Quality Assurance Books

Book SynopsisSystems Thinking for a Turbulent World will help practitioners in any field of change engage more effectively in transformative innovation. Such innovation addresses the paradigm shift needed to meet the diverse unfolding global challenges facing us today, often summed up as the Anthropocene. Fragmentation of local and global societies is escalating, and this is aggravating vicious cycles. To heal the rifts, we need to reintroduce the human element into our understandings â whether the context is civic or scientific â and strengthen truth-seeking in decision-making. Aided by appropriate concepts and methods, this healing will enable a switch from reaction to anticipation, even in the face of discontinuous change and high uncertainty. The outcome is to privilege the positive human skills for collaborative navigation through uncertainty over the disjointed rationality of mechanism and artificial intelligence, which increasingly alienates us. The reader in searchTable of ContentsList of Figures and Tables, Acknowledgements, Preface, Introduction, CHAPTER 1 – HEALING OUR FRAGMENTED WORLD, Step 1 Seeking the Ox., Thinking Differently, A Systems Worldview, CHAPTER 2 – REHABILITATING THE OBSERVER, Step 2 Finding the Tracks., Paradigm Shift, Thread 1 – Presence of the Observer, Thread 2 – Observation, Intervention and Ethics, Thread 3 – Reflexivity and Reciprocity, Thread 4 – Circularity and Re-entry, Thread 5 - Reflection and Perception, Thread 6 – Transdisciplinarity, Thread 7 – Multi-perspective Dialogic, Weaving the Threads, CHAPTER 3 – REPERCEIVING THE FUTURE, Step 3 - First Glimpse of the Ox. , Changing Boundary Perception, Anticipating the Unpredictable, The Three Horizons, Deepening the Paradigm Shift, CHAPTER 4 - ANTICIPATORY SYSTEMS ARE DIFFERENT, Step 4 Catching the Ox., Foresight as Anticipation, From First-order to Second-order Anticipatory Systems, Taking a Transdisciplinary Viewpoint, The Structure of the Anticipatory Present Moment, CHAPTER 5 CULTIVATING DECISION INTEGRITY, Step 5 Taming the Ox., The Trap of Rationality, Decision as Learning, The Notion of undecidable questions, The Navigational Implications of Second-Order Decision, Implications for Management and Governance, , CHAPTER 6 – THE CO-CREATIVE WAY, Step 6 Riding the Ox Home., Pattern Thinking, The Gestalt of Pattern Recognition, The Practice of Repatterning, Participative Repatterning, Cognitive Kinetics, Idonics – the Key Tool, Facilitating Participative Repatterning, CHAPTER 7 – TRANSFORMING IN THE NOW, Step 7 - The Ox Out of Sight, the Self Alone., Perception within the Present Moment, The Four Modes of Anticipation, An Exercise of Anticipatory Consciousness , APM Exercise 1 – The Stretch, APM Exercise 2 – Reflexive Questions, Tapping Our Potential , Getting to Grips with The Now, CHAPTER 8 – NATURAL SYSTEMS THINKING, Systems Thinking as Qualitative Practice, References, Index

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Book SynopsisA straightforward explanation of root cause analysis and systems thinking, illustrating, with real-world examples and first-hand accounts, why things can slip through our fingers' and what to do to reduce the chances of things going off track. Beyond the Five Whys summarises, for the first time, many of the tried and tested ways of understanding problems using insights from aviation, high reliability organisations and a range of thought-provoking sources. The book provides readers with a clear and structured explanation how to analyse setbacks and head off problems in the first place. It will challenge much of the received wisdom, such as the idea there can be one root cause or that a person or bad culture could be a root cause. Specific areas covered: Learn what root causes are, how they differ from immediate and contributing causes and why it's so important to go beyond the Five Whys technique for root cause analysis. Recalibrate the way you think about things going wrong, incorporating insights from systems thinking, so you can be clearer what cultural' or systemic problems mean in practice. Learn about the eight principal ways things can slip through our fingers. Go beyond the blame game and firefighting to avoid the never ending cycle of repeating issues. Strengthen your ability to read the output of a lessons learned' or enquiry report. Get a fresh perspective, using these techniques, on why the Titanic tragedy turned out so badly, and understand the numerous parallels between what happened then and a range of recent setbacks we have seen, such as the Covid 19 pandemic. Consider the broader application of these techniques to some of the challenges we face in the 21st century. Beyond the Five Whys also contains supplemental guidance how to make improvements in an organisation. It is of value to business managers and those in specialist roles such as GRC, ESG, risk, compliance, quality, project management, H&S, IT, and internal audit roles.Table of ContentsIntroduction ix Section 1: A High-level Overview of RCA and Systems Thinking 1 Chapter 1: Critical Points Concerning Root Cause Analysis (RCA) 3 Chapter 2: The Fishbone Diagram and Eight Ways of Understanding Why 15 Chapter 3: Systems Thinking and Eight Ways to Understand Why, with Connections 23 Section 2: Eight Ways to Understand Why, With Connections 43 Chapter 4: Setting Appropriate Strategies, Goals, and Understanding Risks 45 Chapter 5: Having Timely, Accurate Data, Information and Communications 63 Chapter 6: Setting Appropriate Roles, Responsibilities, Accountabilities and Authorities 79 Chapter 7: Ensuring a Suitable Design 93 Chapter 8: Understanding and Accommodating External Factors 103 Chapter 9: Effective Building, Maintenance and Change 119 Chapter 10: Understanding and Adapting to ‘Human Factors’ 139 Chapter 11: Addressing Resources, Priorities and Dilemmas 167 Chapter 12: The Titanic Tragedy and Parallels with Modern Disasters 185 Section 3: Taking Action, Now and in the Future 215 Chapter 13: The Challenges with Action Planning 217 Chapter 14: Where Are We Now and Looking Ahead 229 Appendix A: Practical Advice on Action Planning 243 Appendix B: Practical Advice to Improve RCA in an Organisation 251 Appendix C: Practical Advice for Internal Audit and Others in an Audit or Inspection Role 267 Acknowledgements 287 Notes 289 Index 331

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Table of ContentsContentsForeword by Peter M. SengePrefacePART ONE: FCT INTRODUCTION AND CORE CONCEPTS1. Implementing Fast Cycle Time: The Simultaneous Act of Letting Go and Adding On2. Be Fast or Be Last: The Competitive Mandate for Fast Cycle Time3. Fast Cycle Time: The Basics4. Systems and Organizational Learning: The Foundation for Fast Cycle TimePART TWO: FCT IMPLEMENTATION5. Strategic Alignment: Moving Up and to the Left6. Structuring for Speed: Designing and Implementing Multifunctional Teams7. FCT Process Redesign8. Tools and Tactics to Speed Product Development9. Implementation Dynamics and Measures10. Leaders Pave the Road AheadNotesIndex

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Book SynopsisAlways interesting and informed, national award-winning journalist Mark Hagland demonstrates how pioneering organizations are combining new tools with a new way of thinking to reinvent the way we deliver health care services in this country. Through exceptionally well-documented case studies, this insightful volume Puts the current journey towards industry-wide quality transformation into an understandable context for executive, board, and policymaking audiences Explores how performance improvement methodologies borrowed from other industries, including Six Sigma, Lean management, and the Toyota Production System are transforming care delivery processes and administrative operations nationwide Examines the strategic role that information technology will play in the transformation of clinical care quality and patient safety The case studies contained in this book document the surprising strides being madTrade ReviewMark Hagland provides the how-to details for health care executives who are ready to lead meaningful supply-side responses to the growing demand for safe and error-free medical services. Our previous book made the case for transformation and introduced structural approaches for getting started on the road to success. His new book provides detailed instructions for completing the journey. ... It shows how theory has been put into practice by some of the best delivery organizations in the world --Jeffrey C. Bauer, PhD, Partner, Futures Practice Affiliated Computer Services Healthcare Solutions, ChicagoTable of ContentsIntroduction: The Long, Long, Long Journey to Quality In Health Care (Or How Did It Come To This?). A Brief History of Quality and Not-Quality in Health Care, and How Purchasers, Payers and Consumers Are Busy Reframing the Whole Discussion. Pressures from Purchasers and Payers: A Look at Demographic Trends, Pay for Performance, Consumer-Directed Health Care, and Other Trends. What is Transformative Quality? And How Is the Concept of Quality Being Actively Redefined in the Health Care Industry? Six Case Studies in Transformative Quality. Information Technology and Quality. Policy Implications, Future Forecasts. Appendix (Resources, Terms). Index.

