Quality Flashcards

1
Q

why is quality important?

A
  • Poor quality goods can result in customer returns and complaints which can lead to a loss of sales and bad reviews.
  • Extremely low quality can result in products not meeting safety standard.
  • High quality products can result in high quality image and reputation being generated.
  • Selling high quality products can attract high quality staff.
  • High quality goods can be sold for premium prices.
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2
Q

what two methods can a business use to ensure quality?

A

A business can choose to use a quality control method or a quality assurance method within the business.

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3
Q

what is quality control?

A

where raw materials are inspected or finished goods are inspected to check that they are of an acceptable standard before sale.

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4
Q

what is quality assurance?

A

a method of prevention, where products are checked for quality at different stages in the production process.

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5
Q

using what s good way to ensure high quality outputs?

A

high quality inputs

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6
Q

what are the advantages to quality control?

A
  • Ensures no faulty goods are sent to customers.
  • Limited the potential for bad reputation as products are checked at the end of production.
  • Cheap method of ensuring quality
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7
Q

what are the disadvantages to quality control?

A
  • Can create a lot of waste as products are not checked until they are made.
  • Faulty products are thrown away
  • Products must be re-made from scratch – costs business time and money.
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8
Q

what are the advantage of quality assurance?

A
  • Less wastage which reduces costs.

- Easy to identify where faults are occurring on the production line.

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9
Q

what are the disadvantages of quality assurance?

A
  • Can slow down production process due to all the checks.

- Increases costs as usually a designated QA manager.

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10
Q

what is benchmarking?

A
  • another method for ensuring quality
  • A business compares its product with the best in the industry.
  • The business will then aim for these standards with its own products.
  • Difficult for smaller businesses who may not have the same technology.
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11
Q

what are the advantages of benchmarking?

A
  • If successful, the product will be as good as the ‘best’ on the market.
  • Saves the business time in developing their own quality approach.
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12
Q

what are the disadvantages of benchmarking?

A
  • Can be difficult to gain competitors information.

- Will the ‘best’ improve, the business will be left behind… still a need to continually improve.

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13
Q

what is quality circles?

A
  • a method of ensuring quality
  • A group of employees meet to discuss problems in production process and how to solve them.
  • Involves a wide variety of staff from different levels of hierarchy.
  • Suggestions are then passed to management for discussion on implementing them.
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14
Q

what are the advantages of quality circles?

A
  • Employees will be motivated as they have a say in the decision making.
  • management receive well informed suggestions as they are from employees who produce the product.
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15
Q

what are the disadvantages of quality circles?

A
  • employees meet during a working day – production time is lost.
  • Suggestions are not always feasible therefore time is wasted.
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16
Q

what is mystery shopper?

A
  • a method of ensuring quality
  • This is where the organisation employs trained shopper to anonymously evaluate:
     Service received
     Quality of product
     Use of merchandising
     Did staff comply with legal requirements?
     How did it compare with competitors service?
17
Q

what are the advantages of mystery shoppers?

A
  • No bias is shown as mystery shoppers are usually hired from an agency.
  • Valuable feedback is gathered
  • Suggestions and training needs are highlighted.
18
Q

what are the disadvantages of mystery shoppers?

A
  • Staff may take the feedback personally if they served the mystery shopper.
  • Mystery shoppers needs to be paid.
  • Feedback may not be fully representative of the whole business.
19
Q

what is continual improvement?

A

Organisations should always be aiming to continually improve themselves, even if it has met its aim /objectives. This is known as continual improvement.

20
Q

what are the advantages of continual improvement?

A
  • The business may stay ahead of the competition.

- Business can react easily to changing external factors.

21
Q

what are the disadvantages of continual improvement?

A
  • Can have high staff training costs.

- Employees may feel under pressure to continually keep improving.

22
Q

what does it mean if a product displays a quality standard symbol?

A
  • If a product displays one of these symbols, it proves that the organisation has met the agreed quality/safety standards.
  • It is a way to document and display quality.