Definition
It is a small group of employees who perform the same or similar work in a common work area, and who work for the same supervisor, who meet regularly and voluntarily, and are trained to identify, select, and analyze related problems and possibilities for improvement. with their work, recommend solutions and present them to the management, and, if the latter approves, carry out their implementation.
Objective of the Quality Circles
The basic idea of the Quality Circles consists of creating awareness of quality and productivity in each and every one of the members of an organization, through teamwork and the exchange of experiences and knowledge, as well as mutual support. All this, for the study and resolution of problems that affect the adequate performance and quality of a work area, proposing ideas and alternatives with a focus on continuous improvement.
Attributes of the Quality Circle
• Participation in the Quality Circle is voluntary.
• They are small groups, 4 to 6 people in small workshops, 6 to 10 in medium workshops and 8 to 12 in large workshops.
• The members of the Quality Circle carry out the same job or logically related jobs, that is, they are usually part of a team that has common objectives.
• The Quality Circles meet periodically to analyze and solve problems that they discover themselves or that are proposed to their boss.
• Each Quality Circle has a boss who is responsible for the operation of the Circle. The chief is generally a supervisor who receives special training related to the activities of the Circle.
• The governing board of the management establishes the objectives, policies and guidelines of the activities of the Quality Circles, and supports the Circles system through adequate resources and the interest of the management.
Everyone who participates in a Quality Circles program receives training or information according to the degree of participation they have in the system.
Purposes of the Quality Circles
• Contribute to developing and perfecting the company. It is not just about increasing sales, but also growing in quality, innovation, productivity and customer service; growing qualitatively, in short, is the only way to establish the future of the company on solid foundations.
• Make the workplace comfortable and rich in content. The Circles aspire to make the workplace more suitable for the development of intelligence and creativity of the worker.
• Take advantage of and maximize all the capabilities of the individual. The human factor is the most important and decisive asset that the company has. Its constant enhancement causes a multiplier effect whose results often exceed the most optimistic calculations and estimates.
Principles of working circles
• Recognition at all levels that no one knows a task, a job or a process better than the one who performs it on a daily basis.
• Respect for the individual, his intelligence and his freedom.
• Enhancement of individual capacities through group work.
• Reference to work-related topics.
Conditions of work circles
• Voluntary participation. The worker must be involved freely and decisively.
• Training. Recycling of people must be continuous and never routine. Training should not only enrich the worker, but, in essence, the human being in its fullness since knowledge is one of the basic needs and motivations of every individual.
• Team work. Team spirit favors healthy competition between the different Circles, and this translates into constant improvement both in ideas and in the solutions provided.
• Democratic group. A leader must be democratically elected.
• Respect for your partner. Collective and never individual merits. The ideas and improvements arising as a result of the work of the Circles are the heritage of the team, and not of an isolated individual.
• Small group. Circles made up of few individuals work best.
• Short meetings and during work time.
• Respect the schedule, once it has been set.
• Explicit and formal recognition by the company.
• Support from senior management
Activities of a Quality Circle
• Problem solving. Fundamentally the Circle is a problem solving group. The problem solving process becomes an integrated sequence of actions and techniques. To solve these problems you have to go through some stages:
1. Identify a list of possible problems to address. The “brainstorming” technique is usually used to obtain a sufficiently broad list to allow an accurate view of the current state of the work area.
2. Select a problem to solve. From the previously prepared list, the Circle chooses a problem that it will try to solve; You can start by shortening the previous list by reaching a consensus on the most important problems. The evaluation of the problems many times requires that previously a collection and analysis of information is carried out and the use of some techniques such as Pareto analysis.
3. Clarify the problem. It is about all members having an equal understanding of the meaning and implications of the selected problem. To this end it may be useful to answer what the problem is, and where and when it occurs.
4. Identify and evaluate causes. We must attack the origin of it; aimed at eliminating the cause that produced it. Possible causes are organized in a cause-effect diagram. This technique allows graphically to see how and from which area of work the possible causes can act. Additional information will be needed to assess the probability that one of these is responsible for the problem. All of this information will help the Circle reach a consensus on the most likely cause of the problem.
5. Identify and evaluate solutions. The Circle will try to make a list of potential solutions that will later be evaluated by the group based on certain criteria.
