Cross-Functional Management
Cross-functional management is the horizontal (between teams or departments) integration of TQM activity within an organization. Some problems extend beyond the boundaries of a single work unit, while others span across an entire organization. In either case, a team that represents all points of view pertinent to a good solution, is generally the best approach to solving the problem and preventing new ones from being created.
Cross-functional management is often an attitude, one that involves a willingness to communicate and cooperate, rather than a structure or a form. Customer-supplier maps can often be used as an effective means of fostering cross-functional thinking, and "Quality Function Deployment" can be a good tool to get everyone centered around knowing the customer.
Quality Function Deployment
A powerful tool for getting customer feedback and understanding customer wants and requirements is "Quality Function Deployment" (QFD). QFD was first introduced to the United States in an article by Dr. Yoji Akao in the October 1983 issue of Quality Progress, a monthly publication of the American Society for Quality (ASQ). In November 1983 the Cambridge Corporation of Tokyo, under the leadership of Masaaki Imai, conducted a Total Quality Control (TQC) and Quality Function Deployment (QFD) workshop in Chicago.
Quality Function Deployment is a structured process that provides a means to identify and carry the customer's voice through each stage of product and service development and implementation. QFD is achieved through cross-functional teams that collect, interpret, document, and prioritize customer requirements. Through the use of charts and matrices, quality responsibilities can be effectively deployed to any needed activity within a company to ensure that appropriate quality is achieved.
QFD relies on easy to understand techniques supported by analytical tools. QFD, though structured, is a flexible planning tool which allows organizations to react quickly in developing or improving products and services and which also allows for creative and innovative thinking.