Quality circles are small groups of employees who voluntarily meet regularly to identify improvements in their work areas. The objectives are to change attitudes from not caring to caring about quality, promote self-development, build team spirit, and improve organizational culture. Benefits include improved employee-employer relationships, quality, efficiency, problem solving capabilities, and participation. Quality circles use techniques like brainstorming, data analysis, and cause-and-effect analysis. They can be applied in various organizations to solve work-related problems through group efforts.

1. Quality Circle-
A way to Quality Improvement
Piyush B

2. INTRODUCTION
People are the greatest assets of an
organization, because, through people all other
resources are converted into utilities. However,
management of ‘People Resources’ has always been
a vexed problem ever since the beginning of
organized human activities. A number of
managerial responses have been developed to
answer this question.
Quality Circle -A way to Quality
Improvement

3. Quality Circle is
• a small group of 6 to 12 employees doing similar work
who voluntarily meet together on a regular basis to identify
improvements in their respective work areas using various
techniques
• for analysing & solving work related problems coming in
the way of achieving and sustaining excellence
• leading to mutual upliftment of employees as well as the
organization.
It is "a way of capturing the creative and innovative power that
lies within the work force“
DEFINITION

4. OBJECTIVE
• The objectives of Quality Circles are multi-faced.
a) Change in Attitude.
• From "I don’t care" to "I do care"
• Continuous improvement in quality of work life through humanization of work
b) Self Development
• Bring out ‘Hidden Potential’ of people
• People get to learn additional skills.
c) Development of Team Spirit
• Eliminate inter departmental conflicts.
d) Improved Organizational Culture
• Positive working environment.
• Higher motivational level.

5. BASIC PRINCIPLES OF QUALITY CIRCLE
• 1. Every job is capable of being improved.
• 2. People do not resist change, they resist being externally changed.
• 3. Every employee is capable of attaining excellence in his work & the
basic ability to improve the job.
• 4. People like to improve their job and derive satisfaction out of it
provided they are involved through human touch, recognition &
reward for work.
• 5. People like to participate in groups and crave for attention.
• 6. People have integrity and can be highly creative.
• 7. A man who does the job knows best about the job at least they
know the problems of the job.

6. Benefits
to the organization
• employee & employer relationship
• Improve – quality of the goods &
services
• Develop – participative culture &
team spirit.
• Catalyze – attitudinal change.
• Leads – towards the better efficiency.
• Reduce – work related errors & cost.
to the employee
• Provide- job interest
• Develop – latent problem solving
capabilities.
• Give – sense of participation.
• Advances – employee career &
personal development.
• Involve – worker in decision making.
• Encourage – employee to get involve
with common goal of the org.
Increase – Productivity

7. How Do Quality Circles Work?
• All members of a Circle need to receive training
• Members need to be empowered
• Members need to have the support of Senior Management
• Characteristics
• Volunteers
• Set Rules and Priorities
• Decisions made by Consensus
• Use of organized approaches to Problem-Solving

8. 1. Formation of the
circle.
2. training of the
members
3. Problem
identification &
problem selection
4. Problem analysis
Generate
alternative
solutions
5. Recommendation
& Plan
6. Management
presentation
7. Review &
decision by the
management
8. Implementation.
9. Monitoring the
effect.

9. Top Management
Steering committee
Co-ordinator
Facilitator
Circle leader
Circle member
CEO ,MD , GM ,Chairman
senior supervisory officer
coordinates the works of several quality circles.
Responsible for successful operation of the QC
Guides and motivates QC members
Represents the circle in the steering committee
Arranges for management presentation
Personnel or Administrative officer
co-ordinates and supervises the work of the
facilitators and administers the programme
They may be staff workers.
Member is one who voluntarily join
identify,analyze,resolve,implementation
of recommendation
may be from lowest level worker
Supervisors.
A Circle leader organizes and
conducts Circle activities.
Structure of Quality Circle

10. The following techniques are most commonly used to analyze
and solve work related problems.
 Brain storming
 Pareto analysis
 Cause & Effect Analysis
 Data Collection & Analysis
BASIC PROBLEM SOLVING TECHNIQUES

11. DISCUSSION AND
CONCLUSION Few Facts…
• Quality Circles are not limited to manufacturing firms only.
• They are applicable for variety of organizations where there is scope for
group based solution of work related problems.
• Quality Circles are relevant for factories, firms, schools, hospitals,
universities, research institutes, banks, government offices etc.
• The sustenance of success will lead to total quality improvement emerging
as a centre of excellence of its own in any small enterprise.