Improvement Insights Blog

Deming’s Insights on Control Charts for Workers

I was rereading Deming’s book “Out of the Crisis,” and discovered a way to use control charts that is new. Deming uses control charts to compare individual worker performance. Deming often asked leaders to drive out fear, but comparing individuals seems like a way to create fear unless you use the results to help train individuals to higher standards of performance. Here’s how:



“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma Demystified” and QI Macros [software].

“I don’t know about you, but every once in a while I go back and re-read books about Quality.

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Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights, Jay Arthur Blog, QI Macros, Statistics.

Control Charts are Like Heart Monitors for Your Business

Ever seen a heart monitor at a hospital? Control charts perform the same function with almost every aspect of your business.



“If you’ve ever been to a hospital, you may have noticed somebody hooked up to a heart monitor, and it’s going [gestures]. Right? So that monitors the heart rate of that patient, and you can tell if it’s getting crazy or it’s starting to trend down, which means you need a rapid response team to come in and make sure they’re not dying.

“So that’s the idea of a heart monitor, but that’s what a control chart is. It’s like a heart monitor for a hospital (or any other business).

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Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.

Getting Leadership Onboard with Control Charts

People often worry about how they are going to get their leadership on board with using control charts. It’s easy. Here’s how:



“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma For Hospitals” and QI Macros [software].

“I was on a presentation and I was watching Zoom and I was looking at the chat window to see what people were asking, and somebody said, “Well, how do I get my leadership team on board with using control charts?” I have a simple answer for that: Start using them. Right?

“The moment you start using control charts, your leadership team will say, “Oh, what’s that for, and what are these lines for?”

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Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights, Six Sigma.