Value of Information Systems and Information Technology in achieving zero

defects

Introduction:-
Zero Defects- A concept which mainly emphasizes on the reducing the defects or error in a
process was first coined by Philip Crosby. Defects are always correlated to cost and therefore it
is essential for today’s business to provide excellent business to its customers in order to exist.
Zero Defect concepts can be closely related to Six Sigma as both aims in reducing errors. The
impact of IT/IS therefore cannot be ignored as today business faces a complex situation in all the
aspects of business. The goal is to understand as to how IT solution has helped companies to face
today’s business challenges in terms of minimizing errors.

Role Of IT in DMAIC:-

One of the methods adopted by the company’s to achieve zero defects is the DMAIC
methodology i.e. Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control. IT/IS plays an important role
in the DMAIC process.

Define Phase:-

During this phase the main task is to identify the business need keeping customers at first place
and to prioritize the tasks which need full attention. This can be done with the help of Quality
function deployment tool which converts the customer’s requirements into a computerized
worksheets, charts, and templates etc. which are helpful in proper planning.

Measure Phase:-

The main objective of this step is to obtain reliable data of any process. Proper measurement is
necessary for proper analysis of the process. The data collected must be able to specify the point
at which error occurs (if any). One of the tool which can be used is Capability Analysis Tool
which assists in analysis the efficiency of a process. Some of the features provided by these tools
are:-
 1. Can be utilized in any business process for determining the patterns of the data.

2. It estimates the number of defect in a process by calculating the process capability.

3. It also helps in comparing two different process performances.

Analyze Phase:-

Analysis Phase refers to identifying and finding out the main causes for a particular problem.
The data’s collected can be used to test any theory about a problem. Various software packages
like Ms Excel, web based tools are available to test a hypothesis about a particular problem.
Another important tool which is exclusively used in the analysis phase is Failure Mode Effect
Analysis (FMEA) tool. It is a tool which detects potential defects or failures in a process and
helps the managers to prioritize the various defects mode which could occur in a process to avoid
such failures in future.

Improve Phase:-

The aim here is to find the ways in which the whole process can be improved. For this purpose a
tool known as Design of Experiments (DOE) can be used which simultaneously test for various
factors which affect the products or process. The new process is again measured and analyzed by
the tools for further improvement.

Control Phase:-

During Control Phase the main aim is to ensure that the whole process works as per the accepted
solution derived from the previous steps. To ensure the control Statistical Process Control
(SPC) tool is used which tracks the performance of a system based on certain variable which
changes over time. This tools helps to analyze both random variation which are based on
common cause and specific cause variation, thus indicating when an action to be taken.

Conclusion:-

Thus from the article we can understand the importance of various IT tools which can be used
for reducing or minimizing the errors. The advancement in technologies along with the rise in
networking concepts and sophisticated software tools has helped in achieving zero defects in
many organizations.