Section D: Principles of Quality, Communication, and Continuous Improvement

D

A company produces a household appliance in a highly competitive market. Which of the following quality commitments is the customer most interested in? Quality of conformance Product features Product warranty Quality of design

A

A company's customer is implementing lean initiatives and has asked that the order receipt to ship time be reduced by 50%. This will have a significant impact on production and supporting departments. Which functional area should take the lead in evaluating this request and taking action? Senior management Production Sales Quality

B

A design for a product or service that plans for intended performance in harsh environments is called: sustainable design. robust design. environmental design. protective design.

D

A good team for solving complex business problems is: self-directed. departmental. virtual. cross-functional.

D

A group of people who independently work to manage their actions to achieve a defined output is a: middle management group. work cell. quality circle. self-directed work team.

C

A labor-intensive production line that requires specific skills is trying to increase its flexible capacity. How can this best be achieved? By hiring temporary staff with the necessary skills By establishing a focused factory By cross-training workers in various skills By automating the equipment to do some of the work

D

A management style of employee empowerment enables workers to: perform management evaluations. authorize work orders. hire and fire personnel. make improvements in their workplace.

C

A person dominates the discussion in a meeting. Another individual requests additional input from other members of the group. This second person is the: sensei. supervisor. gatekeeper. extrapolator.

D

A prerequisite for effective self-directed teams typically is that the team members: willingly report to a team supervisor. are at similar levels in the organization. have similar work experiences. are empowered to take responsibility for understanding and performing work.

D

A quality-designed product will help prevent which of the following? Need for continuous improvement Lot traceability issues Competitive pricing Increased service-related costs

A

A successful employee involvement (EI) program: invests production personnel with the power to improve operations. meticulously follows management directives. is good for employee morale but seldom results in significant improvements. is a stand-alone event.

B

A supplier receipt has been rejected due to a sampling inspection process. What should production ask the quality department to do in order to keep the material plan valid? Request that the material be replaced by material from another qualified supplier. Perform 100% inspection on enough units to satisfy known demand. Expedite new replacement materials to the original required date. Accept the lot and perform 100% inspection to identify the rejected parts.

D

All of the following factors are required to implement effective cross-functional teams except: employee empowerment. change management. shared vision. total quality management.

B

An important criterion for measuring a group's process is that the measurements should: be linked to bonus compensation. be consistent with company objectives. chart the individual progress of each team member. be based on standard operating procedures.

C

Cross-trained workers are an important part of lean principles for which of the following reasons? Cross-training eliminates competition among workers. Compensation levels are flattened for easier management. Flexibility is increased because personnel can be moved around. Skills are developed for internal hiring.

A

End-of-line inspection often fails to improve quality for which of the following reasons? It disregards the causes of poor quality. Inspectors do not understand quality improvement techniques. It excludes quality circles. It requires extensive personnel.

D

Group members engaged in continuous improvement activities often encounter which of the following obstacles? Meeting schedules Training requirements Management involvement Conflicting goals

A

How can management show their support for small group improvement activities? By encouraging ownership of the task by empowering the group with authority By providing management intervention when needed By highlighting the group's success in the annual report By rewarding individual results

C

In a continuous improvement environment, employee non-production time is acceptable for which of the following reasons? It shows management's trust that employees will find something to do. It is not acceptable, as 100% utilization should be the goal. It allows employees to use flextime. It allows time for employees to work on improvements.

D

Job analysis includes which of the following? Identifying and communicating what is required Recruitment, selection, compensation, and performance appraisal Job description and selection Determination of skills, abilities, and responsibilities of the person doing the job

B

Machine operators at a company are paid on an incentive system. Production, including scrap, is reported by the operator. No adjustment is made for parts found defective at final inspection. Verification of parts counts is not routinely done. Which of the following outcomes would be expected in this environment? I. Reported parts counts would tend to be higher than actual.II. The value of work-in-process inventory would be understated.III. Scrapped parts would tend not to be reported. I and II I and III II and III I, II, and III

A

Strategic continuous improvement activities facilitated by management include: setting direction, developing resources, and deploying resources. affinity groups in which a variety of products are assessed. finding opportunities, acquiring capabilities, and delivering product. pure market research.

C

The basic requirement of the design of a manufacturing process is to meet: management cost objectives. line balancing standards. product specifications. production schedules.

C

The concept of using the experience, creative energy, and intelligence of all employees by treating them with respect and involving them in decision making is: an employee stock ownership plan. an employee assistance program. employee involvement. employee empowerment.

D

The focus of hoshin planning is on developing which of the following? Definitions of standard work Future employee skills requirements Training procedures Strategies to address critical business needs

A

The role of the quality department in implementing total quality management (TQM) includes which of the following? Training employees on quality concepts and techniques Testing products for conformance to specifications Evaluating suppliers based on quality of material received Serving as team leads for self-directed work teams

A

To demonstrate support for a quality improvement process, management should provide: leadership. discipline. financial backing. consultants.

C

Top management's role in implementing total quality management (TQM) includes: hiring outside individuals to drive the implementation process. participating in self-directed work teams. overcoming cultural barriers to employee involvement. aligning the corporate vision with individual needs.

