2009

CUSTOMER-DRIVEN QUALITY

DeBoer-Moran, Jason
Concordia University - St. Paul, MN
8/30/2009
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Running head: CUSTOMER DRIVEN QUALITY

Customer Driven Quality

Jason DeBoer-Moran

OLC 605, Cohort MA264

Professor Randy Carlson

August 30, 2009

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Customer Driven Quality

The failure to deliver products or services that the customer considers valuable is one of

the greatest downfalls that can happen to corporations today. It is possible for companies to

deliver excellent products only to fail at serving the customer. As a result, it is important to

determine what the customer values and where constant improvement can occur in order to

increase the customer’s perceived value. Deming, who famously brought the concepts of quality

improvement to post-war Japan, indicates that improvements in quality lead towards lower costs,

which translate into higher productivity, which leads towards increased market share (Meredith

& Shafer, 2007, p. 129). Repeating this continuously in a constant state of improvement will lead

towards greater customer satisfaction. Customers who experience a great deal of quality will

become return customers. The return customer who continues to find value in the experience of

doing business will become evangelists for the corporation and invite their colleagues and

friends to partake in the quality experience. It is imperative that the company understand the

relationship that they are entering into by doing business with the customer. The commitment to

relationship between company and customer requires understanding that the customer drives

quality. It is essential for the corporation to mix their internal definitions of quality with the

definitions provided by their customers. Corporations should also look to institute a solid review

system to determine how they are performing over time and to gauge their improvement.

Producer’s Definition of Quality

The producer’s definition of quality primarily deals with the areas of quality under

control of the corporation. This is where great strides were made by post-war Japan under the

recommendations and guidance of W. Edwards Deming. “According to Deming the major cause

of poor quality is variation. Thus, a key tenet of Deming’s approach is to reduce variability in the
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process” (Meredith & Shafer, 2007, p. 129). The corporation has direct control over variation

and strives towards reduction in variations and defects in manufacturing. Repeating the quest for

quality in manufacturing and design at every level within the corporation will certainly lead

towards increased customer satisfaction. This is only a piece towards ensuring customer-driven

quality throughout the organization. While the customer will appreciate receiving functioning

units, there are an increasing number of competitors on a global level striving to reach the

customer with high quality products. It is important to look beyond the manufacturing process to

ensure the customer perceives a high level of quality throughout their experience with the

product.

Definition of Customer-driven Quality

The relationship between corporation and customer brings a large challenge to the

corporation. The biggest challenge is that the customer has complete control over the start and

end of the relationship. As a result, it behooves the corporation to work to ensure the customer

finds quality throughout the process of purchasing, but also in ownership. Sparks and Legault

(1993), indicate that manufacturers have historically focused on quality of production and have

begun to focus on design. To ensure for customer-driven quality, Sparks and Legault state that it

is important that manufacturers also focus on sale, delivery, and post-sale service in addition to

quality in production and design. It is everything after the sale occurs that continues to reflect on

the perception of quality from the consumer.

Prioritizing customer-driven quality requires constant attention to the customer and their

needs. Responding to customer concerns can happen in two methods: the reactive approach or

the proactive active approach (Foster Jr., 1998, p. 67). In the reactive approach, the company is

at the ready for customer complaints and questions to occur after the product is sold. In the
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proactive approach, the company works with its customers in advance to develop a product that

meets the needs of the customer. It is important for companies to enact both a proactive mindset

alongside the resources for reactive support. As Foster Jr. (1998) points out, the customer’s

needs are always changing. It is, therefore; very difficult to plan for every possible concern that a

customer might have. Companies will need to engage the customer in order to ensure their

products are meeting the proper needs in the marketplace and that customers are finding quality

in the continued relationship with the company.

Six Sigma Process and Customer-Driven Quality

Proactive Customer-driven quality requires the organization to be in a constant state of

review and improvement. Corporations that enact Six Sigma processes have a repeatable system

to maintain the focus on quality for both the producer and the customer. “Six Sigma provides a

structured, logical, and disciplined approach to problem solving” (Meredith & Shafer, 2007, p.

134). There is openness in the Six Sigma process. Problem solving can occur throughout the

organization. The process itself starts with the definition phase. The quest to improve quality is

difficult, because the definition of quality can be different depending on which stakeholders are

asked. Six Sigma is specifically designed with the customer in mind. “A crucial step in

implementing six-sigma is to understand customer needs” (Taghaboni-Dutta & Moreland, 2004,

p. 16). Six Sigma processes examined by Taghaboni-Dutta and Moreland (2004) indicate the

attention to customer needs and implementing them into a Six Sigma process translates directly

into savings for Student Loan Marketing Association. The customer is an important focal point

for quality in products.

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Conclusion

The globalized market contains multiple competitors in all fields that are capable of

manufacturing excellent products at affordable prices; something must distinguish various

competitors as the leader in the field. The relationship between customer and company is the

distinguishing factor in excellence between organizations. Involved customers are not only in the

customer relationship with the company, but they are also advocates. While corporations have

primarily focused on increased quality in manufacturing and design, it is essential that they

ensure that the process of ownership is also free of variation. This requires corporations to be

proactive and work with customers to ensure that they are meeting needs and that they are

accessible for complaints and suggestions. These complaints and suggestions could be the

opportunity the company will need to develop successful new products or enhancements ahead

of the competition. Enacting a process like Six Sigma to include the customer’s definition of

quality is an important way to ensure the corporation continues to consider the needs of the

customer. Ensuring that the customer is the center of the definition of quality is important;

however, the customer should not act as an impediment to innovation. The focus of customer-

driven quality is quality in product; it is not customer-driven design. Innovators should be

directly involved with the customer to ensure that the customer’s needs are determined and that

products can be developed with the customer in mind.

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References

Foster Jr. S. T. (1998). The ups and downs of customer-driven quality. Quality Progress, 31(10),

67-72. Retrieved August 30, 2009, from ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID:

35115511).

Meredith, J. R. & Shafer, S. M. (2007). Operations Management for MBAs. 3rd Ed. Hoboken,

NJ: Wiley.

Sparks, R. E. & Legault, R. D. (1993). A definition of quality for total customer satisfaction: the

bridge between manufacturer and customer. SAM Advanced Management Journal.

Retrieved 30 Aug, 2009 from

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb6698/is_n1_v58/ai_n28627378/

Taghaboni-Dutta, F. & Moreland, K. (2004). Using six-sigma to improve loan portfolio

performance. Journal of American Academy of Business, Cambridge, 5(1/2), 15-20.

Retrieved August 30, 2009, from ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 653882451).