Question 1

National Quality Institute is a nonprofit organization designed to stimulate and support quality-driven innovation within all enterprises and institutions,including business,government,education,and health care in _____.

Accepted Answer

National Quality Institute is located in Canada and operates nationwide to promote quality-driven innovation in various sectors. Therefore, the correct choice is B.

Question 2

The Baldrige Award is a better fit to the national culture of _____ than it is to the United States.

Accepted Answer

The Baldrige Award emphasizes the importance of continuous improvement and customer satisfaction, which are central values in Japanese business culture. Additionally, the Japanese culture places a high value on collectivism and the pursuit of perfection, both of which align well with the Baldrige criteria. In contrast, the individualistic culture of the United States may make it more difficult for some organizations to fully embrace the Baldrige framework. The other options, Canada, China, and India, may not be as strong of a match for the Baldrige framework as Japan.

Question 3

According to Baldrige Criteria and Deming's 14 points,communication of values,expectations,customer focus,and knowledge as a key area of the Senior Leadership item is discussed under:

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to Baldrige Criteria and Deming's 14...

Question 4

Which of the following focuses on measuring product quality and driving process improvement and cost savings throughout the organization?

Accepted Answer

Six Sigma is a methodology that focuses on measuring product quality and driving process improvement and cost savings throughout the organization. The other options listed have different focuses: 
A) Baldrige Criteria is a framework for organizational excellence and assessment 
B) ISO 9000:2000 is a set of quality management standards 
D) Deming's 14 principles are a set of guidelines for management practices to improve the quality of products and services.

Question 5

The criteria for the Canadian Awards for Business Excellence are similar in structure to the criteria for the:

Accepted Answer

The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and the Canadian Awards for Business Excellence both use similar criteria for evaluating organizations based on leadership, strategic planning, customer and market focus, information and analysis, human resource management, process management, and business results. The other options do not have as many similarities in their criteria.

Question 6

Process management activities are:

Accepted Answer

Process management activities, such as process mapping, analysis, improvement, and monitoring, are included in both the Baldrige Criteria and the ISO 9000:2000 standards. These activities are important for optimizing organizational performance and ensuring consistency in the delivery of products or services.

Question 7

_____ is probably the most challenging concept for an organization to master in order to receive the Baldrige Award.

Accepted Answer

The answer of _____ is probably the most challenging concept...

Question 8

Which of the following is NOT an objective of state-sponsored quality awards?

Accepted Answer

While state-sponsored quality awards may encourage firms to pursue higher levels of quality and productivity, winning a state award is not a requirement to apply for the Baldrige Award. The Baldrige Award is a national award that recognizes excellence in quality and performance.

Question 9

After the _____ review process for the Baldrige Award,the Panel of Judges selects potential applicants for site visits.

Accepted Answer

The Baldrige Award review process involves a consensus review, where a panel of judges evaluates and scores the applications. After this process, potential applicants for site visits are selected. Therefore, the correct choice is B) consensus.

Question 10

In 2001,the China Association for Quality (CAQ) introduced the _____.

Accepted Answer

The China Association for Quality (CAQ) introduced the National Quality Award in 2001.

Question 11

Topline Inc.is a leading supplier of food products to retailers across the U.S.As part of its quality management principle,it focuses on product and service conformity for guaranteeing equity in the marketplace and concentrates on fixing quality system problems and product and service nonconformities,with the key requirement being customer focus.The guidelines for the quality management system followed by Topline are as per the framework of _____.

Accepted Answer

The guidelines for the quality management system followed by Topline are in compliance with ISO 9000:2000 framework.

Question 12

Of the four levels of awards given in Australia,the _____ recipients will demonstrate Approach and Deployment that are well defined,planned,subject to review,and show evidence of improvement over time.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Of the four levels of awards given...

Question 13

Six Sigma is based on understanding and improving processes on a _____ basis.

Accepted Answer

Six Sigma is a project-based approach to process improvement, where each project is focused on improving a specific process. Therefore, the improvement is made project by project.

Question 14

Six Sigma projects can be categorized in different levels,based upon their impact on results.Level 1 projects:

Accepted Answer

Level 1 Six Sigma projects directly affect an organization's profit margin by identifying and eliminating defects in processes, which reduces costs and improves quality, thereby impacting the bottom line directly.

Question 15

Strong Cement is a cement-manufacturing company headquartered in the U.S.As part of its organizational policy,the management establishes,plans,and implements measurement,monitoring,and improvement activities; monitors information about customer satisfaction as a performance metric; and acquires and analyzes data to determine improvement effectiveness.The management is following the guidelines of _____.

Accepted Answer

The management's focus on measurement, monitoring, improvement activities, and customer satisfaction aligns with the ISO 9000:2000 standards, which emphasize quality management systems and continuous improvement.

Question 16

A fundamental aspect of Six Sigma methodology is identification of CTQ characteristics that are vital to customer satisfaction."CTQ" denotes:

Accepted Answer

CTQ stands for "critical to quality characteristic," which is a fundamental aspect of Six Sigma methodology used to identify characteristics that are vital to customer satisfaction.

Question 17

Which of the following focuses on product and service conformity for guaranteeing equity in the marketplace and concentrates on fixing quality system problems and product and service nonconformities?

Accepted Answer

ISO (International Organization for Standardization) focuses on product and service conformity through setting international standards for quality management systems. ISO aims to guarantee equity in the marketplace by ensuring that products and services meet certain quality standards, and by fixing quality system problems and product/service nonconformities. Baldrige Criteria and NQI (National Quality Institute) are frameworks for organizational excellence, and Six Sigma is a methodology for process improvement. While all of these may overlap with ISO in terms of quality improvement, they do not solely focus on conformity to specific quality standards.

Question 18

Cindy Hayes,the CEO of Spurling Inc. ,wants the organization to focus on measuring product quality,driving process improvement,and cost savings throughout the organization.To this end,she makes different teams and provides champions to sponsor projects,provides training resources,and communicates progress and achievements.The entire plan is integrated into the strategic planning process.Project selections are made based on understanding of the financial as well as the nonfinancial benefits to the organization.Cindy Hayes is practicing the _____ methodology to lower the cost of quality because of its focus on the financial return.

Accepted Answer

The methodology being used by Cindy Hayes is Six Sigma, which focuses on improving quality and reducing costs by identifying and eliminating process variation. It emphasizes on the financial benefits that can be achieved through its implementation. The other options, such as ISO 9000:2000, Baldrige, and Deming, do not specifically focus on financial returns and cost savings like Six Sigma does.

Question 19

Broadway Inc.is a leading automobile manufacturer.To achieve customer satisfaction,during the process of producing a product or service,its management continuously gathers information needed by internal customers for process control activities to ensure that the product or service is meeting the critical to quality parameters.The management of Broadway Inc.is said to be following the _____ methodology.

Accepted Answer

The management of Broadway Inc. is following the Six Sigma methodology, which focuses on continuous improvement and gathering data to ensure products/services meet critical quality parameters. ISO 9000:2000 is a set of standards for quality management, Baldrige is an award program for excellence, and Deming is a quality guru who developed the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle. While these methodologies may also include data gathering and process control activities, they are not specifically focused on achieving customer satisfaction through meeting critical quality parameters.

Question 20

Compared to the Baldrige Award,the European Excellence Award places greater emphasis on the _____ category.

Accepted Answer

The European Excellence Award places greater emphasis on impact on society, while the Baldrige Award focuses more on documentation of processes and top management's understanding of quality. Employee training is important for both awards, but not a main differentiating factor between them.

Quiz 10: The Baldrige Framework for Performance Excellence