| The Little Blue Book Quotations of Dr. Deming (1994 edition) Go to the square format of the First Edition Deming Index Drive out fear. The 14 Points (see the bottom of the page) These quotations come from the following sources: Books by Deming OOTC = Out of the Crisis Without a cultural revolution in management, quality control circles will not produce the desired effects in America. OOTC 148 If you have a favorite quote that doesn't appear here, please send it to the editors. Sundial Press PO Box 30555 Fort Lauderdale, FL 33303 analyst@comcast.net Links about Dr. Deming http://www.rubicontraininguk.com/purchasing%20articles.htm #W.%20Edwards%20Deming From th Rubicon web site: Dr. Deming lectured in Japan in 1950. Together with Joseph Juran, he is credited with instilling an awareness of the importance of quality into Japanese management practices. Deming has a 14-point plan for improving quality, shown in the below, that focuses on continuously improving the process. Deming's 14-Point Plan for Quality (Reworded by Rubicon Training) 1. Create constancy of purpose for improvement. 2. Adopt the new approach. 3. End reliance on inspection as the sole quality control tool, 4. Stop selecting vendors on the basis of price alone. 5. Continuously improve every aspect of production. 6. Train the workers. 7. Lead. 8. Eliminate fear. 9. Eliminate line/staff communication barriers. 10. Eliminate slogans. 11. Eliminate production quotas. 12. Eliminate barriers to pride of person. 13. Institute self-improvement programs. 14. Implement this program universally. How Is Dr. Deming's work studied in schools? Augusta Technical College http://www.augusta.tec.ga.us/mechanical/amf150.htm For people who experienced Dr. Deming's lectures, it is especially gratifying to see his work re-explained and re-interpreted ... in a course about Manufacturing Quality Control. The LIttle Blue Book is out of print. The effort is sustained by volunteers who typed the book into Geocities, which provided free space on the web. The first edition of the Little Blue Book was square in format and was organized around themes. It is reproduced here. |
| Return to the Deming Page Editor’s Note The purpose of this book of quotations is neither to summarize Dr. Deming’s work nor to “popularize” his ideas by giving the reader a quick overview. This book does not give you the “essence” of Deming. Rather, the purpose of compiling these quotes is to stir your interest in learning more. Why does Deming advocate the end of merit pay? Why must managers understand terms like “statistical control” and “variation”? You won’t find complete answers here, just quotations for you to contemplate and ponder. The page references will speed your self-education. Yes, today’s world of sound bites, briefings, news summaries and shortened attention spans make Dr. Deming’s work hard to communicate to a generation growing up on MTV. Dr. Deming’s philosophy of working with one supplier sounds alien to a work force committed to the concept of intense adversarial competition. We chose not to chop Deming’s philosophy of “managing the system” into 20-second pieces. Instead, we selected quotes that will raise your interest to spend a half hour or more to learn more about the subject. The 14 Points We decided to mention just three of Dr. Deming’s 14 points. If you are moved to find the list of the 14 points and the 7 diseases, then The Little Blue Book has achieved its main purpose: to motivate you to read Out of the Crisis and other tomes that explain the Deming Philosophy of management. We have omitted the extensive explanations of each of the 14 points that Deming and his interpreters have invested many years in developing. This Little Blue Book with get you started. The Editors. The Little Blue Book Without a cultural revolution in management, quality control circles will not produce the desired effects in America. W. Edwards Deming, Out of the Crisis, page 148. Students of Chinese history will recall the phrase “cultural revolution” and a certain little RED book intended to provide the guiding principles for modernizing a country of one billion people. Unlike Deming, whose work empowers those who study his philosophy, Mao Tse-Tung perverted the phrase “cultural revolution” so that those two words continue to revive painful memories in millions of survivors of that ill-conceived governmental plan. In his foreword to the second edition of Quotations From Chairman Mao Tse-Tung, Lin Piao exhorted his readers to “have specific problems in mind, study and apply his [Mao’s] works in a creative way, combine study with application.” The reader of this little book is encouraged to apply the same advice to Dr. Deming’s words. We hope that these quotations from Dr. Deming’s work will inspire you to join the larger “cultural revolution” in management. This revolution will change not only you and your neighbors, but also billions of people around the globe, including those who studied Chairman Mao’s little read book and failed to find fulfillment. “Peace through economic prosperity” is Dr. Deming’s promise to those who heed his call for the pursuit of quality. Let’s begin. The Editors Communication Break down barriers between departments. People in research, design, sales and production must work as a team, to foresee problems of