Quality

Quality

NCFE Level Award 1/2 Business and Enterprise

Multiple Choice

Which of the following best describes quality?

• The service provided to a customer before, during and after purchasing.
• Products being made to a high standard to meet customer needs.
• A high level of productivity.

Quality

Quality is important to businesses, A good definition is:

"Quality is about meeting the needs and expectations of customers"

Customers want quality that is appropriate to the price that they are prepared to pay and the level of competition in the market.

Key aspects of quality for the customer include:

* Good design – looks and style

* Good functionality – it does the job well

* Reliable – acceptable level of breakdowns or failure

* Consistency

* Durable – lasts as long as it should

* Good after sales service

* Value for money

The Costs of Poor Quality

If a business does not provide good quality products or services then there are a number of things that may happen:

•Lost customers (expensive to replace – and they may tell other people about their bad experience)

•Cost of reworking or remaking product

•Costs of replacements or refunds

•Wasted materials

•Bad publicity resulting in lost customers

There are 4 ways in which this can be avoided:

1 Quality Control

2 Bench Marking

3 Quality Assurance

4 Total Quality Management

Multiple Choice

What happens when a business produces faulty goods?

• It increases costs
• It increases costs and damages the reputation of the firm
• It is an example of Total Quality Management

Quality Control

This is the traditional way of managing quality, It can involve:

◦Inspecting products during production

◦Testing products

◦Sampling products as they are produced

Quality control is more about detection than prevention

•It is a very expensive process

◦Products still have to be repaired or replaced

◦So materials are wasted

This methods only limits the amount of faulty products that reach the customers

Multiple Choice

When products are checked at the end of the production process this is called

• Quality Assurance

• Quality Circles

• Quality Control

Multiple Choice

What happens to products that don't meet the standard set?

• They are sold at full price
• They are discarded
• Given away to staff

Multiple Choice

When is Quality Control carried out by a business?

• Inspection or checking of product/service is carried out at the end of production

• Inspection or checking of product/service is carried out during production

• Inspection or checking of product/service is carried out before production

Quality Assurance

This involves minimizing the chances that the product/service will be sub-standard

The focus of quality assurance is on product design, this is because:

◦Quality can be "built-in“

◦There is less need to inspect (quality control)

Multiple Choice

Quality Assurance is carried out

• At the end of production

• During all stages of production

• During some stages of production

Multiple Choice

When products are checked at each stage of production, what is this an example of?

• Quality Control

• Quality Circles

• Quality Assurance

Total Quality Management (TQM)

Total Quality Management (TQM) is a management approach to achieve long-term success through customer satisfaction.

In a TQM effort, all members of an organization participate in improving processes, products, services, and the culture in which they work.

Multiple Choice

Total Quality Management involves

• Management

• management, workforce, suppliers, and even customers, in order to meet or exceed customer expectations.

• management and customers, in order to meet or exceed customer expectations.

Multiple Choice

What is the term that refers to a customer oriented management philosophy and strategy?

• Operations Management
• Total Quality Management
• Entrepreneurial Management
• Strategic Management

Bench Marking

The objective of benchmarking is to understand and evaluate the current position of a business or organisation in relation to best practice and to identify areas and means of performance improvement. 

Multiple Choice

It involves selecting a demonstrated standard of products, services, costs, or practices that represent the very best performance for processes or activities very similar to your own.

• Research and Development

• Outsourcing

• Employee Empowerment

• Benchmarking

Open Ended

Examination Question One

In response to a new competitor NCFE Fashions have started to make a range of clothes aimed at children aged 1 to 2 years. This market is very competitive but profitable

Analyse TWO benefits to NCFE Fashions from adopting a "Total Quality Management" (TQM) for their clothes production (4)

Open Ended

Examination Question Two

SSS Ltd have had increasing complaints from customers in the last month about Model C. SSS Ltd discovered that a missing rubber seal had allowe rain to find a way into the video doorbells and damaged the electronic components

SSS Ltd currently uses a system of Quality Control. Recommend to SSS Ltd directors if it should change to a system of Quality Assurance. In your answer explain an advantage and a disadvantage of SSS Ltd from this change (6)