Performance Improvement
H. JAMES HARRINGTON

For the past 60 years we've been looking for the magic bullet that will improve the quality of our products, services and lives. In the 1940s, we applied statistics through sampling, SPC and design of experiments to improve our products. In the 1950s, we used quality cost and total quality control to bring about quality improvement. In the 1960s, zero defects and MIL-Q-9858A drove the quality improvement process. In the 1970s, quality circles, process qualification and supplier qualification became key quality issues. In the 1980s, employee training in problem solving, team activities and just-in-time inventory were the things to do. In the 1990s, business process improvement and documented quality management systems that complied with ISO 9000 requirements led the quality improvement initiatives.

It has been a long journey, and we aren't yet close to error-free performance. The reality is that quality is not the result of SPC, design of experiments, reengi    neering, Six Sigma, team problem solving, ISO 9000, quality management systems or any other quality tool. No matter how hard we try to design our products and processes so that the quality of our products and services are less dependent upon our people, our reputation will always be a direct reflection of them. The real key to quality is the behavior of our people. To bring about the level of quality that is required to survive in the 21st century we need to change the way our people--all people, from the boardroom to the boiler room--think, act and behave.

How do we change our people's behaviors? Experience has taught us that there is a direct link between individual beliefs and individual behaviors. If we are going to change behaviors, we have to change beliefs by understanding what factors drive basic beliefs and behaviors. There are six behavioral drivers that define our basic beliefs and behaviors (see Figure 1).

I rate family a minus 3 because the quality of American families has slipped backward. Divorce rates, juvenile crime and drug usage are up. Our schools are unsafe. Parents need to begin spending half as much money on their children and twice as much time.

Our educational system gets a plus 2. Quality initiatives are just starting to be implemented into our educational systems, but our test scores prove that we aren't keeping pace with other developed nations even though we are spending far more money to educate each child. We have lost sight of the fact that education and entertainment are two separate activities.

I rate our government a plus 1. There have been no quality programs applied to the Senate, the House of Representatives, the President's staff or our legal systems. We do have the best government in the world, but there are huge opportunities to improve the quality of government operations.

Religion earns a zero. Religion is a big business with large amounts of resources. There has been little or no improvement in the quality of the way our religious organizations are managed, and too many conflicts are religiously driven. There is much room for improvement here.

I give mass media a minus 4. Our mass media present the bad side of life, not the good. They have increased their negative impact upon behaviors during the last 60 years. There has been improvement in the quality of the output but not in the content. In their search for sensationalism, the media have distorted America's image, resulting in a decline in ethics and morality.

I rate business a plus 10. Business is the quality benchmark, but it is not, unfortunately, a primary driver of beliefs and behaviors in any part of the world. The United States has made great strides in improving its business processes, but it is left at the mercy of the other drivers that determine employee behaviors and beliefs.

During the past 60 years, the quality movement has had little impact on the major drivers of our beliefs and behaviors. As quality professionals, we have devoted much of our energy to applying quality practices to business, but we have missed the most important part of our obligation to humanity. It's time to refocus our efforts.

About the author

H. James Harrington is a principal at Ernst & Young and serves as its international quality advisor. He can be reached by e-mail at jharrington@qualitydigest.com , or visit his Web site at www.hjharrington.com .