1) The document discusses understanding the voice of the customer (VOC) through tools like Quality Function Deployment (QFD) and the House of Quality. These tools help translate customer wants and needs into product characteristics and engineering requirements. 2) Key aspects of understanding the VOC include identifying who the relevant customers are, determining their requirements, and listening to their feedback through methods like brainstorming, focus groups, and systematic coordination. 3) Common obstacles to understanding the VOC include not properly identifying the customer, thinking the product is already satisfactory, having a language or technological barrier, or not knowing how to effectively listen. The document provides tips for overcoming these obstacles.

1. Understanding the Voice of your
Customer

2. QFD Model
Continuously
Understand
improve the
the VOC
process
Quality
Deployment Translate
VOC to
things we
can control
Customer- Integrated
Decision Making
Verify
product
Formulate
integrity
alternative
product
Select best
concepts
product
concept

3. Why try to UNDERSTAND
• Quality Management System Requirement
• Success of your company
– Meeting the requirements at the start
– No changes in direction after project is started
– Expected or Improved return on program.
• Do It Right From the Start and understand
Why.

4. Focus
• Obstacles
• Simple Tools
• Simple Applications
• Closing Comments
• Questions

5. Customer Voice- Who
• Purchasing
• Engineering
• Assembly Plant
• Product
• Process
• Line worker
• You

6. The Requirements- What
• Boiler Plates
• General Statement of Work
• Drawings and Specifications
• Environment
• Your Assembly Process
• Customer Assembly Process
• End user

7. Hearing that Voice- How
• Brain Storming
• Focus Groups
• Comparative Questioning
• Systematic (Matrix) Coordination
• Verification
• PDCA Cycle
• Listening Skills

8. Obstacles
• Who is the Customer
• Things are OK
• We know more that the customer
• Language difference- Country
• Language difference- Technology
• Do not know how

9. Obstacles
• More than the
• Who is the Customer
organization that
writes the check.
• Communicate. The
• Things are OK
VOC is an ongoing
process.
• We know more that • Our job is to get the
the customer common
understanding.

10. Obstacles
• Global market 24
• Language Difference-
hours a day.
Country
• You may be making
• Language Difference-
something they can
Technology
not.
• Simple listening and
• Do not know How
documenting results

11. Simple listening
1. Listen with a pad and pen
2. Watch the eyes and lips
3. Ask the right types of questions.

12. Types of Questions.
• Live with 6 year olds
Question Funnel
Open ended questions- Variable Data
• Open ended question.
– Information
– May be too much
– Gather information
• Closed end questions
– Verify Closed Ended questions- Attribute Data

13. The Plan
• QFD is about Customer Research
• Develop an Interview Guide
– Rehearsal Guide
– What information do we want to know
– Develop the questions

14. The Plan
Practice, Practice, Practice
Effective probing comes with practice
– You need to feel comfortable so the customer is
comfortable
– Refine questions, if necessary.

15. Understand the words
• Language of the • Stamper may not
Customer. understand painting
terms
• Assembly Shop may
not understand plastic
terms.
• Some USA Customers • Global Customers
have English as a 2nd have global terms
Language.

16. My favorite term
went to the club”
“I
1. Going to play golf.
2. Going to exercise
3. Going drinking and dancing
?

17. Verify the answer.
• Use Open ended .
Question Funnel
– Information
Open ended questions- Variable Data
– May be too much
– Write all down
• Use Closed end
– Verify
Closed Ended questions- Attribute Data

18. Tools- What to do
• Organize your information
• Find the common requirements
• Matrix layout for comparison

19. Clarify to specific Customer Wants
What kind of comment
Question # Current VOC Wording (Benefit, Solution, Ideas in Context The Real Need
Measure, other)?
smooth contact easy Easy to hold when
33 Writes like a dream Benefit flow easy grip writing
Multiple uses easy to Easy to switch for
34 Needs 4 lead types Solution + target value switch multiple uses
quot;create good, expensive
Looks good, how friends impression when
35 quot;Good impressionquot; Feeling feel when I loan it out. loanedquot;.
• Translates Customers words into recognizable
parts so the team can distinguish between “wants”
and other things the customer talked about.

20. Affinity Process
Organize large groups of information into
meaningful categories.
• State issue in broad terms
• Organize response into related groups
• Evaluate each header, section individually
• Choose a word or phrase that captures intent
and create a header card.

21. Affinity Chart
Sport
Fishing Aquatic Mammals
tuna swordfish marlin Porpoises Whales

22. Application- House of Quality
• Main purpose is to help us understand what
we must do to satisfy the customer.
• Most common matrix translates the VOC to
Quality Characteristic (measures).

23. Application- House of Quality
Identifies
• What’s most important to customer
• What we must do to deliver value
• Impact of each Characteristic on each need
• Potential bottlenecks in delivering value
• Prioritization of value to Quality
Characteristic

24. House of Quality Example
Direction of Improvement
Part
Characteristics
Part Characteristic 1
Part Characteristic 2
Part Characteristic 3
Part Characteristic 4
Part Characteristic 5
= 9 High (How)
Importance (1-5)
=3
Design
= 1 Low
Requirements
(What)
Design Criteria 1 51
Design Criteria 2 59 3 1
Design Criteria 3 4 1
Design Criteria
Design Criteria 4 4 9 1
Design Criteria 5 4 1 3 3
3

25. Interaction Road Map

26. Closing Comments
• Quality Tools are not new.
– SPC at the beginning of 20th century
– Matrix evaluation during WW II
– Six Sigma ( Zero Defects) 1960’s
• Repackaged because we do not use them

27. What Questions do you have
???