to recruit

ball, the Moneyball era and post-Moneyball baseball, we

players, Beane put a quantitative analyst in charge, think-

assessed Beane’s approach as a technique for winning

ing this shift in strategy would result in:

games, championship playoffs and the World Series.

• A more competitive team.

Specifically, was this analytical management a good approach or simply a temporary fix? Could the A’s have

• A more efficient way to find and draft players. • A way for small-budget teams to reach the playoffs.

stayed within reach of the postseason and World Series

Beane’s focus on OBP in his ranking of hitters was key:

for a longer period of time by employing additional ana-

The statistic reflects discipline in the batters’ box because

lytics? Or was a lack of a larger payroll going to inevita-

it includes non-hits that may allow a player to reach base

bly sink the team no matter what scouting strategy the

(walks, hit batsmen or, rarely, catcher’s interference). To

A’s adopted?

evaluate the Moneyball effect, we used some of the same data analysis, visualization techniques and statistical models the A’s leveraged. Specifically: Did the effect exist? Was

Correlations by years and teams / Figure 1

it sustainable? If not, what should or could the A’s have done next to sustain success?

1

Data and method

Correlation between payroll and games won 0.80

We created a database that includes all information on

Correlation between payroll and OBP

team payroll and performance information for all MLB teams from 1998-2011. Variables were created to iden-

0.60

tify the A’s, teams that made the playoffs, teams that ap0.40

peared in the World Series and World Series winners.

0.20

eyball (1998-1999), Moneyball in Oakland (2000-2003)

A categorical variable identified the periods: pre-Monand post-Moneyball (2004-2011). Other variables included dividing the teams into low, medium and high payroll

0

based on median values, quartiles and rank of the team −0.20

in terms of payroll and market size. Performance statistics included standard batting, pitching and defense for

OBP = on-base percentage

38 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

11

10

09

20

20

20

08 20

07 20

06 20

05 20

04 20

02

03 20

20

01 20

00 20

99 19

19

98

−0.40

each team. Data were analyzed using standard statistical techniques, including univariate, bivariate and multivariate

statistics

methods. These include correlation, regression, time

Online Figure 4 also shows the blue circles (the A’s

series analysis and analysis of variance using SPSS Sta-

during their introduction of analytic scouting tech-

tistics software (version 19), and plots and multivariate

niques) in the upper-left corner of plot, indicating a high-

visualizations using Excel and Tibco Spotfire software.

er number of games won than many other teams during the A’s initial years of analytic scouting with a lower pay-

Payroll, games won and OBP

roll than many teams.

Table 1 and Figure 1 compare the correlations—strength

Note the separation by pre-Moneyball era, post-Mon-

of the relationship between variables—of MLB payrolls,

eyball era and the actual Moneyball era shows teams’

games won, payrolls and team’s OBP from 1998-2011.

payrolls are widely diverse, with some team payrolls in

The A’s implemented its analytic scouting techniques

the pre-Moneyball era higher than team payrolls in the

from 2000-2003 before most other teams did. During

post-Moneyball era. With the addition of the unique iden-

those years, the analysis shows the decline—to a small

tifier for Oakland, you can see the team payroll has been

extent—in the correlation between payroll and games

on the low end, but was by no means the lowest.7 With

won, but to a great extent between payroll and OBP.

Online Figure 4, you can ultimately understand Oak-

In other words, from 2000-2003, while a team’s larger payroll was still strongly linked to more wins, there was

land’s position compared with all MLB teams and how it was uniquely successful during the Moneyball years.

no longer a strong direct connection between payroll

These illustrations tell us that Oakland’s 95 wins for

and OBP, possibly reflecting Beane’s choice to optimize

each year in 2000-2003 made them highly competitive.

his team’s OBP with the limited A’s payroll. The analy-

What they don’t reveal, however, is whether the team

sis in Figure 1 and Table 1 incorporates all MLB teams,

actually succeeded in gaining a postseason berth and

so the change in the correlation also may indicate that

advanced to (or even won) the World Series. One more

a number of smaller payroll teams had begun to intro-

dimension can be added to the figures to make this clear.

duce analytics into their strategies. This was becoming an MLB change, not just something done in Oakland.

Adding more dimensions

While informative, it is impossible to know how much

We also can look at the OBP and other team statistics

to translate this change into a true effect of Oakland’s

over time to see a difference in terms of performance be-

use of analytics in its scouting. For that, you must exam-

tween teams that reach the postseason and other teams.

ine individual team statistics.

Plotting payroll To examine the extent of the OBP effect, we constructed

Payroll, games won and OBP correlation / Table 1

additional data visualizations. Each successive figure

Year

Correlation between payroll and games won

Correlation between payroll and OBP

1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

0.658 0.564 0.331 0.321 0.442 0.419 0.526 0.491 0.536 0.491 0.327 0.476 0.366 0.372

0.659 0.497 0.045 0.123 −0.048 −0.229 0.463 0.504 0.491 0.548 0.410 0.429 0.374 0.469

adds information from other variables and helps further explain Moneyball. The plots in Online Figures 1-4 (which can be found on this article’s webpage at www. qualityprogress.com) show greater degrees of information: • Online Figure 1 is a simple scatter plot of annual payroll by games won for each team over the season. • Online Figure 2 adds different colors to the plot: preMoneyball era teams are in red, and post-Moneyball era teams are in green. Teams at the time of Oakland’s introduction of analytics-driven scouting are in blue. • Online Figure 3 adds shapes to indicate Oakland’s values as circles. • Online Figure 4 shows the changing size of the markers to show the values of OBP for each team for each season.

Pre-Moneyball Moneyball in Oakland

All teams using Moneyball analytics

OBP = on-base percentage

April 2012 • QP 39

Analytics’ impact on games won / Figure 2

Online Figure 5 shows a peak in OBP leading up to the Moneyball years—perhaps giving the A’s the idea to maximize this statistic—but this peak was not seen in the years that followed. However, if the team had ex-

3-D scatter plot

amined other key statistics, such as earned run average (ERA), it would have seen a similar increase. Note the ERA for playoff teams post 2000 (shown in Online

100

Figure 6) shows much greater consistency (smaller

Games won

box plot) than nonplayoff teams. While adding too much information could confuse the figures, the ability to use three axes, color and size 80

can actually add more clarity. Moving the OBP variable from the size dimension to the third axis of the plot, then using the size dimension to indicate a team’s presence in the postseason or in the World Series, you can Marking: Marker by (row number) Color by Moneyball group Pre-Moneyball-era teams Moneyball-era teams Post-Moneyball-era teams Shape by Oakland dummy 0 1 Size by playoffs ≥1 ≤0

60 OBP 0.36 0.34 0.3

0.32 $50

$100 $150 Team payroll (in millions)

$200

see how Oakland fared during its initial use of analytic scouting and whether it was a successful management implementation. Figures 2 and 3 give this information in a clear pattern. Figure 2 shows the initial four years of Oakland’s analytic scouting paid off because the A’s were in the playoffs each year (blue circles). Unfortunately, as shown in Figure 3, this did not translate into a World

OBP = on-base percentage

Series berth in any of these years, and the 95 wins per year was not sustainable after many MLB clubs started

Analytics’ impact on World Series appearances

using analytical scouting techniques.

/ Figure 3

3-D scatter plot

More than OBP Figures and correlation show the A’s succeeded in optimizing OBP with a relatively small payroll, which translated into many more wins initially than would

100

have been expected for its payroll level using traditional scouting techniques.

Games won

While the A’s did make the postseason during all four years of the Moneyball era, it never won the World Series. Moneyball made the A’s successful and

80

a contender, but this top-ranked team could not overcome traditionally stacked teams that could sign highsalary players more proficient in pitching and defense. Marking: Marker by (row number) Color by Moneyball group Pre-Moneyball-era teams Moneyball-era teams Post-Moneyball-era teams Shape by Oakland dummy 0 1 Size by World Series ≥1 ≤0

60 OBP 0.36 0.34 0.3

0.32 $50

OBP = on-base percentage

40 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

It appears that optimizing one scouting statistic— the OBP offensive statistic—was not enough to win or even reach the World Series. And Oakland’s apparent edge quickly diminished after Moneyball techniques became widespread post 2004. As all MLB teams added analytics and players responded to the new ranking metrics, the correlation between payroll and OBP

$100

$150 Team payroll (in millions)

$200

returned almost to the levels it had been before 2000 (Figure 1).

statistics

Using successive visualizations of the data gave a

but this statistic remained no different from other non-

clearer picture of the initial outcomes and lack of ongo-

playoff teams before and after the Moneyball era. From

ing effect of Oakland’s use of OBP to become a top-tier

this analysis, you can infer that when teams with higher

competing team with a middle to low-tier payroll.8

payrolls started looking at players with high OBP, the A’s

Would additional analytics have helped Oakland con-

were likely priced out of the market for these previously

tinue to be competitive or reach the World Series? Or

underrated players who were once considered hidden

is having a higher payroll the only way to succeed long

gems the A’s could sign.

term? An answer can be provided by fitting models to

Another analysis for examining how important other

predict the payroll necessary to win in the postseason,

statistics are in determining postseason and World Series

looking at the minimum required statistics for pitching

play is to fit a logistic model predicting these outcomes.

and defense, and examining other important offensive

Table 2’s statistics were used in a model to predict each

statistics.

of these outcomes. For postseason play, Table 3 (p. 42) shows OBP has the largest odds ratio, although payroll,

Statistical analyses of Moneyball

team walks (bases on balls or BB), starting pitchers’

To examine which statistics were most important to

ERA and closers’ saves, and team fielding percentages

reach postseason play, we calculated and tested the dif-

are also highly significant predictors of teams that will

ferences between playoff teams and nonplayoff teams

advance to the playoffs.

from 1998-2011, and looked at Oakland’s statistics dur-

However, when World Series play (two teams each

ing that time. Table 2 summarizes batting, pitching and

year) is the model’s dependent variable, the only signifi-

defensive statistics that are significantly different among

cant predictor is the starting pitchers’ ERA (Table 4, p.

playoff teams and nonplayoff teams, and also includes

42). This appears to indicate a good offense can get a

Oakland’s statistics in those categories.

team into the playoffs, but it needs excellent pitching

Oakland’s statistics resemble the mean and median values of each group. During its playoff years, its OBP

to move to the World Series. Maximizing OBP was not enough to get the A’s beyond the playoffs.

was much higher than the other playoff teams (indicat-

Finally, a linear regression model can indicate how

ing Beane’s preferred choice of statistic to maximize),

much each statistic is worth and the incremental payroll

Playoff teams, nonplayoff teams and the Oakland A’s Games Home won runs

All MLB teams Not in playoffs

RBI

Batting average

OBP

Strike- Bases Stolen outs on balls bases

ERA

/ Table 2

Fielding Saves Errors percentage

Mean

76

167

713

0.263

0.330

1,079

530

  95

4.51

39

107

98.22%

Median

76

164

708

0.263

0.330

1,076

527

 91

4.50

39

106

98.30%

Mean

80

151

698

0.257

0.332

1,071

580

 88

4.13

38

104

98.24%

Oakland A’s only Not in playoffs In the playoffs

Median

76

135

711

0.259

0.330

1,080

537

 88

4.17

38

 99

98.40%

Mean

95

184

771

0.269

0.342

1,055

575

103

4.03

46

 97

98.38%

Median

95

179

771

0.269

0.341

1,049

574

100

4.01

46

 98

98.40%

Mean

97

207

809

0.270

0.348

1,046

625

104

3.94

47

110

98.22%

Median

96

205

833

0.271

0.354

1,035

640

 99

3.68

48

107

98.30%

0

0

0

0

0

0.045

0

0.018

0

0

0

0

Oakland A’s only In the playoffs

p-value comparing MLB teams in the playoffs and not in the playoffs OBP = on-base percentage ERA = earned run average MLB = Major League Baseball

April 2012 • QP 41

Logistic model to predict playoff teams / Table 3

most significant variable in the model, again emphasizing the importance of good pitching. Although Oakland did make it to the playoffs during

Dependent variable = playoffs or not

its Moneyball years, its maximization of OBP was not a significant predictor—positively or negatively—of post-

B

Standard error

p-value

0

 0

0.039

1.00

140.01

40.83

0.001

6.41867E + 60

Bases on balls

−0.01

  0.01

0.106

0.992

Earned run average

−3.12

  0.52

0

0.044

0.11

  0.03

0

1.114

−28.87

  9.14

0.002

  Payroll On-base percentage

Saves Fielding percentage

season success or payroll. Rather, two pitching statis-

Odds ratio

0

Pseudo r-square = 0.707

Standard error

B

Earned run average

along with highlighting the A’s values. Although not always significant, there is a large gap in the average values of the playoff-bound teams and those that don’t make it Although Oakland did not as actively pursue pitchers the lowest in the league, in large part because of starting pitchers it drafted and developed: Barry Zito, Tim other teams, Oakland still had contender-level values of

p-value

Odds ratio

strikeouts by its pitchers, especially during Moneyball

−2.22

  0.62

0

0.109

years. Nevertheless, these statistics were not enough for

0.06

  0.03

0.077

1.063

Oakland to ever move on to the World Series during these

Saves

years.

