Continuous Quality Improvement

Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) is a collaborative effort that enables people to work together across organizational boundaries to improve shared processes (Burrill & Ledolter, 1999). A starting point for an organization to inculcate CQI is to review the various customer relationships that employees experience within the organization. To master this task adequately an organization should be able to identify both internal and external customers. Internal customers are the set of people within the producing organization whom receive products or serves from other employees. External customers are the consumers outside of the producing organization. (Burrill & Ledolter, 1999). When properly identifying these consumers this becomes the organizations outline on how business should be conduct.

CQI puts major emphasizes of meeting and exceeding consumer needs and expectations to do so an organization might want to gather a team that can work on continuous improvement activities so that the appropriate feedback is coming from the consumers. Previous, research has shown that consumer's number one concern is complete satisfaction. For example, yesterday a couple of coworkers went out for lunch. When entering the business no one acknowledge the group with a simple greeting. The coworkers still decided to sit down to eat at the restaurant but had to wait for service for approximately 15 minutes. At this point one of the coworkers stated, "That she did not want anything, do to the unprofessional service" which in turn lead the other group members to leave and grab something at McDonalds. This example shows how unfulfilled that the consumers were unhappy with the service, which could lead them to tell other fellow consumers not to eat there. Organizations must keep in mind that if a customer thinks they are satisfied then they are satisfied from their perception. That why it is essential for an organization to be aware of there consumers perception. This can be accomplishing through surveys, comment card and the organization's employees because who can tell you better than the one that actually interact with the consumers.

When putting a survey together an organization must establish the goals, choose interview technique: mail, phone, employees or comment card, create the questionnaire, then conduct interviews, and enter data. (http://www.surveysystem.com/sdesign.htm) This data should be use to make the necessary improvements so that an organization can stay ahead of the competition From the aforementioned example the restaurant could possible place a hostess at the door to greet and sit customers as they enter the building. This can also alleviate the negative feedback to other consumers.

Continuous improvement allows all products and services to display enhancement. This attitude must be receptive by all employees within an organization. CQI should be part of the belief system. Another example of continuous quality improvement is Plymouth Educational Center. Plymouth has developed the School Improvement Team, which allow employees to provide suggestions on how to improve the discipline problems, the sexual awareness that students are displaying. So far, this