TQM QUESTION BANK
Section A: TRUE/FALSE QUESTIONS
1. The very purpose of organizations is to meet customer needs and satisfy their expectations.
TRUE/FALSE
2. Process improvement is the foundation on which customer satisfaction is built. TRUE/FALSE
3. With TQM, the worker is viewed as a source of process improvement. TRUE/FALSE
4. The commitment to data-based decision making implies a need to train all employees in the appropriate use of statistics. TRUE/FALSE
5. In the holistic approach to problem solving, complex problems are broken down into independent sub problems. TRUE/FALSE
6. TQM focuses on acceptability. TRUE/FALSE 7. TQM focuses on short-term financial performance. TRUE/FALSE 8. TQM seeks proactive solutions for customers TRUE/FALSE 9. Japanese managers tend to place greater emphasis on long-term market share. TRUE/FALSE
10. The term service recovery refers to converting a customer who is dissatisfied with a service into one who is satisfied. TRUE/FALSE
11. Joseph Juran is well known for his fourteen point philosophy. TRUE/FALSE
12. Juran's four quality costs are not applicable to the service environment. TRUE/FALSE
13. Thinking of quality in financial terms helps top manager see the importance of their own participation in quality related functions. TRUE/FALSE
14. The Baldrige Award is Japan's national quality award TRUE/FALSE 15. The ISO 9000 standards have been revised to focus more on customer satisfaction and process improvement. TRUE/FALSE
16. Various groups outside an organization have no bearing on the quality of its product or service and its productivity. TRUE/FALSE
17. Nonhuman resources and how they are processed are the primary concerns under the heading of internal influences.
TRUE/FALSE
18. Research and development projects represent a sizable investment of time and money that help to guarantee an organization's future through a steady stream of customer-pleasing goods and services. TRUE/FALSE
19. Careful coordination through regular interactions with suppliers is vital to satisfying internal needs and external customers.
TRUE/FALSE
20. Locating manufacturing and distribution facilities close to inexpensive sources of raw materials can greatly increase a producer's cost. TRUE/FALSE
21. Quality can be used as a strategic, offensive weapon rather than a defensive one. TRUE/FALSE 22. Performance is the probability that a product will fail within a specified time. TRUE/FALSE 23. Conformance relates to the number of product models and/or variations a company can offer its customers. TRUE/FALSE 24. The Baldrige award is only for health care and educational institutions. TRUE/FALSE
25. A key to employee involvement is quality at the source. TRUE/FALSE
Section b: MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS
1. Which of the following is not one of the commitments of Total Quality
Management? a. technical quality b. understanding and improving the organization's processes c. data-based decision making d. employee involvement
2. Which of the following is not part of the Total Quality Approach?
a. holistic thinking b. focus on short-term financial performance
c. focus on desirability
d. team thinking
3. Team thinking involves all of the following except a. functional classification and competition b. focus on teamwork c. focus on system improvement d. focus on satisfying internal customers 4.Which of the following is not a benefit of long-term suppler relationships? a. supplier involvement in design b. information system linkages to customer facilities c. capacity and facility plans favorable to their customers
d. all of the above are benefits 5. Which of the following is not a benefit to the supplier of a cooperative supplier-purchaser relationship? a. more competitive customers b. better information for planning and control c. advance notice of new product design and technologies d. all of the above are benefits to the supplier 6. Which of the following is not a part of the Deming cycle? a. plan b. do c. consider d. all of the above are part of the Deming cycle 7 Which of the following individuals believed that quality improvement issues should be presented in the language of management? a. W. Edwards Deming b. Joseph M. Juran c. Walter Shewhart d. Phillip Crosby 8. Which of the following costs refers to expenditures associated with products, subassemblies, or components that are not fit for use, but have not yet been transferred to the customer a. internal failure cost
b. external failure cost c. appraisal
d. prevention 9. In manufacturing settings, the hidden costs of poor quality include a. lost sales b. lost good will c. process downtime d. all of the above are hidden costs of poor quality 10. Which of the following is not a linkage between quality management and environmental management. a. quality management means fewer defective items, thus generating less environmental waste b. quality management means more durable products, therefore less items go to landfills c. quality management produces efficient operation, thus generating less environmentally damaging emissions. d. all of the above are linkages between quality management and environmental management
11. A disciplined approach to solving quality problems before the design phase of a product is called a a. benchmark. b. production standard. c. systems approach. d. quality function deployment. e. product analysis. 12. A strategy for continuously improving performance at every level, and in all areas of responsibility is called a. total quality control. b. total quality production. c. total systems approach. d. total organizational redesign. e. total quality management.