Pseudo r-square = 0.846

Leveling the field

Linear regression to predict payroll / Table 5 Unstandardized

Errors

ing teams that made the playoffs with those that didn’t,

Hudson and Mark Mulder. Although not as good as some

 

Strikeouts by pitching

Figures 4 and 5 focus on these two statistics, compar-

during the Moneyball era, the team’s ERA was among

Dependent variable = World Series or not

Strikeouts

important.

that far.

Logistic model to predict World Series teams / Table 4

Playoffs

tics—ERA and strikeouts by pitching staff—appeared

Did the Moneyball approach work? Oakland was never able to bring home the MLB Commissioner’s Trophy— the ultimate measure of success in baseball—during its

Standardized coefficients

B

Standard error

11824359.68

4315127.58

0.079

0.006

−45966.77

16944.88

−0.619

0.007

73602.15

17199.31

0.991

0

−250791.45

94879.04

Beta

inaugural Moneyball years. During that time, however, p-value

−0.331

0.009

Oakland made it to the playoffs, greatly increased its fan popularity and improved its reputation. The team was able to be as or more successful than most other teams with payrolls up to three times larger. After examining team performances from 1998-2011, it’s clear the team used analytics as an innovative way to level the payroll playing field. As recently as October

Payroll = dependent variable

2011, Oakland’s strategy has been called “challenging the status quo” and “a lesson that implores us to not settle

r-square = 0.853

with tradition.”9 amount needed to boost a team into the playoffs. The base-

But Oakland’s success did not last, as Beane’s secret

ball statistics that were found to be significant (reported in

weapon became well known and other teams began to

Table 2), as well as the dummy variables of playoff and

copy its methods. The widespread acceptance and use

World Series berths, were used as predictors of the team

of sabermetrics in scouting now shows that other teams

payroll. Table 5 shows the results of this analysis.

realize there is value in tracking individual and team sta-

Most interesting is the playoffs coefficient, which in-

tistics.

dicates reaching the postseason requires an additional

Longer term, the models indicate that focusing exclu-

$11.8 million above the mean payroll. Strikeouts are the

sively on one statistic or area of the game (offense ver-

42 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

statistics

sus defense or pitching) will not lead a team to a World Series win and will not provide a sustainable path to the postseason. All playoff teams have shown the ability to

Average and standard deviation of team ERA / Figure 4 6

win games and have nearly equal offensive statistics. The but pitching will provide the edge in the World Series. If Oakland did not have the payroll to invest in peak performance players, it might have stayed competitive if it continued to innovate by using its analytic expertise to find more hidden gems in the areas of pitching and defense. While the advantage of Moneyball did eventually fade for the A’s, its success and universal adoption showed that analytical-based methods greatly changed and—some would argue—improved the game.

Team earned run average (ERA)

models show offense can lead the team to the playoffs, 5

5

4

4

3

Lessons for the business world Some universal lessons from Moneyball apply not only to business and hiring, but also general project strategies. Beane focused on a simple analytical measure that was a good indicator of overall success, not just from game to game or day to day. The OBP statistic is

1300

accounts for different aspects of how players succeed

1250

at the plate.

tant, however, not to optimize a novel statistic such as OBP at the expense of tried-and-true measures of success. Finally, it is important to know your competitors can and will use your methods against you. QP REFERENCES AND NOTES 1. Michael Lewis, Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game, W.W. Norton & Co., 2003. 2. Sabermetrics is the specialized analysis of baseball through objective and empirical evidence, specifically baseball statistics that measure in-game activity. The term is derived from the acronym SABR, which stands for the Society for American Baseball Research. 3. Coeli Carr, “7 ‘Moneyball’ Hiring Tips,” Forbes, Sept. 23, 2011, www.forbes. com/sites/coelicarr/2011/09/23/data-mining-7-tips-on-hiring-the-moneyballway. 4. James Heskett, “How Will the ‘Moneyball Generation’ Influence Management?” Working Knowledge, Harvard Business School, Oct. 6, 2011, http:// hbswk.hbs.edu/item/6787.html. 5. Tim Harvey, “Five Important Neuromarketing Lessons From ‘Moneyball,’” Neuromarketing, Dec. 6, 2011, www.neurosciencemarketing.com/blog/articles/ moneyball.htm. 6. Catalpha Advertising & Design, “The Moneyball Strategy: Can It Work For Your Company?” Oct. 14, 2011, www.catalpha.com/blog/the-moneyball-strategycan-it-work-for-your-company. 7. Complete payroll information can be found at www.stevetheump.com/ payrolls.htm. 8. All original figures were generated using Tibco/Spotfire software. Find more information at http://spotfire.tibco.com/products/overview/analyticsproducts.aspx. 9. Catalpha Advertising & Design, “The Moneyball Strategy: Can It Work For Your Company?” see reference 6.

1200 Strikeouts by pitching

traditional methods to implement his plan. It is impor-

1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Average and standard deviation of strikeouts by pitchers / Figure 5

relatively easy to compute and understand, but it also

Additionally, Beane was willing to risk going against

Non-playoff teams Playoff teams Oakland A’s

1150 1100 1050 1000 950 900 850

Non-playoff teams Playoff teams Oakland A’s 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

I. ELAINE ALLEN is research director of the Arthur M. Blank Center for Entrepreneurship, director of the Babson Survey Research Group, and professor of statistics and entrepreneurship at Babson College in Wellesley, MA. She earned a doctorate in statistics from Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. Allen is a member of ASQ. She also provides statistical consulting to the Los Angeles Dodgers and has done similar consulting for the Toronto Blue Jays. JULIA E. SEAMAN is a doctoral student in pharmacogenomics at the University of California-San Francisco, and a statistical consultant for the Babson Survey Research Group at Babson College. She earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and mathematics from Pomona College in Claremont, CA. Along with Allen, Seaman provides statistical consulting to the Dodgers.

April 2012 • QP

43

3.4 Per Million

BY Joseph D. Conklin

Next in Line Always look ahead to the next project for maximum quality gains In quality, the sequel is what usually makes things better. Who knows how

and the array of customers is diverse. Researchers, suppliers, potential

for the quality department’s help in improving the process, and Sam drew the

often savings have been left on the table

customers and government auditors

assignment. He dug through the secu-

because organizations failed to look

are always showing up to look things

rity department’s records for the last 12

ahead to the next project?

over, and that means contact with highly

months and estimated two important vari-

My friend Sam knows firsthand the value of lining up the next quality project before the first one is over. Just ask him about his job as a quality facilitator at Stream Shelter Research. One of his projects involved improving the visitor-request process. “Why do you need a process for that? I

Savings are often left on the table because you fail to look at lining up the next quality project.

just walk in or out the door, and that’s it,” I said. It turned out not to be that simple.

proprietary products and operations. Sam

ables: the length of time to approve a visit

convinced me a process was required. He

and the percentage of visitor registrations

Visiting the issue

even showed me the request form (Figure

performed in error.

Stream Shelter performs contract R&D

1) and flowchart (Online Figure 1, which

for companies in its industry, a market

can be found on this column’s webpage at

Figures 2 and 3 for the first time, it was

subjected to government regulation. It

www.qualityprogress.com).

shocked and incited to take action.

takes ideas that pass proof of concept

A string of lost sales and canceled

When management saw the charts in

Sam led the first improvement team,

and helps determine the next step to

orders convinced management some-

which flowcharted the visitor-request

full-scale production. The pace is fast, the

thing needed fixing. In finding out why,

process, brainstormed possible causes of

business environment changes rapidly,

one issue repeatedly mentioned was the

error, and developed the cause and effect

cumbersome process

diagram in Figure 4 (p. 46). The combina-

for arranging visits. If it

tion of the brainstorming and the cause

takes too long, custom-

and effect diagram led to the check sheet

ers lose interest, and

in Online Figure 2. The team wanted

audit deadlines for

to know which of the possible causes

government regulators

were the actual ones. Thanks to the data

might be jeopardized.

revealed by the check sheets over several

Errors in registration

weeks, the team prepared the Pareto

may cause authorized

chart shown in Figure 5 (p. 46).

visitors to be turned away at the gate. If visi-

Turning things around?

tors are also custom-

When the team and Stream Shelter man-

ers, they rarely return.

agement saw the Pareto chart, the top

Media visitors, too,

three causes showed low-hanging fruit:

might not feel encour-

1. “Pass not delivered” was traced to

aged to offer Stream

errors by the post office in reading

Shelter good press.

handwritten addresses on the enve-

Management asked

44 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

lopes containing the passes. Security

Visitor request form

less-tangible parts of the process might

/ figure 1

Requestor

interact in such a way to limit the overall gains from the new material and equip-

Type of visitor

ment.

Supervisor

Sister plant

Visitor name

Customer

required a more holistic, integrated view

Visitor organization/contact

Auditor

of the visitor-request process. At the time,

Attacking the less-tangible parts

the process lacked an owner. Its parts

Media

were scattered across multiple functional

Interviewee

groups at Stream Shelter. Under pres-

Security check

Y  / N

Consultant

sure from other urgent business matters,

Pass issued

Y  / N

Government

management concluded the tangible im-

Pass returned

Y  / N

provements were enough and eventually

Departure sign off

disbanded the team after it completed

Pass number

one year of monthly monitoring.

Reason for visit

Not surprisingly, the performance plateaued in the next six months, as shown in Online Figures 3 and 4.

