When a premium furniture business starts selling dining tables in a new country, it finds that buyers expect smooth surfaces, accurate delivery dates and ra...
Question 1 Report
When a premium furniture business starts selling dining tables in a new country, it finds that buyers expect smooth surfaces, accurate delivery dates and rapid responses to problems. The business currently inspects completed tables only after production. The operations manager is considering a total quality management approach, where every employee accepts responsibility for continuous improvement.
(a) What is meant by continuous improvement in this business? [1]
(b) Identify one customer expectation in the scenario. [1]
(c) Explain one difference between inspecting finished tables and using total quality management. [3]
(d) Explain whether total quality management is likely to increase the business's long-term profit. [5]
Answer Details
(a) Continuous improvement means ongoing efforts to make quality and business processes better over time. [1]
(b) One customer expectation is smooth table surfaces, accurate delivery dates or rapid responses to problems. [1]
(c) Inspecting completed tables finds defects after production has taken place. [1] Total quality management aims to prevent defects throughout the business and production process. [1] It also makes every employee responsible for improving quality. [1]
(d) Total quality management is likely to increase long-term profit. Fewer defects, returns and repairs reduce costs. [1] Consistent quality can improve the business’s reputation, [1] encouraging repeat purchases or allowing it to maintain a premium selling price. [1] Training staff and changing procedures may raise short-term costs, [1] but if improvements continue, increased sales and lower waste are likely to outweigh these costs. [1]
Exam focus: Total quality management is preventative and organisation-wide. It differs from simply inspecting finished output, which may find a defect only after resources have been used.
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