13. The relationship between the amount of input needed to produce a given amount of output and the output itself, usually expressed as a ratio, is a. productivity. b. input/output values. c. production analysis. d. quality control. e. correlational studies. 14. A clear, concise, written declaration of an organization's central and common purpose, or its reason for existence is defined as a(n) a. vision. b. value. c. mission. d. ethical principle. e. none of the above. 15. Changing an organization in any significant way is a primary responsibility of a. stockholders. b. employees. c. first-line management. d. organizational advisors. e. top management. 16. According to James Collins, a company consultant, a great company is great because it has and holds on to, regardless of the costs, its "bedrock principles," otherwise known as its a. ethical concepts. b. core values. c. moral attitudes. d. visionary values. e. cultural ethics. 17. ____________________ commits organizations and their people to continual learning and requires that well-trained people be allowed to apply, without fear, what they learn. a. The company mission b. Open-book management
c. Antidiscrimination laws d. Synergy in the workplace e. None of the above 18. Employees who think and act like owners are called a. entrepreneurs. b. empowered employees. c. intrapreneurs. d. management trainees. e. all of the above. 19. What gives employees ownership of their tasks and the freedom to experiment and even fail, without fear of reprisal? a. scoreboarding b. benchmarks c. self-help seminars d. empowerment e. promotions 20. A temporary team consisting primarily of workers who share a problem and meet regularly until the problem is solved is called a a. quality circle. b. quality improvement team. c. quality control team. d. research and development team. e. support team. 21. The European Quality Award is similar to the: a. Leadership Award. b. Baldrige Award. c. Deming Prize. d. Shingo Award. e. ISO 14000. 22. Which of the following is not a tenet of Crosby? a. Conformance to requirements.
b. Zero defects. c. Fitness for use. d. Quality is free. e. All of the above. 23. The quality dimension that relates to the expected operational life of a product is: a. Durability. b. Aesthetics. c. Serviceability. d. Perceived Quality. e. Reliability. 24. The inherent value of the product in the marketplace and also a strategic decision of the firm is: a. Conformance quality. b. Total quality. c. Design quality. d. Quality function deployment. e. Quality at the source. 25. Who among the following is not considered to be a quality guru? a. Deming. b. Crosby. c. Juran d. Maslow
e. Takaguchi
Section C: Short-answer Questions.
Reference: TQM by Dale H. Besterfield et al. The following questions will be suitably modified and asked in the examination. Pages 52/53: Qns. 3, 4, 5, 8, 11, 12, 17 Pages 86/87: Qns 1, 2, 3, 6, 9 Pages123/124: Qns 4, 6, 7, 8,16, 17 Page 151/152: Qns 2, 3, 7
Chapter 2 : Leadership
Question 3 : Working as an individual or in a team of three or more people, evaluate one or more of the following organizations concerning the role of the senior managers. (a)
Large bank
(b)
Health-care facility
(c)
University academic
(d)
University nonacademic department
(e)
Large department store
(f)
Grade School
(g)
Manufacturing facility
(h)
Large grocery store
Answer :
Question 4 : Selecct one or more of Deming’s 14 points and describe how you would achieve or implement it. Answer :
Question 5 : Develop a code of ethics for one of the organizations listed in Excercise 3. Answer :
Question 8 : Working as an individual or in a team of three or more people, determine the quality statements for one or more of the organizations listed in Exercice 3. Answer :
Question 11 : Working as an individual or in a team of three or more people,mwrite an annual quality improvement program for one of the organizations listed in Exercise 3.
Answer :
Question 12 : Working as an individual or in a team of three or more people, write a communications plan for a small organization and one for a large organization. How do they differ ? Answer :
Question 17 : Describe how a suervisor from one of the organizations listed in Excercise 3 measures up to the characterstics of leaders. Answer :
Chapter 3 : Customer Satisfaction
Question 1 : Difine the terms internal and external customer. Answer :
- An external customer exists outside the organization and generally falls into three categories : current, prospective, and lost customers. - An internal customer is just as important. Every function, whether it be engineering, order processing, or production, has an internl customer.
Qustion 2 : Is the main concern of most consumers the price of the product or service ? Explain : Answer :
Question 3 : List and explain the six most important factors that influence consumer purchases. Answer :
1. Performance 2. Features 3. Service 4. Warranty 5. Price 6. Reputation
Question 6 : As a manager of a small sporting goods store, describe how you would train front-line employees to handle customer complain. Answer :
Question 9 : Machinical productts, such as cars, break down. Cars often are serviced by the car dealer. How can a car dealer use the service department to encourage futer car sales ? Answer :
Chapter 4 : Employee Involvement
Question 4 : List at least five reasons given by supervisors when resisting change. Answer :
Question 6 : You recently completed a performance appraisal for one of your employees. THe employee is not happy with the evaluation and has asked for an appointment to discuss the evaluation porcess. Discuss the following : (b)
The purpose of the performance evaluation
(c)
The evaluation criteria
(d)
The employee’s options regarding the evaluation Answer :
Question 7 : You have been asked to develop an emploee involvement policy for you organization. Respond to the following : (a) Why do you need union involvement ? (b) How will you get the union involved ? (c) What resistance should you expect ? Answer :
Quesiton 8 : Describe the role of employees’ involmennt in TQM by respoding to the following : (a) Why is employee involvement important to TQM ? (b) Why do we need involved emploees ? We haven’t before. (c) Emplouee time is valuable. How will it pay reasonable dvidends ? Answer :
Question 16 : List five common barriers to team p rogress. Answer :
Question 17 : Evaluate an organization’s (a) Suggestion system (b) Performance appraisal (c) Recognition and reward system (d) Decision-making methods Answer :
Chapter 5 : Continuous Process Improvement
Question 2 : Working as an individual or in a team of three or more people, evaluate one or more of the following organizations concerning their use of the Juran Trilogy. (a)
Large bank
(b)
Health-care facility
(c)
University academic
(d)
University nonacademic department
(e)
Large department store
(f)
Grade School
(g)
Manufacturing facility
(h)
Large grocery store
Answer :
Question 3 : Using a product such as a house, machine, or car, give an example of the four improvement stategies. Answer :
Question 7 : Describe how empovement, work groujps, and multifunctional teams whould or would not affect the five types of problems. Answer :