The team continued to meet monthly

switched to computer-generated mail-

to monitor progress. During the next 12

Please try again

months, lead time and error percentages

The new status quo might have been

terial deteriorating after being held too

were gradually reduced to about two-

sustained longer but for a combination of

long in storage. Management purged

thirds of their initial levels, as shown in

events that stimulated a second improve-

the old stock and bought replacement

Figures 6 and 7 (p. 47).

ment effort. Even with the equipment

ing labels to reduce this problem. 2. Warped badge stock was traced to ma-

material under a new policy of discard-

During these 12 months, Sam advocat-

ing material if it was not used by a

ed to move past the low-hanging fruit and

tor stories made it back to the corporate

certain date.

concentrate on material and equipment.

office that management decided to

The Pareto chart suggested the possibil-

compare Stream Shelter with its sister

dressed by purchasing new ones and

ity of additional gains in the people and

plants. Stream Shelter’s times remained

maintaining them more diligently.

methods aspects. Sam warned that the

the longest—twice as long on average

3. Outdated badge readers were ad-

Average visitor processing time in days / figure 2 11.73

11 10

10.71

10.53

11.24

11.35

11.30 10.88

Average registration error percentage / figure 3 16%

11.80

10.99

15%

10.92 10.02

14%

10.35

Error percentage

12

9 Days

improvements, enough disgruntled visi-

8 7 6 5

15.4%

15.1% 14.3% 14.1%

13%

14.4%

14.1% 14.0%

14.3%

15.0%

14.9% 14.5%

14.5%

12% 11% 10% 9% 8% 7%

4

6%

3

5%

1

2

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Months before first implementation

12

1

2

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Months before first implementation

12

April 2012 • QP 45

3.4 Per Million compared to its sister facilities. Meanwhile, Stream Shelter began preparations to achieve ISO 9001:2008 certification to meet government regula-

Visitor process problems cause and effect diagram Material

Method

/ figure 4

Measurement

tions and customer expectations. Because Warped pass material

the goals of certification entailed removing

Obsolete approval lists

Torn/illegible approval form

self-contained functional silos as much as

Obsolete list of valid ID forms

Torn/illegible/wrong pass

possible, the scattered responsibility for

Obsolete approval procedure

Form incomplete/filled out wrong

the visitor-request process across multiple departments felt at odds with the new

Visitor process problems

Untrained/poorly trained supervisor

effort.

Untrained/poorly trained security

When an untrained new hire failed to

Untrained/poorly trained requestor

follow up on one important request, a

Unmailed/late/undelivered pass

Worn/uncalibrated pass reader

No follow up by requestor

major potential client was turned away at the gate because security personnel could

People

not find approval for his visit. The result-

Environment

Equipment

ing loss of a $50,000 contract immediately focused management’s attention. Things grew really exciting when

Pareto chart of visitor problems

security rejected the request for the ISO

80

9001:2008 accreditation people the day

70

before they were scheduled to arrive. The worked in Sam’s quality assurance group.

50

able encouragement and attention from Stream Shelter’s top management. The shortcomings of the visitor-request process caught the attention of the accreditation people who independently seconded one of Sam’s standing suggestions: Start a second cross-functional team that included more operations employees, in addition to those from the supervisory and technical ranks.

75 69

40

64

39

35

32

30

28

20 12

10

11

9

7

5

4

2

0 Pa ss W no ar td pe el d iv ca pa er n’ ss ed tm m a ak te Re e ria ad pa l– ss r e No ead r un /w /lo ab na ro g le m ng pa to W s e s ro on up s ng ap er fo pr vis rm ov or ve al rs di io sa n gr N us ee am ed s e w o ith n In p v co i a m sito ss pl r et e fo rm Ill eg ib le fo Pa rm ss no tm co Re ai m q le pa ue d ny sto Vi da r n si ta ot to un r p bas in e a r Su cce ese pe p n rv tab ts n on isor le I o/ ap na D p m co Su rov e n m pe al ot pa rv li ny iso st da r n t o vi N aba t in si o se to r r fo ec rm ei fo ve r d

A new request was expedited with notice-

Frequency

supervisor who signed the form no longer

60

/ figure 5

Reason

Enhancements executed

In all cases, a month or two was needed

organizations, personnel and security

With the benefit of increased management

to transition responsibilities to free up

to ensure a request reached the next

attention, the team received additional

the new process owner for the job.

training in lean Six Sigma improvement

Until an owner could be established,

stage of processing. 2. Making visitor-request process train-

techniques and benchmarking against

Stream Shelter management approved

ing a mandatory completion item in

sister facilities, and was able to as-

the second team’s recommendations,

new hires’ orientation. This ensured

sess several enhancements that, when

changed some of the team members

new employees did not receive their

implemented, encouraged a more cross-

and asked it to take charge of the initial

entrance badges until training was

functional perspective. Ideally, the visitor-

implementation. The most important

completed.

request process needed a single owner.

enhancements were:

Senior management identified a few

1. Assigning specific individuals as

potential candidates within the company.

46 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

hand-off points among the requesting

3. Clarifying the approval procedure so security could accept the name of the supervisor who was in place on the

Average visitor processing time in days / figure 6

Average registration error percentage / figure 7

12

16% 10.92 11.03

10.56 10.07

10

9.64

Days

9

10.09

9.42

9.86

8.42

7.72

7 6 5

14.2%

15.1%

14.6% 13.9%

13%

13.6% 12.4% 11.8%

12%

11.0%

11%

10.9%

10% 9% 8% 7%

4

6%

3

5%

1

2

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Months after first implementation

11

12

Average visitor processing time in days / figure 8

1

12

16%

11

15% Error percentage

9 7.79 6.82

6.99

7 6.90

6

5.76

5

5.85

6.39

5.73 5.08

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Months after first implementation

11

4.74

13%

13.4% 13.5%

13.3%

12%

11.8% 10.4%

11%

10.1%

10% 9.5%

9%

9.9% 8.5%

8% 7%

6.6% 5.6%

6%

4 3.54

3 19

20

21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Months after first implementation

date the approval form was signed. 4. Removing the visitor approval list

29

5%

30

19

20

29

30

prepared to make the visitor requisition

with more comprehensive knowledge

process even better. QP

of how to check the pertinent details

management sign-off for all changes.

of a pending visitor request.

This had proved to be a barrier in dis-

Figures 8 and 9 show the progress

seminating the current list to all who

in the 12 months after the second team

needed it. Instead, senior management

started implementing its recommenda-

added administration of the approval

tions. By the end of one year, Stream

list to the annual plant audit so the

Shelter’s visitor-request process perfor-

responsible employees could demon-

mance aligned with its sister plants. At

strate they were handling it right.

this point, Sam and all of Stream Shelter

key departments—personnel and secu-

21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Months after first implementation

rity—so both areas developed a cadre

from the set of items requiring senior

5. Rotating personnel between the two

12

14.2%

14%

7.73

2

Average registration error percentage / figure 9

10

Days

15.7%

14.3%

14% 9.30

8.87

8

8

15.4%

15% Error percentage

11

were proud and relieved at what had been accomplished. They were poised and

EDITOR’S NOTE The column is based on a true story involving a real organization. Names and data have been changed to maintain the organization’s confidentiality.

JOSEPH D. CONKLIN is a mathematical statistician in Washington, D.C. He earned a master’s degree in statistics from Virginia Tech in Blacksburg and is a senior member of ASQ. Conklin is an ASQ-certified manager, engineer, auditor, reliability engineer and Six Sigma Black Belt.

April 2012 • QP 47

Quality in the First Person

BY Lula Moon

Quality Assurance at Home Do you have the lime to make your guacamole? Recurring grocery list / Table 1

HAVING RIPE avocados, garlic, onion,

form of lists designed to eliminate the

jalapeno and sea salt but no fresh limes

human error of forgetfulness. Updated

when I want to make guacamole is

and current revision status required by

like having various types of conform-

section 4.2.3(b, c) ensures I benefit from

ing widgets in stock but no connecting

using the newest lists. To illustrate, I’ve

hardware. So to run my home efficient-

included four lists that may be used to

ly—and never again forget the lime—I’ve

brainstorm and create your own cus-

Fruit: Apples, oranges, bananas, pineapples, cherries, watermelon, cantaloupe Berries: Blueberries, raspberries

incorporated quality assurance principles.

tomized home-care SOPs.

Limes, lemons

set in order, shine, standardize and sus-

List reminders

Mushrooms

tain—benefit my home life in the same

My recurring grocery list (Table 1)

ways that quality assurance principles

reminds me to restock frequently used

benefit the workplace. When I sort and

kitchen, bathroom and pet-care items,

remove clutter, have my favorite delivery

plus it helps me keep track of stores that

menus set in order and readily available,

have the best price and product selec-

Dark green lacinato (dinosaur) kale, chard, spinach, mustard greens Cilantro, basil, rosemary, parsley, chives, cumin powder Sweet red peppers, broccoli, carrots, okra, peas

clean and shine household areas and

tion. Grouping items on my list in the

Tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes

equipment, make standardized lists to

same order as the stores display them

ensure I have an inventory of necessities

maximizes shopping productivity like

like toilet paper, and sustain my routines,

lean manufacturing standardized work

I simultaneously simplify and shape

maximizes manufacturing productivity.

home life into a well-oiled machine.

For example, I love fresh coconut

Quality assurance 5S principles—sort,

When I make a list of errands to run

Earth Fare grocery store and local farmers’ market:

Avocados Ginger Coconut

Onions, garlic, jalapenos Sweet potatoes, Yukon gold potatoes Seeds for sprouts Peanut butter, almond butter Hummus, olives Kidney beans, black beans

and peanut butter, but before I added

Miso, seaweed

and constellate them geographically, I

them to my recurring grocery list, I

Raw nuts

save time and gas, like lean manufactur-

often forgot them and ended up buying

Quinoa

ing waste elimination (motion, transpor-

and eating less-nutritious snacks food

tation and waiting).

from the convenience store and vend-

ISO 9001:2008 requires six written

ing machine. An unexpected additional

Granola Almond milk Eggs rBGH-free cheese, yogurt, cream

procedures. My home life operates

benefit is that the sound of me cracking

Honey

more smoothly with written standard

a coconut to remove the coconut flesh

Herbal teas

operating procedures (SOP) in the

in my front yard has become a neigh-

Chicken

borhood socializing magnet. My kayaking gear list (see Online Table 1, found on this article’s webpage at www.qualityprogress.com) guarantees I have electrolytes to replenish my body fluids, salt and energy while I am

Salmon Walmart: Coconut oil Toilet paper Epsom salt (or at Dollar Tree) Whole Foods: CitraSolv valencia orange dish soap Fragrance-free laundry soap Celtic sea salt Figs, pears (in season) Pet Supplies Plus: Cat food—grain-free Petco: Cat litter in reusable container

48 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

exposed on the river on hot sunny days. It also ensures I have a fleece hat and long-sleeved shirt for warmth after the temperature suddenly plummets due to a summer thundershower (think identifying potential failures). My day hiking gear list (Online Table 2) identifies potential failures and promotes

Quality assurance principles benefit my home life the same way they benefit the workplace.

safety. In case I end up on the trail after dark, the list ensures I remember to bring a flashlight, lighter, whistle, jacket and

Another universally helpful list includes one

for home-care continuous improvement.

ground cloth.

for the toiletry bag and traveling items.

Advantages of this structure are focus (I

My miscellaneous reminders list (Online

know what needs doing) and increased

Table 3) prompts me to have the gate access

Quality benefits

productivity (I get it done). As a result, I

code and condo key when I arrive at my va-

My family and I, as customers of and

enjoy more quality in my personal life. QP

cation destination. It also similarly reminds

stakeholders in our home, deserve the

me to have the access code and key or

satisfaction of knowing that our needs are

combination for my storage unit, and to take

being remembered and met. Quality assur-

my reading glasses to help me see menus

ance principles, when implemented in the

and programs during a night on the town.

home, provide a process management tool

RE TO GIS DA TER Y!

LULA MOON earned a bachelor’s degree from Birmingham-Southern College in Alabama. An ASQ member, she is an ASQ-certified manager of quality/organizational excellence, quality engineer, technician and auditor.