production and in use that may be encountered with the product or service. Competition Economists are leading us down the wrong path. They tell us that fierce competition is the solution. We worry about increasing market share and we try to kill off colleagues in the same industry, instead of making better products. Customers The customer is the most important part of the production line. Without him, there is no production line. Improvement of quality envelops the entire production line, from incoming materials to the consumer, and redesign of the product and service for the future. Price has no meaning except in terms of the quality of the product. But that is not enough. Good and uniform quality has not meaning except with reference to the consumer’s needs. Education I find a general fear of education. People are afraid to take a course. It might not be the right one. My advice is “take it.” Find the right one later. . . . You never know what could be used, what could be needed. He that thinks he has to be practical is not going to be here very long. Who knows what is practical? Help people to improve. I mean everybody. Evaluation Most of us assume that if we don’t evaluate you, you won’t be motivated to work better. So we interview and measure you, compare you to others and try to place you in a ranking. Instead we need to promote self-esteem, joy in work and pride in what we do, so that we encourage people to innovate and contribute to the job. If we destroy, you are humiliated. Ranking you destroys you. Fear Fear takes a horrible toll. Fear is all around, robbing people of their pride, hurting them. Robbing them of a chance to contribute to the company. It is unbelievable what happens when you unloose fear. Putting out fires is not improvement. Finding a point out of control, finding the special cause and removing it, is only putting the process back to where it was in the first place. It is not improvement of the process. We’re losing ground because what we are doing is wrong, even though we work very hard and give our best effort. (When asked why he spends five to seven days per week traveling, teaching, consulting and giving 4-day seminars to hundreds of enthusiastic students of all ages, Dr. Deming gave this reply.) Joy in work I love my work. It’s fun for me. I wish American management to keep learning and growing and I wish to keep learning and sharing with them. Knowledge Profound knowledge of a system comes from outside, rarely from the inside. Have you ever found someone who has profound knowledge inside an organization? I never have. (Profound knowledge is the understanding needed to improve a system.) Deming’s book Out of the Crisis has the following three quotes from the Bible Who is it that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge? (Job 38:2) My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6) For in much wisdom is great grief: and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow. (Ecclesiastes 1:18) Leadership Drive out fear, so everyone may work effectively for the company. Eliminate work standards (quotas) on the factory floor. Substitute leadership. Eliminate management by objective. Eliminate management by numbers and numerical goals. Abolish the merit system and the ranking of people. Substitute leadership. Judge each part of a system by its contribution to the system, not for its individual performance. Each part is responsible for the health and well-being of the whole system. Learning Learning is not compulsory. Survival is not compulsory. Management My theory of management says that very person gains when the system is optimized. Management must always improve the system. Do what is best for the WHOLE system. Don’t do things the way they have always been done. Remember: you can’t have impact unless you break away from the system. You must be outside the system. It is easy to manage a business in an expanding market, and easy to suppose that economic conditions can only grow better and better. In contrast with expectations, we find, on looking back, that we have been on an economic decline for three decades. It is easy to date an earthquake, but not a decline. The manager should be a leader. He should understand how his work and the work of his people fits into the system. Optimization of a system is the first job of a leader. Recognize that all people are different, try to fit each one in what he does best, what he takes joy in doing. Most people think of management as a chain of command. My theory says that the system is like an orchestra, not an army. Everyone in an orchestra supports the other players. Each player watches not only the conductor, but also each other and the whole system. The system needs a conductor, not a general. It needs someone who harmonizes the talents and abilities of each part of the system, even when he plays solo. He is not there to attract attention to himself. He succeeds when he supports the other players. Without a cultural revolution in management, quality control circles will not produce the desired effects in America. Nor can anyone guarantee that job security for the rank and file would be enough to produce high productivity and product quality. However, without a management commitment to the personal welfare of its workers, it will be impossible to inspire employees’ interest in company productivity and product quality. With guaranteed job security, management’s job becomes far more difficult and challenging. Obstacles Barriers against realization of pride of workmanship may in fact be one of the most important obstacles to reduction of cost and improvement of quality in the United States. Return to Dr. Deming's Quotes |
