The document discusses quality circles, which are small groups of employees who meet to identify and solve work-related problems, emphasizing collaboration and mutual development. It outlines the features and objectives of quality circles, including improving quality, productivity, and employee morale, and highlights the management's role in fostering these circles. Additionally, it provides an overview of trade unions, their objectives, and the history of quality circles in India, notably their introduction by BHEL in 1980.

1. UNIT-3
PART-2
QUALITY CIRCLES

2. CONTENT
QUALITY CIRCLES:
- Concept, Structure, Training in Quality Circle,
- Problem Solving Techniques,
- Role of Management
- Trade Union & Workers
- Quality Circles in India.

3. MEANING OF QUALITY CIRCLES
 A quality circle or quality control circle is a group of workers
who do the same or similar work, who meet regularly to identify,
analyze and solve work-related problems. It consists of
minimum three and maximum twelve members in number.
 Conceptually , Quality Circles can be described as a small
group of employees of the same work area, doing similar work
that meets voluntarily and regularly to identify, analyse and
resolve work related problems.
 This small group with every member of the circle participating to
the full carries on the activities, utilizing problem solving
techniques to achieve control or improvement in the work area
and also help self and mutual development in the process.

4.  Quality circles built mutual trust and create greater
understanding between the management and the workers.
Cooperation and not confrontation is the key element in its
operation. Quality Circles aims at building people, developing
them, arousing genuine interest and dedication to their work to
improve quality, productivity, cost reduction etc.
 The concept is based on the premise that the people who
do a job everyday know more about it than anyone else and
hence their voluntary involvement is the best way to solve
their work related problems.

5. FEATURES OF QUALITY CIRCLE
 People Building Philosophy
 Voluntary Group
 Participative Program
 Supportive Management
 To Improve the Performance
 Enrichment of Work life
 To Identify and Resolve Work Related Problems
 The focus is on quality related problems.

6. People Building Philosophy – A quality circle is a
homogeneous group. The number of employees in a
quality circle is between six to ten and they generally come
from a particular area. It consists of small group of persons
who normally work at the same place and perform similar
work. Every member and the management have the
sincere desire to help others to grow and develop. They
must look out for the development and growth of everyone
working in the organization.
Voluntary Group – No coercion or pressure is brought on
any member to join or not to join. Nor can any member be
barred from joining quality circles. Quality circles are
voluntary associations of persons having common cause.
Members must understand that quality circles are formed
for their benefit—they are completely free to take or not to
take advantages of it.

7.  Participative Program – Quality circles represent collective
effort. Every one working in the organization must get a
chance to say what is in his mind. Everyone should have
interest and value for the projects chosen for quality circles.
The circle as a whole should receive recognition for any
achievements accomplished by it.
 Supportive Management – Quality circles need the
encouragement to grow and mature. Management must be
willing to give support, advice and also some commitment in
the beginning. Members normally meet once in a week for
about one hour in consultation with the manager. Each quality
circle is managed by an elected leader and the
manager/supervisor may act as the leader.
 To Improve the Performance – Collective and participative
efforts must result in the improvement of quality, productivity
and performance. Cost and wastage must be reduced as a
result of quality circles. The whole organization must gain both
quantitatively as well as qualitatively.

8.  Enrichment of Work life – Apart from team culture and
attitudinal changes, the quality circles must result in improved
working environment, happier relations and greater job
satisfaction.
 To Identify and Resolve Work Related Problems –
Members of quality circles identify their problems through
brainstorming sessions. Then they start analyzing the
problems through statistical quality control techniques and
problem solving methods. A unique feature of Quality Circles
is that they do not pass on the decision without interacting
with other levels of functional agencies.
 The focus is on quality related problems.

9. Objectives of Quality Circles:
Some of the broad objectives of the Quality Circle are:
(i) To improve quality, productivity, safety and cost
reduction.
(ii) To give chance to the employees to use their wisdom
and creativity.
(iii) To encourage team spirit, cohesive culture among
different levels and sections of the employees.
(iv) To promote self and mutual development including
leadership quality,
(v) To fulfill the self-esteem and motivational needs of
employees.
(vi) To improve the quality of work-life of employees.