2012 Quality Institute for Healthcare May 21 – 23, 2012 • Anaheim, CA • Anaheim Convention Center QIHC is this year’s best opportunity to network with quality professionals from all fields. This must-attend conference will demonstrate the impact that quality can have on healthcare organizations and offer relevant and clearly measured results from improvement methodologies and processes that your organization can use.

Visit qihc.asq.org to learn more and sign up for conference updates.

April 2012 • QP 49

Career Corner

BY Henry J. Lindborg

Should You Blow the Whistle? The career implications of standing up for the truth Since the advent of stakeholder manage-

But life is not improving for those who

port what you know to those outside your organization who could help?

ment approaches in the 1980s, for-profit

actively respond to misconduct, whether

and not-for-profit organizations have sought

it’s fraudulent fiscal transactions or activi-

to link their brands not only to improved

ties, or supply chain risks threatening the

of whistle-blowing for individuals and

products and service, but also to communi-

health and safety of employees and the

organizations committed to ethical prac-

ty concern and social responsibility. After a

public. In fact, the “2011 National Business

tices, I consulted Tom Devine, co-author of

decade of corporate scandals and econom-

Ethics Survey” conducted by the Ethics

The Corporate Whistle-blower’s Survival

ic meltdown, an important risk affecting

Resource Center reported a sharp increase

Guide: A Handbook for Committing the

brand identity and customer retention is

in retaliation against whistle-blowers.2

Truth,3 the most comprehensive compen-

misconduct or negligence in areas such as

The retaliation can be devastating for the

health, safety, environmental protection

individual, irrevocably altering relationships

and financial integrity.

To better understand the significance

dium of advice and resources on the topic. Over the past 33 years, in his work as

with management and co-workers. It may

legal director of the Government Account-

Law, enterprise risk management, Bald-

include dismissal accompanied by attacks

ability Project, a Washington D.C.-based

rige criteria and global social responsibility

on the whistle-blower’s character and pro-

nonprofit organization with the mission to

standards (ISO 26000) have attempted to

fessional competence that result in dimin-

provide protection and advocacy for whis-

strengthen corporate ethics. Enterprise risk

ished prospects for future employment.

tle-blowers,4 Devine has assisted more than 5,000 “persons of conscience”—among them quality professionals—in making risky and sometimes life-altering decisions to tell the truth. Though the project began with government, it now extends to businesses of all types. He wrote the guide because he wanted to make a difference, share lessons learned in his practice and overcome the limitations of working case-by-case. What makes a whistle-blower? “Truth itself is a motivation,” Devine said. Whistle-blowers feel compelled to speak in spite of risking alienation by co-workers and entering an unequal contest with an organization. “It’s David and Goliath, with truth in the

management advocates that leaders create

Becoming a whistle-blower is therefore

slingshot,” he said. Of course, motives go

a strong ethical work environment, and the

no easy choice, even for quality profession-

beyond pure noble purpose and include

Baldrige criteria asks for measures of ethi-

als knowledgeable of organizational behav-

strong emotions, including, at times, resent-

cal leadership, corporate awareness and

ior and accustomed to audit processes with

ment.

monitoring systems. The Sarbanes-Oxley

clear guidelines for nonconformance and

Act1 and ISO 26000 call for whistle-blow-

corrective action. The decision may, in fact,

blowers begin? Think in terms of quality

ers—individuals who discover and expose

represent a career crisis with profound

process, Devine advised. First, the potential

wrong-doing in their organizations—to be

personal and professional consequences.

whistle-blowers need to talk it out and

protected from retaliation.

With other channels exhausted, do you re-

understand the potential consequences of

50 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

Where should potential whistle-

their actions. The individual needs their

problem-solvers rather than dissidents and

dragons or prevail in conflicts,” Devine

eyes open to the risks they are taking, and

resources rather than threats. According to

said. “Rather, it’s no more and no less than

needs to discuss their plans with family

Devine, the role of whistle-blower should

making a difference for the better.” QP

members who may be affected.

move from “traitor to the eyes and ears of

Their case and their resolve must be tested before action is taken. This shouldn’t

[an organization] that wants to prevent the consequences of a mistake.” How about leadership? How lead-

be an instance of knee-jerk actions clouded by emotion. They should seek support,

ers embrace whistle-blowers depends on

which may include professional organiza-

organizational maturity. Mature organiza-

tions. Whistle-blowers are damaged, and

tions value the flow of information and

sometimes dispirited, by isolation. “Regard-

transparency. Though leaders are human

less of evidence or legal backing, it’s not

and may react defensively, some good

enough simply to be right,” Devine said.

advice is that it’s bad business to kill the

How can quality professionals

messenger. Leaders should recognize that

support the important role of whistle-

it’s a high-risk gamble to suppress the truth.

blowers in corporate ethics? Qual-

As Devine put it, “Whistle-blowing may be a

ity professionals are natural allies with

bitter pill, but it’s good medicine.” Why support whistle-blowers?

knowledge of social responsibility and quality standards. They should assist in

“Ultimately, it’s about the duty of citizens

promoting the view that employees are

to support whistle-blowers. “It’s not to slay

REFERENCES AND NOTE 1. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act is a United States federal law that set new or enhanced standards for all U.S. public company boards, management and public accounting firms. The bill was enacted as a reaction to a series of major corporate and accounting scandals. 2. Ethics Resource Center, 2011 National Business Ethics Survey, www.ethics.org/nbes/index.php. 3. Tom Devine and Tarek Maassarani, The Corporate Whistleblower’s Survival Guide: A Handbook for Committing the Truth, Berrett-Koehler, 2011. 4. For more information on the Government Accountability Project, visit www.whistleblower.org. HENRY J. LINDBORG is executive director and CEO of the National Institute for Quality Improvement in Fond du Lac, WI, which provides consulting in strategic planning, organizational development and assessment. He holds a doctorate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and teaches in a leadership and quality graduate program. Lindborg is past chair of ASQ’s Education Division and of the Education and Training Board. He also chairs the IEEE-USA’s Career Workforce Policy Committee.

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April 2012 • QP 51

Statistics Roundtable

BY Connie M. Borror

On Overlapping When are there really differences in overlapping confidence intervals? Assembly line designed study results / Table 1

while teaching a workshop for a

the summary statis-

small manufacturing firm, two of the par-

tics. They decided to

ticipants approached me to discuss what

analyze the results

seemed to be a simple problem they had

separately but agreed

Asembly line one

Assembly line two

encountered at work. Recently, manage-

to use confidence

Mean (in seconds)

¯ x1 = 20.93

¯ x2 = 17.46

ment noticed a decrease in the number

intervals with a 95%

of products coming off the two assembly

level of confidence to

Standard deviation (in seconds)

s1 = 4.79

s2 = 4.92

lines in their manufacturing plant.

reach their conclu-

Sample size

n1 = 20

n2 = 20

sions.

Standard error (SE) of the mean (in seconds)

Specific steps in the product’s assembly were done by hand. The company was inter-

They came to me

SE1 =

s1 4.79 = =1.1 √n1 √20

SE2 =

4.92 s2 = =1.1 √n2 √20

ested in determining whether the perceived

with their results and

decrease in production was real. Several

the problem: Using

studies had been planned. However, man-

95% confidence intervals and the same

lapped, the first employee concluded there

agement first wanted to determine whether

data, they reached two different conclu-

was no statistically significant difference

there was a significant difference between

sions. One reported there was no differ-

in the average time to complete the task

the two assembly lines with respect to aver-

ence between the two groups, while the

for the two groups. In fact, he noted that

age time to complete the task.

second reported there was a difference.

because the confidence interval for mean2

Management randomly selected 20 people

After looking at both sets of results,

overlapped roughly 24% of the interval on

from assembly line one (AL1) and 20 people

it was obvious they carried out their

mean1, there was even stronger evidence

from assembly line 2 (AL2) to participate in a

individual analyses carefully and without

supporting his conclusion.

designed study in which workers completed

error. So what went wrong? How could

a particular task. The time to complete the

two different conclusions be reached using

seeing a method for constructing a con-

task was recorded in seconds.

the same information?

fidence interval on the difference in two

Together, the employees carried out the

The second employee, however, recalled

population means and used it to obtain a

experiment using all the usual recom-

Digging deeper

mendations, such as randomization and

First, let’s examine what they did in more

controlling factors that were not of inter-

detail. Both employees assumed time to

and concluded because 0 was not con-

est in the study. Having some understand-

complete a task for the assembly lines to

tained in this interval (although it was just

ing of statistics, the participants realized

be normally distributed, and they did not

barely outside), there was a statistically

the groups of interest were independent

assume anything about the population

significant difference between the two

and wanted to test the hypothesis that

variances (what they were or whether they

groups. At this point, they were not sure

single 95% two-sided confidence interval 0.37 ≤ mean1 – mean2 ≤ 6.59,

mean1 = mean2 or mean1 - mean2 = 0, in

were equal). In addition, both employees

who was correct. One of them also had

which mean1 was the true average time to

constructed 95% two-sided confidence in-

performed a two-sided hypothesis test and

complete the task for all AL1 workers, and

tervals on the individual population means,

found a p-value = 0.030. Still, they were at

mean2 was the true average time to com-

mean1 and mean2:

a loss. Let’s examine the two approaches

plete the task for all AL2 workers. They really wanted to know whether there was a significant difference in the average time to complete the task by the two groups (that is, mean1 ≠ mean2 or mean1 –

18.69 ≤ mean1 ≤ 23.17 and 15.15 ≤ mean2 ≤ 19.76. Figure 1 shows the individual 95% confidence intervals. That’s where the similarity between the

they used.

Two-interval method The first participant used a two-interval method—examining the two confidence

mean2 ≠ 0). The experiment was carried out,

two analyses ended. Examining the confi-

intervals on the individual means and

and results were collected. Table 1 shows

dence intervals and realizing they over-

seeing whether they overlapped. Because

52 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

he assumed both populations were nor-

ference between two population means,

mally distributed, the sample sizes were

mean1 – mean2, for independent samples:

fairly small (n1 = n2 = 20), and nothing was

¯1 − ¯x2) − t*√(SE1) + (SE2) ≤ mean1 − (x 2

known about the population variances. The 100(1 – α)% confidence intervals on the two population means, mean1 and mean2, were

mean2 ≤ (x ¯1 − ¯x2) + t*√(SE1)2 + (SE2)2 (equation 3)

(using notation from Table 1): s1

2

s1

)

s2

s2

¯x2 − t α2¯ ,df2 ( n ) ≤ mean2 ≤ ¯x2 + t α2¯ ,df2 ( n √ 2 √ 2

)

(equation 2)

often than the single-interval method.2-4 As a result, the two-interval method is less powerful than the single-interval method. using hypothesis tests or confidence inter-

t-distribution. Refer to this as the single-in-

vals, statistical significance does not imply

terval method. For the second employee’s

practical significance.

analysis, Equation 3 was used to construct

(equation 1)

to reject a false null hypothesis more

Statistical significance. Whether

Again, t* is found using Student’s

¯x1 − t α2¯ ,df1 ( n ) ≤ mean1 ≤ ¯x1 + t α2¯ ,df1 ( n √ 1 √ 1

Power. The two-interval method fails

Paired data. If two groups you’re

the 95% confidence interval (0.37 ≤ mean1

comparing are dependent, the two-interval

– mean2 ≤ 6.59) from earlier.

method is inappropriate. A single-interval

So what about my participants’ problem? I explained the results from

method for paired data should be used. Are those confidence intervals? There

in which the values of t1 and t2 are found

the two-interval method were incorrect.

are many different types of intervals, such

using Student’s t-distribution. Often, the

The most efficient method to use for their

as confidence, tolerance and prediction in-

interpretation of the intervals is either:

problem was the single-interval method

tervals, for example.5 It may not always be

• If Equations 1 and 2 do not overlap,

for independent samples, constructing a

clear from a graph or discussion what the

there is a statistically significant differ-

confidence interval on the difference in

interval represents. Standard error bars,

ence between the two populations.

the two population means (Equation 3).

for example, look similar to confidence

This was the method used by the second

• If Equations 1 and 2 overlap, there is

intervals, but they are typically intervals s . If not clearly stated or √n

no statistically significant difference

participant in which he found the 95%

such as ¯x ±

between the two population means.

confidence interval to not contain the value

understood, these intervals can be misin-

The first interpretation is always true.1

0, concluding there was a statistically signifi-

terpreted as confidence intervals.

