BUS300: Operations Management

The foundation of Crosby's approach is prevention. His approach to quality is best described by the following concepts: (1) "Do It Right the First Time"; (2) "Zero Defects" and "Zero Defects Day"; (3) the "Four Absolutes of Quality"; (4) the "Prevention Process"; (5) the "Quality Vaccine"; and (6) the "Six C's".

"Do It Right the First Time"

Crosby's approach focuses on doing things right the first time and every time. There is no place in his philosophy for differing levels of quality or categories of quality (e.g., high/low, good/poor). He believes there should be no reason for planning and investing in strategies that are designed in case something does not conform to requirements and goes wrong. He stresses that the way to manage quality is by prevention, not detection and testing. To Crosby, any product that falls within its design specifications is a quality product.

Crosby addresses the need to change management's perception of and attitudes about quality. He has found it is a common attitude among managers to believe that error is inevitable, it is a normal part of business life, and one needs to cope with it. He believes management creates most of its problems through its attitudes and practices in terms of what is rewarded and supported in an organization. For example, if adherence to schedule is reinforced over quality, then schedule will become the focus of the work.

"Zero Defects" and "Zero Defects Day"

The ultimate goal of his quality improvement process is "Zero Defects" or "defect-free" products and services. Contrary to what is generally believed, "Zero Defects" is not just a motivational slogan, but an attitude and commitment to prevention. "Zero Defects" does not mean that the product has to be perfect. It does mean that every individual in the organization is committed to meet the requirement the first time, every time, and that not meeting the requirement is not acceptable. To get everyone involved in the process of quality improvement, Crosby stresses individual conformance to requirements. To Crosby, when people are asked to "do it right the first time," requirements are the "it".

His approach provides for the establishment of a "Zero Defects Day," a day that provides a forum for management to reaffirm its commitment to quality and allows employees to make the same commitment.

"Four Absolutes of Quality"

 Quality improvement begins with what Crosby calls the four absolutes of quality management, considered by him to be the core concepts of the quality improvement process. The four absolutes are:

1. Quality is conformance to the requirements: All the actions necessary to run an organization, produce a product and or service, and deal with customers must be met and agreed. If management wants people to "do it right the first time," they must clearly communicate what "it" is and help them achieve it through leadership, training, and fostering a climate of cooperation.
   
2. The system of quality is prevention: The system that produces quality is prevention (i.e., eliminating errors before they occur). To Crosby, training, discipline, example, and leadership produce prevention. Management must consciously commit themselves to a prevention- oriented work environment.
3. The performance standard is "Zero Defects" ("Do it right the first time"): The attitude of "close enough" is not tolerated in Crosby's approach. Errors are too costly to ignore. Leaders must help others in their pursuit of conforming to requirements by allocating resources for training, providing time, tools, etc., to all employees.
   
4. The measurement of quality is the price of nonconformance: Nonconformance is a management tool for diagnosing an organization's effectiveness and efficiency.
   

"Prevention Process"

Crosby's approach addresses prevention rather than inspection and correction of errors (Figure 2). He says that prevention involves thinking, planning, and analyzing processes to anticipate where errors could occur, and then taking action to keep them from occurring. To Crosby, problems usually arise because product or service requirements are either lacking or in error. His prevention process begins by establishing the product or service requirement, developing the product or service, gathering data, comparing the data to the requirement, and taking action on the result Crosby suggests this is a continuing activity.

"Quality Vaccine"

Crosby sees problems as "bacteria of nonconformance" that must be "vaccinated" with "antibodies" to prevent problems (Crosby, 1984). He has formulated a "quality vaccine" that consists of three distinct management actions-determination, education, and implementation. Top management is responsible for continually administering the "vaccine".

Determination surfaces when management sees the need to change and recognizes that change requires management action. Education is the process of providing all employees with the common language of quality, helping them to understand what their role is in the quality improvement process, as well as helping them to develop a knowledge base for preventing problems. The third action is implementation, which consists of the development of a plan, the assignment of resources, and the support of an environment consistent with a quality improvement philosophy. In this phase, management must lead by example and provide follow-up education.

"Six C's"

To Crosby, education is a multi-stage process that every organization must go through, a process he calls the "Six C's". The first stage, or "C," is comprehension, which addresses the importance of understanding what is meant by quality. Comprehension must begin at the top and eventually include all employees. Without comprehension, quality improvement will not occur. The second "C" is commitment, which also must begin at the top and represents the stage when managers establish a quality policy. The third is competence; developing an education and training plan during this stage is critical to implementing the quality improvement process in a methodical way. The fourth "C" is communication; all efforts must be documented and success stories published so that complete understanding of quality by all people in the corporate culture is achieved. The fifth is correction, which focuses on prevention and performance. Finally, the sixth is continuance, which emphasizes that the process must become a way of life in the organization. Continuance is based on the fact that it is never cheaper or quicker to do anything right the second time, so quality must be integrated into all day-to-day operations (Quality Process Improvement Management College).

Figure 2. The prevention process (Crosby, 1987).

Summary

Crosby's main point is that quality is achieved by preventing defects and conforming to requirements. Requirements must be agreed upon and employees must know bow to achieve them. The monetary cost of quality is the focus of measurement, and he developed a formula to help managers track this cost This formula provides for continuously measuring the cost of waste versus the lower cost of doing things right the first time, which is his performance standard.

He urges activities (e.g., "Zero Defects Day") where management and employees reaffirm their commitment to quality. His training program focuses on helping managers develop an organizational culture that focuses on quality. The ultimate goal of his approach is to provide "defect-free" products and services to the customers.