How can an organization compete on quality and go beyond conformance to standards

Competing on the Eight Dimensions of Quality 1 Performance Of course, performance refers to a product's primary operating characteristics. For an automobile, performance would include traits like acceleration, handling, cruising speed, and comfort; for a television set, performance means sound and picture clarity, color, and the ability to receive distant stations. In service businesses—say, fast food and airlines—performance often means prompt service. Because this dimension of quality involves measurable attributes, brands can usually be ranked objectively on individual aspects of performance. Overall performance rankings, however, are more difficult to develop, especially when they involve benefits that not every consumer needs. A power shovel with a capacity of 100 cubic yards per hour will "outperform" one with a capacity of 10 cubic yards per hour. Suppose, however, that the two shovels possessed the identical capacity—60 cubic yards per hour—but achieved it differently: one with a 1-cubic-yard bucket operating at 60 cycles per hour, the other with a 2-cubic-yard bucket operating at 30 cycles per hour. The capacities of the shovels would then be the same, but the shovel with the larger bucket could handle massive boulders while the shovel with the smaller bucket could perform precision work. The "superior performer" depends entirely on the task. Some cosmetics wearers judge quality by a product's resistance to smudging; others, with more sensitive skin, assess it by how well it leaves skin irritation-free. A 100-watt light bulb provides greater candlepower than a 60-watt bulb, yet few customers would regard the difference as a measure of quality. The bulbs simply belong to different performance classes. So the question of whether performance differences are quality differences may depend on circumstantial preferences—but preferences based on functional requirements, not taste. Some performance standards are based on subjective preferences, but the preferences are so universal that they have the force of an objective standard. The quietness of an automobile's ride is usually viewed as a direct reflection of its quality. Some people like a dimmer room, but who wants a noisy car? 2 Features Similar thinking can be applied to features, a second dimension of quality that is often a secondary aspect of performance. Features are the "bells and whistles" of products and services, those characteristics that supplement their basic functioning. Examples include free drinks on a plane, permanent-press cycles on a washing machine, and automatic tuners on a color television set. The line separating primary performance characteristics from secondary features is often difficult to draw. What is crucial, again, is that features involve objective and measurable attributes; objective individual needs, not prejudices, affect their translation into quality differences. To many customers, of course, superior quality is less a reflection of the availability of particular features than of the total number of options available. Often, choice is quality: buyers may wish to customize or personalize their purchases. Fidelity Investments and other mutual fund operators have pursued this more "flexible" approach. By offering their clients a wide range of funds covering such diverse fields as health care, technology, and energy—and by then encouraging clients to shift savings among these—they have virtually tailored investment portfolios. Employing the latest in flexible manufacturing technology, Allen-Bradley customizes starter motors for its buyers without having to price its products prohibitively. Fine furniture stores offer their customers countless variations in fabric and color. Such strategies impose heavy demands on operating managers; they are an aspect of quality likely to grow in import...

Buy now to view the complete solution