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Book SynopsisWhat Works for GE May Not Work for You: Using Human Systems Dynamics to Build a Culture of Process Improvement provides new tools for managing and sustaining process improvement in today's complex non-linear environments and helps readers apply new, relevant theory to their own management practices. With more than 50 combined years of change management and process improvement consulting experience, the authors offer valuable practical insights for creating dynamic organizational change.The first section of the book describes the key bodies of knowledge and process improvement processes (Lean, Six Sigma, and Human Systems Dynamics) used throughout the text. The next two sections focus on the case story of TryinHard Marine. The authors first highlight the dynamics of a typical linear process improvement implementation. They then present ways to combat a range of complex, non-linear, and emergent organizational issues as they arise during the implementation ofTrade Review"I found What Works for GE May Not Work for You: Using Human Systems Dynamics to Build a Culture of Process Improvement to be theoretically sound, practical, and easy to read and understand. Blending traditional models and new thinking, the authors have certainly provided food for thought for those struggling to make process improvement a way of life in their teams and organizations. I believe these ideas and tools can help you build capacity for yourself, your team, and your organization to respond creatively and effectively to complex change."—From the Foreword by Glenda H. Eoyang, Founding Executive Director, Human Systems Dynamics Institute, Circle Pines, Minnesota, USA"This book is a profound shift for those seeking to implement continuous improvement efforts within their organization. The system may be suffering for many reasons—customers not getting what they want and need, organizations not getting the extra mileage out of the tremendous efforts requiring employee attention and engagement, and individuals not feeling they are making a significant difference. Process improvement efforts have been designed as linear or mechanistic approaches to fix technical problems. However, it is human interaction that accomplishes the tasks and humans are complex and definitely not linear! Solow and Fake offer a unique approach for organizations experiencing rapid change. They offer tips for beginning or re-engaging in a continuous improvement effort. Most importantly, the authors paint a picture of the dynamics which can cause derailment and offer a different language for moving projects forward. This is a ‘must-read’ book for anyone involved in Lean, Six Sigma or other process improvement initiatives."—Kristine Quade, author of Dynamical Leadership: Building Adaptive Capacity for Uncertain Times (2010)"We’d all like to think our rational, logical approaches to process improvement will work every time—but too often they don’t. Why? The world is messy, things happen we didn’t predict, and random events get in the way.This book approaches process improvement from the perspective of the world as it is, not as we wish it was. It incorporates several disciplines we typically don’t access when we’re doing process improvement: chaos theory, Lean, Six Sigma, and Human Systems Dynamics. Want to increase your success rate on process improvement? Read this book and incorporate its ideas into your approach."—Dr. Warren Wilhelm, DBA Harvard Business School, and President, Global Consulting Alliance"As an industrial statistician, I have found only half the job was finding statistical solutions to the technical problems. The other half was finding ways to enable the organization to leverage the statistical results. Unfortunately, making changes stick often is where we fail because we don’t recognize the messy reality of our situation. This book provides practical approaches to effectively implementing process improvements that adapt to the situation at hand rather than trying to fit a linear and overly specific ‘square peg’ solution into the chaotic ‘round hole’ of the real world. Solow and Fake use an effective comparison of two stories to highlight effective approaches to implementing a process improvement culture. The traditional version is so true-to-life, you will think they are writing about your organization. The adaptive change version addresses all those failure modes you have encountered in making change. Read this for a more effective approach to implementing your changes. This book will make your Lean Six Sigma efforts stick."—John V. Grice, Ph. D., Industrial Statistician, Six Sigma Master Black BeltTable of ContentsWhat?. So What?. "So What?"—Take 2. "Now What". Recommended Reading. Index.

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Book SynopsisLove, learn, let go. Three decisions. Three actions. Three habits. Together, these offer leaders insight (Leadersights) into the true nature of leadership and can create the type of workplace that can thrive in a demanding future.Leadersights: Creating Great Leaders Who Create Great Workplaces focuses on how organizations of all types can create a leader-development system that defines critical leader behaviors, provides simple techniques for building and improving the skills that drive those behaviors, and establishes a mechanism for monitoring and enforcing those behaviors. This book details how leaders can do the same for their employees; defining and promoting behaviors required for sustaining continuous change. In addition, it synthesizes current research on change, servant leadership, group and team dynamics, job satisfaction, intrinsic motivation, psychological flow, and individual self-efficacy.If you are stuck in a culture of compliance where an increasingly fTable of ContentsChallenging Times Facing Organizations. Behavior. Vision and MetaVision: Setting the Values before Setting the Strategy. Short Interval Leadership. Teams–The Most Important Structural Feature for the Future. Visual Leadership. The Role of Standardized Work. A New Suggestion System.

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Book SynopsisQuality is a form of management that is composed of the double approach of driving an organization towards excellence, while conforming to established standards and laws. The objective of quality confers advantages to companies: it makes them more resilient to change that can be unexpected or even chaotic; it makes them more competitive by identifying those steps in processes that do not offer added value. No longer the concern of a small community of experts, even scientists and engineers working in the private sector will find that they will have to con- front questions related to quality management in their day-to-day professional lives. This volume offers such people an unique entry into the universe of quality management, providing not only a cartography of quality standards and their modes of application with particular attention to the ISO standards but also a broader cultural context, with chapters on the history, prizes, deontology and moral implications of systems of quality management. This book thus opens the door to all those eager to take the first steps to learning how the principles of quality are organized today, and how they can be applied to his or her own activity.Table of ContentsThe Environment of QualityThe Quality Approach: Concepts and DefinitionsThe History of QualityThe ISO 9000 Family of Quality Management SystemsSafety of the Food Chain and the ISO 22000 FamilyQuality Management in Laboratories: ISO 17025Key ISO Management SystemsTotal Quality: Personalities that Stand OutTotal Quality Management: PricesThe Toyota Way and the Toyota Production System (TPS)Quality Control and the Six-Sigma ApproachMoral and Ethical ElementsDeontology of Professions and FunctionsEnvironmental Management and the ISO 14000 FamilySocial Responsibility of Organizations and ISO 26000

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Book SynopsisUpdated yearly to match changing requirements, this guide is designed to help you understand the criteria for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. The Baldrige criteria are being used by thousands of organizations around the world to evaluate their progress toward becoming the best in their fields. This 17th edition of The Pocket Guide to the Baldrige Criteria begins with commonly asked questions about the Award criteria. It then breaks down the 19 items under the seven category headings of the Baldrige criteria with concise explanation and quick tips of what excellent companies do in each area.Table of ContentsIntroduction QUESTIONS & ANSWERS THE BALDRIGE CRITERIA Leadership, Strategic Planning, Customer Focus, Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management, Workforce Focus, Process Management, Results, ADDITIONAL READING

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Book SynopsisLean Transformations for Small and Medium Enterprises: Lessons Learned from Italian Businesses summarizes two decades of research, teaching, and practice on lean thinking.Based on quantitative analysis of 100 cases of Lean transformations and 20 in-depth case studies of successfully transformed SMEs, it explains how to undertake lean transformations that lead to operational and financial performance improvement, and uses the Lean Transformation Framework --conceptualized by John Shook at the Lean Enterprise Instituteas a practical approach to design and de-risk the transformation process.SMEs' leaders wishing to undertake and sustain a lean transformation must: Make a serious and lasting commitment to transform, avoiding the temptation to change course of action; Choose accurately the value streams that require improvement as defined by strategy deployment; Build capabilities to sustain the transformation; <Trade Review"This book summarises the lessons that can be learnt from big and small companies in Italy that used lean to help them survive and grow in difficult economic times. Read it to follow their example." -Daniel T Jones, Chairman, Lean Enterprise Academy, UK and Author The Machine that Changed the World and Lean Thinking: Banish Waste and Create Wealth in Your Corporation "What does the experience of Italian SMEs have to say about your enterprise transformation? Everything! In Lean Transformations for Small and Medium Enterprises: Lessons Learned from Italian Businesses, author Arnaldo Camuffo provides analysis with usefulness that transcends national borders. In a detailed and comprehensive examination of the success and failure modes of companies going through a lean transformation, Camuffo extrapolates lessons that managers, investors, academicians, and policy makers in any country will find interesting and useful. " -John Shook, Chairman and CEO, Lean Enterprise Institute Chairman, Lean Global Network "Lean Transformations in Small and Medium Enterprises addresses the relatively neglected world of lean in smaller companies—representing an enormous swath of the economy in the industrialized world. Using a wealth of data and case studies Camuffo’s book tells a compelling story of what works and doesn’t work in transforming SMEs and brilliantly translates it into practical terms." -Peter T. Ward, Professor, Ross Chair in Management, and Director, Center for Operational Excellence, Max M. Fisher College of Business, Ohio State University. "A fantastic read. You'll find vivid, real-life illustrations of the Lean Transformation Framework in dynamic businesses and garner new insights into lean thinking in this remarkable book about lean - with Italian style." -Michael Ballé, co-author of The Gold Mine trilogy and co-founder of the Institut Lean France "In Lean Transformations for SMEs, Arnaldo Camuffo vividly depicts how lean is transforming the heart of the Italian and of the global economy. Over 95% of OECD firms are SMEs, contributing to over 60% of employment. Many of them –in Italy and elsewhere- are Genba-people-oriented and community-embedded. With evidence coming from a wealth of cases and data, Camuffo provides a roadmap to successful lean transformations, particularly when economic conditions are unstable." -Takahiro Fujimoto, Professor, Faculty of Economics, and Executive Director, Manufacturing Management Research Center, The University of Tokyo "This book is full of wisdom and insight into Lean ideas, principles, and practices seen through the lens of the Italian experience. It distills years of scholarship and practical involvement with Lean implementations into a valuable guide for managers and entrepreneurs beginning their own "lean journey" and scholars interested in strategic renewal, organizational learning, and intertwined change in technical and human systems. The rich case studies, covering success stories, incomplete "journeys", and implementation failures, are unusually probing and make the Italian story of Lean both utterly distinctive and universal. Enjoy!" -John Paul MacDuffie, The Wharton School of Management, University of Pennsylvania Table of ContentsAcknowledgments About the Author Introduction Chapter 1: Little Big Lean Champions Chapter 2: Understanding the Italian Context Chapter 3: How to Transform SMEs Chapter 4: The Transformation Paths of Italian SMEs Chapter 5: Leading Successful Lean Transformations in SMEs Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisThis collection of essays explores ways that universities in East Africa can better serve the common good. Each essay here delves into different aspects of improving the quality of higher education. Readers are introduced to insightful discussions of the role of quality assurance in creating educational systems that are relevant to the global knowledge economy and to the task of advancing human flourishing.