6. Decide on a solution. With all the data available, the Circle initiates a discussion to reach a consensus on which solution seems better in principle than the others.
7. Develop a solution implementation plan. This plan should explain how the chosen solution will be implemented.
8. Present the plan to management. It is advisable to include a rough estimate of the expected benefits of the proposed plan.
9. Implement the plan. If the management approves the plan presented, the members of the Circle will be responsible for its implementation in their work area.
10. Evaluate the results of the proposed solution. Since its implementation, the Circle collects and analyzes information on the results that the solution implementation plan provides. It is not a question of finding out if the solution works in the short term, but rather a long-term monitoring of its effects.
11. Optimize the results of the solution. It is not only a matter of solving problems, but of foreseeing their occurrence in areas that have not yet suffered them.
12. Re-identify a list of problems. The solution of a previous problem gives way to a new cycle of activities directed towards the same end.
Technical aspects of the Quality Circles
The main and basic techniques used in this context are:
• “Brainstorming” or spontaneous generation of ideas. This is a technique where the participants are encouraged to give the maximum number of ideas on a proposed topic, importing not their quality but their quantity, and ensuring that the ideas are original and creative.
• Techniques for recording information, mainly the record sheet (“checksheet”) and sampling.
• Registration sheet. This instrument allows the Circle to organize the information obtained in a format that can be easily understood and analyzed. On the left side, the elements, items, characteristics or measures to be observed are noted. The next column is for tabulation; that is, to note a mark each time the corresponding phenomenon is contrasted. The last column is for the total frequencies of each item.
• Information analysis techniques, where we include summary tables of information, various types of graphs (bars, linear, circular,…) and Pareto analysis. We managed to obtain the data in a visually attractive format. This marked emphasis on the visual is one of the basic principles of Quality Control.
• Problem analysis techniques, where the cause-effect diagram stands out. This diagram is a graphical representation of the relationship between the potential causes of a problem or effect and the problem or effect itself. The six-word diagram is also often used, which is a method to explore "what the problem is and what it is not."
Evaluation of the viability of a Quality Circles program
The feasibility assessment is based on the assumption that "Quality Circles are not suitable for any organization" and, therefore, to reduce the risk of failure, the compatibility of the organization with the assumptions of the technique must be evaluated.
Fitzgerald and Murphy propose a method to evaluate the receptivity of the organization to change based on three levels:
1. Maintenance level. It refers to the degree of satisfaction of management with the way the organization currently operates. An organization in crisis accepts change in an effort to find a solution to its problems, while a satisfactorily functioning organization is more likely to resist the change efforts involved in Quality Circles.
2. Synergistic level. It is intended to measure the condition that exists when individuals have found ways to work in harmony. Positive organizational attitudes and the existence of harmonious working groups will facilitate change.
3. Environmental level. It refers to the influence exerted by external forces on the organization The greater the external environmental pressures, the greater the probability of change.
Focal points of the Quality Circles
• Quality. It can be considered as the great objective of the Circles; markets are increasingly competitive and customers have a higher level of education and demand, which makes quality a central concern for most companies.
• Productivity. The circles can collaborate to increase productivity in a broader sense and in all areas of the company. It is the result of a correct application of all the company's resources, a reliable index that all resources are well directed and managed.
• Cost improvement. Knowledge of costs prevents waste and mismanagement of resources. The Quality Circles can collaborate decisively when it comes to reducing costs of all kinds: administrative, commercial, transport, etc…
• Motivation. Thanks to the Quality Circles, workers can be constantly motivated, offering them opportunities to participate in the company's objectives, and to feel valued for a job well done.
• Integration. The Quality Circles facilitate the breaking of the watertight compartments, and make their members know the work of others and better understand their needs and problems.
• Reorganization. When the reorganization can be slow in time, and drastic and urgent decisions are not necessary, it is a good alternative to entrust the Circles to study this reorganization.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
-"Quality circles". José María Peiró, Vicente González Romá. Editorial Eudema.
-"Quality circles. Theory and practice". Francisco Javier Palom Left. Boixareu editors.
- "Principles of productivity, Quality Circles and robotics". Harry Katzan, Jr. Deusto Editions.
- "Manual for the implementation of Quality Circles". Rafael Mazas Mendez.
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