Striking the Right Balance

One of the more difficult aspects of documenting for a Quality System is knowing the right amount of detail for each level of the documentation hierarchy. It is indeed a balancing act. Referring to the pyramid again, the lower the level in the pyramid, the more detail is required.

Clearly in the bottom section of the hierarchy specific detail is required. When documenting machine settings and product requirements, detail is imperative for a sound Quality System. In this lower level more changes are likely to occur as well, so it would be an advantage to make these documents locally controlled.

Moving up the hierarchy to operating procedures; this is where the real balancing act occurs. Basically, a procedure coupled with the right amount of training to do the job, meets the standard. A procedure may be nothing more than a flow chart or a picture. However, the person performing the task must be able to effectively carry out the task and demonstrate through documented training records that he (she) has the proper training. What is missing in detail in the procedure must be balanced with documented training. Work instructions for production operations tend to be the area where detail can be limited. A trained person repetitively performing a task seldom needs more than a checklist. This is sort of like giving a presentation numerous times. A printed copy of the presentation is not necessary for the speaker to be effective. However, a bullet list or outline is recommended to ensure all aspects are covered.

Another important area to apply balance is in the use of common sense. If you have a Quality System but do not apply the proper balance of common sense the result could be excessively bureaucratic. Mark Twain once said that "common sense is uncommon." However in the case of having an effective Quality System, common sense is imperative.

The nebulousness of the 1987 standard has made over-documentation the safest bet. The tendency to "tweak" procedures is hard to fight. Cumulatively through time these incremental changes can tip the scales toward bu­reaucracy. The upcoming 1994 changes to the standard will go a long way in eliminating some of this tendency. A lot of the vague areas will be clarified and hopefully will be less open to interpretation.

The Quality System as a "Launching Pad" to TQM

Registration to the ISO 9000 standard certainly does not mean you have a Total Quality system. Neither continuous i504mprovement nor waste elimination is addressed in the standard. Profitability is not even required. However one thing is for sure, you cannot be a Total Quality business unless you have as a minimum subscribed to the elements stated in the standard. Adherence to the standard is a base to build upon.

When building a Quality System it is important to set your sights on TQM with a short term goal of gaining registration to the ISO 9000 standard (See Figure 3). Put your efforts into the standard but keep your eyes on the ultimate goal of TQM. By empowering employees to write their own procedures and giving the authority levels commensurate with that empowerment level, the stage can be set to launch into the next level of quality. The "power of the pyramid" can also be applied to this notion. The further down the documentation hierarchy pyramid, the more the level of empowerment. Work instructions/procedures and other lower level documents should have approval levels that reflect empowerment. The higher levels of the hierar­chy, where policy making and major systems procedures are present, represent an area where high level authority and approvals are certainly appropriate. However, in lower level documentation nothing could stifle continuous improvement efforts more than introducing the almost certain delays of multiple high level approval require­ments.

Summary

Documentation is a critical element of attaining registra­tion to the ISO 9000 standard. Properly balanced Quality System documentation can set the stage for sustained progress toward TQM.