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Book SynopsisA concise guide for managers who are striving to develop the critical skills required for success after a quality initiative has been implemented in their organization. Useful worksheets and other assessment tools help managers deepen their understanding of TQM, identify the specific areas of competency where improvement is needed, and create a plan of action for building skills in those areas.Trade Review"Bravo! Schmidt and Finnigan have provided some long-awaitedpractical advice and know-how to help leaders ensure a successfultransformation to a total quality organization." --Thomas A.Meachum, director of quality resources, HCA Bayonet Point/HudsonMedical Center "The down-to-earth guide on transforming companies to total qualitymanagement! TQManager offers practical hands-on advice and aninvaluable self-assessment tool for every manager who must lead thechange to total quality." --Bill Wiggenhorn, president, MotorolaUniversityTable of ContentsPart One: What You Need to Know About TQM 1. Understanding the Concept 2. Recognizing the Challenges Part Two: Mastering the Five Key Competencies of TQManagement 3. One: Developing Relationships of Openness and Trust 4. Building Collaboration and Teamwork 5. Three: Managing by Fact 6. Four: Supporting Results Through Recognition and Rewards 7. Five: Creating a Learning and Continuously ImprovingOrganization Part Three: Sharpening Your TQManagement Skills 8. Getting and Using Feedback About Yourself 9. Resources for TQManagers Appendixes: A. Glossary of TQM Terms and Tools B. TQM Experts andPublications You Should Know About

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Book SynopsisMarketing Planning in a Total Quality Environment is a how-to book designed for the marketing practitioner. It provides detailed information on how to prepare and implement a marketing plan based in a total quality environment.For the last twenty years, the authors, as marketing practitioners and educators, have been deeply involved in the planning processes of many corporations. This book, Marketing Planning in a Total Quality Environment, is the product of what they've learned over the years from working with these diverse corporations and their executives. The authors provide readers with each step in the total quality planning process, complete with check sheets and plan formats. After readers finish the book, they can prepare a quality-driven marketing plan that will be used and followed throughout the year--instead of becoming a shelf item.This book is for you and the many other marketing professionals who are faced with one or more of these situations: You're doing a good job, but you'd like to do even better. You're spending valuable time putting out fires. You lack time to do the things that need to be done. You're always having a hard time coordinating major marketing programs. You're faced with a major discrepancy between where you are and where you'd like to be; you've got a planning gap. You realize that you've got to offer your customers more quality if you're going to be competitive in the new market environment. You'd like to have a professional annual marketing plan--one that will be well received by management and will also keep you and your staff focused throughout the year. Because each step on how to develop a marketing plan is covered, Marketing Planning in a Total Quality Environment is ideal for presidents of smaller firms, marketing directors and planners, product managers, and planning specialists. The authors include a sample fact book which can be used to store and analyze data, planning forms which help convert data into information, and marketing plan formats which ensure that the plan will get used.Table of ContentsContentsPreface Section I: Introduction The Need to Build Total Quality Into Your Marketing Plan The Need for a Formal Marketing Plan Involvement: The Key to Successful Total Quality Planning How to Make the Plan a Living Document The “Ideal” Method” The Micron Case The Role of the Marketing Plan in the Business Plan The Marketing Planning Process--An Overview Section II: The Eight Planning Steps Step 1. SWOTs: Present Step 2. SWOTs: Present (cont.) Step 3. SWOTs Present (cont.) Step 4. SWOTs Future Step 5. Gap Analysis Step 6. Examination of Strategic Options and Strategy Selection Step 7. Strategy Documentation and Evaluation Step 8. Fleshing Out, Documenting, and Formatting the Annual Marketing Plan Section III: Retrospect and Expectation A Look Back and a Look Ahead Section IV: Appendixes Appendix A: Section 1: Forecasting Techniques Section 2: Forecasting Rules of Thumb Appendix B: How to Adjust Financial Statements for Inflation Appendix C: Fact Book Appendix D: Product/Service-Target Market Plan Appendix E: Summary Marketing Plan Notess Index

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Book SynopsisWhich is the right approach for effective continuous improvement? While much has been written on merging Lean and Six Sigma initiatives, this is the first book to detail a logical alternative - a no-nonsense strategy for maintaining the best of both initiatives without diluting either. In Using Lean for Faster Six Sigma Results, Mark Nash, Sheila Poling, and Sophronia Ward lay out the differences between Lean and Six Sigma, define the distinct power and focus of each, and detail why and how to use them together in a synchronized and complementary way. While Lean focuses on the elimination of waste, Six Sigma addresses variability and reliability. Organizations that initiate Lean early in their continuous improvement efforts create culture change, immediate results, and streamlined processes, paving the way for faster and more effective Six Sigma results. This practical, easy read shows how to choose the right projects, approach, people, and toolset to achieve bottom-line results faster. Readers will benefit from the authors' years of experience implementing Lean with Six Sigma, through detailed case studies from both manufacturing and service companies. If you are struggling with the dilemma of how to integrate Lean and Six Sigma, or deciding which approach to use, read this practical, down-to-earth book to inspire and guide your strategy. Table of ContentsIntroductionChapter 1. Purpose of a Lean or Six Sigma InitiativeChapter 2. The Power and Focus of LeanChapter 3. The Power and Focus of Six SigmaChapter 4. Lean and Six Sigma ARE Different InitiativesChapter 5. Creating the Culture for Successful ChangeChapter 6. Faster Six Sigma Results come from a Lean CultureChapter 7. Lean or Six Sigma: Applying the Right MethodologyChapter 8. The Two-Pronged Approach: Synchronizing and Six Sigma Chapter 9. Beyond Lean and Six Sigma: From Project Focused to Future Focus Improvement

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Book SynopsisIn Keeping Score, the author contends that metrics must be all-encompassing. They must focus not just on the present, but need to consider the past and future. They also must consider the needs of all participants, including customers, shareholders, and employees. Still one must know exactly what to measure, as measuring everything can be more damaging than measuring nothing. Taking a balanced Baldrige approach, this book shows how to evaluate current approaches to measurement and pinpoint false measurements. It covers the selection of financial metrics, ways to measure employee and customer satisfaction, and methods to track performance and measure quality.Table of ContentsAcknowl edgments Introduction -- PART 1: EVALUATING YOUR MEASUREMENT SYSTEM -- 1 Measurement: The Key to World-Class Performance -- 2 Problems with Most Measurement System -- 3 EvaluatIng Your Existing Measurement System -- PART II: SELECTING THE RIGHT METRICS -- 4 KeepIng Score In World-Class Organizations -- 5 Measuring Financial Performance -- 6 MeasurIng Customer Satisfaction and Value -- 7 MeasurIng Product/Service Quality -- 8 MeasurIng Processes and Operational Performance -- 9 Measuring Supplier Performance -- 10 Measuring Employee Satisfaction -- PART III: REDESIGNING YOUR MEASUREMENT SYSTEM -- 11 how to Design Your Own Measurement System -- 12 Linking Measures to Strategy and Key Success Factors -- 13 Reporting and Analyzing Performance Data -- 14 linking Measures, Goals, and Plans -- Bibi lography -- Index.