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The Little
Blue Book Drive Out Fear! Dr. Deming writes in Out Of the Crisis: I am indebted to William J. Latzko for pointing out to me long ago the prevalence of fear and the economic losses therefrom. (p. 59). The Little Blue Book Quotations of Dr. W. Edwards Deming Published by Sundial Books P.O. Box 30555 Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33303 "We Only Record The Sunny Hours" The Quotations of W. Edwards Deming Selected Proceeds to support distribution of this book to schools and industrial, management and educational leaders. Copyright 1992 by W. Edwards Deming. ISBN 1-879857-02-9 Abbreviations OOTC Out of the Crisis Deming, W. Edwards (1982, 1986). MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass. TWOWED The World of W. Edwards Deming Kilian, Cecelia, S. (1992). SPC Press, 5908 Toole Drive, Suite C, Knoxville, Tenn. 1-800-545-8602. TDOA The Deming of America (1991) hosted by Priscilla Petty, broacast on public television in 1992. Communication Break down barriers between departments. Peo;e in research, design, sales and production must work as a team, to foresee problems of production and in use that may be encountered with the product or service. OOTC, Point 9, 24. Competition Economists have led us down the wrong road. They have taught us adversarial competition is the solution. It is not. TDOA Customers The customer is the most important part of the production line. Without him, there is no production line. Improvement of quality envelops the entire production line, from incoming materials to the consumer, and redesign of the product and service for the future. TWOWED, 24. Price has no meaning except in terms of the quality of the product. But that is not enogh. Good quality and uniform quality have no meaning except with reference to the consumer's needs. TWOWED, 65. Improvement The only reason to carry out a test is to improve a process, to improve the quality and quantity of the next run or of next year's crop. Important questions in science and industry are how and under what conditions observations may contribute to a rational decision to change or not to change a process to accomplish improvements. A record of observations must accordingly contain all the information that anyone might need in order to make his own prediction. TWOWED, 99. Joy in Work Why does [Dr. Deming] spend five to seven days per week traveling, teaching, consulting and giving 4-day seminars to hundreds of enthusiastic students? "I love my work. It's fun for me. I wish American management to keep learning and growing and I wish to keep learning and sharing with them." TWOWED, 13. Knowledge Who is it that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge? Job 38:2 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Hosea 4:6 Leadership Drive out fear, so everyone may work effectively for the company. OOTC, Point 8, 23. Eliminate work standards (quotas) on the factory floor. Substitute leadership. Eliminate management by objective. Eliminate management by numbers, numerical goals. Substitute leadership. OOTC, Point 11, 24. Learning Learning isn't compulsory. In a class given by WED, November 1992. When the student is ready, the teacher will come. Japanese proverb, mentioned in TDOA. Management My theory of management is bsed on optimization of a system whereby everybody gains...everybody gains. TDOA It is only management that breaks out the system that makes impact. [Management must] optimize the system: instead of doing it the way we've always done it, do what is best for the whole system. TDOA An orchestra is an example that most people can understand. The system: Everybody there is supporting all the other players. In a 140-piece orchestra, everybody there supports the other 139. He's not there to play a solo, he's not to play as loud as he can play to attract attention. He's there to support the other 139. The job of the conductor is to optimize their talents and abilities. TDOA Productivity Improve constantly and forever the system of production and service, to improve quality and productivity, and thus constantly decrease costs. OOTC, Point 5, 23. Profits Short-term profits are no index of ability. They are not a reliable indicator of performance of management. Anybody can pay dividends by deferring maintenance, cutting out research or acquiring another company. Dividends and paper profits, the yardstick by which managers of money and heads of companies are judged, do [not] improve the competitive position of a company or of American industry. Paper profits do not make bread: improvement of quality and productivity do. They make a contribution to better material living for all people, here and everywhere. OOTC, 21. Protectionism Dependence on protection by tariffs and laws to "buy American" only encourages incompetence. OOTC, Preface, xi. If some manufacturers in my own country would meet competition with effort, and