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PLAN-DO-CHECK-ACT (PDCA) CYCLE

To make improvements in the quality of your product or service, quality assurance focuses on the processes you use to make the product or provide the service instead of only performing tests on the final product. Probably the most well-known technique used for identifying spots for improvement processes is called the Plan-Do-Check-Act, or the PDCA Cycle. Walter Shewhart, a pioneering statistician who developed Statistical Process Control while at Bell, created the PDCA Cycle technique in the 1930s. Shewhart’s friend W. Edwards Deming, a famous quality management guru, made the technique popular in the 1950s.

The major stages of the PDCA Cycle

The idea behind the PDCA Cycle is that process improvement isn’t a one-time linear event; it’s a continuous cycle of activities that make the process better and better over time (see Figure). The following list outlines each stage:

1. Plan to improve the process by identifying what’s going wrong and coming up

with ideas to make it better.

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The planning stage involves a few steps: • Make sure you clearly define the problem and have a measurable goal for the effort involved. • Identify the process or processes that impact the problem and select one to work on. • List the steps involved in the process, and review the steps to identify potential causes of the problem. • Collect and analyze data related to the problem to identify the problem’s root cause. For example, suppose you’re trying to reduce the number of reported bugs in a software program. You would review your software development process to look for areas that seem to have the biggest impact on the number of bugs created.

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2. Do small changes a little at a time to minimize disruption to your normal activities,

which allows you to clearly see the effects of the change. Establish criteria for selecting which solution to try, and implement the solution on a pilot basis to limit potential problems. In our software example, we may decide to add a code review process to see whether the bug count decreases.

3. Check whether the small changes are producing the desired result.

To carry out the checking stage, you should • Gather the appropriate data on the solution you implement. • Analyze the data to see if you achieved the desired result; if not, go back to the Plan stage. After three months of performing code reviews, we look at the bug count for the software to see whether it’s decreased.

4. Act on what you discover, and implement positive changes throughout the

process. Identify the changes required to make what you’ve learned part of your process, and plan ongoing monitoring of the solution to make sure it doesn’t cause new problems. If the bug count has gone down, you make code reviews a permanent part of the software development process. If the bug count hasn’t gone down, go back to the Plan stage to look for other things to try. 5. After you solve the problem and improve the process, start over again to plan the solution to the next problem in a never-ending improvement cycle.

Tools for working through each PDCA stage At each stage of the PDCA Cycle, you have numerous tools and techniques at your disposal to complete the steps required for success in the stage; we discuss these items throughout this book. The following sections outline the tools and techniques in an easily accessible list format (if you haven’t gathered it already, lists are to become a big part of quality control life).

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Planning tools You can facilitate the Plan stage by using any of the following tools:

Flowcharting: Draw a diagram that shows the step-by-step progression of

the product through the process.

Customer/supplier mapping: Create a diagram of the interactions

between all customers and suppliers in your supply chain.

Brainstorming: Bring together a small group to brainstorm possible problem

solutions.

Pareto analysis: Use the 80/20 rule to narrow the problems you need to

work on look at 20 percent of your activities that cause 80 percent of your problems.

Evaluation matrix: Develop problem evaluation criteria and relative weights

to rank each problem.

Cause-and-effect diagrams: Draw a chart that shows the problem and the

reasons why the problem occurred to look for root causes.

Doing tools The Do stage may require any of the following techniques:

On-the-job training: You can train your workers while on the job in order to

implement changes to a process.

Experiment design: Design experiments and expected outcomes to

determine the effectiveness of the change.

Small-group leadership skills training: Help lead the team to make the

required changes.

Conflict resolution: Build the skills needed to resolve issues between the

people and departments performing the process.

Checking tools You can complete the Check stage by using any of the following tools:

Data worksheets: Track important outputs from the process.

Control charts: Measure data to determine whether the process is

consistent.

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Key performance indicators: Identify the factors that directly and indirectly

influence the effectiveness of the process.

Graphical analysis: Graph the process results to highlight any changes.

Acting tools The Act stage puts the process in place by using any of the following tools:

Process mapping: Draw an updated diagram of the process for all to see.

Process standardization: Compare the updated process to other existing

processes to look for issues or opportunities.

Formal training for the new process: Make sure everyone performs the

new process correctly. For Article on Quality visit my blog http:/ / iso-qms.blogspot.com/

Link to Previous Articles

1. PDCA Cycle 2. Top Quality Gurus 3. Quality management system - Summary of requirements 4. Difference between Quality Assurance and Quality Control 5. What is ISO 9000? 6. Quality Glossary – A to Z 7. The Quality Control Audit - By Kaoru Ishikwa 8. The eight principles of quality management 9. Executive Summary of the 14 Toyota Way Principles 10. Toyota Production System

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