W. Edwards Deming: Quality Guru
William Edwards Deming (1900-1993) was an American statistician, college professor, author, lecturer and consultant. Deming is widely credited with improving production in the US during World War II, although he is perhaps best known for his work in Japan . From 1950 onwards he taught top management in Japan how to improve design (and thus service), product quality, testing and sales through various methods, including the application of statistical methods and hypothesis testing.
Deming made a significant contribution to
Japan ‘s later renowned for innovative high-quality products and its economic power. He is regarded as having had more impact on Japanese manufacturing and business than any other individual not of Japanese heritage. Despite being considered something of a hero in Japan, it was only at the time of his death that he was beginning to win widespread recognition in the U.S. Deming was the author of Out of the Crisis (1982-1986) and The New Economics for Industry, Government, Education (1993), which includes his System of Profound Knowledge¢’ž¢ and the 14 Points for Management.
WORK IN JAPAN :
After World War II (1947), Deming was involved in early planning for the 1951 Japanese Census. He was asked by the Department of the Army to assist in this census. While he was there, his expertise in quality control techniques, combined with his involvement in Japanese society, led to his receiving an invitation from the Japanese Union of Scientists and Engineers (JUSE) for his lectures. A number of Japanese manufacturers applied his techniques widely and experienced unheard-of levels of quality and productivity.
The improved quality, combined with the lowered cost, created new international demand for Japanese products.
When Deming declined to receive royalties from the transcripts of his 1950 lectures, JUSE established the Deming Prize (1950) to repay him for his services. The Deming Prize – especially the Deming Application Prize, which is given to companies – has exerted an immeasurable influence directly or indirectly on the development of quality control and quality management in Japan .
WORK IN US:
Ford Motor Company was one of the first American corporations to seek help from Deming. In 1981, Ford recruited Deming to help jump-start its quality movement. Ford’s sales were falling. Between 1979 and 1982, Ford had incurred $3 billion in losses. Deming questioned the company’s culture and the way its managers operated. To Ford’s surprise, Deming talked not about quality but about management. He told Ford that management actions were responsible for 85 percent of all problems in developing better cars. In a letter to Auto week Magazine, Donald Petersen, then Ford Chairman, said, “We are moving toward building a quality culture at Ford and the many changes that have been taking place here have their roots directly in Dr. Deming’s teachings.” By 1986, Ford had become the most profitable American auto company. For the first time since the 1920s, its earnings had exceeded those of arch rival General Motors (GM). Ford had come to lead the American automobile industry in improvements. In the following years, Ford confirmed that its success was not a fluke, for its earning continued to exceed those of GM & Chrysler.