However, the second interpretation is

cant difference between the two groups with

If confidence intervals on individual pa-

not entirely correct. In fact, if the two

respect to average time to complete the task.

rameters do not overlap, we know for sure a statistically significant difference exists.

confidence intervals overlap, a statistically significant difference may or may not exist

Recommendations and cautions

It’s when the confidence intervals do

between the two population means.

If the two-interval method can sometimes

overlap that the conclusions are unclear.

lead to the wrong conclusion, can it be

We must rely on additional exploratory

Single-interval method

useful at all? The answer is yes, but with

analysis to determine statistical signifi-

The second employee used a 100(1– α)%

caution. When comparing two confidence

cance and expert knowledge to determine

two-sided confidence interval on the dif-

intervals, be mindful of:

practical significance. QP

Decision making.

95% confidence intervals for two ­population means / figure 1

single-interval method will

Response

also lead to rejection of

¯x1 = 20.93

20 19

not overlap—leading to mean1 – mean2 = 0—the

mean1 = 23.17

22 21

confidence intervals do the rejection of the claim

24 23

If the two individual

mean2 = 19.76

24% L1 = 18.69

this claim. If the two individual confidence intervals

REFERENCES 1. Donald J. Barr, “Using Confidence Intervals to Test Hypotheses,” Journal of Quality Technology, Vol. 1, No. 4, October, 1969, pp. 256-258. 2. Ibid. 3. Lloyd S. Nelson, “Evaluating Overlapping Confidence Intervals,” Journal of Quality Technology, Vol. 21, No. 2, April 1989, pp. 140-141. 4. Nathaniel Schenker and Jane Gentleman, “On Judging the Significance of Differences by Examining the Overlap Between Confidence Intervals,” The American Statistician, Vol. 55, No. 3, April 2001, pp. 182-186. 5. Christine M. Anderson-Cook, “Interval Training,” Quality Progress, October 2009, pp. 58-60.

do overlap, then the single-

18 ¯x2 = 17.46

17

interval method may lead to rejection of the claim

16 L2 = 15.15

15 x1

x2

mean1 – mean2 = 0. More information is needed.

CONNIE M. BORROR is a professor in the division of mathematical and natural sciences at Arizona State University West in Glendale. She earned her doctorate in industrial engineering from Arizona State University in Tempe. She is a fellow of ASQ and the American Statistical Association. ­Borror is also editor of Quality Engineering.

April 2012 • QP 53

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54 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

Your Quality Advisor Are you in a bind at work? Are you looking to clarify a term or methodology? Have you run into a problem where nobody seems to have the answer? Do you wish you had a quality mentor? Someone you could turn to when you run into a roadblock? You do. QP’s experts will provide answers and insight to your toughest quality queries. Simply email your situation, question or problem to [email protected], and QP’s subject matter experts will offer their sage advice in our Expert Answers department.

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SGS 

518

Johnson & Johnson

215

The Shingo Prize

210

MEIRxRS328

Society of Manufacturing Engineers 

616

Zimmer228

Sparta Systems

602

StatPoint Technologies Inc.

529

Booth

ASQ Sections, Divisions, and Forums Booth

Booth

Audit Division

334

Healthcare Division

237

Boise State University 

208

Automotive Division

245

BSI 

415

Human Development and Leadership Division

139

639

Inspection Division

143

733

Lean Enterprise Division

736

Measurement Quality Division

743

California State University, Dominguez Hills 

319

Aviation, Space & Defense Division

CEBOS Ltd. 

309

Biomedical Division

Creative Healthcare USA 

509

EMNS-GSQA 

314

Chemical and Process Industries Division

Ennov Solutions

614

EtQ Inc. 

517

IAQG 

744

Customer-Supplier Division

232

Orange Empire Section 0701

745

318

Design and Construction Division

645

IBS America Inc. 

317

Education Division

235

Quality Management Division

242

Implementation Partners LLC 

618

Electronics and Communications Division

Reliability Division

746

Service Quality Division

239

Six Sigma Forum

137

Software Division

635

Statistics Division

236

Team and Workplace Excellence Forum

135

Indianapolis Convention & Visitors Association 700 InfinityQS International 

422

Intelex Technologies Inc. 

615

The Juran Institute Inc. 

747

329

Energy and Environmental Division

647

Master of Business Operational Excellence – The Ohio State University

629

Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Division

737

MasterControl Inc. 

402

Government Division

734

McGraw-Hill 

311

Exhibitors as of March 9. April 2012 • QP 55

power your workforce through Six Sigma and Lean education Six Sigma and Lean start with education. The University of Michigan offers a full suite of Six Sigma and Lean courses. Whether it’s online, in the classroom or a custom offering, we have a delivery option to fit the way your people work and learn.

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Visit us at booth 511 at the ASQ World Conference on Quality and Improvement.

56 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

Special Advertising Section

A special thank you to these

And a special thank you to our

Minitab Inc. – Platinum Sponsor and Lanyard Sponsor

A2LA – American Association for Laboratory Accreditation

SPONSORS 1829 Pine Hall Road State College, PA 16801 814-238-3280 www.minitab.com Booth 403 Minitab is the leading software provider for Lean Six Sigma and quality improvement. Thousands of organizations trust Minitab for tools that yield bottom-line benefits.

MEIRxRS – Career Fair Sponsor

100 North Brand Boulevard, Suite 306 Glendale, CA 91203 Phone: 818-247-1368 www.medexecintl.com Booth 328 MEIRxRS offers customized employment service solutions in the clinical research, regulatory affairs, quality assurance/compliance, and medical affairs functions for the pharmaceutical, medical device, biologics, diagnostics, and biotech industries.

EtQ Inc. – Silver Sponsor

399 Conklin Street, Suite 208 Farmingdale, NY 11735 Phone: 516-293-0949 www.etq.com Booth 517 EtQ’s quality management software identifies, mitigates, and prevents high-risk events in the quality system. Key modules include CAR/PAR, audits, document control, risk assessment, and more.

The Boeing Company – Executive Roundtable Sponsor (Non-exhibiting sponsor) 499 Boeing Boulevard Huntsville, AL 35813 Phone: 256-457-2199 www.boeing.com Boeing, one of the world’s largest defense and space businesses, provides customers with best-of-industry, network-enabled systems, services, and solutions.

The Coca-Cola Company – Executive Roundtable Sponsor (Non-exhibiting sponsor) P.O. Drawer 1734 Atlanta, GA 30301 Phone: 404-676-4893 www.coca-cola.com The Coca-Cola Company is the world’s largest nonalcoholic beverage company. It strives to refresh the world, inspire moments of optimism and happiness, create value, and make a difference.

EXHIBITORS

5301 Buckeystown Pike, Suite 350 Frederick, MD 21704 Phone: 301-644-3248 www.a2la.org Booth 610 A2LA’s primary mission is to provide comprehensive accreditation for laboratories, inspection bodies, proficiency testing providers, reference materials producers, and product certification bodies.

AQS Management Systems Inc. 2167 Northdale Boulevard NW Minneapolis, MN 55433 Phone: 763-746-0505 www.aqsperformance.com Booth 418 AQS Management Systems provides ISO training, coaching, and project assistance in support of organizational improvement and implementation of international management system standards.

Baldrige Performance Excellence Program – NIST

100 Bureau Drive, MS 1020 Gaithersburg, MD 20899-1020 Phone: 301-975-8946 www.nist.gov/baldrige Booth 515 The Baldrige Performance Excellence Program promotes organizational improvement and excellence through assessment, feedback, and sharing of best practices. The program manages the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the highest level of recognition that a U.S. organization can receive for performance excellence.

Ennov Solutions

1233 Diablo Way San José, CA 95120 Phone: 650-619-8151 www.ennov.com Booth 614 As a global software vendor, Ennov Solutions provides an integrated, flexible, Web-based solution to enhance all quality processes (document life cycle, CAPAs, audit follow-up, and training) in a multitude of industries to customers such as Michelin and Novartis, among others.

EtQ Inc.

399 Conklin Street, Suite 208 Farmingdale, NY 11735 Phone: 516-293-0949 www.etq.com Booth 517 EtQ’s quality management software identifies, mitigates, and prevents high-risk events in the quality system. Key modules include CAR/PAR, audits, document control, risk assessment, and more.

IBS America Inc.

125 Hartwell Avenue Lexington, MA 02421 Phone: 781-862-9002 www.ibs-us.com Booth 317 IBS solutions help companies achieve the full benefits of compliance and quality management, including reduced cost and risk and increased customer satisfaction, competitiveness, and profitability.

InfinityQS International

14900 Conference Center Drive, Suite 525 Chantilly, VA 20151 Phone: 800-772-7978 www.infinityqs.com Booth 422 InfinityQS provides quality control solutions to manufacturers worldwide. As the leading SPC software provider, InfinityQS serves companies such as Kraft Foods, the Pepsi Bottling Group, and other large manufacturers.

McGraw-Hill Professional Phone: 212-904-2000 www.mhprofessional.com Booth 311

The National Graduate School of Quality Management

186 Jones Road Falmouth, MA 02540 Phone: 800-838-2580 www.ngs.edu Booth 429 The National Graduate School of Quality Management offers accelerated, accredited degrees in quality systems management and homeland security. Specializations include homeland security, environmental quality management, and healthcare.

StatSoft Inc.

2300 East 14th Street Tulsa, OK 74104 Phone: 918-749-1119 www.statsoft.com StatSoft Inc. provides industry-specific enterprise solutions for integrating analytics with your company’s data repositories for process improvement, root cause analysis, and ongoing process monitoring and control.

University of Michigan

2401 Plymouth Road, Suite A/B Ann Arbor, MI 48105-2193 Phone: 734-674-7200 www.interpro.engin.umich.edu Booth 511 The University of Michigan offers an array of lean and Six Sigma certifications and online master degree programs. Choose from online or classroom delivery options designed to fit your specific business application.

April 2012 • QP 57

Boeing is proud to sponsor the 2012 World Conference on Quality and Improvement.

World Conf 1_6.875 x 4.875.indd 1

2/9/12 2:23 PM

THE COCA-COLA COMPANY

IS PROUD TO PARTNER WITH ASQ At The Coca-Cola Company, our mission is to protect and sustain our system and the communities that we serve. The Company’s Global Quality, Safety & Environment organization is committed to creating a high-performance culture in a safe, sustainable workplace. ASQ World Conference featured speaker:

Carletta Ooton V.P., Chief Quality, Safety & Sustainable Operations Officer The Coca-Cola Company

Monday, May 21st 2012 • 12:15 p.m. – 1:15 p.m. Anaheim Convention Center • Exhibit Hall 800 West Katella Ave. Anaheim, CA 92802 • www.anaheimconventioncenter.com

2012

PROUD

MEMBER The Global Voice of Quality™

58 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

Coca-Cola Quality, Safety & Environment

Special Advertising Section

WEBSITES 20|20 Integrated Solutions

Creative Healthcare

Minitab Inc.

