What is Quality Management? Definition & Importance

Quality is important when it comes to products and services we use every day. We want to know that what we’re buying or using is good quality and that the manufacturer stands behind it. Quality is linked to the brand and technology used to create the product, which makes it an important factor in how desirable the product or service is. A quality management plan should be established to ensure that every step of product manufacturing, project development, and service maintenance is of good quality.

This blog will delve into quality management, its importance, and quality management system.

What is Quality Management?

Quality management involves creating and implementing guidelines to ensure a product or service is manufactured, developed, tested, and delivered to a desired standard. The aim is to standardise all aspects of product development or service delivery to achieve minimal deviation from the ideal state or form of the desired product. Quality management is not just limited to the production process. Still, it is also essential for any area where the company directly impacts consumers. It ensures that a company maintains a set level of quality that customers can expect every time they shop with that business.

Components of Quality Management

The primary components of quality management are as follows:

Quality Planning

The first step when a company aims to establish a quality management system is planning. This is crucial as it enables accurate monitoring and evaluation of products and services, which ultimately helps the company improve continuously. To achieve success, companies must invest time in determining their desired quality level and identifying the procedures that must be implemented. By doing so, they are more likely to meet their goals.

The quality management process requires the following considerations:

1. Defining success for the organisation by establishing key performance indicators (KPIs) to track goals and processes.
2. Analysing procedures and processes regularly for improvement.
3. Identifying any priorities, expectations or specific goals regarding quality for stakeholders.
4. Identifying any legal processes or standards required to achieve the desired level of quality.
5. Identifying industry-specific standards or certification requirements, such as those for medical devices or aerospace equipment.

Quality Control

Quality control plans require rigorous testing to ensure they meet established standards. The purpose is to detect any flaws or deviations and fix them promptly. Quality control is important because it helps ensure that products or services meet customer needs, leading to customer satisfaction and loyalty. It also allows companies to maintain a good reputation, retain customers, and increase profitability.

During testing, it is crucial to pay careful attention to every aspect of the plan to ensure it meets predefined quality benchmarks. Thorough testing helps companies deliver products or services that meet consumer expectations, which sets them apart in a competitive marketplace.

Quality Assurance

Quality assurance is a critical process that involves the delivery of goods and services. It is typically performed at the production stage to identify errors or issues before they reach the customer. This stage of quality management is essential to ensure that the final product or service meets the required performance, reliability and safety standards.

Quality assurance involves various activities, including product inspection, testing, and analysis. These activities aim to detect defects, identify areas for improvement, and ensure compliance with industry regulations and standards. A company can maintain high quality and consistency in its offerings by carrying out quality assurance regularly, preferably with every product or service produced.

Some companies use third-party quality assurance services to ensure objectivity and impartiality. These services provide an independent evaluation of the product or service. They can help identify potential issues the internal quality assurance team may have missed. By leveraging external expertise, companies can improve the quality of their offerings and enhance customer satisfaction.

Quality Review

The quality review step is an essential opportunity for management to systematically evaluate the data gathered from quality assurance efforts and use this information to make informed decisions about any necessary changes to the production process. By conducting a thorough quality review, management can make well-informed decisions about adjustments to their production process, establishing a foundation for continuous improvement.

During the quality review, management teams analyse the quality assurance data, identify improvement areas, evaluate current processes’ effectiveness, gather stakeholder feedback, and develop an action plan. This process helps the management team identify gaps in the production process and take corrective measures to ensure high-quality products.

Quality Improvement

As a crucial element of quality management, the quality improvement component entails a comprehensive review of your existing system and methods to identify areas that can be enhanced to achieve better outcomes. This step involves analysing all the data collected during the previous phases and carefully noting any gaps or issues that must be addressed. The ultimate goal of this process is to ensure that each production cycle improves on the previous one, thereby boosting overall quality management. By taking a detailed look at the organisation’s processes and identifying potential areas of improvement, the operations can be fine-tuned to make the necessary changes to ensure that the business always strives towards the highest standards of excellence.

Quality Management Example

Toyota Corporation is a great example of quality management through implementing the Kanban system. This system is an inventory control approach developed by Taiichi Ohno. The goal of Kanban is to increase visibility for both suppliers and buyers. It helps to limit excess inventory on the production line.