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Book SynopsisFor decades, the manufacturing industry has employed the Toyota Production System — the most powerful production method in the world — to reduce waste, improve quality, reduce defects and increase worker productivity. In 2001, Virginia Mason Medical Center, an integrated healthcare delivery system in Seattle, Washington set out to achieve its compelling vision to become The Quality Leader and to fulfill that vision, adopted the Toyota Production System as its management method.Transforming Health Care: Virginia Mason Medical Center's Pursuit of the Perfect Patient Experience takes you on the journey of of Virginia Mason Medical Center's pursuit of the perfect patient experience through the application of lean principles, tools, and methodology. Over the last several years Virginia Mason has become internationally known for its journey towards perfection by applying the Toyota Production System to healthcare. The book takes readers step by step through Virginia Mason's journey as it seeks to provide perfection to its customer – the patient. This book shows you how you use this system to transform your own organization.Trade ReviewIf you work in the health and medical care field and you believe you and your institution are as good as it is possible to be, you should read this book. It will reset your standards and show you how to produce more value for your patients at a lower cost. This is a front line story, not a pie in the sky theory or project of the month. It is a story about real people dedicated to the pursuit of habitual excellence. —Paul O’Neill, 72nd Secretary of the U.S. Treasury & former Chairman and CEO of Alcoa A comprehensive and insightful book that chronicles an arduous journey to achieve an exceptional patient-centered culture using a management system only now recognized as relevant to health care. This is a story of how Virginia Mason became the benchmark against which other health care systems must judge themselves, and a beacon in a field that has resisted change for far too long. —David M. Lawrence, MD, MPH, Chairman and CEO (retired), Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and Hospitals, Inc. The challenges to our U.S. health care system have never been greater. We are challenged by the high cost of care and less than optimal quality and safety. Virginia Mason Medical Center has been on a ten year journey to demonstrate just what is possible and the results have been profound. What is equally amazing, and must reading for health care leaders, is the story of their journey. It is possible to improve quality and safety while simultaneously reducing cost! —John Kitzhaber, MD, Governor of Oregon 1995-2003 U.S. health care is replete with stories of failed attempts to improve quality and control soaring costs, only to succumb to perverse incentives, infighting and an entrenched status quo. Virginia Mason offers a different path forward, by showing what happens when all of health care’s stakeholders — doctors, employers, insurers — align themselves behind pursuing the best care for the patient. It’s a potential model precisely because its leadership medical staff had to overcome the same challenges that affect hospitals and clinicians across the country today. —Vanessa Fuhrmans, The Wall Street Journal Congratulations to the Virginia Mason team for being another great example of committing to a compelling vision and to continuous quality improvement … . Thank You! —Alan Mulally, former President and CEO, Boeing Commercial Airplanes; current President and CEO, Ford Motor Company Health care transformation is a process not an event. This book richly describes this process at Virginia Mason — not just the principles but all the challenges along the way and how they were overcome. It is a textured account of an ongoing journey and as such is an invaluable aid to anyone serious about transforming their own organization. —Richard Bohmer, MBChB, MPH Professor of Management Practice, Harvard Business School This is the story of a journey. It’s a journey that began almost a decade ago, that continues today, and that will likely continue for the foreseeable future. Through a number of powerful case studies, this book illustrates how Virginia Mason Medical Center has steadily improved the safety, quality, and efficiency of its patient care — one process at a time. But more importantly, it is a study in leadership and cultural transformation in one of our nation’s most important industries — health care. That transformation has made patient-centered care much more than a slogan at Virginia Mason; it has become a way of doing business, each and every day. The beneficiaries of that transformation, first and foremost, are the patients Virginia Mason serves. But of equal importance is the new-found sense of accomplishment and satisfaction that these changes have engendered among the Medical Center’s physicians, management team and employees. This book is inspiring must reading for anyone who leads, or aspires to lead, any health care organization. — William F. Jessee, MD, FACMPE, President and CEO, Medical Group Management Association If you want to understand what health care can become, you need to know about Virginia Mason Medical Center. This book gives you the complete story. It is essential reading. —David Cutler, former Senior Health Care Advisor, Obama Presidential Campaign An inspiring tale of leadership, discipline, and persistence by an organization committed to excellence in patient care. VMMC has redefined patient-centeredness as the core of process change. By so doing, not only has it transformed its culture and dramatically improved outcomes, it has set new standards for quality and efficiency. Must reading for all health care leaders who are serious about quality. —Lucian L. Leape, MD, Harvard School of Public Health This remarkable story of Virginia Mason's journey to Lean offers hope that America can achieve the high-quality, affordable care we all deserve. —Ceci Connolly, Freelance Writer How does a hospital change the very culture of medicine? By abandoning the philosophy that says This is the way we’ve always done it! That’s the essence of the amazing story of true change told by Charles Kenney in Transforming Healthcare: Virginia Mason Medical Center’s Pursuit of the Perfect Patient Experience. But hold on: This is not a cold chronicle of good people moving deck chairs around on the deck of the Titanic. This is genuine course-changing, history-changing work born of steely determination to stop hurting patients by finding ways of practicing medicine that tradition never taught.How does one transform to an idyllic hospital where errors never hurt patients and people are happy? By breaking the molds and infusing a common vision and by starting down the path Dr. Gary Kaplan and Virginia Mason were courageous enough to blaze ten years ago - when no one else was even peeking outside the box.If you intend to keep your patients safe - if you intend to improve the working environment, the bottom line, and the camaraderie of your hospital - you cannot ignore this story! This book isn’t about Lean, Toyota, or any single methodology as much as it’s about a refusal to maintain the terrible status quo documented by the Institute of Medicine in 1999. This book is the foundational element of understanding what it takes to really change a moribund culture. —John J. Nance, author, Why Hospitals Should Fly Virginia Mason Medical Center is widely recognized as the pioneer in applying the disciplines of the Toyota Production Systems to improve the delivery of health care. Now, with the publication of Transforming Health Care, we have a first-hand account of what they did and what they learned: the steps they took to make the concept of Team Medicine a reality; the struggles and successes in moving from physician-centric to patient-centered care; and the projects they have undertaken to redesign clinical pathways to eliminate waste and error, reduce scientific uncertainty, and promote patient preferences. An easy read, but also an in-depth account of Virginia Mason’s effort to transform itself. This book is a must for students of organizational behavior as well as for those who aspire to improve health care. —John E. Wennberg, MD, MPH, Peggy Y. Thomson Professor Emeritus (Chair) in the Evaluative Clinical Sciences & Founder and Director Emeritus, The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice If you work in the health and medical care field and you believe you and your institution are as good as it is possible to be, you should read this book. It will reset your standards and show you how to produce more value for your patients at a lower cost. This is a front line story, not a pie in the sky theory or project of the month. It is a story about real people dedicated to the pursuit of habitual excellence. —Paul O’Neill, 72nd Secretary of the U.S. Treasury & former Chairman and CEO of Alcoa A comprehensive and insightful book that chronicles an arduous journey to achieve an exceptional patient-centered culture using a management system only now recognized as relevant to health care. This is a story of how Virginia Mason became the benchmark against which other health care systems must judge themselves, and a beacon in a field that has resisted change for far too long. —David M. Lawrence, MD, MPH, Chairman and CEO (retired), Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and Hospitals, Inc. The challenges to our U.S. health care system have never been greater. We are challenged by the high cost of care and less than optimal quality and safety. Virginia Mason Medical Center has been on a ten year journey to demonstrate just what is possible and the results have been profound. What is equally amazing, and must reading for health care leaders, is the story of their journey. It is possible to improve quality and safety while simultaneously reducing cost! —John Kitzhaber, MD, Governor of Oregon 1995-2003 U.S. health care is replete with stories of failed attempts to improve quality and control soaring costs, only to succumb to perverse incentives, infighting and an entrenched status quo. Virginia Mason offers a different path forward, by showing what happens when all of health care’s stakeholders — doctors, employers, insurers — align themselves behind pursuing the best care for the patient. It’s a potential model precisely because its leadership medical staff had to overcome the same challenges that affect hospitals and clinicians across the country today. —Vanessa Fuhrmans, The Wall Street Journal Congratulations to the Virginia Mason team for being another great example of committing to a compelling vision and to continuous quality improvement … . Thank You! —Alan Mulally, former President and CEO, Boeing Commercial Airplanes; current President and CEO, Ford Motor Company Health care transformation is a process not an event. This book richly describes this process at Virginia Mason — not just the principles but all the challenges along the way and how they were overcome. It is a textured account of an ongoing journey and as such is an invaluable aid to anyone serious about transforming their own organization. —Richard Bohmer, MBChB, MPH Professor of Management Practice, Harvard Business School This is the story of a journey. It’s a journey that began almost a decade ago, that continues today, and that will likely continue for the foreseeable future. Through a number of powerful case studies, this book illustrates how Virginia Mason Medical Center has steadily improved the safety, quality, and efficiency of its patient care — one process at a time. But more importantly, it is a study in leadership and cultural transformation in one of our nation’s most important industries — health care. That transformation has made patient-centered care much more than a slogan at Virginia Mason; it has become a way of doing business, each and every day. The beneficiaries of that transformation, first and foremost, are the patients Virginia Mason serves. But of equal importance is the new-found sense of accomplishment and satisfaction that these changes have engendered among the Medical Center’s physicians, management team and employees. This book is inspiring must reading for anyone who leads, or aspires to lead, any health care organization. — William F. Jessee, MD, FACMPE, President and CEO, Medical Group Management Association If you want to understand what health care can become, you need to know about Virginia Mason Medical Center. This book gives you the complete story. It is essential reading. —David Cutler, former Senior Health Care Advisor, Obama Presidential Campaign An inspiring tale of leadership, discipline, and persistence by an organization committed to excellence in patient care. VMMC has redefined patient-centeredness as the core of process change. By so doing, not only has it transformed its culture and dramatically improved outcomes, it has set new standards for quality and efficiency. Must reading for all health care leaders who are serious about quality. —Lucian L. Leape, MD, Harvard School of Public Health This remarkable story of Virginia Mason's journey to Lean offers hope that America can achieve the high-quality, affordable care we all deserve. —Ceci Connolly, Freelance Writer How does a hospital change the very culture of medicine? By abandoning the philosophy that says This is the way we’ve always done it! That’s the essence of the amazing story of true change told by Charles Kenney in Transforming Healthcare: Virginia Mason Medical Center’s Pursuit of the Perfect Patient Experience. But hold on: This is not a cold chronicle of good people moving deck chairs around on the deck of the Titanic. This is genuine course-changing, history-changing work born of steely determination to stop hurting patients by finding ways of practicing medicine that tradition never taught.How does one transform to an idyllic hospital where errors never hurt patients and people are happy? By breaking the molds and infusing a common vision and by starting down the path Dr. Gary Kaplan and Virginia Mason were courageous enough to blaze ten years ago - when no one else was even peeking outside the box.If you intend to keep your patients safe - if you intend to improve the working environment, the bottom line, and the camaraderie of your hospital - you cannot ignore this story! This book isn’t about Lean, Toyota, or any single methodology as much as it’s about a refusal to maintain the terrible status quo documented by the Institute of Medicine in 1999. This book is the foundational element of understanding what it takes to really change a moribund culture. —John J. Nance, author, Why Hospitals Should Fly Virginia Mason Medical Center is widely recognized as the pioneer in applying the disciplines of the Toyota Production Systems to improve the delivery of health care. Now, with the publication of Transforming Health Care, we have a first-hand account of what they did and what they learned: the steps they took to make the concept of Team Medicine a reality; the struggles and successes in moving from physician-centric to patient-centered care; and the projects they have undertaken to redesign clinical pathways to eliminate waste and error, reduce scientific uncertainty, and promote patient preferences. An easy read, but also an in-depth account of Virginia Mason’s effort to transform itself. This book is a must for students of organizational behavior as well as for those who aspire to improve health care. —John E. Wennberg, MD, MPH, Peggy Y. Thomson Professor Emeritus (Chair) in the Evaluative Clinical Sciences & Founder and Director Emeritus, The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice Table of ContentsThe Blue Yarn. Safety Crusade. Ambulatory Care Breakthrough. Transforming Procedural Care. Transforming Inpatient Care. Better, Faster, More Affordable. Management Method. The Journey Continues.

