Quality Circle - Objective, Rules, Benefits, Features & Limitations

Quality Circle - Objective, Rules, Benefits, Features & Limitations

 

Objectives of Quality Circles:

Some of the broad objectives of the Quality Circle are:

(i) To improve quality, productivity, safety and cost reduction.

(ii) To give chance to the employees to use their wisdom and creativity.

(iii) To encourage team spirit, cohesive culture among different levels and sections of the employees.

(iv) To promote self and mutual development including leadership quality,

(v) To fulfil the self-esteem and motivational needs of employees.

(vi) To improve the quality of work-life of employees.

 

The important objectives of quality circles are:

(i) To develop, enhance and utilise human resources effectively;

(ii) To improve quality of products/services, productivity and reduce cost of production per unit of output;

(iii) To satisfy the workers’ psychological needs for self-urge, participation, recognition etc., with a view to motivating them. Accomplishment of this objective will ensure enhancement of employee morale and commitment;

(iv) To improve various supervisory skills like leadership, problem solving, inter-personal and conflict resolution; and

(v) To utilise individual imaginative, creative and innovative skills through participation, creating and developing work interest, including problem solving techniques etc. Achievement of these objectives effectively requires the use of certain techniques.

(vi) To make use of the knowledge and skills of the workers.

(vii) To develop good relations between workers and managers and create cordial industrial relations.

 

Rules for Quality Circles:

(a) Each member can contribute an idea on his turn in rotation.

(b) Each member offers only one idea per turn regardless of how many he or she has in mind.

(c) Not everyone has an idea during each rotation, when this occurs just say “Pass”.

(d) No criticism or comments should be passed on the ideas being contributed by the member whatever old it may look to be, welcome their ideas.

(e) During brain-storming, no evaluation of suggested idea should occur. This applies equally to leader, phrases such as “We have tried it before”, “Impractical”, “Well” “Maybe it would work”. “Doubtful”, “Very good” etc. should not be uttered.

(f) Members can vote by raising their hands.

(g) Only supporting votes are taken. Votes against the ideas are not allowed.

(h) The time allotted for brain-storming session should be variable. The length of time that can be spent profitably will vary widely with nature of problem and the group itself. As a general practice, one hour is probably the minimum.

(i) While members give their ideas, they are recorded by the Recorder on a large sheet.

(j) It is often helpful to set a goal originally, i.e. Let us start for 30 ideas.

(k) When all members say “pass” then the first phase of brain-storming session is over. This means all ideas have been exhausted.

(l) Now all the ideas recorded on the sheet are displayed.

(m) These massive number of ideas are then narrowed down by the process of voting. The voting technique works because the members are experts in their areas. Members vote on each idea. The leader records each vote next to the idea.

(n) Members can vote for as many ideas as they feel have value. Only supporting votes are taken.

(o) Leader draws a circle around those ideas that receive the most votes. The members thus find that many of the top ideas will be so identified.

(p) Now the members can focus on a few important ideas instead of being somewhat confused by a large number of them. These few important ideas are voted on to give ranking to the circle ideas. Leader writes the ranking number beside each idea that has been circled.

(q) A member can ask for voting on any idea and argue for or against it. Others can join, if they wish. Only when the discussion has finished then the voting take place.

Benefits of Quality Circles:

1. Self-Development:

Every person who joins the quality circle program gets training to enhance his knowledge and skills. Training helps them to improve their abilities and promote success in other areas of life also. Quality circles are formed in those areas where people can work in a group.

So, they develop the feeling of cooperation and mutual understanding while working with others. They learn to cope with personal differences and understand another’s view point while working cooperatively towards a common goal.

2. Job Satisfaction:

People get a sense of pride when opportunities are given to them to use their ideas and brain power. They get a sense of achievement and satisfaction when their ideas are considered and executed. They work with more enthusiasm while performing their jobs.

3. Reduction of Waste:

Quality can be achieved by cutting down the waste in material, labour and time. By working together and helping each other, these wastages can be avoided. By reducing/avoiding the waste, the cost of operations can be brought down considerably.

In today’s inflationary conditions, where cost of material and wages are rapidly increasing, it becomes imperative to reduce the cost and waste. Costly items can be referred to quality circles and they can be asked to reduce the cost without reduction in quality.

4. Improvement of Quality:

A quality circle is one of the best answers to solve problems and improve the quality image. Improving quality is a never-ending job. There is always a scope for further improvement. Consumers constantly demand better quality and a business has to come up to the expectations of consumers in order to survive and grow in the competing market. Quality always matters whether the deal is with the people, the process, the machine or the material. The basic idea underlying the establishment of quality circles is to improve the quality by the involvement of everyone participating in the organisation.

5. Improvement of Communication:

Good communication is very important for a working life. Quality circles improve communication through group activities which take place frequently. Poor communication can cause dissatisfaction and undue tension. It can lead to misunderstandings and confusion due to the mis-interpretation of the messages. In quality circles, people become more open-minded, they talk more about their problems and develop a positive working atmosphere.

6. Improve Participation:

Membership in a quality circle means a participative environment—an interaction with the work group. Participation encourages commitment of the employees in producing quality goods. The involvement of everyone working in the organisation gets involved and improve the operations of the enterprise. Everyone from top to bottom works towards a common goal i.e., success through quality.

