Interfacing numbers with people: lessons in quality measurement techniques

The Department of Defence (DOD) defines total quality management (TQM) as an integrated approach, in which isolated expertise in one area creates a limited result. The secret of successful TQM is integration of all elements. Some of the most important lessons learned have centered around the issue of interfacing people with numbers. For engineers, data that can translate vague generalities, hunches, and customer complaints into an equation that can be analyzed, is highly valued. The promise of that level of objectivity and clarity has led to an explosion of measurement across all functions of the telecommunications industry. The optimal interface between people and numbers at Northern Telecom is being achieved through a collection of small steps, slight alterations, and through the merging of theories across a range of disciplines that includes psychology, statistics, organizational development, and the most valuable discipline of all, common sense. The challenge has been to engage people to use the numbers generated by TQM, to train people to differentiate between meaningful measures and meaningless numbers, and to directly link all measurements with constructive action that affects the ultimate goal: customer satisfaction.<>