10. QUALITY CIRCLE-STRUCTURE
 There is no need to form a separate organization structure for
the quality circles. Most of the functions performed by quality
circles constitute normal work of the business and can be
carried through normal channels of the organization. There
will occur more advantages when people work with the same
group of people under the same chain of command than to
create new positions or form new department.
 The typical organization structure of quality circles consists of
non-members and members. The hierarchy in an organization
is at seven levels starting with non-members, members,
leader/deputy leader, facilitator, departmental/steering
committee, coordinating agency and the top management.
 The structure of quality circles is put in a simple ‘pyramid
form’.

11. ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE OF
QUALITY CIRCLES
7. CO-ORDINATING AGENCY
TOP MANAGEMENT
STEERING
COMMITTEE
FACILITATORS
LEADER
MEMBERS
NON-
MEMBERS
1
2
3
4
5
6

12.  Non-Members
 Members
 Leader / Deputy Leader
 Facilitator
 Steering Committee
 Top Management
 Co-ordinating Agency

13. TRAINING IN QUALITY CIRCLES
Training for Quality Circle activity covers following aspects:
o Bringing in the awareness about “What is Quality Circle
Activity?” and “How it can be beneficial to every participating
individual as well as to the organization.?” This is
necessary to overcome initial resistance to the new idea and
prepare the employees to voluntarily accept the change.
o Prepare every person involved in the Quality Circle activity to
play his role effectively.

14. Training for Members-
 Introduction to Quality Circle activity and its benefits to
the individual and to the organization.
 Basic Statistical Quality Control tools.
 Problem solving tools e.g. 7 step breakthrough
sequence.
 Brainstorming.
 Record keeping and reporting.
 Presentation skills.

15. Training for Facilitator-
 Quality Circles — Its genesis, concept and philosophy.
 Roles of Facilitator and Leader.
 Group dynamics.
 Conflict resolution.
 Proactive Management.
 Likely problems in Quality Circle activity and their
solutions.

16. Training for Coordinator and Top Management-
 Role of Top Management in Quality Circle activity.
 Empowering people.
 Appraisal and reward systems.

17. Training for Leaders-
 Quality Circle principles and its working.
 Effective communication.
 Leadership.
 Motivation.
 Art of conducting meetings.
 Goal setting and follow-up.
 Collection, analysis and presentation of data.
 Making effective presentation.
 Team building.

18. PROBLEM SOLVING TECHNIQUES
 The quality circles use certain techniques to identify
analyze and resolve problems; they are:
(a)Brain storming
(b) Data collection
(c) Pareto analysis
(d) Cause and affect diagram.
(e) Line graphs
(f) Frequency distribution.
(g) Scatter diagram, and
(h) Histograms.

19.  Technique # 1. Brainstorming Processes:
Under these techniques a complete and free environment
is created where employees can voice all their worthy and
stupid ideas. All these ideas are recorded seriously. This
technique is useful to generate as many ideas as possible.
Later, the plus and the minus points of each idea are
discussed before taking final decision.
 Technique # 2. Cause and Effect:
Members are asked to find out the causes for the identified
problem. In this process they identify one important effect
of this cause on the problem. Then they identify other
causes and their effects. Charting out of those causes and
effects resembles a fish bone diagram.

20.  Technique # 3. Sampling and Charting Methods:
The quality circles observe the events and their
consequences in the form of positive or negative results.
They chart out all their observations either in sequence or
in some other relationship, which gives a clear idea of the
problem. These techniques will work effectively in
attaining objectives only when the organization structure
of the quality circle is sound and systematic. The following
chart explains the various stages/steps in the process of
quality circle and techniques used by the business organi-
zation in the present competitive and global word.

21. ROLE OF MANAGEMENT IN QUALITY
CIRCLES
 1. Management initiates the process of instituting QCs in the
organization. At the initial stage of instituting QCs,
comprehensive training is required to all those persons who
may be involved in QC system. This training may be
organized either in-house by utilizing the services outside QC
experts or sending the personnel to outside training agencies.
 In both the cases, cost is involved and management has to
decide whether instituting the QCs is beneficial or not. If
management decides to institute QCs, further course of
actions are taken.
 2. Management plays key role in nominating persons in
steering committee which establishes policies and plans for
QCs. These policies and plans affect working of QCs.