7. Improvement in Productivity:

Quality circles have proved to be a valuable tool for increasing the productivity and improving the work quality by enhancing worker’s participation and job- satisfaction. Reduction of costs and elimination of waste/rejects also contribute towards the improvement in productivity. Japan, Germany and France are ahead of many industrial nations due to their adoption of quality circles as a means to improve their productivity.

8. Problem Solving Opportunities:

An excellent opportunity to solve many work problems is provided by quality circle programs. People get a chance to get together and think about their problems and then try to solve them through this program. People get more satisfaction when the ideas generated by them are used to resolve the organisational problems and conflicts.

9. Team Spirit:

A sense of team-spirit is inculcated among the group members working in the quality circles. While working with each other, a feeling of togetherness is created. They start helping each other. They start talking about business and other problems during lunch time. The teams become a strong force to combat growing competition and inflationary problems.

10. Reducing Absenteeism and Grievances:

Various studies have proved that there has been a remarkable reduction in absenteeism in the quality circle departments. People start enjoying the work and they prefer to come to the job rather than sitting at home. By linking all kinds of people together, the grievances of many employees get reduced. They start spending their time and energy on higher productivity and better quality by setting aside their minor differences. Thus, quality circles help many companies in reducing their absenteeism and industrial grievances.

 

Benefits of Quality Circles (Q.C.):

1. Through the forum of Q.C. the chronic problems-of organisations which really create hurdles in work get resolved by the grass root employees of organisation, whose knowl­edge and experience otherwise is not fully utilized.

2. With such a capable work force, any organisation can easily undertake more difficult and challenging assignments for its growth and profit.

3. As the employees gain experience, they take more challenging projects, in due course they undertake projects on cost reduction, material handling, quality improvement, preventing wastage, improving delivery schedule, improving customer service, im­proving inspection and test methods, preventing accidents improving design and pro­cess etc.

4. Cost reduction.

5. Increased productivity.

6. Improved quality.

7. Better communication.

8. Better house-keeping.

9. Increased team work.

10. Smooth working.

11. Better mutual trust.

12. Greater sense of belongingness.

13. Increased safety.

14. Better human relations.

 

The key features of quality circles are as under:

1. People Building Philosophy – A quality circle is a homogeneous group. The number of employees in a quality circle is between six to ten and they generally come from a particular area. It consists of small group of persons who normally work at the same place and perform similar work. Every member and the management have the sincere desire to help others to grow and develop. They must look out for the development and growth of everyone working in the organisation.

2. Voluntary Group – No coercion or pressure is brought on any member to join or not to join. Nor can any member be barred from joining quality circles. Quality circles are voluntary associations of persons having common cause. Members must understand that quality circles are formed for their benefit—they are completely free to take or not to take advantages of it.

3. Participative Program – Quality circles represent collective effort. Every one working in the organisation must get a chance to say what is in his mind. Everyone should have interest and value for the projects chosen for quality circles. The circle as a whole should receive recognition for any achievements accomplished by it.

4. Supportive Management – Quality circles need the encouragement to grow and mature. Management must be willing to give support, advice and also some commitment in the beginning. Members normally meet once in a week for about one hour in consultation with the manager. Each quality circle is managed by an elected leader and the manager/supervisor may act as the leader.

5. To Improve the Performance – Collective and participative efforts must result in the improvement of quality, productivity and performance. Cost and wastage must be reduced as a result of quality circles. The whole organisation must gain both quantitatively as well as qualitatively.

6. Enrichment of Work life – Apart from team culture and attitudinal changes, the quality circles must result in improved working environment, happier relations and greater job satisfaction.

7. To Identify and Resolve Work Related Problems – Members of quality circles identify their problems through brainstorming sessions. Then they start analysing the problems through statistical quality control techniques and problem-solving methods. A unique feature of Quality Circles is that they do not pass on the decision without interacting with other levels of functional agencies.

8. The focus is on quality related problems.

 

Limitation of Quality Circle

Limitation # 1. Resistance:

In many companies, there is resistance on the part of employees to implement quality circles. People resist change fearing that they might have to treat people differently or listen to them more carefully. The wrong notions of the people about quality circles need to be cleared. People must understand the basic principles and techniques of quality circles to make the operation smoother.

Limitation # 2. Lack of Time:

Many people feel that they are already so busy for their routine jobs and have no time for quality circle work. They have no time to work harder for the company. But they need to understand that by giving little extra time in the beginning, they are saving money, avoiding wastage and improving quality by implementation of quality circle program.

Limitation # 3. Lack of Ability:

Workers in India have a low level of education and initiative. People dislike change and hesitate to try something new. They need to be educated about the benefits of quality circles.

Limitation # 4. Lack of Management Commitment:

The success of any program depends upon the commitment and support of the top management. Without the top support, employees will be least interested in devoting their personal time to the quality circles. On the other hand, employees may not be allowed to hold meetings of quality circles during the working hours. So, the work of quality circles cannot be conducted smoothly without the participation and commitment of the top management.

Limitation # 5. Non-Implementation of Suggestions:

Employees get disheartened if their suggestions are turned down by the top management. The suggestions of each quality circle need to be given due weightage, otherwise the enthusiasm of employees will come down. Every suggestion likely to improve the quality of work must be implemented by the top management in the right perspective.

Limitation # 6. Negative Attitude:

Negative attitude of the people that ‘why should I help my company’ is also a big hindrance in the smooth work of quality circles. Many people feel that company is something apart and close the doors of initiative and creative ideas to improve the quality and productivity of their company.