Toyota used Kanban to execute its Just-In-Time (JIT) system. This system aligns raw material orders with the production schedule. As a result, Toyota’s assembly line became more efficient. The company received just enough inventories to meet customer orders as they were generated.

Principles of Quality Management

The International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) provides principles for quality management procedures, and ISO 9001:2015 sets standards for companies’ quality management systems. The ISO’s principles of quality management are as follows:

Customer Focus

All organisations should prioritise meeting and exceeding their customer’s expectations and needs. When a business focuses on meeting and surpassing its customers’ expectations, it can improve customer satisfaction levels, leading to increased revenue and higher retention rates. By gaining a deeper understanding of their customer’s needs and preferences, companies can develop better products and services that cater to those needs. This can lead to greater customer loyalty and a more positive reputation in the market. Additionally, efficient business processes produce higher-quality products and services that satisfy more customers. Identifying and addressing new customer opportunities is more accessible when businesses operate more efficiently.

Leadership

Creating a successful company requires good leadership. Great leadership goes beyond that by establishing a sense of unity and purpose among employees and shareholders. Such leaders understand the importance of providing clear direction and guidance to their team members while encouraging open communication and collaboration. Effective leadership can significantly improve the quality of the company’s products and services and create a more efficient and productive workplace. By fostering a culture of continuous improvement, leaders can ensure that their employees are committed to maintaining high-quality standards while embracing change and innovation.

Engagement of People

When it comes to creating and delivering value, involving staff is crucial. This applies to all employees, including full-time, part-time, outsourced, or in-house. Encouraging employees to improve their skills and maintain consistency constantly is essential. Employees who feel engaged are more likely to be motivated and committed to achieving higher quality standards, resulting in better outcomes. Engaged employees are also more willing to improve their skills continuously, stay consistent, and remain motivated when performing their tasks. This can increase productivity and job satisfaction and create a more positive work environment.

Process Approach

Efficient and effective organisational processes are essential for good performance. The process approach principle highlights the importance of achieving consistency, speed, cost reduction, waste elimination, and continuous improvement. When a company adopts this principle, it can benefit from having strong processes that improve its overall performance and competitiveness. A well-structured and organised process can help a company achieve higher levels of quality in production, operations, marketing, accounting and distribution. Additionally, the process approach principle also emphasises the importance of continuous improvement. This means that companies should strive to continually improve their processes on an ongoing basis to stay competitive and adapt to the changing market.

Continuous Improvement

All businesses should strive to improve constantly. This leads to better performance, flexibility, and a greater ability to seize new opportunities. Creating a quality management system that allows for regular improvement, including a thorough analysis of what is working and what is not, is crucial. By doing this, organisations can identify areas that require changes and implement them accordingly. The more committed the company is to continuous improvement, the better its overall quality management will be. Therefore, it is important to establish a culture of constant learning and development within the organisation, where everyone constantly strives to implement new and better ways of doing things. This will improve the quality of the company’s products or services, enhance its reputation, and increase customer satisfaction.

Evidence-Based Decision Making

Businesses should base their decisions on factual information. This approach helps them better understand the market and achieve their goals. Companies can justify their previous decisions and perform tasks that produce desired results when analysing verified data. Organisations can adopt an evidence-based approach when devising their quality management plan to ensure that their systems meet the desired quality standards. This approach involves collecting and analysing qualitative and quantitative data throughout the planning process. In doing so, companies can gather data on their existing quality management systems and assess their effectiveness in achieving the desired outcomes. They can also evaluate how their past decisions have influenced the quality control processes and identify areas where improvements can be made. By using evidence to inform their quality management plan, companies can ensure that their systems are reliable, effective, and continuously improving.

Relationship Management

Having good relationships with suppliers and retailers is important for a company. Different parties, including retailers, suppliers, and manufacturers, can affect a company’s success. To ensure these relationships are optimised, managing the supply chain process well and promoting good relationships with suppliers is important. Maintaining strong and collaborative relationships with these parties is crucial to ensuring the success of quality management initiatives. Open communication and a shared understanding of the company’s goals make it easier to work towards achieving them. Effective collaboration with these parties can help ensure that the organisation meets the expectations of all stakeholders involved, leading to improved overall performance and success.