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Book SynopsisQuality Assurance for Textiles and Apparel, 2e reflects the industry's best practices and most practical efforts to provide products of a consistent quality that meet customers' needs. With updated information on technological advances and issues of globalization, the second edition emphasizes the importance of incorporating product quality from the merchandising and design stages through production, delivery, and retailing.Table of ContentsUnderstanding Quality Assurance Introduction to Quality Assurance Linking Products, Quality, and Customers Understanding Standards and Specifications Introduction to Testing Materials Testing Specifying and Evaluating Materials Durability Testing Evaluating Material Contributions to Comfort, Safety, and Health Evaluating Care, Appearance Retention, Colorfastness, and Weather Resistance Specifying and Evaluating Color Requirements Product Specifications and Analysis Developing Standards and Specifications for Products Inspecting Products Evaluating Products Sampling a Lot and Developing Acceptance Levels Integration and Data Analysis Total Quality Management Analytical Tools

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Book SynopsisGlobal competition, corporate downsizing and corporate restructuring have forced many firms to reevaluate their operating methods. Today, corporations must do more with less while still watching the bottom line and improving profitability. ISO 14000 and ISO 9000, because of their similar management system requirements and auditing procedures, are good candidates for integration. This is the driving force behind Environmental and Quality Systems Integration.This comprehensive guide provides step-by-step instruction for companies wishing to cut costs and integrate their Environmental Health and Safety System (ISO 14000) into an existing Quality Management System (ISO9000). Environmental and Quality Systems Integration serves to ease this transition and offers companies a way to meet quality assurance standards.Table of ContentsEnvironmental and Quality Systems Integration

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Book SynopsisExplains the basic principles and techniques of quality management in healthcare. This second edition features a new chapter devoted exclusively to the use of high-reliability concepts that help organizations achieve safety, quality, and efficiency goals.

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Book SynopsisIn all walks of life, at some point in time, we all use the process of problem solving. We all talk about it, we all use it, but chances are we all mean different things by it. Six Sigma and Beyond: Problem Solving and Basic Mathematics organizes the topic and provides a structured approach based on the scientific method. Specifically designed to address the issue of cognitive functioning this volume provides a generic approach to problem solving.The Six Sigma methodology demands that problems be resolved in such a way that both the customer and organization benefit. Not a bad expectation. In this book, the author addresses what a problem is and systematically defines the process of resolving it. He stresses the importance of the team - people power - dedicated to solving a specific problem - process power - and how this combination leads to efficiencies that please the customer and enhance the bottom line.Identifying the problem is only half the task. The next step is to resolve it. This book gives you a detailed rationale and a theoretical explanation of the problem solving process. It focuses on problem solving from a quality perspective and addresses key concepts in team dynamics. It provides an overview of the basic tools of problem solving. In addition, the author introduces the Global Problem Solving (GPS) process. This strategic program brings the focus of quality programs back to eliminating mistakes, waste, and rework. The book highlights the basic mathematics used in all phases of quality control. It introduces each mathematical concept, gives an example, and proceeds with several exercises that demonstrate the solution. With Six Sigma and Beyond: Problem Solving and Basic Mathematics you get the techniques and statistical tools to go beyond theory to real-world applications and take quality management to the next level.Table of ContentsINTRODUCTION. Theoretical Aspects of Problem Solving. Overview of Key Elements to Problem Solving. Problem-Solving (PS) and Process Improvement (PI) Cycle. Tools of Quality. The Global Problem Solving (GPS) Process. Six Sigma Approach to Problem Solving. BASIC MATHEMATICS. The Value of Whole Numbers. Addition and Subtraction of Whole Numbers. Multiplication and Division of Whole Numbers. Parts and Types of Fractions. Simple Form and Common Denominators of Fractions. Adding and Subtracting Fractions. Multiplication and Division of Fractions. Ordering, Rounding and Changing Decimals. The Four Operations of Decimals. DIVISION WITH DECIMALS. Squares, Square Roots, Cubes, Cube Roots and Proportions. Scientific Notation and Powers of Ten. Decimals. The Metric System. International System of Units. Conversion of English to Metric. APPENDICES. SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY.