spend less time on lobbies to boost tariffs and to lower trade quotas, they might have less to worry about Japanese competition and could give some of the rest of us the benefit of better quality and lower prices. Many people say that they belive in free enterprise in competition, but what they often mean is competition fo rthe other fellow, not for themselves. Now in my own case, I belive in free enterprise, and I am not afraid of Japanese statisticians, English statisticians, French statisticians, or any others. If one of them is doing a better job, then the thing to do is to go over therm, or bring him to my own country, and find out how he does it. I don't know of any statistician's lobby to try to keep out [foreign] statisticians. The more of them we import, the better off we are. TWOWED, 43-44. Quality Why is it that productivity increases as quality improves? Less rework. Not so much waste. Quality to the production worker means that his performance satisfies him, provides to him pride of workmanship. OOTC, 1. End the practice of awarding business on the basis of price tag. Instead, minimize total cost. Move toward a single supplier of any one item, on a long-term relationship of loyalty and trust. OOTC, Point 4, 23. The Japanese management learned in 1950 ... that the best solution to improvement of incoming materials is to make a partner of every vendor, and to work together with him on a long-term relationship of loyalty and trust. OOTC, 43. Barriers against realization of pride of workmanship may in fact be one of the most important obstacles to reduction of cost and improvement of quality in the United States. OOTC, 83. Quality begins at the top....Quality of product and of service can be no better than the intent of top management. The only way [a company] can experience success would be for the top management to be committed to the course of action. TWOWED, 22. Cease dependence on inspection to improve quality. Eliminate the need for inspection on a mass basis by building quality into the product in the first place. OOTC, Point 3, 23. Work with your vendor to improve his incoming quality. establish a long-term relationship with him for continual improvement, ever better and batter quality, with lower and lower costs. Both you and he will win. TWOWED, 10. Responsibility It is no longer socially acceptable to dump employees on to the heap of unemployment. Loss of market and resulting unemployment, are not foreordained. They are no inevitable. They are man-made. OOTC, Preface, ix The greatest waste in America is failure to use the abilities of people. One need only listen to a tape of a meeting with production workers to learn about their frustrations and about the contribution that they are eager to make. Anyone would be impressed to observe how articulate most production workers are, in spite of criticisms of our schools. OOTC, 53. The great majority, 85, 90, 95 percent of the output of any system, is the result of that system, not the result of people. Managers tend to blame peopel and it's not the case. They should not blame people. They should blame themselves becasue they created the system, and only they can improve upon the system. Earl Conway Manager of Corporate Quality Proctor & Gamble quoted in TDOA Shewhart, Walter A. 1891-1967 Another half-century may pass before the full spectrum of Dr. Shewhart's contributions has been revealed in liberal education, science, and industry. TWOWED, 88. Statistics There are conferences almost any day in this country on the subject of productivity, mostly concerned with gadgets and measures of productivity. As William E. Conway said, measurements of productivity are like accident statistics. They tell you that there is a problem, but they don't do anything about accidents. This book is an attempt to improve productivity, not just to measure it. OOTC, Preface, x. The application of statistical principles and techniques in all stages of production directed toward the economic manufacture of a product that is useful and has a market. TWOWED, 42. Transformation Long-term commitment to new learning and new philosophy is required of any management that seeks transformation. The timid and the fainthearted, and people that expect quick results, are doomed to disappointment. OOTC, Preface, x. How poor are they that have not patience. (Iago to Roderigo, Shakespeare's Othello, II, iii); lead quotation for Chapter 2 of OOTC, "Principles for Transformation of Western Management." Put everybody in the company to work to accomplish the transformation. The transformation is everybody's job. OOTC, Point 14, 24. Variation Some leaders forget an important mathematical theorem that if 20 people are engaged on a job, 2 will fall at the bottom ten percent, no matter what. It is difficult to overthrow the law of gravitation and the laws of nature. The important problem is not the bottom 10 percent, but who is statistically out of line and in need of help. OOTC, 56. What statistical methods do is to point out the existence of special causes. A point beyond limits on a control chart, or a significant result in an experiment or test, indicates almost certainly the existence of one or more special causes. Points in contrl, or showing no significance, indiate the only common cuses of varioution remain. TWOWED, 46. |