Benefits of Quality Management

The following are the benefits of quality management:

• Consistency in Tasks and Activities: Organisations can achieve greater consistency in producing products and services by implementing quality management practices. This consistency fosters customer trust and reliability as products and services meet predefined quality standards.
• Increased Efficiency and Resource Optimisation: Efficient quality management reduces wastage, streamlines processes, and optimises resource utilisation, resulting in cost savings, productivity improvement, and better resource allocation, leading to higher profitability.
• Enhanced Customer Satisfaction: Quality management is vital in enhancing customer satisfaction by ensuring that products and services fulfil or exceed customer expectations. Organisations can provide dependable and satisfactory customer experiences by focusing on quality, fostering loyalty and positive word-of-mouth.
• Effective Marketing and Market Expansion: Effective quality management helps businesses expand into new markets and attract customers with high-quality products and services. This boosts brand credibility and opens up new growth opportunities.
• Seamless Employee Integration and Growth Management: Effective quality management helps streamline the integration of new employees into an organisation. It provides clear-cut processes and guidelines for training and onboarding, ensuring they can quickly become productive team members. This, in turn, helps the organisation achieve its growth objectives while maintaining operational efficiency.
• Continuous Improvement Culture: Quality management promotes an environment of ongoing improvement, motivating organisations to consistently assess and improve their products, procedures, and systems. By embracing innovation and adapting to shifting market conditions, businesses can stay ahead of their competitors and achieve sustainable growth.

What is a Quality Management System (QMS)?

A Quality Management System (QMS) is an organisation’s structured approach to managing and improving the quality of its products or services. It involves documenting processes, procedures, and responsibilities for delivering high-quality products and services that meet regulatory standards and customer requirements.

The main objective of a QMS is to provide a framework for improving communication, collaboration, and consistency while reducing waste and promoting continuous improvement. This enhances process effectiveness and efficiency and helps organisations comply with regulatory requirements and standards.

Importance of Quality Management Systems

Quality Management Systems (QMS) offer an organised, sustainable product development or project improvement approach. This framework ensures that the desired quality is achieved in alignment with the organisation’s goals and customers’ evolving business needs. Using QMS helps identify quality issues early on and eliminates redundant activities that don’t contribute to overall quality management. Performance improvement is monitored and tracked throughout all project stages until the final product is delivered.

Benefits of Quality Management Systems

The benefits of a quality management system are as follows:

• Compliance with Quality Standards: A QMS ensures meticulous adherence to quality standards and regulations. Integrating these standards into the organisation’s processes establishes a framework for consistent compliance, minimises risks, and ensures adherence to industry best practices. A QMS helps organisations operate more efficiently while maintaining quality and compliance with regulations.
• Enhanced Quality: A QMS can help organisations optimise their quality processes and develop a culture of continuous improvement. By consistently monitoring, evaluating, and refining their processes, organisations can improve the overall quality of their products and services. This leads to higher levels of customer satisfaction and loyalty.
• Heightened Customer Satisfaction: Satisfied customers are the lifeblood of any business. Companies can build strong customer relationships and encourage loyalty by providing reliable and high-quality products or services. A well-designed and effective QMS ensures that companies meet or surpass customer requirements and expectations, improving customer satisfaction and retention rates.
• Improved Efficiency: Efficient operations are key to achieving organisational success. A well-implemented QMS helps eliminate waste, redundancies, and inefficiencies in quality processes. By streamlining workflows and optimising resource allocation, organisations can significantly improve efficiency and productivity, ultimately driving bottom-line results.
• Cost Reduction: Quality issues can incur significant costs in terms of rework, scrap,  and customer complaints. A QMS helps organisations minimise these costs and maximise profitability by proactively addressing quality concerns and preventing defects. By investing in quality upfront, organisations can achieve substantial cost savings over the long term.
• Improved Communication and Collaboration: Good communication and collaboration are important for successful operations and organisational success. A QMS can help improve communication between departments and stakeholders, creating a culture of transparency, accountability, and collaboration. It can also help improve teamwork, decision-making, and overall performance. Organisations can enhance their performance by providing a central platform for information sharing and coordination.