D

What are three of the broad areas necessary to address how well the strategy execution process is performing? Quality, financial, employee turnover Operations, financial, schedule Customer, backorder/backlog, critical ratio Financial, customer, employees

C

What is a benefit of cross-training employees? Retaining proprietary knowledge in-house More consistent salary levels Additional problem-solving ideas generated due to cross-trained knowledge Reduced need to hire from outside

A

What is the first step in creating a team-based environment? Developing a shared vision Developing a company hierarchy Developing a project plan Developing a measurement plan

B

What is the responsibility of the leader of a small group improvement activity? To give the team a project name To facilitate the group's activities To make decisions when there is no consensus To report the team's decisions to management

A

What is the role of upper management in a quality organization? To provide resources and training for quality activities To supervise the quality functions and activities To facilitate the quality teams To hire outside resources to provide quality oversight

C

What should cross-functional project teams receive training in? Dealing with difficult people Project management Group dynamics Microsoft Project

C

When a company is pursuing a program to achieve manufacturing excellence, which of the following objectives should receive the highest priority? Volume flexibility Cost reduction Quality improvement Delivery reliability

D

When a company seeks to measure the success of a change from a breakthrough improvement, as contrasted with a change from continuous improvement, what should they see? Lower capital expenditures Improved processes rather than higher employee morale Better processes and better short-term profit Higher profitability rather than improved processes

A

When a strategy for continuous improvement is initiated, policies on which of the following areas are usually established first? Quality improvement Delivery dependability Cost reduction Flexibility

C

When a temporary underload of capacity is experienced, a company should consider: laying off personnel. taking the annual physical inventory. training production personnel. selling off surplus equipment.

C

Which group is responsible for defining and creating a corporate culture? Human resources Board of directors Management Each individual department

B

Which of the following actions by a company is most likely to lead to job enrichment and increased employee satisfaction? Separating planning from execution Increasing employee control over the process Controlling quality by inspection Dividing jobs into specialized subtasks

D

Which of the following actions will most likely ensure end-user support for a new computerized information management system? Providing high-quality training materials and detailed operating procedures for end users Communicating the strategic objectives of the new system and asking all personnel to support its implementation Verifying that the system design is complete and capable of providing all features and capabilities identified by management Involving system users and stakeholders in reviews and approvals throughout the design and implementation process

C

Which of the following are examples of fringe benefits that can be used to enhance employee motivation? Sharing sales associates' goals and commissions and flextime On-site workout facilities and sharing executive financial packages On-site child care and sharing company financial data Personal travel services and sharing top management's personal goals and objectives

B

Which of the following benefits is considered to be the best motivator? Compensation Recognition Self-worth Additional responsibility

C

Which of the following concepts supports an employee involvement initiative? Individual incentive schemes encourage improvement to the process. Workers must have access to their supervisors when discussing improvements and must accept that their word is final. Management should provide the vehicle to allow employees to solve problems themselves when possible. Employees should act as facilitators, not problem solvers.

B

Which of the following is a three-pronged approach to managing quality? Continuous improvement trilogy Juran trilogy Triple bottom line A3 problem-solving technique

A

Which of the following is an effective approach for implementing a continuous improvement program? Educate a cross-functional team in problem-solving techniques. Hire a continuous improvement consulting firm. Institute a management-by-walking-around philosophy. Incorporate quality circles throughout the company.

C

Which of the following is an example of using the poka-yoke technique in process design? A rack system is designed to go in only one direction. The number of types of fasteners is reduced from 20 to 5. A coupling is designed to eliminate incorrect insertion. Setup time is reduced by standardizing tooling.

C

Which of the following is the best way to begin changing employee behavior? Provide more timely and explicit management directives. Implement a human resource information system. Change the performance measurement and reward system. Simplify and flatten the organizational structure.

D

Which of the following is true of a continuous improvement activity such as developing a tool that facilitates quicker setup on a specific machine? It should fall under the company's program management department and be subject to all the formal controls one would expect within the formal project management scope. It should be completed by management. It should involve a cross-functional team. It will likely be completed with two or three people from manufacturing within a work group.

B

Which of the following is true of major improvements, which are sometimes also known as breakthrough improvements? They typically depend on one or two highly skilled people. They are rarely inexpensive. They are generally not successful. They should be quick to implement.

A

Which of the following may be used as a measure of flexibility? Skills per employee Reduction of burden rate Machine efficiency Output per employee

C

Which of the following methods encourages employee involvement in an organization? I. Implementing ideas quicklyII. Recognizing employees for their ideasIII. Promoting competition among employees I III I and II I, II, and III

D

Which of the following objectives typically characterizes an employee involvement program? Solving problems Providing a forum for communication Decentralized decision making All of the above

B

Which of the following performance measures of a distribution network best lends itself to continuous improvement initiatives? Asset utilization Quality Operating costs Cycle time

C

Which of the following quality aspects is a function of incoming inspection? Confirming that the supplier's process produces acceptable quality Comparing incoming receipts to previously received material Sampling a part's dimensions and rejecting the lot Performing 100% inspection to ensure outgoing quality

B

Which of the following takes place in group consensus building? The majority of the members agree with the decision. Each member supports the decision whether or not they agree with it. The members have reached 100% agreement on the decision. There was 100% participation in the agreement.

D

Which of the following will have the greatest influence on an employee's evaluations and promotions? Performance to standard Setup time Product output Problem-solving skills

C

Workplace organization refers to: consolidation of management levels through employee empowerment. having operations organized in a sequential and synchronous flow. having a clean area with a place for everything and everything in its place. changing from a hierarchical to a matrix structure to support a pull system.