The Shingo Prize

A2LA – American Association for Laboratory Accreditation

EMNS-GSQA

Society of Manufacturing Engineers

Ennov Solutions

The National Graduate School of Quality Management

www.ennov.com

www.ngs.edu

Accelerated Quality Improvement

EtQ Inc.

National Quality Assurance

www.etq.com

www.nqa-usa.com

Actio Software Corporation

Goodrich Aerostructures (Career Fair)

NSF International Strategic Registration

www.goodrich.com

www.nsf-isr.org

IAQG

Orkin Commercial Services

www.sae.org/iaqg

www.orkincommercial.com

AQS Management Systems Inc.

IBS America Inc.

Perry Johnson Consulting Inc.

ASI Datamyte Inc.

Implementation Partners LLC

www.pjcinc.com

www.imppart.com

www.pqsystems.com

InfinityQS International

Productivity Press

www.infinityqs.com

www.crcpress.com

Intelex Technologies Inc.

QI Macros SPC Software for Excel

www.2020is.com.au

www.a2la.org

www.aqionline.com www.actiio.net

American Quality Institute www.iso9000conference.com

www.aqsperformance.com www.asidatamyte.com

ASQ Media Sales/Naylor asq.org/ads/index.html

ASQ Social Responsibility thesro.org

Baldrige Performance Excellence Program – NIST www.nist.gov/baldrige

The Boeing Company www.boeing.com

Boise State University

http://cobe.boisestate.edu/graduate

BSI

www.bsiamerica.com

California State University, Dominguez Hills www.csudh.edu/msqa

CEBOS Ltd.

www.cebos.com

The Coca-Cola Company www.coca-cola.com

www.creative-healthcare.com www.gsqa.com

www.ibs-us.com

www.intelex.com

www.minitab.com

PQ Systems Inc.

Johnson & Johnson (Career Fair)

www.qimacros.com

www.careers.jnj.com

www.qisoft.com

The Juran Institute Inc.

Quality Council of Indiana

www.juran.com

www.qualitycouncil.com

Master of Business Operational Excellence – The Ohio State University

Quality Institute of America Inc.

MasterControl Inc.

www.qualiware.com

McGraw-Hill Professional

www.realitycharting.com

fisher.osu.edu/mboe

www.mastercontrol.com

QiSOFT

www.qi-a.com

QualiWare Inc. RealityCharting

MEIRxRS (Career Fair)

SAS Institute Inc. – JMP Division

www.medexecintl.com

www.jmp.com

Memory Jogger

SGS

www.mhprofessional.com

www.memoryjogger.org

www.shingoprize.org

www.sme.org

Sparta Systems

www.spartasystems.com

StatPoint Technologies Inc. www.statgraphics.com

StatSoft Inc.

www.statsoft.com

Systems2win

www.systems2win.com

Taylor & Francis

www.tandf.co.uk/journals

Thomson Reuters

www.thomsonreuters.com/healthcare

uniPoint Software

www.unipointsoftware.com

University of Michigan College of Engineering http://interpro.engin.umich.edu

University of Scranton

www.scrantonuniversityonline.com

Verify Inc.

www.vscnet.com

VSC

www.vscnet.com/vsc/

VTR Inc.

www.vtri.net

Zimmer (Career Fair) www.zimmer.com

www.sgs.com

Use your smartphone to visit the World Conference on Quality and Improvement mobile site during the conference at team.asq.org/wcqi/. April 2012 • QP 59

AQS Management Systems, Inc.

Your Management Systems Solutions Provider AQS Management Systems, Inc. provides ISO training, coaching, and project assistance in support of organizational improvement and implementation of international management system standards. Our primary focus is to provide cost-effective advice and support to organizations who intend to use their completed management system to generate profit and reduce risks for their organization.

The leader in RABQSA Certified Training

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w w w. a q s p e r f o r m a n c e . c o m

Visit us at booth 418 at the ASQ World Conference on Quality and Improvement.

Join Other ASQ Enrollees Nationwide! Online* Programs Start in the Spring & Fall

Visit us at Booth # 429! At the ASQ World Conference in Anaheim Degrees in Quality Systems Management •

Bachelor of Science Completion* (12 months)

•

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•

Doctor of Business Administration* (DBA) (24 months)

Optional Specializations In: Health Systems | Environmental Quality Mgt Food Safety | Homeland Security

NGS is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEAS&C). NEAS&C may be contacted at [email protected] or 781-271-0022. Certified to Operate by State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV).

Incentives for ASQ members include: • • •

ASQ Tuition Scholarship Waived Application Fee Free Books for the First Course

Visit www.ngs.edu/asq to learn more! *Not available in Massachusetts. NGS is a not-for-profit institution.

WWW.NGS.EDU/ASQ | 800.838.2580 EXT 107 | [email protected] 60 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

Standards Outlook

BY Sandford Liebesman

Revised Thinking Updated guide to internal control keeps you in line with ISO 9001 The Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) was

In addition, many organizations have

of directors’ and audit committees’ roles,

passed in 2002 in response to scandals at

expanded their reporting efforts, moving

management’s philosophy and operating

Enron, Tyco International, Adelphia, World-

to include other types of external report-

style, organizational structures, assign-

Com and other companies. Section 404

ing beyond just financial reporting. If

ment of authority and responsibility, and

requires management and external auditors

management operates in accordance with

HR policies and practices.

to report on the adequacy of the company’s

International Organization for Standardiza-

internal control on financial reporting.1

tion (ISO) quality management standards,

control environment:

it may report publicly on its operations.

1. The organization demonstrates a com-

Early on, guidance from the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Tread-

For example, the entity may conduct an in-

way Commission (COSO) was identified

dependent audit and report on the entity’s

as an effective way of establishing control.

conformance with ISO 9001.

The Securities and Exchange Commission

While changes have been made to each

(SEC) suggests using COSO when firms

of the original five components of COSO,

review their internal control system.

they have not changed in name:

There are five principles applied to the

mitment to integrity and ethical values. 2. The board of directors demonstrates independence of management and exercises oversight for the development and performance of internal control. 3. Management establishes—with board oversight—structures, reporting guide-

COSO developed the internal control integrated framework (ICIF) in 1992 in

1. Control environment

response to the savings and loan scandals

The control environment is the founda-

in the 1980s.2 COSO is now 20 years old

tion for all other components of internal

and is due for an upgrade to incorporate

control. The board of directors and senior

mitment to attract, develop and retain

changes in the financial environment.

management establish the tone regarding

competent individuals in alignment

3

the importance of internal control and ex-

lines and responsibilities in the pursuit of objectives. 4. The organization demonstrates a com-

with objectives.

Raising expectations

pected standards of conduct. The control

Since 1992, business and operating envi-

environment provides discipline, process

accountable for their internal control re-

ronments have changed, and stakeholders’

and structure.

sponsibilities in the pursuit of objectives.

expectations have evolved. In response

4

5. The organization holds individuals

The control environment has changed

to these changes, COSO’s revisions are

greatly in the past 20 years because of the

2. Risk assessment

designed to accomplish the following:

greater complexity of business models,

Risk assessment involves a dynamic and

• Clarify the role of objective-setting.

the expanded use of third parties and

iterative process for identifying and ana-

• Include the increased relevance of

business partners, and the globalization

lyzing risks to achieving the organization’s

of most industries. Because of the new

objectives, forming a basis for determining

complexity, transparency, operations and

how risks should be managed. Manage-

to boards of directors and subcommit-

internal governance have been extended

ment considers possible changes in the

tees, such as audit committees.

beyond financial performance.

external environment and within the orga-

technology. • Enhance governance concepts relating

• Expand reporting categories of objectives beyond financial reporting. • Contain more discussion of potential

Risk-based programs are expected to be more robust and detailed, corporate social responsibility is more important to

nization’s business model that may impede the ability to achieve its objectives.5 In the past few years, organizations

causes of fraud and anti-fraud expecta-

stakeholders, and regulatory requirements

have increased risk taking as evidenced by

tions.

have expanded the discussion of integrity

the financial crisis that began in 2008. As

and ethical values.

the scandals of 2000 triggered the creation

• Consider different business models and organizational structures, including

In addition, the new control environ-

of SOX, the financial crisis of 2008 led to

outsourcing various functions of the

ment must include a commitment to com-

the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and

value chain.

petence and a clearer definition of boards

Consumer Protection Act.6

April 2012 • QP 61

Standards Outlook by a third party. Today, controls are found

information sources and the impact of

to perform an expanded assessment of

throughout the organization, often in

technology over the past 20 years, includ-

risks to the financial system and to make

non-financial environments. For example,

ing the introduction of Google, Wikipedia

general regulatory recommendations on

compliance to ISO 9001 requires gathering

and social networking. Accompanying

risks to government agencies. The result

numerous sets of data to be used in deci-

this expansion is a greater demand for

is that COSO now includes a more risk-

sion making.

information and greater requirements for

Dodd-Frank requires an organization

based approach to internal control and

Control activities are especially impor-

quality, protection and communication.

a clearer description of how it considers

tant in monitoring the status of objectives

Here again, the use of third-party ser-

risk assessment.

and identifying impending risks. Because

vice providers has expanded for internal

objectives must be measurable, controls

processes such as payroll, customer rela-

the establishment of measurable objec-

are used to gather data for each objec-

tions management, data-center operations,

tives, as required by ISO 9001.7 Also, the re-

tive that can be used to determine future

supply chain management and manufac-

vision clarifies risk assessment to include

efforts. The use of the preventive and cor-

turing. Information and communication

processes for risk identification, analysis

rective action tools of ISO 9001 can act as

with outsourced entities has become

and response. To protect against fraud risk,

supports for the control activities of COSO.

critical to organizations.

an organization must consider inadequate

Accompanying the expansion of technology is a greater demand for information.

A pre-condition to risk assessment is

safeguarding of assets and corruption as part of the risk assessment process. In the four principles applied to risk assessment, the organization: 1. Specifies objectives with sufficient clarity to enable the identification and assessment of risks relating to objectives. 2. Identifies risks to the achievement of its objectives across the entity and

In the three principles applied to the

mation and communication, the organiza-

1. Selects and develops control activities

tion:

analyzes risks as a basis for determin-

that help mitigate risks to the achieve-

ing how the risks should be managed.

ment of objectives.

3. Considers the potential for fraud in assessing risks to the achievement of objectives. 4. Identifies and assesses changes that

In the three principles applied to infor-

control activities, the organization:

2. Selects and develops general control activities over technology to support the achievement of objectives. 3. Deploys control activities as mani-

1. Obtains or generates and uses relevant quality information to support the functioning of other components of internal control. 2. Internally communicates information necessary to support the functioning of

could significantly impact the system of

fested in policies that establish what is

other components of internal control,

internal control.

expected and in relevant procedures to

including objectives and responsibili-

affect the policies.