Types of Quality Management Systems

The common types of quality management systems are as follows:

1. ISO 13485:2016
2. ISO 9001:2015
3. ISO 17025:2017
4. GxP
5. ICH Q10
6. FDA 21 CFR Part 820
7. EU MDR & EU IVDR

It may be appropriate for certain organisations to use non-standardised approaches to quality management. These approaches are as follows:

• Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI): CQI is a methodology for improving product or service quality. It involves continuously identifying and addressing quality issues while promoting a culture of excellence where everyone is committed to enhancing the quality. CQI is an iterative process that involves analysing data, identifying areas for improvement, implementing changes, and monitoring progress. By using CQI, organisations can achieve higher levels of customer satisfaction, increased efficiency, and improved outcomes.
• Total Quality Management (TQM): TQM is an all-inclusive approach to managing quality that covers every aspect of an organisation’s operations, from designing products to keeping customers happy. TQM prioritises focusing on customers, continually improving processes, and involving employees in quality-related work. The approach includes various tools and techniques, such as statistical process control, quality circles, and employee training. With TQM, improving quality is a strategic objective embedded into every part of an organisation’s operations, resulting in better efficiency, customer loyalty, and higher overall performance.
• Six Sigma: Six Sigma is a quality management approach that aims to decrease defects and improve process performance. It does this by analysing statistical data and striving to achieve a level of quality that is six standards away from the average or 99.99966% defect-free. Six Sigma consists of a structured methodology for process improvement, which includes the following phases: Define, Measure, Analyse, Improve, and Control (DMAIC). By employing Six Sigma principles, organisations can detect and eliminate sources of variation in their processes. This leads to better quality, increased efficiency and reduced costs.

Elements of a Quality Management System

The core elements of a quality management system are as follows:

• Quality Policy and Objectives: The quality policy is a statement from the management that outlines the company’s commitment to quality and provides direction for the quality management system. The quality objectives are measurable goals that support the quality policy and drive continuous improvement. They are specific, quantifiable goals.
• Quality Manual: The quality manual is a detailed and comprehensive document that serves as a reference guide for the organisation’s quality management system. It outlines the quality policy and objectives and all the necessary information to ensure that the quality management system operates as intended. It encompasses all the aspects of the quality management system, including the policies, procedures, and work instructions, as well as the roles and responsibilities of the personnel involved.
• Organisational Structure and Responsibilities: The organisational structure defines the functions, duties, and connections among various departments and personnel within an organisation. It establishes a structure for the quality management system, enabling individuals to comprehend their obligations and how they contribute to the overall quality management system.
• Data Management: Data management is a crucial process that involves collecting, storing, and analysing data to support quality improvement efforts. It consists of utilising various statistical tools and techniques to identify areas for improvement, track progress over time, and make informed decisions based on data insights. By leveraging data insights, organisations can make informed decisions, optimise processes, and drive continuous improvement.
• Processes: Processes are the various activities performed to achieve quality objectives. Purchasing is one such process that involves procuring materials, supplies, and services from suppliers. It is important to ensure that purchasing is done efficiently and effectively to ensure that the quality of the final product is not compromised.
• Product Quality Leading Customer Satisfaction: A product’s quality refers to the extent to which it meets its quality objectives. In contrast, customer satisfaction is the level of contentment customers feel with the quality of the product. These two factors are crucial for the success of any organisation.
• Continuous Improvement Including CAPA: Continuous improvement enhances quality by continuously making small, gradual changes. Corrective and preventive action (CAPA) is a process to tackle quality issues and prevent future quality problems. Organisations can meet customer requirements and stay competitive by continuously improving and addressing quality issues.
• Quality Instruments: Quality instruments are essential tools for measuring the quality of various products and services. These instruments include a wide range of calibration and testing equipment that play a critical role in ensuring the accuracy of measurements. Maintaining these instruments of high quality is essential to ensure their accuracy and reliability.
• Document Control: Document control involves creating, reviewing, and approving documents to ensure they’re accurate, up-to-date, and easily accessible. It assigns unique identification numbers and tracks change to prevent errors and confusion. It provides all parties with access to the latest version of a document for effective communication and decision-making.

