Quality is quite a lady! The more we understand her, the more we need to learn about her. As far back as the late 1980s Tata Steel had launched a Quality Movement in the Company. Its focus was on product quality. Five years or so later came the concept of service quality and “Customer First”. Then it moved to global standards in Quality or “benchmarking”, the Tata Business Excellence Model and ASPIRE. Along the way, the Company tuned into Six Sigma, TPM then the Deming Prize and Theory of Constraints.


Senior company officials interact with the team

Why Deming?
Each of these has served as a milestone in the Company’s business excellence journey. The purpose of challenging the Deming Prize is to weigh the quality of our products services and customer care with the very best in the world. In the process, the Company will establish Total Quality approaches across the Company.

How?
Tata Steel took a Deming pre-assessment or diagnosis to identify gaps and to bridge them before the final examination.
   

The first step was the submission of TQM practices. The second step was an on-site visit by Deming examiners and the feedback given by them. These learnings will allow the organisation to effect further quality improvements prior to submitting its application for the final examination. The on-site assessment by a team of Deming assessors.

Key Feedback items
Quality and Customer must be synonymous in the TQM philosophy, an area that Tata Steel needs to address. The focus on cost reduction and cost management should be continued as it is a good short-term strategy to regain competitiveness but obsession with it does not allow the Quality (Customer) mindset to flourish in the Company.

Key Learnings
Focus on business objectives and strategies
Preparation of the application bring about clarity in strategies and initiatives.

Focus on shining examples of improvement; “deep analysis” to receive more attention

Profound meaning of Planning - Doing - Checking - Acting understood, rotate the P-D-C-A cycle - take the learning from one cycle to the next.

System view of Management - need to ensure Quality Assurance from a system perspective

Clarity on daily Management - to streamline processes and control items to deliver products and services that meet customer expectations.

The task ahead
- Policy Management - create a system to support strategies and help achieve them.

- QMS/Daily Management - SOPs and work processes to be made in sync with quality systems.

- Education & Training - learnings to be strengthened on Quality Concepts.

Dr Kano, the leader of the assessment team, shares his feedback