3. Control activities

ties for internal control. 3. Communicates with external parties

Control activities are the actions estab-

4. Information, communication

regarding matters affecting the func-

lished through policies and procedures that

Information is necessary for the organiza-

tioning of other components of internal

help ensure the execution of management’s

tion to carry out internal control respon-

control.

directives to mitigate risks to the achieve-

sibilities in support of the achievement

ment of objectives. Control activities are

of its objectives. Communication occurs

5. Monitoring activities

performed at all levels of the organization,

internally and externally, and provides the

Ongoing evaluations, separate evaluations

at various stages in business processes and

organization with the information needed

or some combination of the two are used

throughout the technology environment.8

to carry out day-to-day internal control

to ascertain whether each of the five com-

activities. Communication enables all

ponents of internal control, including con-

major change affecting control activities.

personnel to understand internal control

trols to affect the principles within each

This includes IT and decentralized meth-

responsibilities and their importance to

component, is present and functioning.

ods—such as mobile, intelligence and

the achievement of objectives.9

The growth of technology has been the

web-based tools—that may be operated

62 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

There has been an expansion of

Ongoing evaluations built into business processes at different levels of the organi-

and employee and customer satisfac-

zation provide timely information. Separate

are categorized as material weaknesses,

evaluations, conducted periodically, will

significant deficiencies, major nonconfor-

vary in scope and frequency depending on

mities and some minor nonconformities

the assessment of risks, effectiveness of

should be reported to senior management

and customers is critical to establishing

ongoing evaluations and other management

and the board of directors.

the appropriate control environment.

considerations. Findings are evaluated

In the two principles applied to the

tion results. • Communication to external suppliers

• Communications from external parties

against management’s criteria, and deficien-

monitoring activities, the organization:

include customer feedback related to

cies are communicated to management and

1. Selects, develops and performs ongoing

product quality, improper charges and

the board of directors as appropriate.10

or separate evaluations to ascertain

missing or erroneous receipts. • Customer information on product qual-

Monitoring is considered in its broader

whether the components of internal

and intended context—assisting manage-

control are present and functioning.

ity may include customer feedback relat-

2. Evaluates and communicates internal

ed to product quality, improper charges,

ment in understanding how all compo-

and missing or erroneous receipts.

nents of internal control are being applied

control deficiencies in a timely manner

and whether the overall system of internal

to the parties responsible for taking

control operates effectively.

corrective action, including senior man-

results of marketing programs, daily

agement and the board of directors.

sales flash reports, production quality,

As part of the monitoring activities,

and employee and customer satisfac-

organizations may conduct ongoing or separate evaluations. For example, the

A few more additions

quality officer of a medium-sized manufac-

The following are specific quality manage-

turing company participates in a monthly

ment inputs added to the revised COSO

production meeting in which he obtains

framework:

information regarding approval of product

• Objectives must be measurable and

modifications. The quality officer’s review

may relate to improving quality—such

includes questions to identify unusual

as avoiding waste and rework—re-

trends or anomalies, investigations and in-

ducing costs and production time,

formation obtained from the investigations

improving innovation, and improving

to modify control activities that authorize other personnel to alter production terms.11 Separate evaluations are usually conducted by the internal audit function. Other means of accomplishing separate evaluations include: • Other objective evaluations. • Cross-operating unit or functional evaluations.

customer and employee satisfaction. • In areas in which management operates in accordance with ISO standards for quality management, it may report publicly on its operations. • A precondition to risk assessment is establishing measurable objectives linked at various levels of the organization. • Setting the overall level of acceptable

• Benchmarking or peer evaluations.

risk and associated risk appetite is part

• Self-assessments.

of strategic planning and enterprise

Outsourced service providers are another monitoring issue. Periodic informa-

risk management. • Risk tolerance is the acceptable level of

tion must be obtained to monitor activities

variation in performance relative to the

and controls used by the service provider.

achievement of objectives.

Often, the organization may attain infor-

• Risk appetite is the broad-based

mation by reviewing an independent audit

amount of risk an organization is will-

or examination report.

ing to accept in pursuit of its mission

After the evaluations are complete,

• Examples of internal reports include

and vision.

the findings should be communicated to

• Examples of internal reports include

the personnel responsible for preventive

results of marketing programs, daily

or corrective action. Deficiencies that

sales flash reports, production quality,

tion results. QP References and note 1. “Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002,” July 30, 2002, www.gpo.gov/ fdsys/pkg/PLAW-107publ204/pdf/PLAW-107publ204.pdf (case sensitive). 2. COSO was formed in 1985 to sponsor the National Commission on Fraudulent Financial Reporting, also known as the Treadway Commission, which consists of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, American Accounting Association, Financial Executives International, Institute of Internal Auditors and the Institute of Management Accountants. For more information, see www.coso.org. 3. The COSO advisory panel recently asked PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP to develop the revision to COSO and J. Stephen McNally, the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) representative for the ICIF, to form an IMA advisory panel to review the revision. The team included IMA COSO Board Member and Chair Emeritus Sandra Richterme. I am the quality management member on the team that helped craft the changes to COSO under public review as of March 2012, including several quality-related aspects.. 4. COSO, “Internal Control—Integrated Framework Executive Summary,” December 2011, www.ic.coso.org/download. aspx. 5. Ibid. 6. “Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act,” July 21, 2010, www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/PLAW111publ203/pdf/PLAW-111publ203.pdf (case sensitive). 7. International Organization for Standardization, ISO 9001:2008—Quality management systems—Requirements, clause 5.4.1. 8. COSO, “Internal Control—Integrated Framework Executive Summary,” see reference 4. 9. Ibid. 10. Ibid. 11. Ibid.

Sandford Liebesman is president of Sandford Quality Consulting in Morristown, NJ, following more than 30 years of experience in quality at Bell Laboratories, Lucent Technologies and Bellcore (Telcordia). He is an ASQ fellow and past chair of the Electronics and Communications Division, and is a member of ISO technical committee 176 and the ANSI Z-1 committee on quality assurance.

April 2012 • QP 63

QPToolbox Data logger Onset’s Hobo UX90 occupancy and light logger is a matchbox-sized, LCD-display data logger that tracks building occupancy and light usage to pinpoint areas in a building that could benefit from occupancy sensors and other energy-saving initiatives. Building owners, facility managers, energy auditors and lighting contractors will use the data loggers to collect time-stamped data documenting each time room occupancy or lighting status changes. The UX90 data loggers streamline energy audits After data has been recorded with the logger, it can be viewed in graph form using accompanying HOBOware software and printed for use in reports. The data

amps, and the BU-46C-XL is constructed of

trol charting and analysis. Data can be

also can be exported to Microsoft Excel for

solid copper and is rated to 75 amps, with

retrieved from the following:

more detailed analysis.

a heavy-duty plated spring and matched

• Microsoft Access.

• Call: 800-564-4377.

clinching ears to grip the wire securely at

• SQL Server.

• Visit: www.onsetcomp.com.

the end of the leg. The clips are assembled

• Microsoft Excel.

with PVC insulators in red or black with

CHARTrunner Lean updates your charts

Clips

crimp or solder connection. Jaws are also

in real time. After you create a chart, you

Mueller Electric has announced models

able to secure solidly on terminals, with

can save and reuse your chart or series

BU-46A-XL and BU-46C-XL, a series of

quick and secure wire attachment.

of charts. Each time you open a chart, it

miniature plier-style clips with long polyvi-

• Call: 800-955-2629.

automatically grabs the latest source data

nyl chloride (PVC) insulators, designed for

• Visit: www.muellerelectric.com.

and updates with a new chart. You can

applications in which additional shielding

also set a specific refresh interval for any

may be required, such as testing, trickle

Software

chart to update with the latest data so you

charging and timing.

CHARTrunner Lean from PQ Systems

can make timely decisions.

The model BU-46A-XL is constructed of copper-plated steel and is rated to 50

retrieves data from various sources and presents it for statistical process con-

When browsing created charts, you can easily find the chart you need by viewing thumbnail images. Multiple charts can be displayed on one screen and arranged with a click of the mouse. CHARTrunner Lean also can evaluate your data in various chart formats. • Call: 800-777-3020. • Visit: www.pqsystems.com.

64 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

Pressure transducer

tions in material

Setra Systems’ AccuSense model ASM

science laboratories.

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The latest version of

provide overpressure protection within

the software features

demanding test environments.

high dynamic-range

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imaging, streamlined

perature compensated, with a total

document storage

error band of less than ±0.25% full scale,

and retrieval and im-

minimizing thermal errors and making

aging, data-handling and reporting tools.

outputs unaffected by environmental

Version 1.7’s high dynamic-range

temperature range of -40°C to +125°C. It has the capability to accept up to

temperature shifts. A hydrophobic

imaging is useful when displaying im-

four resistance temperature detector

porous plug at the top of the unit also

ages with dark and bright areas that

(RTD) sensor inputs and four individual

protects its recessed air vent from envi-

require viewing, measuring or analysis.

RTD current sensor outputs. The M-

ronmental contaminants.

Users also can load and save acquisition

RTD features galvanic isolation on all

parameters directly in the camera con-

electrical and data connections, with

industrial, laboratory R&D and test cell

trol tool window, batch process images

components housed within a compact

requirements, including engine diag-

in macros, analyze multiple images and

and lightweight anodized aluminum

nostics, refrigeration testing, engine

output results to a single spreadsheet.

dynamometer testing and analysis.

• Call: 484-896-5792.

• Call: 800-257-3872.

• Visit: www.olympus-ims.com.

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Data acquisition module Software

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Got a quality product? Send your product description and photo to [email protected].

April 2012 • QP 65

QPReviews Medical Device Design and Regulation

or decertifying the facility. Chapter eight,

honestly evaluating your systems is not

the final chapter, covers all this informa-

easy. This book clearly translates the

Carl T. DeMarco, ASQ Quality Press, 2011,

tion in-depth. The author wisely doesn’t

criteria language, the requirements and

368 pp., $66 member, $110 list (book and

try to cover all the statistical methods for

provides help in getting started, best prac-

CD-ROM)

designing, testing and evaluating medi-

tices, implementation and assessments.

This book is a com-

cal devices, which probably would have

prehensive volume

doubled the book’s size.

providing every-

Because the criteria are constantly evolving, this edition also addresses crite-

Also included are extensive appendixes

ria changes for 2011-2012. An accompa-

thing you need to

with websites, references and a wonder-

nying CD-ROM references the 2011-2012

understand medical

ful lexicon of all the abbreviations used

changes and provides additional informa-

devices. It is well or-

in the book and by regulatory agencies. A

tion and tools.

ganized and starts

CD-ROM is supplied with supplementary

at the design and

reference material.

The Baldrige criteria apply to every organization regardless of size or interest in

regulatory stages,

I. Elaine Allen

receiving the award. Blazey has compiled

moves through the regulatory system of

Babson College

a well organized and salient compendium

the U.S. Federal Drug Administration (FDA)

Wellesley, MA

and goes further to post-approval marketing and surveillance. The book can be used as a reference

of organizational assessment knowledge that will help organizations improve

Insights to Performance Excellence 2011-2012

performance. This is the book’s greatest value.

and a teaching text. DeMarco has included

Mark L. Blazey, ASQ Quality Press, 2011,

interesting and useful exercises at the end

384 pp., $56 member, $92 list (book and

gold, this is your book. But even if you’re

of each chapter. These are less on testing

CD-ROM).

not, this is a good manual on how to

and are more informative.

