By
Jeanie McKay |
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Chapter 1: |
Performance gaps, errors, quality problems... When performance plummets, many organizations jump to the conclusion that training is the best remedy. Research tells us that 75-85% of problems identified as training problems in companies may be misdiagnosed. It is important for Quality Improvement trainers to be able to communicate what training interventions can and cannot do for management. This chapter helps them better understand performance problems versus training problems. |
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Chapter 2: |
Why is there so much resistance to quality improvement training? Why have so many well-intentioned efforts failed and soured? What was wrong with the approach? What hindered buy-in? The best and brightest in the technical realm have often been selected to teach the courses. Although their knowledge is high, many have faced classrooms unprepared for their role as instructors. As a result, trainees succumbed to boredom, and training failed...miserably! Chapter 2 explains the basics about how people learn. It also suggests innovative ways to motivate, involve and get learners to want to change performance...rather than beating them with compliance sticks. |
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Chapter 3: |
Too many quality improvement training methods courses are one-way information-dumps. It’s heavily technical, and there is a lot of material to cover. However, if it isn’t understood, processed and applied during training, there is little carry-over to the workplace. Quality improvement methods lend themselves to interactive training media. Chapter 3 provides many ideas for drawing trainees in, engaging them in hands-on activities, using demonstrations to involve many senses and exercises that will spark understanding and motivation. |
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Chapter 4: |
Although the quality gurus from years past stressed the importance of training over and over again, they didn’t provide us any guide books for success. In many large organizations, quality improvement training is decentralized. And in many small shops, the technical experts are on their own as well. Chapter 4 provides a guide for the devilish details that can hinder or haunt deployment. It steps through support, timing, sequence, and media options. In addition, it provides useful heads-up ideas for training rollouts. |
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Chapter 5: |
How do you find the best folks to lead your training efforts? Should you look on the outside or do you have a cadre of people you can use in-house? What are the advantages of each? If you bring in vendors, how can you evaluate what you are going to get? Is off-the-shelf training trash or treasure? Chapter 5 provides helpful tips for finding and selecting the best on the outside as well as inside your company. How can you test drive courses? What kinds of personalities make the best instructors? This chapter helps you head off disasters and ensure success with the personnel you choose to design, deliver and deploy your improvement methods training. |
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Chapter 6: |
So how can we teach kick ass quality? How can we use this book to turn around our training? Chapter 6 tells you how the rest of the book is laid out and designed. Ideas for supplementing these ideas, activities and exercises into your training curriculum are spelled out. After reading this chapter, you’ll be better able to cherry-pick exactly what you need to suit your topic and purpose. You will also see your trainees wake-up and become interested as you start to use the kick ass materials from these chapters. |
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Chapter 7: |
Every trainer, no matter what the course, needs to get started on the right foot. The tone for the class gets set during the first one-half hour. Chapter 7 provides some ideas for introductions and ice breakers that will help establish rapport, relax and generate energy and interest among trainees. |
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Chapter 8: |
Depending on whom you talk to, quality will be defined differently. This chapter helps instructors and trainees define what it means to them and their product. In this chapter instructors will find example after example to use to show the costs of poor quality, the changing focus of quality and the communication required to make it happen. |
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Chapter 9: |
Variation is inherent in manufacturing. But how much is too much? And what kind needs to be better managed? This chapter provides exercises and activities to help trainees understand the types of variation and its impact upon customer satisfaction, manufacturing time, morale and company profitability. |
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Chapter 10: |
Deming attributes about 85% of all company problems to inadequate processes. But before trainers jump into discussions about process control and capability, they need to make sure their trainees really understand what a process is and how it should be analyzed. Chapter 10 provides trainers with fun, but effective exercises and activities to use when teaching inputs, outputs and flow analysis techniques. |
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Chapter 11: |
Once there were as many standards for quality as there were companies implementing them. But ISO is helping to change that. So much training in ISO standards is nothing more than the dry listing of requirements and "have-to’s." Recognizing that many trainees need to understand the purpose for standards in addition to the requirements, Chapter 11 provides exercises that get across the important intent of the standards and novel ways to meet documentation requirements. |
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Chapter 12: |
In the race to solve quality problems, improvement teams have been known to de-rail, apply abhorrent fixes, or implement solutions that cause failure in other parts of the system. In today’s workplace, operators are expected to exercise greater control over their own processes. As a result, employees at every level of the company need to learn a systematic approach to problem solving. They need to also know how to seek and find creative, innovative approaches. Chapter 12 provides brain-aerobic activities that will not only involve the participant, but will teach them a process and tools they can use to solve their real-world design and production problems. |
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Chapter 13: |
"What on earth are we taking all these measurements for?" Most operators are required to measure and document their measurements; however, many don’t have a clue as to why they are asked to do it or how to validate the accuracy of their process. Understanding the measurement process is no longer just something that belongs to metrologists, QEs or inspectors. With the increase in "process ownership" in factories, the need to have everyone trained in measurement process basics has increased as well. Chapter 13 provides exercises designed to help trainees better understand the reasons for measurement, techniques to ensure accuracy and better-written instructions. |
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Chapter 14: |
While most companies have less than a handful of statistical wizards on their payrolls, they need employees who understand basic statistical process control principles. However, many fear the subject and tune out when an instructor even says the words, "mean," "deviation" or "histogram." Chapter 14 provides much needed session starters for getting trainees to understand the place of statistics in the workplace. Trainees will pay attention when they work with sampling, probability and charting through exercises involving M&M and caramel factories and other painless, but high-interest learning simulations. |
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Chapter 15: |
Prior to 1543 everyone believed that the solar system revolved around the earth. When Copernicus pointed out that the earth revolved around the sun, everything the human race believed to be true about the universe changed! A similar revolution is taking place in the manufacturing quality arena. Many long-held beliefs and practices have been called into question. As a result, people need to use the (e)quality tools in a different way. Chapter 15 is filled with motivational implementation and improvement process ideas that trainees will need to help them implement change in the change-resistant environments in which they work. This chapter was designed with the belief that trainees need more than tools. They need the evangelistic vision as well as planned strategies and goals to help them create a culture of initiative and implement improvements in the workplace. |
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Chapter 16: |
The training day is over... The smile-sheets have been passed out. Those "tens" on the course evaluations mean the training is a success, right? Not so fast! Chapter 16 provides trainers with some much needed concrete tools for assessing courses. In addition, this chapter gives trainers some great ideas for wrapping up their sessions and reviewing concepts in ways that will enable trainees to remember, apply and transfer the information from the classroom to their workplace. |
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Chapter 17: |
This chapter provides trainers with one final bag of goodies. Here they will uncover a wealth of resources in the form of web-links, books, video suggestions and classroom training tools. |
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