Quality Improvement Teams

Quality Improvement Teams (QITs) can be formed where there is a specific problem whose solution is unlikely to reside in a  single department. And, this is large enough to justify the establishment of a  team to resolve the problem.

Above all, it is most important to realize that these teams are not the same as Quality Circles. And, they have a different purpose and are formed differently and have unique characteristics:

Quality Characteristics

• Firstly, the management organizes QITs. And, they can be an extension of the management process.
• Moreover, they are inter-departmental in membership.
• The generation of resolution for problems is usually from outside the group.
• Once the problem solution is received, the team usually separates.

The  use  of  QIT  as  a  powerful  problem-solving  activity  has  benefits  in  addition  to  the  solution  of  the  problem  under consideration,

Break down Inter-Departmental Barriers:

• Many organizations adopting Company-wide Process improvement find that the obstacle of departmental rivalry is difficult to break down.
• Moreover, organizational structures and appraisal systems incline to produce senior management that is more committed to departmental rather than corporate goals.
• And, the part of the QIT process is team building and ownership of the problem. And, the resolution of which they seek, regardless of the departments involved in corrective actions.

Solutions Are More Global In Concept:

• In association with the previous, benefit is the tendency for solutions to be more global in concept rather than ruling by more narrow departmental considerations.
• Thus, developing optimizing solutions for corporate rather than departmental goals.

Improved Communications:

• Also allied to the breaking down of departmental barriers is the resulting improvement in communications throughout the organization.
• And, the solutions go for the corporate good rather than to shift blame after discussion of problems and potential causes,

Improved Problem Solving Capability: 

• After the success of the QIT activity becomes, there will be more teams to overcome difficult problems that hitherto have remained unsolved.
• Moreover, this process will create a degree of mobile expertise in problem-solving within the company.

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