Participative quality management is a process that empowers employees and moves from a bureaucratic structure to a self-managed structure to deliver quality and customer satisfaction. It requires forming teams to unite, cooperate, and create synergies to solve problems. Skills like communication, conflict resolution, and flexibility are required for participative quality management. Employees who are close to customers and delivery processes are best able to improve satisfaction by knowing where problems lie.

1. A Presentation on: PARTICIPATIVE MANAGEMENT QUALITY

2. Participative Quality Management Participative Quality Management is a process of empowering people, moving from bureaucratic structure to a self-managed democratic structure for delivering quality for customer satisfaction. It is the essential and unique means for attaining the spirit of TQM. Team spirit is the key to the success of participative quality management.

3. Concept of Participative Quality Management The concept of “ Participative Quality Management ” dates back to early 1960s when “Quality Control Circles” (QCC) was introduced in Japan. First Japan, and then the western countries, became aware of the need for “workers’ involvement” and participation in assuring quality. If total quality has to be implemented in a company, all employees must be motivated, inspired and drawn into the quality activities. Prof. Kaoru Ishikawa was the pioneer in popularizing this company-wide quality control by introducing group activities in managing the quality.

8. Role of Employees The role of employees in the participatory process will depend on the scope of delegation of responsibilities from supervisors. It is the task of top leaders to ensure that an environment of delegation to front-line staff is ensured for company-wide participative quality management. Staff close to customers & close to service delivery processes is in a better position to improve the level of product/service satisfaction, because they know better where the problems lie. This is a process to empower & train people to take higher responsibility in quality management.

10. Mandatory Improvement Activities Small Group Activities (SGA) Project – by – Project Improvement Quality Improvement Projects (QIP)

12. Small Group Activities (SGA) Structural approach The structure of an SGA project is derived from the PDCA-cycle from Dr. W. Edward Deming and exists of 8 steps on the basis of the SGA cycle. The SGA team works independently and reports the progress by means of communication boards.

14. Quality Improvement Projects (QIP) Quality Improvement Projects (QIP) are popular improvement schemes where a group or a team is formed by the management to solve an identified problem under the management action.

15. Voluntary Improvement Activities Quality Circle 5-S Principles Suggestion Box Scheme

16. Quality Circle The concept of “ Quality Circle ” was first introduced in Japan in 1962, & ever since it has become a buzzword in the management of quality all over the world. “ Quality Circle ” is defined as a small group of working people who, under the leadership of their own foreman or supervisor, are trained to identify, analyze, and solve quality related problems on a voluntary basis and present their solutions to their managers. The idea is to train and stimulate the people of a work area for solving their problems on their own by teamwork, brainstorming and learning to be creative in the workplace. The effect of this combined work was not only to boost the self confidence of the team members, but also to make the team more involved and recognized by top management.

19. Facts about Quality Circle Quality Circle work brings a cultural change in the work environment whereby people at all levels in the organization become a willing partner of the progress. It calls for a willing management who are committed to develop a consensus style of management & prepared to invest in training of its people. It is strictly not a reward based scheme. Returns from Quality Circles may not always be visibly high financial gains, but a continuous flow of small benefits that make the organizational functioning simpler, work environment healthier, & the organization stronger.

21. Quality Circle in India In India, many companies – namely TVS Group, Tata Group of Companies, Mahindra & Mahindra, BHEL, etc. have successfully introduced regular “quality circles” at the shop-floor levels as self motivated groups for changing the work culture & effecting long term improvements. In India, there are inter-company & intra-company competitions of “quality circles” to encourage the technique, bring a sense of pride in being associated with such work, & spread the message amongst other companies that the best way to get quality improvement is by this unique participative programme.

24. "5-S" Principles 5-S is a concept of work culture for effecting improvement in performance mainly through creating good work environment and work culture. It is a system approach for improvement in productivity, quality and safety in all types of business, and it is now regarded as an essential part of any continuous improvement approach. The 5-S programme focuses on having orderliness, cleanliness, systems, discipline and organization in the workplace. As a result, the programme benefits the organization with improved efficiency, effectiveness, profits, safety and services.

28. Suggestion Box Scheme Suggestion Box Scheme (SBC) is a reward-based programme that large number of companies run to get the benefits of participative quality improvement. The scheme attempts to generate thoughts, observations, and improvement suggestions for quality and cost by drawing all employees into the process of suggestion generation. These suggestions are further examined, scrutinized and tried-out whenever necessary before accepting by expert teams. If accepted and implemented, the suggestor is awarded by following the company norms. The entire process of suggestion generation, evaluation, and reward is handled by a specially appointed “Suggestion Box Committee”. Anyone can suggest improvement about any area, provided the proposed solution is a realistic one. It was reported that in Toyota Motors, Japan, 40,000 workers generate over 65 suggestions per year per employee, and nearly 90 % of them get accepted.

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