Main problems in quality management: How to avoid them?

The goal of any manufacturing-based business is to have, among other things, adequate control over product quality. This is natural as it is expected that every production team pays close attention to their quality management regimen in order to achieve final objectives, cost reduction, and profit maximization.

In fact, many companies are increasingly allocating more resources to ensure that their products have proper quality control. Around the 1990s, the term and practice known as "quality management" emerged. Initially, it was championed by the Japanese who experienced remarkable growth and success with this method, and then the rest of the world began to adopt it.

Despite the seemingly obvious advantages that this practice brings to a company, there are problems or difficulties that threaten to diminish its effectiveness. If not addressed promptly, these problems can catch the company off guard and lead to negative consequences. In this article, we will review the main problems in quality management.

What does it mean to have problems in quality management?

Throughout the manufacturing process, various problems can occur that affect production. The end result of these problems is defects, deficiencies, or significant variations in the expected functioning or appearance of the final product. But other problems include disruptions along the supply chain, long delivery times, and excess inventory.

So, in more general terms, problems in quality management are not only related to the final product but also to all the maneuvers that can go wrong before its production. If left unnoticed or uncontrolled, they can cause widespread obstacles to productivity and organizational balance.

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Problems in quality management

There are many problems that often manifest in quality management, and most involve a neglect of typical supply chain processes. Below are the most important ones that need to be addressed to improve the consumer experience.

1. Excessive documentation.

Due to the intricate nature of a particular product, a significant amount of documentation may be necessary for its functionality. However, when the emphasis on documentation becomes overly apparent, that functionality is threatened and affected. It has been found that employees and even top management can sometimes feel overwhelmed by excessive documentation, which hampers them throughout the process. The result of these challenges is that the process no longer fulfills its purpose as it should.

Paperwork itself is useful for overall process efficiency and effectiveness. However, it should not be the focal point of the quality management process. The process is not intended to create an excess of documentation. The documents will be used for communication, result testing, and knowledge management within the organization.

2. Departmental management.

Reducing quality control work to a single department is part of the old business paradigm. It assumes that only the quality control area is responsible for safeguarding the accurate manufacturing of the company's products. But nowadays, strategic thinking holds that the organization should have a more holistic approach. Each area should see itself as part of the whole and be responsible for producing a quality product.

What happens on the production floor is only the end result of how the entire organization operates. Creating a culture of quality throughout the entire company will foster creativity and productivity. This culture must be exemplified and clearly communicated to be sufficient for change.

3. Excessive bureaucracy.

When the quality management regime proves to be overly rigid, effectiveness will be restricted. The business world and the market, including customer needs, are constantly evolving. For this reason, the company is expected to evolve with them.

However, the evolution of highly rigid companies proves to be a very challenging task. Additionally, companies with a tendency towards rigidity are unable to capitalize on emerging opportunities in quality management practices.

4. Lack of resources and time.

By mistakenly assuming that each department has its own responsibilities, senior management has been unwilling to allocate sufficient time and resources to quality control. Traditionally, they have not felt responsible for correcting errors or faults that challenge quality. They consider the expenditure of time as a loss of their separate functions and prefer to delegate them to a single area. They failed to recognize the gravity of the situation.

According to the 2012-2013 Quality Management Survey by LNS Research, management still views quality as a department rather than a concern of the entire company. Poor quality has a cost for the company. To mitigate this cost, the entire company must embrace quality as a collective responsibility and dedicate the necessary resources and time to optimize it in all aspects, including investing in quality management training courses.

5. Resistance to technology.

Technology allows companies to significantly improve and update their systems, processes, and skill sets. All of this is aimed at achieving overall improvement. While employees and middle management tend to embrace changes and improvements, technology often encounters resistance at higher levels. While this is not always the case and can occur in reverse, it is undeniable that business leaders and CEOs are the ones who ultimately decide whether to adopt a technology or not.

Senior management and companies may cling to their legacy systems and resist change. Most technological tools represent a substantial investment of time and resources for the company and are not easily or voluntarily replaced.

6. Lack of quality equipment.

Quality teams and production teams involved in quality management represent a differential financial investment for a company. This equipment must be reliable and well-maintained. While many companies quickly identify problems and deficiencies, they are not as prepared to invest in quality equipment. Dedicated teams can prioritize and take prompt action in repairing, renovating, and replacing equipment.

The company's finances should be allocated for these needs in advance to avoid wasting resources. While companies expect the best from their workshop, they must be willing to provide updated and efficient equipment. The cost of poor quality for a company cannot be compared to the costs of a quality team.

7. Incompatibility with company policies.

For a quality management process to achieve its intended objectives, it must become a strategy and the best choice for the company. This strategic alignment is achieved when the company's goals, objectives, and policies are in harmony with the process. No matter how optimized a quality management process may seem, if it is not aligned with the company's policies, it is destined to fail.

Your company needs to establish the best way to achieve its quality management objectives, so it must align with the policies and strategies of the entire organization. Some models, such as ISO 9001, have been criticized for being too results-oriented and neglecting how to achieve those results in line with the company's policies and objectives.

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In conclusion, quality management problems must be promptly addressed if your organization wants to reap all the benefits of the process. The first step in solving a problem is to identify it and then take measures to reduce its effects. It is important to ensure that the goals of quality management are aligned with the company's strategy and, essentially, adapt to market changes in order to produce goods and services that meet the quality standards that consumers expect to maintain the purchase cycle.