ABSTRACT
So, before it can solve its quality problems, an organization has to be able to identify them. How can this be done?
One way is to make use of the knowledge and skills of the people who are closest to the work, that is, first line managers and their teams. Time and again, it has been shown that those who perform the work – operators, technicians, clerks, warehouse staff, sales assistants and others who function ‘at the workface’ – are the ones best able to identify quality problems. First line managers are therefore well placed to report, record and (quite often) help the team to rectify these problems. More senior managers must keep the larger picture in mind, and often have insufficient knowledge of the detail to identify quality problems, with little time to learn it.