How to Choose a Quality Management System

The factors affecting the choice of a quality management system are as follows:

• Industry Relevance: Not all QMS are suitable for every industry. Therefore, it’s crucial to verify the relevance of the QMS for the industry. For example, although the ISO 9001 certification can be applied to any industry, the automotive industry has its specific certification, the IATF 16949 standard. Similarly, the food industry measures its QMS against the ISO 22000 standard. It’s also important to consider whether the company offering the software solution has experience and understanding of that particular industry. This is because each sector has unique requirements and challenges, and a QMS that works well in one industry may not necessarily be the best fit for another.
• Performance and Scalability: When it comes to quality improvement software, choosing a solution that can grow with the business and adapt to its changing needs is essential. Good software should be able to monitor any process within the organisation, regardless of its size. It should be equipped to handle large datasets and operate in real time, which can be beneficial in identifying and addressing issues as they occur. Additionally, the software should present data in an interactive and easy-to-understand way, allowing the company to make informed decisions and take necessary actions to improve business performance.
• Intelligence: Quality management systems have come a long way in recent years, with advances in AI and machine learning enabling them to complete tasks on a scale previously impossible for humans alone. These technologies have also opened up new possibilities for quality management across traditionally qualitative dimensions. For example, tracking the number of resolutions achieved simply in a call centre is no longer enough. A good software package should also be able to automatically understand each interaction’s sentiment, friction points, and emotion. This is crucial for ensuring that customers are satisfied and that agents perform at their best. By leveraging AI and machine learning, businesses can better understand their customers’ needs and preferences for better overall performance and increased success.
• Suggestions and Actionability: When choosing a quality management suite for software-based operations, it’s essential to consider how well it can suggest actions that improve the overall quality. The ideal solution should provide a complete and comprehensive view of the entire operation while offering specific and practical suggestions that can enhance customer satisfaction. This means that the software should be able to analyse data at both a macro and micro level and provide meaningful and relevant insights to your business. By utilising a quality management suite that offers actionable suggestions, a company can ensure that its software-based operations run smoothly and efficiently and that its customers receive the best possible experience.

Establishing and Implementing a Quality Management System

The steps to implement a quality management system are as follows:

1. Design and Build: The design phase aims to create the overall structure of the QMS, including its plans and processes for design, delivery, and implementation. It requires input from multiple stakeholders, such as senior management, department heads, and front-line workers, to ensure that the system is designed to meet the organisation’s and its customers’ needs. The build phase is the actual implementation of the QMS. It involves creating and documenting processes, procedures, work instructions and other necessary documents. This phase also includes testing, training, and monitoring to ensure the QMS works effectively. Senior management should oversee the development and implementation of the QMS during this phase to ensure that it aligns with the organisation’s strategic goals and objectives and meets its customers’ needs.
2. Deploy: To ensure the QMS is deployed effectively, it’s best to break down each plan and process into smaller steps. This helps better manage and control each aspect, ensuring each step is carried out as intended. It’s essential to provide comprehensive training and education to all teams involved in the deployment process. This includes educating them on the importance of documentation and providing them with training tools and metrics to track their progress. Many companies use monitoring tools, such as intranets, to aid in deploying quality management systems. These tools can include examples of quality management plans to guide and monitor the process.
3. Control and Measure: QMS require regular reviews, audits, and evaluations to ensure quality control and measurement. Depending on the organisation’s size, industry, and specific risks and environmental impacts, the requirements and intricacies of establishing a QMS can vary considerably. For example, a small business may only require basic controls and measurements, while a large corporation operating in a highly regulated industry may require a more complex and rigorous approach to QMS management. Regardless of the specifics, a well-designed and properly executed QMS can help organisations improve quality, reduce costs, and enhance customer satisfaction.
4. Review and Improve: Quality management processes require regular reviews to assess their effectiveness and efficiency, identify areas for improvement, and communicate findings effectively. The audit process examines processes for inefficiencies, non-compliance, and other issues. Audit findings are communicated clearly for actionable steps and used to design new plans and processes. Data from the audit provides insights for informed decisions on process optimisation.

Conclusion

Quality management is crucial for businesses’ long-term success in today’s competitive landscape. By prioritising quality, organisations can enhance customer satisfaction, reduce costs, gain a competitive advantage, and drive continuous improvement. To achieve these benefits, businesses must implement robust quality management systems and adhere to key principles such as customer focus, leadership, employee engagement, process approach, and continuous improvement.

Frequently Asked Questions