As America’s

For example, chapter four discusses

improve your organization.

highest recogni-

clinical trials, their use for devices and the

tion for quality, the

certification steps necessary in an applica-

Malcolm Baldrige

tion. The exercises following the chapter

National Quality

include searching the Codex website to

Award sets high

find out the international regulations for

standards. Reach-

a device—useful information that is not

ing such lofty levels

covered in-depth in the chapter.

of performance

While there are sections on quality and

If you’re planning to go for the Baldrige

James Kotterman Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center Plymouth, MI

101 Project Management Problems and How to Solve Them

can be a long and daunting challenge

Tom Kendrick, Amacom, 2010, 272 pp.,

auditing of devices, and clinical and non-

for any organization. Blazey has written

$19.95 (book).

clinical trials for submiting a new device

a clear and approachable text on the

A project manager

for approval, two chapters focus on this

Baldrige award and how to use the criteria

can be faced with

specifically. Chapter seven examines qual-

to achieve organizational performance

an infinite number

ity systems and current good manufactur-

excellence.

of issues even while

ing practice (GMP) guidelines. After ap-

The book represents far more than just

working on a small

proval, the FDA can, and often will, inspect

a how-to reference manual on the Bald-

project. Managing

manufacturing plants for new medical

rige award criteria. The Baldrige frame-

project challenges,

devices to ensure compliance with GMPs

work is well developed; however, translat-

as well as surviving

and to enforce this with warning letters

ing the criteria into actionable items and

in today’s world,

66 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

requires skill, experience and the willing-

modified the methods so they are aligned

ness to listen to other people. This book

with the needs in the public health sector.

offers lessons and tips in avoiding issues,

Using QFD is a way to translate

• Individual: Uses tools that support the specific task. Overall, I really like this book, even

problems, overruns, delays and personnel

customer requirements into appropriate

though it does contain a mistake. For ex-

matters. Kendrick offers his own experi-

features at each development stage. The

ample, the description of the Kano model

ence and lessons learned in every chapter.

aim is to ensure

The primary and unexpected feature

that the voice of

is not good. This is a structured and balanced book

is the author’s focus on people and hu-

the customer is

written on a suitable level and is motivat-

man resources. He discusses employees

fully understood

ing and inspiring. There are also many

throughout the book; he treats them care-

and incorporated

examples and illustrations from the public

fully and with respect and offers tips on

throughout the

health sector supporting the discussion.

motivation, communication and listening

design and develop-

skills, and ultimately covers monitoring

ment of a product

Luleå University of Technology

or service. LSS is a

Sweden

and performance. The book is well written. It’s direct and formatted similarly to areas of the project

natural partner to QFD. The concepts are illustrated at different

management body of knowledge. Sections

levels:

open with a project-related question. This

• Macro: Addresses the strategic

additional framing of a question adds a quick way for the reader to gauge how to use the author’s insights and whether to use his advice. This book is nicely written and unwavering in its focus. Readers will find it to be a useful tool to keep around for a long time. Frank Pokrop

integration of long-term approaches to meet overall priority outcomes. • Meso: Contains planning and deploy-

Bengt Klefsjö

Recent Releases Lean Management Principles for Information Technology, Series on Resource Management

ment of programs that translate the

Gerhard J. Plenert, CRC Press, 2011, 368

strategic vision into specific programs

pp., $79.95 (book).

and departments. • Micro: Encompasses the health depart-

A Career in Statistics

ment projects and programs instituted

Gerald J. Hahn and Necip Doganaksoy,

at the functional unit level.

Wiley, 2011, 360 pp., $69.95 (book).

Carefusion San Diego

Quality Function Deployment and Lean Six Sigma Applications in Public Health Grace L. Duffy, John W. Moran and William J. Riley, ASQ Quality Press, 2010, 195 pp., $38 member, $63 list (book). The purpose of this book is to introduce quality function deployment (QFD) and lean Six Sigma (LSS) methods to public health professionals so that they can implement quality improvements within their own agencies. The authors have

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23-24 Assuring Product Safety, Supplier Control and Risk Management and Production Liability Prevention. Irvine, CA. Visit Randall Goodden International at www.randallgoodden.com or e-mail [email protected].

If you’d like your event included in QP Calendar, submit information at least three months in advance to [email protected]. Non-ASQ organizations may list one event

VISIT WWW.ASQ.ORG/LEARNINGINSTITUTE FOR DETAILS.

68

QP • www.qualityprogress.com

per issue.

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Share Your Quality Journey QP occasionally includes an interesting, personal quality story in its “Quality in the First Person” column. If you are interested in sharing your story— how you got into the quality field, how it has helped your organization or your career or how quality has enhanced your personal life— email [email protected].

One Good Idea

BY Keith M. Bower and Abraham Germansderfer

Complicated Comparison Assessing comparability based on limited data LIMITED DATA availability complicates

(such as a normal distribution) with a cer-

the comparability criteria—namely, the

an assessment of whether two populations

tain confidence level (1 - α). For example,

statistical power for a TOST approach and

are comparable. Historically, comparability

a 95/99% TI covers 99% of a population

the probability of all three values from

is determined using a variety of techniques,

with 95% confidence. Data from the new

population B falling inside the TI. The

including equivalency of means and vari-

process would need to fall inside the TI

results are shown in Figure 1 and Online

ances, and—often incorrectly—Student’s

calculated from the old process to exhibit

Table 1, found on this article’s webpage at

two-sample t-test.1 But limited data greatly

comparability.

www.qualityprogress.com.

reduces the power of these methods, so

Note that the TI approach has sev-

If there is a one standard deviation

an alternative method for demonstrating

eral disadvantages compared with TOST,

difference across the means of A and B,

comparability is required.

including:

there is about a 70% chance of incorrectly

• The TI approach is not a hypothesis-

concluding the means are equal using

Statistical equivalency tests,2 such as two one-sided t-tests (TOST), are widely

based test, meaning a p-value is not

TOST. But the chance jumps to more

accepted as a way to demonstrate compara-

generated.

than 99% using the TI approach. Figure 1

bility. The amount of data collected should

• Comparability is more difficult to cor-

shows the TI approach tends to conclude

ensure the test is adequately powered.

rectly show with increasing new process

comparability more frequently than the

When limited data are available, TOST may

data because one or more values could

TOST approach, regardless of the actual

be unable to declare equivalency even when

fall outside the interval by chance alone.

difference across the two means.

the two population means are equal.

When insufficient data exist to power a

Using an SPA, all stakeholders can be

statistical equivalency test such as TOST,

made aware of the benefits and drawbacks

tolerance interval (TI) can be used to set

the TI method may be an appropriate alter-

associated with statistical approaches. A

the comparability criteria.3 TI calculations

native. A useful technique to consider the

reasonable comparability strategy then

are typically available in statistical software

adequacy of each approach is to perform a

may be decided on before collecting and

packages and discussed in most introduc-

statistical performance assessment (SPA).

analyzing data. QP

As an alternative approach, a statistical

Consider a scenario in which 10 values

tory statistics textbooks. A TI covers a proportion (p) of a probability distribution

are sampled from population A (the old process) and three values

Probability of concluding comparability

Statistical performance assessments for comparability studies / figure 1

from population B (the new process). To calculate the SPA, assume the following: • A and B are normally

1

distributed with

0.8

equal variances.

• The TOST goalpost is 0.6

TOST

0.4

TI

0.2

2.5 times the standard

deviation of A. • A 90/99% TI will be calculated using data

0 0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

Difference between means in standard deviation units TOST = two one-sided t-tests TI = tolerance interval

3

from A. It is possible to calculate the prob-

References 1. Giselle B. Limentani, Moira C. Ringo, Feng Ye, Mandy L. Bergquist and Ellen O. McSorley, “Beyond the T-test: Statistical Equivalence Testing,” Analytical Chemistry, Vol. 77, No. 11, 2005, pp. 221-226. 2. I. Elaine Allen and Christopher A. Seaman, “Superiority, Equivalence and Non-Inferiority,” Quality Progress, February 2007, pp. 52-54. 3. Reed Harris, “Comparability Assessment Strategies and Techniques for Post-Approval CMC Changes,” Fabian Lectures, 2008. KEITH M. BOWER is a principal quality engineer at Amgen Inc. in Seattle. He earned a master’s degree in quality management and productivity from the University of Iowa in Iowa City. Bower is a senior member of ASQ and an ASQ-certified quality engineer, process analyst, technician and improvement associate. ABRAHAM GERMANSDERFER is an associate director at Gilead Sciences in San Dimas, CA. He earned a master’s degree in biotechnology from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts.

ability of meeting

April 2012 • QP 71

Back to Basics

BY Scott Force

Creative Combination 3 tools to jump-start a lean Six Sigma project SINCE 2002, I have been facilitating lean

cle in Figure 1, or the recurring systemic

Six Sigma projects and coaching other

causes showing up in multiple locations,

the left side of the matrix and the outputs

belts through their projects. Combining

shown in Online Figure 1. But what do we

from the SIPOC diagram along the top

tools is a technique I use with teams when

do in the case of Online Figure 2?

allows teams to rate the relationship each

potential root cause analysis through a

By combining the completed fishbone

Putting the causes from a fishbone on

cause has with each output, helping to

fishbone diagram does not show any obvi-

diagram with two other tools from our

rank and prioritize potential causes the

ous direction.

Six Sigma tool kit, we can take a strategic

team should investigate first.

approach to proceed.

Fishbone diagram

A completed cause and effect matrix is shown in Online Table 2. The top portion

From using the fishbone diagram, most

SIPOC diagram

shows the outputs from a SIPOC diagram

quality professionals know there are usu-

Using a suppliers, inputs, process, outputs

for making a hamburger. The left side

ally three outcomes:

and customers (SIPOC) diagram, map the

shows the results of a fishbone diagram.

1. One of the bones in the diagram is full

high-level flow for the process to which

In this example, only main causes are

of potential causes, leading a team to

the fishbone diagram is tied. The key

shown, but it is recommended that a team

focus on a particular area (Figure 1).

items we will use from this tool are the list

use the five whys and display the lowest-

of outputs (Online Figure 3).

level causes on the diagram.

indicating a systemic cause that, if

Cause and effect matrix

the hamburger has the greatest relation-

eliminated, will address several areas

The cause and effect matrix shown in

ship with our SIPOC outputs, indicating

of concern (see Online Figure 1, found

Online Table 1 is what ties together the

the team should focus on that cause

on this article’s webpage at www.

outputs of the fishbone diagram with the

first.

qualityprogress.com).

outputs from the SIPOC diagram. Part of

2. The same potential root causes appear

In this generic example, overcooking

in several bones of the diagram,

the quality function deployment house of

Tool teamwork

the diagram, and all bones show sev-

quality, the cause and effect matrix is the

While the SIPOC diagram focuses on de-

eral potential causes (Online Figure 2).

center section of the house and is also

sired outcomes and the fishbone diagram

In the first two cases, the team has

known as a relationship matrix.

focuses on the undesired causes of a

3. No common cause is seen throughout

some direction by strategically focusing on the particular bone, shown by the cir-

The details of completing a cause and effect matrix are beyond the scope of this column. But the basic

Several potential causes on one bone / figure 1 Man

Machine

problem, creatively combining these tools provides the team with more options on how to proceed with the project.

process uses a cross-

As a lean Six Sigma practitioner, you

multiplication method

should begin to see how many of the tools

in which each row and

and techniques naturally work together

column intersection is

to provide a more focused approach on

scored by the team for the

process improvement. QP

degree of relationship and is multiplied with a rating Effect

of importance provided by the customer. Each of these multiplications is added across the horizon-

Method

Material

tal row, providing the final score at the far right.

72 QP • www.qualityprogress.com

SCOTT FORCE is a Six Sigma Master Black Belt trained by Sigma Breakthrough Technologies Inc. with more than 20 years of quality improvement experience in the healthcare, automotive and power equipment industries. He earned a bachelor’s degree in manufacturing engineering from Miami University in Oxford, OH. A senior member of ASQ, Force is an ASQ-certified quality technician, engineer and Six Sigma Black Belt.

Don’t Miss This in the ASQ Knowledge Center The ASQ Knowledge Center is your online resource for everything related to quality. Explore hot topics, tools, and real stories about quality improvement.

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In this introduction to one of ASQ’s most popular series of webcasts, Dr. Jack ReVelle provides an overview and example for each of the seven basic quality control tools: data tables, Pareto analysis, scatter analysis, cause and effect analysis, trend analysis, histograms, and control charts.

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