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Book SynopsisThis book provides an introduction to Total Quality Management (TQM) and its principles. TQM is a management approach that focuses on continuous improvement of processes and products to enhance customer satisfaction. The book covers topics including TQM implementation, quality control, team-building, and customer service. It is an essential guide for professionals seeking to improve their organization's quality management system and increase customer loyalty.Table of Contents Chapter 1 Historical Evolution and Essentials of TQM Chapter 2 Principles of TQM Chapter 3 Total Quality Management and Standardization Chapter 4 Tools and Techniques to Achieve TQM Chapter 5 Measurement of Quality in Total Quality Management Chapter 6 Policy Deployment and Implementation of TQM Chapter 7 Challenges and Barriers to Total Quality Management Chapter 8 Productivity of Total Quality Management

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Book SynopsisThis comprehensive single volume includes seminal articles written by eminent scholars that study the role of standards in the competitive process, the diffusion of standards throughout industry and the role of the public sector in support of standards development.With an original introduction by the editor, this volume is an excellent source of reference and provides an invaluable foundation for students and researchers interested in standards.Trade Review‘Al Link has done a masterful job in selecting a broad set of papers that collectively present the state-of-the-art in economics and policy relating to standards and their role in promoting technological advancement and shaping competition across industry. This volume is an invaluable source to students of technological change and innovation and, by extension, to decision makers in government and industry. A must read.’ -- Nicholas Vonortas, George Washington University, USTable of ContentsContents Introduction Albert N. Link PART I AN OVERVIEW OF STANDARDS 1. George V. Thompson (1954), ‘Intercompany, Technical Standardization in the Early American Automobile Industry’, Journal of Economic History, 14 (1), Winter, 1–20 2. Charles P. Kindleberger (1983), ‘Standards as Public, Collective and Private Goods’, Kyklos, 36 (3), 377–96 3. Joseph Farrell and Garth Saloner (1985), ‘Standardization, Compatibility and Innovation,’ Rand Journal of Economics, 16 (1), Spring, 70–83 4. Paul A. David and Shane Greenstein (1990), ‘The Economics of Compatibility Standards: An Introduction to Recent Research’, Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 1 (1), 3–41 5. Stanley M. Besen and Joseph Farrell (1994), ‘Choosing How to Compete: Strategies and Tactics in Standardization’, Journal of Economic Perspectives, 8 (2), Spring, 117–31 6. Mark A. Lemley (2002), ‘Intellectual Property Rights and Standard-Setting Organizations,’ California Law Review, 90 (6), December, 1889–980 7. Victor Stango (2004), ‘The Economics of Standards Wars’, Review of Network Economics, 3 (1), March, 1–19 PART II COMPETITION AND STANDARDS 8. Albert N. Link (1983), ‘Market Structure and Voluntary Product Standards’, Applied Economics, 15 (3), 393–401 9. Donald J. Lecraw (1984), ‘Some Economic Effects of Standards’, Applied Economics, 16 (4), 507-22 10. Shane Greenstein (1990), ‘Creating Economic Advantage By Setting Compatibility Standards: Can ‘‘Physical Tie-Ins” Extend Monopoly Power?’ Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 1 (1-2), 63–83 11. Harald Gruber (2000), ‘The Evolution of Market Structure in Semiconductors: The Role of Product Standards’, Research Policy, 29 (6), 725–40 12. Joseph Farrell and Timothy Simcoe (2012), ‘Choosing the Rules for Consensus Standardization’, Rand Journal of Economics, 43 (2), Summer, 235–52 PART III STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY DIFFUSION 13. Albert N. Link and Gregory Tassey (1988), ‘Standards and the Diffusion of Advanced Technologies’, Evaluation and Program Planning, 11 (1), 97–102 14. Paul A. David and W. Edward Steinmueller (1990), ‘The ISDN Bandwagon Is Coming, but Who Will Be There to Climb Aboard?: Quandaries in The Economics of Data Communication Networks’, Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 1 (1-2), 43–62 15. Jeffrey L. Funk and David T. Methe (2001), ‘Market- and Committee-Based Mechanisms in the Creation and Diffusion of Global Industry Standards: The Case of Mobile Communication’, Research Policy, 30 (4), 589–610 16. Jeffrey L. Funk (2003), ‘Standards, Dominant Designs and Preferential Acquisition of Complementary Assets through Slight Information Advantages’, Research Policy, 32 (8), 1325–41 17. Anat Hovav, Martin Hemmert and Yoo Jung Kim (2011), ‘Determinants of Internet Standards Adoption: The Case of South Korea’, Research Policy, 40 (2), 253–62 PART IV STANDARDS AND COMPUTER- RELATED TECHNOLOGIES 18. Raymond S. Hartman and David J. Teece (1990), ‘Product Emulation Strategies in the Presence of Reputation Effects and Network Externalities: Some Evidence from the Minicomputer Industry’, Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 1 (1-2), 157–82 19. Garth Saloner (1990), ‘Economic Issues in Computer Interface Standardization’, Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 1 (1-2), 135–56 20. Tom Cottrell (1994) ‘Fragmented Standards and the Development of Japan’s Microcomputer Software Industry’, Research Policy, 23 (2), 143–74 21. Timothy F. Bresnahan and Shane Greenstein (1999), ‘Technological Competition and the Structure of the Computer Industry’, Journal of Industrial Economics, 47 (1), March, 1–40 PART V CASE STUDIES ON STANDARDS 22. Wallace E. Oates, Paul R. Portney and Albert M. McGartland (1989), ‘The Net Benefits of Incentive-Based Regulation: A Case Study of Environmental Standard Setting’, American Economic Review, 79 (5), December, 1233–42 23. Timothy F. Bresnahan and Amit Chopra (1990), ‘The Development of the Local Area Network Market as Determined by User Needs’, Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 1 (1-2), 97–110 24. Steven C. Salop (1990), ‘Deregulating Self-Regulated Shared ATM Networks’, Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 1 (1-2), 85–96 25. Bruce S. Tether, Christiane Hipp and Ian Miles (2001), ‘Standardisation and Particularisation in Services: Evidence from Germany’, Research Policy, 30 (7), August, 1115–38 26. Thomas A. Hemphill (2009), ‘Technology Standards-Setting in the US Wireless Telecommunications Industry: A Study of Three Generations of Digital Standards Development’, Telematics and Informatics, 26 (1), February, 103–24 27. Albert N. Link and John T. Scott (2012), ‘On the Social Value of Quality: An Economic Evaluation of the Baldrige Performance Excellence Program’, Science and Public Policy, 39 (5), 680–89 28. Timothy Simcoe (2012), ‘Standard Setting Committees: Consensus Governance for Shared Technology Platforms’, American Economic Review, 102 (1), February, 305–36 PART VI PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT IN STANDARDS DEVELOPMENT 29. Gregory Tassey (1982), ‘The Role of Government in Supporting Measurement Standards for High-Technology Industries’, Research Policy, 11 (5), 311–20 30. Antonio J. Bailetti and John R. Callahan (1995), ‘Managing Consistency between Product Development and Public Standards Evolution’, Research Policy, 24 (6), 913–31 31. Bert Coursey and Albert N. Link (1998), ‘Evaluating Technology-Based Public Institutions: The Case of Radiopharmaceutical Standards Research at the National Institute of Standards and Technology’, Evaluation Review, 7 (3), December, 147–57 32. Danièle Bénézech, Gilles Lambert, Blandine Lanoux, Christophe Lerch and Jocelyne Loos-Baroin (2001), ‘Completion of Knowledge Codification: An Illustration through the ISO 9000 Standards Implementation Process’, Research Policy, 30 (9), 1395–407 33. Gregory Tassey (2005), ‘Underinvestment in Public Good Technologies’, Journal of Technology Transfer, 30 (1-2) 89–113 34. Michael P. Gallaher and Brent R. Rowe (2006), ‘The Costs and Benefits of Transferring Technology Infrastructures Underlying Complex Standards: The Case of IPv6’, Journal of Technology Transfer, 31 (5), 519–44 Index

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Book SynopsisGrafton Whyte introduces and explores a new academic theory for customer service delivery for Africa, aimed at addressing issues of poor customer service and poor service delivery. The V-Model of Service Quality (VMSQ) offers a powerful tool for measuring service quality, augmented by a service exchange model to provide a general framework for services, describe core components and provide contexts within which the VMSQ can operate. The VMSQ provides an indication of where problems may lie in a service operation, and an additional African Management Matrix identifies some of the historical and contextual barriers that need to be overcome by African managers to achieve effective customer service delivery. This book grounds the theoretical interventions in data drawn from case studies in the Sub-Saharan African context to make the models applicable to both researchers and working managers. It looks at the complex question of customer service delivery in Africa, and embraces both concepts of customer service and service delivery.Trade ReviewWhyte and fellow business scholars have developed a model for measuring and improving customer service and the delivery of basic services such as housing, water, and sewerage that they hope will take hold first in Namibia, then throughout Africa. This is the first publication from their new Customer Service Management Africa organization. Among the topics are an overview of the V-model of service quality, identifying service attributes, collecting and analyzing data, reporting, case studies, a framework for customer service delivery, and a road map for busy managers. -- Annotation ©2018 * (protoview.com) *Table of ContentsPrefaceAcknowledgements Introduction Overview of the VMSQ Identifying Service Attributes (Stage 1) VMSQ - Data Collection (Stage 2) VMSQ - Data Analysis (Stage 3) VMSQ - Reporting (Stage 4) Case Studies A Framework for Customer Service Delivery (CSD) A Road Map for Busy Managers References Appendix A: The VMSQ Questionnaire Appendix B: The Information Systems Service Questionnaire

