Question 1

Implementation of a Six Sigma program typically involves:

Accepted Answer

A)  Applying for the Malcolm Baldrige Award.
B)  Setting up training at various levels including green belt and black belt training.
C)  A cost of quality analysis.
D)  None of these are usually involved in implementing Six Sigma. B

Question 2

Which of the following is NOT a core value of TQM?

Accepted Answer

A)  Prevention is better than inspection.
B)  Problem solving should occur at the lowest organizational levels possible.
C)  Quality assurance managers should have the most power in the organization.
D)  Product quality should be viewed holistically. C

Question 3

Stu Johnson, CEO of Johnson, Inc., attended a seminar on Total Quality Management. Which of the following is NOT something he is likely to have learned at that seminar?

Accepted Answer

A)  Some aspects of quality are difficult to measure because they depend on customers' judgments.
B)  Quality is primarily the responsibility of operations management.
C)  Quality results from design as well as operations and delivery.
D)  Cross-functional teams are important in TQM decision making.
E)  He is likely to have learned all of these things. B

Question 4

Which is the most important category (as evaluated in terms of weightings used by the outside assessors) of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Program?

Accepted Answer

A)  Leadership
B)  Strategic Quality Planning
C)  Management of Process Quality
D)  None of these is the most important for the award.

Question 5

ISO 9000 defines a set of internationally accepted standards for:

Accepted Answer

A)  Product quality.
B)  Quality control.
C)  Operations management quality.
D)  Business quality management.

Question 6

At the heart of the Six Sigma program is a five-step process called D-M-A-I-C. These letters denote a major activity that must be completed to achieve the objectives of Six Sigma. These activities are:

Accepted Answer

A)  Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control.
B)  Define, Measure, Analyze, Inquire, and Compare.
C)  Define, Measure, Analyze, Involve, and Cost.
D)  Define, Measure Analyze, Improve, and Compare.

Question 7

Which of the following statements that might be made by a business executive best expresses the overall philosophy of Total Quality Management?

Accepted Answer

A)  "We've achieved Six Sigma. That's good enough."
B)  "There's always room for improvement."
C)  "The workers need to work harder to prevent quality problems."
D)  "We never sell defective products to customers."

Question 8

Why is product quality sometimes poorly defined in a firm?

Accepted Answer

A)  Managers do not know how to measure customer service.
B)  Holistic measures of quality are difficult to develop.
C)  Managers in different functional areas tend to emphasize different dimensions of quality.
D)  Both B and C are correct.

Question 9

If a company spends more on prevention, what would be the expected impact on other costs of quality?

Accepted Answer

A)  Appraisal costs will go up.
B)  Failure costs will go down.
C)  Failure costs will go up.
D)  Other costs will be unaffected.

Question 10

If a product includes features that customers care most about, we would say that it has high:

Accepted Answer

A)  Conformance quality.
B)  Design quality.
C)  Reliability.
D)  Aesthetics.

Question 11

Sanford Corp. bought new technological systems to inspect the quality of products as they come off the production line. The expense of operating these systems would be an example of which of the following types of quality-related costs?

Accepted Answer

A)  Internal failure cost
B)  Appraisal cost
C)  External failure cost
D)  Prevention cost

Question 12

The Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle is best defined as:

Accepted Answer

A)  A rigorous procedure for strategic planning.
B)  A method used to guide problem identification and solution.
C)  A method first proposed by Joseph Juran.
D)  All of these statements apply to the definition.

Question 13

"Quality at the source" suggests quality should be:

Accepted Answer

A)  Built into the product.
B)  Inspected at multiple points.
C)  Ensured by the quality control lab.
D)  An inspector's function.

Question 14

The managers of a production line that fills cereal boxes would like to reach a Six Sigma level of quality in terms of product weight. The desired range of output extends from 10 to 16 ounces. In order to reach Six Sigma quality, what would the maximum standard deviation of output need to be?

Accepted Answer

A)  1 ounce
B)  2 ounces
C)  0.5 ounces
D)  Not enough information is given to answer the question.

Question 15

Xanadu Inc. decided to increase the training received by new employees. The expense of this training is an example of which of the following costs of quality:

Accepted Answer

A)  Appraisal costs
B)  External failure costs
C)  Internal failure costs
D)  Prevention costs
E)  Quality control costs

Question 16

All of the following represent external failure cost EXCEPT the cost of:

Accepted Answer

A)  Scrapping defective raw material.
B)  Repairing items covered by warranty.
C)  Replacing defective items found by customers.
D)  Loss of goodwill and reputation.

Question 17

The initial focus of the DMAIC process is on:

Accepted Answer

A)  Process variability.
B)  Cost.
C)  Critical-to-quality characteristics.
D)  Problem solving.

Question 18

The TQM view of organizational structure states that

Accepted Answer

A)  Employees must support management decisions.
B)  Management must support employees.
C)  Customers want quality products.
D)  Middle management must support and enforce top management decisions.

Question 19

Which of the following statements is false?

Accepted Answer

A)  Quality dimensions are easy to measure for tangible goods, while they are difficult to measure for services.
B)  Dimensions of service quality are similar to the dimensions of quality for tangible goods.
C)  Some firms still have a poor understanding of quality and quality management.
D)  All of these are false.

Question 20

Variability as the source of most quality problems was a major contribution of which quality management thought leader?

Accepted Answer

A)  Juran
B)  Imai
C)  Crosby
D)  Deming

Exam 6: Managing Quality