22.  3. Management may encourage healthy growth of QCs
through competition among QCs by instituting an award to the
division/department which performs best in propagation of
QCs as well as to the QC which makes the best presentations
at any centrally organized convention or conference.
 4. Management may give necessary guidance to employees
at different levels for making the quality circle movement a
self-sustained success.
 5. Management may include propagation of quality circles as
one of corporate objectives.

23. TRADE UNION & WORKERS
 A trade union, often simply referred to as a union, is an
organization of workers intent on "maintaining or
improving the conditions of their employment".
 Trade union, also called labour union, association of
workers in a particular trade, industry, or company
created for the purpose of securing improvements in
pay, benefits, working conditions, or social and political
status through collective bargaining.
 “Any combination whether temporary or permanent
formed primarily for the purpose of regulating the
relations between the workmen and employers”.

24. OBJECTIVES OF TRADE UNIONS
1) To improve the economic lot of workers by securing
them better wages.
2) To secure for workers better working conditions.
(3) To secure bonus for the workers from the profits of the
enterprise/organization.
(4) To ensure stable employment for workers and resist the
schemes of management which reduce employment
opportunities.
(5) To provide legal assistance to workers in connection
with disputes regarding work and payment of wages.

25. 6) To protect the jobs of labour against retrenchment and layoff etc.
(7) To ensure that workers get as per rules provident fund, pension
and other benefits.
(8) To secure for the workers better safety and health welfare
schemes.
(9) To secure workers participation in management.
10) To inculcate discipline, self-respect and dignity among workers.
(11) To ensure opportunities for promotion and training.
(12) To secure organizational efficiency and high productivity.
(13) To generate a committed industrial work force for improving
productivity of the system.

26. FUNCTIONS OF TRADE UNIONS
 Militant or protective or intra-mural functions
 Fraternal or Extra-mural functions
 Social Functions
 Political Functions
 Ancillary Functions

27. UNION STRUCTURE
 The structure of Trade Unions in India varies from
Organization to Organization.
 Craft Unions
 General Unions
 Industrial Unions
 Federations & Confederation

28. PROBLEMS OF TRADE UNION
 Multiplicity of Unions and Union Rivalry
 Small Size of Unions
 Low Membership
 Poor Financial Position
 Inactive Functioning
 Victimization / Unfair Treatment
 Political and Outside Leadership

29. QUALITY CIRCLES IN INDIA
 IT is also known to most of us that Quality Circle was first
introduced by BHEL, Ramachandrapuram in 1980 in
India and hence they are called pioneers of this wonderful
movement in India.
 Prof. V. Narayana of Indian Statistical Institute of Hyderabad too
had knowledge about concept of the Quality Circle and ISI also
had presentation material available on the concept. With the help
of these materials programs could be conducted in various
places. A few from other parts of the country also got interested
in this concept. Dr.R.C.Agarwal, President JK Jute Mills Ltd.,
initiated workers participation in management in 1977. In 1981 he
heard about Quality Circles and got in touch with JUSE who
directed him to Mr. S.R. Udpa. On his invitation Mr. S.R. Udpa
twice visited Kanpur, out of which once with BHEL Quality Circle
members. Then JK Jute Mills Ltd., started the QC movement.
Later on they with the help of Asian Productivity Council invited
Mr. Ichiro Miyayuchi of JUSE.

30.  Dr. Gaur Hari Singhania and Mr. Ramapati Singhania too took
keen interest and with Miyayuchisan’s training it was firmly
institutionalized in JK Synthetics Ltd. and JK Jute Mills Ltd.
 Dr. A. N. Saxena who was the Director General of National
Productivity Council also got interested in the concept of Quality
Circle and got associated with this movement. Thus Quality
Circle movement started spreading in India in a small way.

31.  BHEL -1980 –Mr.S.R.zUdapa (GM Operations) 1st Indian to
start quality circle
 Hero Honda motors “Sunrise Quality circle”
 Lucas TVS, Chennai “honey bee quality circle”
 Tata Refactories (located in Orissa) “Niharika quality circle”
(saved Rs.4000 p.a)
 Kudhremukh –Iron Ore Plant (located in Karnataka) “Soorthy
Quality Circle”