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Book SynopsisThe current economic climate, characterized by growing international competition, is forcing companies to rethink their approach in terms of strategy, the customer and supplier relationship, processes and human resource management. In this context, 'quality management' - synonymous with efficiency, effectiveness and competitiveness, becomes essential. Quality Management: Tools, Methods and Standards fills a gap in the current literature by providing an updated overview of the discipline and its boundless fields of application from industry to public administration. Written by authors with both academic and practitioners backgrounds, the book serves as a culmination of the knowledge they have gained as managing directors and chairmen of leading companies. Starting from the history of quality, the authors provide the reader with a review of the main tools and approaches aimed at improving effectiveness and efficiency in organizations. Balanced scorecard, QFD, and FMEA are some of the solutions that are first introduced theoretically and then described in their application. International standards are also broadly discussed: ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, ISO 27001 and SA8000 are described in their essential features and implementation patterns. This book should be considered a must-read for students, academics, and practitioners who are interested in the theory and practice of quality management.Trade ReviewIn order to fill a gap in the quality management literature, practitioners provide an updated summary of the knowledge in a discipline. Their topics are the history of quality, stakeholder management, statistical tools for quality management, the balanced scorecard, quality function deployment, customer satisfaction analyses, failure mode and effect analysis, lean management, Six Sigma, process mapping and indicators, ISO 9000 quality standards, ISO 45001, ISO/IEC 27001, and SA 8000. -- Annotation ©2019 * (protoview.com) *Table of ContentsPreface. Guido Nassimbeni Chapter 1. History of Quality; Giovanna Culot Chapter 2. Stakeholder Management; Giovanni Atti, Valentina Galantini, and Marco Sartor Chapter 3. Statistical Tools for Quality Management; Guido Orzes and Alessio Dal Bo' Chapter 4. The Balanced Scorecard; Marco Sartor Chapter 5. Quality Function Deployment (QFD); Elisa Marson and Marco Sartor Chapter 6. Benchmarking; Patrizia Garengo Chapter 7. Customer Satisfaction Analyses; Marco Sartor Chapter 8. Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA); Marco Sartor and Erik Cescon Chapter 9. Lean Management; Giovanni Atti Chapter 10. Six Sigma; Daniele Fersini Chapter 11. Process Mapping and Indicators; Federico Olivo and Guido Orzes Chapter 12. ISO 9000 QUALITY STANDARDS; Mauro Coletto and Tommaso De Monte Chapter 13. ISO 14001; Marco Sartor, Guido Orzes and Elisa Moras Chapter 14. ISO 45001; Chiara Campailla, Andrea Martini, Federico Minini, and Marco Sartor Chapter 15. ISO/IEC 27001; Federico Accerboni and Marco Sartor Chapter 16. SA 8000; Marco Sartor and Guido Orzes

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Book SynopsisA product's design is based on what customers want and how much they are willing to pay for it determines its quality. The production process is supposed to achieve the required quality. Due to the natural process variation the quality of a product or service varies. Thus, quality can be defined as fitness for intended use or, in other words, how well the product performs its intended function. It is a written or unwritten commitment to a known or unknown consumer in the market. Quality management ensures that a product or service is fit for its purpose. It has three main components: quality planning, quality control and quality improvement. Quality management is focused not only on product and service quality, but also on the means to maintain it. Quality management, therefore, uses quality control tools to achieve more consistent quality.This book aims to provide the readers with the essential practical knowledge and understanding of quality-related issues to make correct decisions faster. Hence, they can effectively contribute to a modern dynamic production environment.The book covers the essential tools used in quality control and quality management. There are a lot of practical questions and answers on quality.

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Book SynopsisAs manufacturing companies become global, excellence will be key to the survival of Indian manufacturing businesses. Despite India's good performance on the export front in recent years, India is being outperformed by its competitors. Indian manufacturing companies must compete with global companies and become world class organizations to be competitive. Organizational Culture and its Impact on Continuous Improvement in Manufacturing presents detailed insights into recent studies, providing solutions that can be scaled up at a global level. The lack of competitiveness of Indian companies is attributed to culture in the organization as well as an inability to introduce world class manufacturing tools which would allow them to become globally competitive. All the qualities needed to become world class are not currently available, and it is imperative to understand this gap through the detailed research this book presents to ensure India’s manufacturing companies can compete.Table of ContentsChapter 1. Introduction Chapter 2. Literature Review Chapter 3. Research Methodology Chapter 4. Analysis and Discussions Chapter 5. Findings, Suggestions and Conclusion

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Book SynopsisIn 2001, we gathered a group of researchers in Nice, France to focus discussion on performance measurement and management control. Following the success of that conference, we held subsequent conferences in 2003, 2005, 2007, and 2009. This volume contains some of the exemplary papers that were presented at the most recent conference. Though the conference has been generally focused on performance measurement and management control and has included presentations on many facets of the topic, each year we have also focused on a particular theme of current interest. This year's theme was directed at innovative concepts and practices. This includes creative approaches to solving management challenges of performance and management control and improving organizational performance. It also includes the innovative use of empirical, analytical, experimental, and case based research. The contents of this book represent a collection of leading research in management control and performance measurement and provide a significant contribution to the growing literature in the area.Table of ContentsList of Contributors. Preface. The challenge of simultaneously improving social and financial performances: New research results. Motivation through incentives: A cross-disciplinary review of the evidence. Thoughts on the structure of management systems to encourage creativity and innovation. The introduction of innovative performance measurement and management control systems: the role of financial investors and their acquired companies. Innovation and performance: some evidence from Italian firms. The interaction between information and trust in the control of transactional relationships: theoretical perspectives and empirical support. Should rolling forecasts replace budgets in uncertain environments?. Strategy and integrated financial ratio performance measures: A longitudinal multi-country study of high performance companies. Performance measurement in strategic changes. Nonfinancial performance measures: How do they affect fairness of performance evaluation procedures?. The relation between executive time orientation and performance measurement. Performance consequences of balanced scorecard adoptions: Claim for large-scale evidence and propositions for future research. The importance of balanced scorecards in hospitals. Aligning strategy and performance measurement systems in the service sector companies: The Greek example. Management accounting and information technology – some empirical evidence. The diffusion of management accounting systems in manufacturing companies: an empirical analysis of Italian firms. The impact of firm characteristics on ABC systems: a Greek-based empirical analysis. Studies in managerial and financial accounting. Performance Measurement and Management Control: Innovative Concepts and Practices. Copyright page.

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Book Synopsis"5S Kaizen in 90 Minutes" is a concise guide to the popular Japanese management principles of 5S kaizen - a proven methodology for the achievement of continuous improvement and total quality management. 5S Kaizen is growing in popularity both in the Far East and in the West. In Hong Kong there is now a government-funded "5S Association" and its accreditations are as highly prized as the internationally recognised ISO9000 and ISO14000 standards. This practical manual explains the system and shows how any business can follow its guidelines and achieve the benefits.

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Book SynopsisImproving health care is one of the most pressing and complex challenges facing western societies. Beyond the Toolkit provides practical help, hope, energy and ideas about how to combine the toolkit of improvement methods with the leadership and humanity required to ensure success in practice over time. It argues that understanding the methods is necessary but not sufficient. Beyond the Toolkit is readable and accessible, packed full of learning, insights, research and experiences, appealing equally to those setting out on the journey of improvement as well as those ready to make improvements on a larger scale. It will leave readers informed, energised and hopeful about their own ability to make a difference in their local health contexts. Beyond the Toolkit includes chapters written by leaders in health care who have been involved in improving the quality of patient care in practice, and who share their experiences, warts and all. These stories are powerful, empathetic, first-person narratives that are very different from the sanitised case studies that are often published. The authors co-lead GenerationQ, a Master’s programme in Leading for Quality Improvement for senior leaders in health, social care and health charities. The programme is sponsored by the Health Foundation and designed and delivered at Ashridge Executive Education, Hult Business School.

