Continual Improvement Programs and ISO 9001:2000

摘要

The past several years have seen a tremendous growth in the number of companies adopting business improvement programs, such as Six Sigma, lean manufacturing and the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence (BCPE), and various customized total quality management (TQM) programs. This was demonstrated convincingly in LRQA Commercial Training Services' 2001 survey of 700 quality professionals. Approximately 30% of respondents indicated they have already implemented or are working on Six Sigma, lean manufacturing or TQM, with a lower but still significant percentage reporting involvement in BCPE efforts. This level of involvement in business improvement programs suggests a fairly broad understanding among companies of the need for effective change management to excel in a highly competitive marketplace.