|
Guidelines for Improvement Tools
Every tool has its specific guidelines for use and maintenance. For example, we know that to keep our wrenches rust free, we must protect them from water and corrosive materials. Similarly, we know that we must keep our kitchen utensils clean if we want to be able to safely eat the foods that we prepare with them. Likewise, quality improvement tools have guidelines for use and maintenance. The following guidelines apply to all quality improvement tools, and following them closely will help you to avoid unintended consequences and unnecessary frustration.
Always include titles that clearly indicate what is being depicted, measured or analyzed.
Indicate units of measurement clearly (whether they are expressed in centimeters or cents, or any other unit of measurement).
Indicate the scale of measurement clearly and be consistent, (whether you use intervals of ten or ten thousand).
Keep track of who used the tool, and where and when they used it. This way you can "deconstruct" the data if you have to.
Clearly show each instance or incident that you are measuring separately. Do not avoid recording a measurable event simply because you already measured one like it before.
Establish a legend which clearly indicates the different colours or symbols you will use, and then use them consistently. Make sure that each is distinctive enough to prevent confusion.
Ensure that employees know how to use the tool by training them well, and then testing them to verify their expertise.
Establish a filing system to keep everything well organized.
Managers should not monitor employees for their tool usage. Doing so invites game playing. Managers should instead track the progress that the tools enable. Simply using the tool is not enough -- it has to be used progressively, to prove or disprove a theory, and to further study, plan and implement. Managers should question employees as to what they learned or otherwise accomplished, and see that they can establish this by using the following Quality Improvement Tools.
|
|