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Book SynopsisQuality management for small, regional, and national breweries is critical for the success of craft brewing businesses. Written for staff who manage quality assurance (QA) and quality control (QC) in breweries of all sizes, this book clearly sets out how quality management is integrated into every level of operation. Author Mary Pellettieri shows how quality management is a concept that encompasses not only the “free from defect” ethos but combines the wants of the consumer and the art of brewing good beer. Breweries must foster a culture of quality, where governance and management seamlessly merge policy, strategy, specifications, goals, and implementation to execute a QA/QC program. What tests are necessary, knowing that food safety alone does not signify a quality product, adhering to good management practice (GMP), proper care and maintenance of assets, standard operating procedures, training and investment in staff, and more must be considered together if a quality culture is to translate into success. The people working at a brewery are the heart of any quality program. Management must communicate clearly the need for quality management, delineate roles and responsibilities, and properly train and assess staff members. Specialist resources such as a brewery laboratory are necessary if an owner wants to be serious about developing standard methods of analysis to maintain true-to-brand specifications and ensure problems are identified before product quality suffers. Staff must know the importance of taking corrective action and have the confidence to make the decision and implement it in a timely fashion. With so many processes and moving parts, a structured problem-solving program is a key part of any brewery's quality program. How should you structure your brewing lab so it can grow with your business? What chemical and microbiological tests are appropriate and effective? How are new brands incorporated into production? How do you build a sensory panel that stays alert to potential drifts in brand quality? Which FDA and TTB regulations affect your brewery in terms of traceability and GMP? Can you conduct and pass an audit of your processes and products? Mary Pellettieri provides answers to these key organizational, logistical, and regulatory considerations.Table of ContentsQuality Management: A Comprehensive Guide for Brewers by Mary PellettieriTable of ContentsForewordIntroduction1. Defining Quality in a Brewery What is Quality? Establishment of the Role of the Brewing Chemist2. Quality Management and Governance3. Components of a Quality ProgramAll about the PeopleConducting the Right Tests and Conducting Them WellDetermine Quality Check Specification and FrequencyRepeatable Corrective Action4. Supporting Functions to the Quality ProgramHuman Resources; Skills and AccountabilityAsset Care or Maintenance of EquipmentSanitation and Good Manufacturing PracticesRecord Keeping5. Strategic Components in the Quality ProgramNew Product Design and ImplementationImplementing a Structured Problem Solving Program6. The Best Tests for a BreweryMicrobiological TestsMicrobiological Plating and Media ManagementChemistry Tests in the Brewing LabSensory AnalysisPackaging Tests CO and Dissolved Oxygen checks7. Government AffairsFood Safety and Risk Assessment8. Pulling it All Together - Assessment TimeTypes of AuditsWhy Conducting a Quality System Audit?Conducting a Quality System AuditAppendix A Brewery XXX Quality ManualAppendix B QC QA Control PlanAppendix C HACCP Risk Assessment ExampleAppendix D FMEA Table ExampleAppendix E Process Map with CCPsAppendix F SOP ExamplesAppendix G Brewing Maintenance TableAppendix H Generic GMP PolicyAppendix I New Product QCPAppendix J General Audit ReportGlossaryResourcesIndex

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Book SynopsisTable of ContentsThe Environment of Quality // The Approach to Quality: Concepts and Definitions // History of Quality

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Book SynopsisSupply chains are significant in improving business efficiency. Sustainable supply chains help industries enhance their ecological, monetary, and social performance. Innovative research frameworks as well as the modelling of sustainability issues are significant to different stakeholder’s perspectives. This book guides researchers and practitioners through developing effective sustainable supply chains to meet UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

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Book SynopsisComputational intelligence (CI) lies at the interface between engineering and computer science; control engineering, where problems are solved using computer-assisted methods. Thus, it can be regarded as an indispensable basis for all artificial intelligence (AI) activities. This book collects surveys of most recent theoretical approaches focusing on fuzzy systems, neurocomputing, and nature inspired algorithms. It also presents surveys of up-to-date research and application with special focus on fuzzy systems as well as on applications in life sciences and neuronal computing.

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Book Synopsis Using data science in order to solve a problem requires a scientific mindset more than coding skills. Data Science for Supply Chain Forecasting, Second Edition contends that a true scientific method which includes experimentation, observation, and constant questioning must be applied to supply chains to achieve excellence in demand forecasting. This second edition adds more than 45 percent extra content with four new chapters including an introduction to neural networks and the forecast value added framework. Part I focuses on statistical "traditional" models, Part II, on machine learning, and the all-new Part III discusses demand forecasting process management. The various chapters focus on both forecast models and new concepts such as metrics, underfitting, overfitting, outliers, feature optimization, and external demand drivers. The book is replete with do-it-yourself sections with implementations provided in Python (and Excel for the statistical models) to show the readers how to apply these models themselves. This hands-on book, covering the entire range of forecasting—from the basics all the way to leading-edge models—will benefit supply chain practitioners, forecasters, and analysts looking to go the extra mile with demand forecasting. Events around the book Link to a De Gruyter Online Event in which the author Nicolas Vandeput together with Stefan de Kok, supply chain innovator and CEO of Wahupa; Spyros Makridakis, professor at the University of Nicosia and director of the Institute For the Future (IFF); and Edouard Thieuleux, founder of AbcSupplyChain, discuss the general issues and challenges of demand forecasting and provide insights into best practices (process, models) and discussing how data science and machine learning impact those forecasts.The event will be moderated by Michael Gilliland, marketing manager for SAS forecasting software:https://youtu.be/1rXjXcabW2s Table of Contents I Statistical Forecast Moving Average Forecast Error Exponential Smoothing Underfitting Double Exponential Smoothing Model Optimization Double Smoothing with Damped Trend Overfitting Triple Exponential Smoothing Outliers Triple Additive Exponential smoothing II Machine Learning Machine Learning Tree Parameter Optimization Forest Feature Importance Extremely Randomized Trees Feature Optimization Adaptive Boosting Exogenous Information & Leading Indicators Extreme Gradient Boosting Categories Clustering Glossary

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Book SynopsisMöchten Sie verstehen, was Six Sigma genau ist? Wollen Sie die Vorteile von Six Sigma in Ihrer Firma nutzen und so Abläufe optimieren? Dann greifen Sie zu "Six Sigma für Dummies" und lassen Sie sich leicht verständlich erklären, was es damit genau auf sich hat. Six Sigma ist eine auf Effizienz ausgerichtete Qualitätssicherungsmethode. Es ist eine quantitative Methode, bei der genau ermittelt wird, wie das Ziel aussehen soll und wie groß die Fehlerabweichung von diesem Idealziel ist, sei es ein Produktionsprozess oder die Kundenorientierung eines Unternehmens. Es ist eine erfolgreiche Methode, viele Unternehmen setzen Six Sigma bereits ein.Table of ContentsÜber die Autoren 7 Vorwort zur deutschen Auflage 21 Vorwort zur amerikanischen Auflage 23 Einführung 25 Teil I: Die Grundlagen von Six Sigma 31 Kapitel 1: Was ist Six Sigma? 33 Kapitel 2: Ein Blick auf die Prinzipien und die Sprache von Six Sigma 51 Kapitel 3: Das Wichtigste von Six Sigma auf den Punkt gebracht 67 Teil II: Die Breakthrough-Strategie (DMAIC) verstehen und anwenden lernen 87 Kapitel 4: Wo drückt der Schuh? Projekte definieren 89 Kapitel 5: Die Unterschiede messen 113 Kapitel 6: Die Prozessfähigkeit messen 149 Kapitel 7: Die Spreu vom Weizen trennen 175 Kapitel 8: Die wesentlichen Faktoren quantifizieren 193 Kapitel 9: Auf das Ziel losstürmen 219 Kapitel 10: Die Gewinne sichern 241 Teil III: Die Familie der Six Sigma-Tools und -Technologien 263 Kapitel 11: Six Sigma-Werkzeuge für die Praxis 265 Kapitel 12: Six Sigma-Tools für das Management 303 Kapitel 13: Die dritte und vierte Dimension von Six Sigma 321 Teil IV: Der Top-Ten-Teil 351 Kapitel 14: Die zehn Best Practices von Six Sigma 353 Kapitel 15: Zehn Fehler, die es zu vermeiden gilt 359 Kapitel 16: Zehn Stellen, an denen Sie Hilfe erhalten 363 Glossar 369 Stichwortverzeichnis 377

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Book Synopsis0 Einleitung.- 1 Zuverlässigkeitsmanagement.- 2 Wirtschaftlichkeit der Zuverlässigkeitssicherung.- 3 Wirtschaftlichkeit der Zuverlässigkeitsrechnung in der Produktion.- 4 Wirtschaftlichkeit der Zuverlässigkeitssicherung für den Käufermarkt.- 5 Erkenntnisse.- 6 Abkürzungen und Symbole.- 7 Literaturverzeichnis.Table of Contents0 Einleitung.- 1 Zuverlässigkeitsmanagement.- 2 Wirtschaftlichkeit der Zuverlässigkeitssicherung.- 3 Wirtschaftlichkeit der Zuverlässigkeitsrechnung in der Produktion.- 4 Wirtschaftlichkeit der Zuverlässigkeitssicherung für den Käufermarkt.- 5 Erkenntnisse.- 6 Abkürzungen und Symbole.- 7 Literaturverzeichnis.

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Book SynopsisThis student-friendly book on quality management offers a holistic approach with practical examples and case studies. It is designed for engineering and management students, as well as professionals and consultants in various industries seeking to implement TQM principles effectively.

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Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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