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3.3b Measuring Quality

How does a business measure quality?

Before a business can measure quality, they need to decide is actually meant by "quality". Quality can include…

Other ways a business may measure quality:

Illustration of a blueprint

Specifying the properties of a product, and then testing that the product meets those standards throughout production.

A product may be measured, weighed, or have some other characteristic measured. For example, a chocolate manufacturer may weigh each bar of chocolate to ensure enough product has been manufactured and packaged.

Illustration of an online review

Monitoring customer complaints and feedback. It could be feedback made directly to the business, such as customer complaints, or reviews left on websites such as TripAdvisor or Amazon. The business may also ask customers to complete questionnaires and surveys.

Some complaints will be inevitable, but the business should set a level it is comfortable with.

Mystery shopper illustration

Mystery shoppers — a person employed by the business will pose as a customer and purchase a product or service. The other staff will not know the "customer" is actually another employee. After the transaction, the mystery shopper will report their experience back to the business. Mystery shoppers are often used in retail and hospitality sectors.

Checking quality

Now that the business knows what is meant by quality, it needs to ensure its products meet the required standard before they are sold to the customer. It is easier and cheaper to catch quality problems before the customer complains!

There are three main stages of production where quality should be checked.

Click on the blue arrow to see each one.

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Total Quality Management (TQM)

Advantages
Disadvantages

TMQ vs Kaizen

You may be asked about TQM and Kaizen. They are similar in that all staff take responsibilty for the outcome of the product or service. However, TQM is about monitoring quality; Kaizen encourages staff to suggest ways to improve quality.

Failure to maintain quality

When a business fails to maintain the quality of its products and services, it can result in: