STEPS :

Plan
"Plan" is really a two-step process. The first step consists of identifying and defining a problem
existing within a process. The second step involves analysis of this problem. During these two
processes, many tools and steps will need to take place including:

Do

Determining the root cause of the problem.

Determining the interventions necessary to correct the problem.
Determining what the expected outcomes are.
Determining who the responsible parties will be for the improvement of the problem.
Scheduling the steps of the correction.
Planning for resources.
Justifying the need for the improvement.
Determining the metrics for the improvement.
Mapping the process using a flowchart or other helpful tool.
Collecting any data related to the problem.

Once the plan has been created, the project scope statement signed off on, and the schedule made,
it's time to execute the plan. During this phase, a solution will be:

Implemented on a trial basis.

Continuously checked (see the next step) for efficiency.

Permanently implemented (if the trial is successful).

Measured for performance.

Used to train employees on quality improvement.

Check
Once the implementation of the solution has been started, using the PDCA improvement
methodology, you will need to track the performance of this solution over time. Take time to
compare the product or service quality before and after the implementation. Answer the following
questions:

Did the implementation of a change reach desired results?

What about the implementation or change worked well?
What did not work?
What was learned from the implementation?

All knowledge garnered from the trial run should be acted upon - should you not achieve your
desired results, for example, then you need to go back to step one and take a look again at your
root cause analysis. Perhaps you identified the wrong cause of your problems. Also, make sure to
communicate with others on what you found.
If, on the other hand, you find that you achieved your desired results, you can move on to the "act"
phase of the Deming Cycle.
Act
Should your plan work (and after a few attempts at tweaking your process, it should), then it is
time to standardize your process improvement and implement it across your business practices.
During this final phase of the PDCA cycle, you will want to:

Identify any training needs for full implementation of the improvement.

Fully adopt the solution for process improvement.
Continue to monitor your solution.
See if you can't improve the solution through further implementations
Find other opportunities for improvement.

PDCA improvement methodology, like Total Quality Management, is a continuous method. That
means that you don't stop working through the PDCA cycle once you've achieved one goal.
Instead, you "lather, rinse, repeat" and continually find ways to improve your products, services,
and processes over time.

PDCA CYCLE- Example

Personal Improvement
The PDCA cycle is a valuable process that can be applied to practically anything. In this session, we
discuss case related medical student performance, but the PDCA cycle can be used in everything from
making a meal to walking your dog. An immediate concern of yours may be improving your study skills.
Example 1: The Student with Poor Grades
Lakshmi is a first-year medical student who has just taken her first set of examinations and is very
unhappy with the results.
What is she trying to accomplish? Lakshmi knows that she needs to improve her studying skills in order
to gain a better understanding of the material.
How will she know that a change is an improvement? Lakshmi considers the most important measure of
her study skills to be her exam grades. However, she does not want to risk another exam period just to
find out that her skills are still not good. She decides that a better way to measure improvement is by
taking old exams.
What changes can she make that will result in improvement? Lakshmi thinks that she has spent too little
time studying. She feels that the best way to improve her study skills is by putting in more hours.
Cycle 1
Plan: Lakshmi decides to add an additional thirty hours per week to her already busy schedule. She
resolves that she must socialize less, get up earlier, and stay up later. At the end of the week she will take
an old exam to see how she is progressing.
Do: By the end of the week, Lakshmi finds that she was able to add only fifteen hours of studying. When
she takes the exam she is dismayed to find that she does no better.
Check: The fifteen extra hours of studying has made Lakshmi feel fatigued. In addition, she finds that her
ability to concentrate during those hours is rather limited. She has not exercised all week and has not seen
any of her friends. This forced isolation is discouraging her.
Act: Lakshmi knows that there must be another way. She needs to design a better, more efficient way to
study that will allow her time to exercise and socialize.
Cycle 2
Plan: Lakshmi contacts all her medical school friends who she knows are doing well yet still have time for
outside lives. Many of these friends have similar advice that Lakshmi thinks she can use. Based on her
findings, she decides to always attend lectures, to rewrite her class notes in a format she can understand
and based on what the professor has emphasized, and to use the assigned text only as a reference.
Do: Lakshmi returns to her original schedule of studying. However, instead of spending a majority of her
time poring over the text, she rewrites and studies her notes. She goes to the text only when she does not
understand her notes. When Lakshmi takes one of the old exams, she finds that she has done better, but
she still sees room for improvement.
Check: Lakshmi now realizes that she had been spending too much time reading unimportant information
in the required text. She knows that her new approach works much better, yet she still feels that she needs
more studying time. She is unsure what to do, because she doesn't want to take away from her social and
physically active life.
Act: Lakshmi decides to continue with her new studying approach while attempting to find time in her
busy day to study more.
Cycle 3
Plan: In her search for more time to study, Lakshmi realizes that there are many places that she can

combine exercising and socializing with studying. First, she decides to study her rewritten notes while she
is exercising on the Stairmaster. Next, she intends to spend part of her socializing time studying with her
friends.
Do: Lakshmi's friends are excited about studying together, and their sessions turn into a fun and helpful
use of everyone's time. Lakshmi has found that she enjoys studying while she exercises. In fact, she
discovers that she remains on the Stairmaster longer when she's reading over her notes. When Lakshmi
takes her exams this week, she is happy to find that her grades are significantly higher.
Check: Lakshmi now knows that studying does not mean being locked up in her room reading hundreds
of pages of text. She realizes that she can gain a lot by studying in different environments while focusing
on the most important points.
Act: Lakshmi chooses to continue with the changes she has made in her studying habits. What Lakshmi
initially thought would be an improvement turned out to only discourage her further. Many people who
are in Lakshmi's place do not take the time to study their changes and continue them even though they
lead down a disheartening path. By using the PDCA cycle, Lakshmi was able to see that her initial change
did not work and that she had to find one that would better suit her. With perseverance and the
willingness to learn, Lakshmi was able to turn a negative outcome into a positive improvement
experience.

EXTRA :
Deming is best known for developing a system of statistical quality control, and for his advocacy that
quality must be built into the product at all stages of manufacturing. His overall approach focused on
improvement of systems and processes for efficient quality management. He believed, it is the system and
not the workers (- a widely held belief by many during that period), which is responsible for the process
variations and quality problems. As per Deming, quality comes from the ability to produce with
predictable degree of uniformity and dependability at a lower cost, and the product must be suitable for
the market. Deming advocated that as quality improves, productivity increases with decrease in overall
cost. Such a situation creates more jobs, greater market share for the products and ensures long-term
survival of the company. He prescribed fourteen universal points for quality management, which are
described below:
1. Create consistency of purpose with plan: This implies that companies should have clear mission
and statement of purpose. True purpose of a business should be to serve its customers and all other
stakeholders, including employees.
2. Adopt the new philosophy of quality: This refers to viewing quality as an outcome of improved
systems and processes that enable to produce with high degree of consistency and dependability at low
cost. Deming referred improvement as never-ending cycle where improvements follow one another with
no letting up of efforts. He termed this approach as the new the new philosophy of quality.
3. Stop the practice of mass inspection: Mass inspection does not stop producing defectives, and
does not add value to the products; it only adds unnecessary cost and tends to dilute the responsibility of
workmen for their own output. Managers should understand the causes of variations and take steps to
reduce the same. Inspection, if any, should only be for the purposes of information and data building.
4. Identify problems and work continuously for improving the system: Problems will exist in a
manufacturing system, and solving and improving that situation should be the key to successful quality
management. Reducing the variability and thereby helping to establish a stable and predictable
production system can bring about the real change in quality management practice.
5. Change the focus from quantity to quality: Ultimate value of production lies in its quality and
not in quantity. Often, focus on quantity leads to production at any cost, and high cost of rework and
scarp. This violates all systems of good management.
6. Stop asking for productivity improvement without identifying and providing methods to
achieve them without any risk of quality: Productivity is a common buzzword, and every manager
may ask for it from the workers, but to get it right managers must plan the means and provide the
methods. Otherwise, it runs the risk of high cost and rework for maintaining quality.
7. Adopt the method of training on the job: Employees need proper skill and knowledge to do a job
well. It is the responsibility of management to provide necessary training and skill development
programmes to employees with regard to their classified jobs. Deming advocated that all employees
should be further trained in statistical tools and techniques for problem solving.
8. End the practice of choosing suppliers based purely on price: Deming advised that it is not
the price but the quality of inputs that should be the approach of good quality management. Cost due to

inferior inputs can lead to higher costs at later stages of processing due to scrap, rework and failure to
meet the delivery schedules of the customers. This should be avoided for an efficient quality management
system.
9. Eliminate work standards that prescribe numerical quotas: Numerical quota as a part of
standards of operations encourages short-term gains, and allows violation of systems and procedures for
work. This is against good work culture and does not encourage people to look for improvement
opportunities. Hence, this should be strictly avoided during setting up of work standards.
10. Drive out fear from the mind of people, encourage communication: Fear in the mind is a
strong barrier for understanding about ones job. Fear also stops people to communicate freely about their
jobs and ways of improvements. This hampers output and quality production. All types of fear should be
removed from the minds of workers, such as fear of punishment or reprisal for not meeting ones target,
for these inhibitions do not go well with a good production system.
11. Remove barriers to pride of workmanship: Pride of workmanship is a strong motivator for
quality jobs, and its recognition has many beneficial effects in the workplace. If workers are denied their
due recognition for their skills and abilities, they tend to loose their self-confidence and motivation, the
root cause of most quality problems in industries.
12. Breakdown the barriers between departments: People do work best when they are allowed to
work as a team. Too many departmentalization and compartmentalization of work does not allow
development of team spirit amongst workers and spawns the tendency to split the responsibility between
them and I. This is not conducive for good work environment that is necessary for good quality
management.
13. Institute vigorous education and retraining: Training is meant to improve job skills, and
education is necessary for self-development. Management must provide the opportunities for selfdevelopment by promoting educations and skill improvements by retraining of employees.
14. Create an appropriate management structure for implementation and follow up of
foregoing points for quality management in the organization: This is the part of action for
ensuring implementation of the aforementioned points for good quality management. Top management
must create a suitable management structure with appropriate authority and responsibility to implement
and monitor the steps taken as per above recommendations for good quality management practice. This is
the task for top management. Management structure so devised should, in turn, institute suitable actions,
processes and procedures for ensuring that governing principles of good quality management are
practiced throughout the organization.
Apart from strong advocacy of moving away from inspection, and for introduction of quality control based
on statistical analysis and improvements, Demings other important recommendations are: focus on
quality and not quantity, training for the job, system of working with focus on improvements, and
having a definite purpose of the business. Unfortunately, many of the obstacles and observations that led
Deming to prescribe aforementioned fourteen universal points for good quality management are still
prevalent in some industries in India and many other developing countries. As a consequence, it is not
uncommon to find that quality of products and associated services is still continuing to suffer from high
degrees of inconsistency in those industries.

NOTE :

i) PDCA (plandocheckact or plandocheckadjust) is an iterative four-step management method

used in business for the control and continuous improvement of processes and products. It is also known
as the Deming circle/cycle/wheel, Shewhartcycle, control circle/cycle, or plandostudy
act (PDSA).
ii) A four-step problem-solving iterative technique used to improve business processes. The four steps are
plan-do-check-act. The PDCA Cycle can be used to effect both major performance breakthroughs as well
as small incremental improvements in projects and processes. Also known as the Deming wheel or
Shewhart cycle.

PDCA diagram

Meaning
PLAN
Establish the objectives and processes necessary to deliver results in accordance with the expected
output (the target or goals). By establishing output expectations, the completeness and accuracy of
the spec is also a part of the targeted improvement. When possible start on a small scale to test
possible effects.
DO
Implement the plan, execute the process, make the product. Collect data for charting and analysis in the
following "CHECK" and "ACT" steps.
CHECK
Study the actual results (measured and collected in "DO" above) and compare against the expected
results (targets or goals from the "PLAN") to ascertain any differences. Look for deviation in
implementation from the plan and also look for the appropriateness and completeness of the plan to
enable the execution, i.e., "Do". Charting data can make this much easier to see trends over several
PDCA cycles and in order to convert the collected data into information. Information is what you need for
the next step "ACT".
ACT
If the CHECK shows that the PLAN that was implemented in DO is an improvement to the prior
standard (baseline), then that becomes the new standard (baseline) for how the organization should
ACT going forward (new standards are enACTed). If the CHECK shows that the PLAN that was
implemented in DO is not an improvement, then the existing standard (baseline) will remain in place. In
either case, if the CHECK showed something different than expected (whether better or worse), then
there is some more learning to be done... and that will suggest potential future PDCA cycles. Note that
some who teach PDCA assert that the ACT involves making adjustments or corrective actions... but
generally it would be counter to PDCA thinking to propose and decide upon alternative changes without

using a proper PLAN phase, or to make them the new standard (baseline) without going through DO
and CHECK steps.

When to use the Deming Cycle

The Deming Cycle provides a useful, controlled problem solving process. It is particularly
effective for:
- Helping implement continuous Improvement approaches, when the cycle is repeated

again and again as new areas for improvement are sought and solved.
-Identifying new solutions and improvement to processes that are repeated frequently. In
this situation, you will benefit from extra improvements built in to the process many times
over once it is implemented.
-Exploring a range of possible new solutions to problems, and trying them out and
improving them in a controlled way before selecting one for full implementation.
- Avoiding the large scale wastage of resources that comes with full scale implementation of
a mediocre or poor solution.

As a model for continuous improvement.

When starting a new improvement project.

When developing a new or improved design of a process, product or service.

When defining a repetitive work process.

When planning data collection and analysis in order to verify and prioritize problems or root causes.

When implementing any change.

You should use PDCA any time:

you need to make continuous improvements to a process.

you are designing a new process.
when you are implementing changes into an existing process or project.
when you need to define a work process.
when defining a new service or product.
Read on to learn more about each of the steps involved in the PDCA improvement methodology as well
as the tools involved with the process.

PDCA Benefits
PDCA, an acronym that stands for "plan, do, check, act," is a technique in Total Quality Management that
allows organizations to make improvements in processes and methods while constantly evaluating the
results. Constant evaluation of processes and methods ensures the company is always taking steps to
improve the efficiency of the organization. Management and employees both must adopt the continuous
improvement mentality to make significant increases in efficiency and productivity.

Unlimited Applications
Companies can use the PDCA tool in a variety of situations. Total Quality Management techniques
offer many benefits for manufacturing processes, but other departments such as accounting or human
resources can use the tools to run the processes in the department efficiently. For example, the payroll
department in an organization can implement a new method for processing employee time sheets to
speed up the process. The PDCA technique allows the company to try the process with a small number of
time sheets to analyze the new method before implementing it across the board.

Minimizes Cost

Using the PDCA technique allows a business to test a process change on a small scale before spending
on a method that may not work or that requires adjustment. The company can continue to run as usual
while analyzing the affect of a change to the process. For example, a new method may require additional
tools or machinery to put it in place on the production floor. Before purchasing additional tools, the
organization can test the process to ensure that it will bring about results such as an increase in
productivity or an improvement in quality.

Built-in Check

The "check" step of the quality management tool ensures the company analyzes the effect of a change
before going full steam ahead. When the data shows a process or new method does not have the effect
planned, the "act" step provides an opportunity to tweak the new method to correct a problem.

Expandable

Once a new technique or process method is successfully checked and analyzed, the company can
expand the method with the assurance it will provide the expected benefits. For example, when a new
production method reduces waste material and improves the quality of the product, the method can be
incorporated across the board to expand the efficiencies in the organization.

There are many benefits that can be secured using a PDCA process. The process in itself is quite
simple, but through repeating it there is a chance to ensure that processes are improved quite
dramatically.

It can also bring benefits where there are unknowns, often common at the start of a project. So the
PDCA process will ensure that the unknowns are either proven or even discounted.

The PDCA process will ensure that whatever the identified goal or objective is, the repeated planning,
doing, checking and acting will drive forward improvement, because there is no room for complacency
using this method. Constantly evaluating, measuring performance and then re-evaluating leads to
substantial growth in improvements; sometimes by small steps, sometimes by huge leaps!

Daily routine management-for the individual and/or the team

Problem-solving process
Project management
Continuous development
Vendor development
Human resources development
New product development
Process trials

The advantages of PDCA;

Simple Its easy to use.
Effective The thinking way provides a framework for ongoing improvement.
Comprehensive It links all the necessary stages together in a simple process.
Flexible Its easily adapted to a multitude of circumstances.
Engaging By its nature it fosters and produces teamwork.
Inexpensive Its a team focused exercise so there are no additional costs.

Deming Cycle Pitfalls and Limitations

Some of the pitfalls and limitations of the Deming Cycle that I have recognized
when used as a guide by operators include:
1. The model does not deal with the human side of change, resistance and
motivation.
2. Leadership styles when implementing the approach are overlooked.
3. Communication methods between management and operators are not
considered.
4. The PDCA cycle implies that improvement becomes a part of every person's job
though individuals may not be competent or sufficiently trained to do so.
5. The actual work process itself may not be well enough designed to be capable of
outputting the promised level of conformance to plan, disadvantaging both the
process and the operator. So therefore quality has to be built into every element of
the process before delegating to individual people to improve.

6. All those responsible for implementing the PDCA cycle require good knowledge
and control of the process and the improvement initiative for it to be accepted and
for it to be effective.
7. The PDCA Deming cycle is limited in scope. It applies more too individual
processes for improvement more so than to broader organizational changes. It does
not take into account at the process face, the operational and strategic objectives of
the business. It can become a process or activity working in isolation away from a
broader system of initiatives.